Casa Álvares Cabral, Porto
A structural survey and diagnosis was carried out alongside the respective execution stability project for a residential building located on Rua Álvares Cabral, in Porto. The intervention was grounded in a rigorous characterisation of the existing stone masonry and timber structure, providing the technical basis for the adopted solutions and ensuring their compatibility with the pre-existing construction.
Concept & Challenge
The building on Rua Álvares Cabral is a residential property with a stone masonry and timber structure — a construction type characteristic of traditional Porto. The 2017 survey identified excessive deflection and vibration in the floors, moisture accumulation in the basement walls, and structural deterioration in one of the rear annexes.
The central challenge was to achieve the safety standards required for contemporary residential use without compromising the existing fabric — preserving, in particular, the decorative plaster ceilings with original ornamental detail.
Approach & Methodology
The stability project took the structural survey and diagnosis report and the architectural drawings from the licensing process as its starting point, combining the data gathered on site with the geometric survey and the numerical modelling of the most heavily loaded elements.
Solution & Results
The solution preserved almost all of the original timber structure, strengthened through the beam doubling method. The rear annex received a wholly new steel structure with a new roof. The intervention improved the building's overall behaviour under horizontal loading, restoring adequate safety and habitability conditions for residential use, with the original structural systems largely preserved.
Conservation without replacement demands knowing what is worth keeping — and having the technical capacity to prove it.
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