Periodic Façade Inspection (PFI) support in Singapore.

What is Periodic Façade Inspection?

Periodic Façade Inspection (PFI) is the inspection regime set out under Singapore's Building Control (Periodic Inspection of Buildings and Building Façades) Regulations 2021, which took effect from 1 January 2022. The intent is straightforward: external building envelopes deteriorate over time, and on older or taller buildings, that deterioration should be checked on a defined cycle so that any safety-relevant defects are identified and addressed before they cause harm to occupants, neighbours or pedestrians.

Buildings within scope are typically those more than 20 years old (measured from the date of TOP or CSC) and with a height exceeding 13 metres above ground. Detached, semi-detached, terrace and linked residential houses, and certain temporary structures, are generally exempt. The authoritative position should be confirmed with the relevant Regulations and, where applicable, with the inspection notice issued to the building owner.

Who is responsible?

Statutory responsibility for arranging a PFI sits with the building owner. For strata-titled developments, this responsibility typically falls to the Management Corporation Strata Title (MCST); for Town Council–managed estates, the Town Council. The owner appoints a Competent Person (CP) registered for façade inspection, who plans and certifies the inspection.

Our role is not to act as the CP. We are the field contractor that supports the CP and the owner — providing the access methodology, the crew, the photographic record and the structured defect data the CP draws on when preparing and signing off the report.

How a PFI is carried out

Under the regulations, a complete façade inspection generally involves two field components, carried out in sequence:

1. 100% visual inspection of the entire façade. A systematic visual survey using photographic cameras and equivalent tools, covering all elevations of the building. The visual sweep establishes the overall condition of the envelope and identifies areas that warrant closer attention.
2. Minimum 10% close-range inspection per elevation. A close-range physical inspection of at least 10% of the surface area of each elevation, carried out along defined vertical drops or trails. The close-range work uses tools that do not require special training to operate — for example a probing tool, borescope or scanning equipment — to assess the condition of the façade at touchable range.

Where the Competent Person assesses that defects warrant deeper investigation, a full façade investigation may be carried out — but only with prior approval from the Commissioner of Building Control, on the strength of an interim report and a proposed test scope. Other equivalent methods, technology or equipment for visual and close-range inspection also require Commissioner approval.

Our scope of support

The CP, the Façade Inspector and the contractor

Three roles, often confused in conversation, sit behind a PFI:

• Competent Person (CP). Holds the BCA Certificate in Façade Inspection and is accredited via the Joint Accreditation Committee (IES, ACES and BCA). The CP plans, directs, reviews and certifies the inspection and signs the report.
• Façade Inspector. An accredited inspector working under the CP's direct supervision. Carries out visual and close-range inspection in the field, against qualifications and working-experience criteria set out in the regulations.
• Field contractor (our role). Provides access, photography, defect-mapping support and structured documentation. We work under the CP's or Façade Inspector's supervision and do not certify the inspection.

References to CP, QP, PE and Façade Inspector on this site are descriptive only. Appointment and certification rest with the building owner and the appointed Competent Person; the prevailing BCA requirements take precedence over any summary on this page.

How we work with your appointed CP

Most owners and MCSTs come to us in one of three situations:

1. The CP is already appointed. We work to the CP's brief — access methodology, defect taxonomy and report template — and deliver field data into that workflow.
2. The owner is still selecting a CP. We can carry out a pre-PFI walk-down and prepare an access plan and elevation grid that the prospective CPs can quote against.
3. The CP wants a packaged field contractor. Where the CP prefers a single subcontract for access + photography + defect mapping, we deliver that package, working under the CP's direct supervision and certification.

What you can expect from us as deliverables

• Elevation-by-elevation 100% visual sweep image set, indexed by face and zone.
• 10% close-range inspection records: vertical drop/trail logs, close-up photographs, scale-referenced defect photographs.
• Defect schedule mapped against an elevation grid (E1–E4 etc.) with defect type, approximate extent and severity tag.
• Site safety documentation: risk assessment, safe work method statement, permit-to-work records.
• Native files (JPG/PNG/PDF) handed over in a structured folder layout that the CP can drop into the inspection report.

Façade inspection process and typical timeline

A complete façade inspection is not a single visit — it is a sequenced process that runs from initial document review through to a clean report and a follow-up repair plan. For most buildings in scope, owners and MCSTs should plan for a full cycle to take around two months end-to-end, sometimes more, depending on building size, access method, weather, management approvals and the scope of the final report.

Indicative only. Actual duration is set by the building owner, the appointed Competent Person and the conditions of the site — the prevailing BCA inspection notice timing takes precedence.

1. Document and photo review

   The CP and field team review available drawings, previous inspection records, repair history, BCA inspection notice, complaint logs and any photographs of suspected defects supplied by the building owner or managing agent. This shapes the access plan and the initial focus zones.

   Typical: 3–7 days

2. Site access planning

   Site walk-down to confirm elevations, anchor points, swing paths, neighbouring buildings, drop zones and exclusion zoning. Access method is selected per face — rope access, gondola, MEWP or scaffold — with method statements, risk assessments and rescue plan drafted under the WSH (Work at Heights) Regulations.

   Typical: 1–2 weeks

3. Appointment, scheduling and MCST approvals

   Permit-to-work documentation, MCST or managing-agent approval, resident notices and any landlord, neighbour or external authority approvals are arranged. Inspection dates are firmed up against the access equipment, weather window and the CP's availability.

   Typical: 1–2 weeks

4. 100% visual inspection

   Systematic photographic visual sweep of every elevation — ground-level and elevated — covering cladding, masonry, sealants, render, fixings, windows, parapets and architectural features. Output is an indexed image set tagged by face and zone for the CP's review.

   Typical: 2–5 site days

5. Close-range sampling and inspection (10% per elevation)

   Hands-on, arm's-length inspection of a minimum 10% of the surface area of each elevation along defined vertical drops or trails. Tapping, probing, sealant testing and close-up photography under the direct supervision of the appointed Competent Person or Façade Inspector.

   Typical: 3–7 site days

6. UAS / drone support, where suitable

   Where suitable, drone imagery is used to inform target areas, capture elevation mosaics and screen for surface defects on hard-to-access faces. UAS supplements — it does not replace — the close-range inspection required under PFI. Flights are planned, briefed and flown by qualified operators within the prevailing CAAS framework.

   Typical: 1–2 site days, weather permitting

7. Defect mapping and photographic records

   Defects are located on an elevation grid (E1–E4 etc.), photographed at consistent angle and scale, tagged with defect type, approximate extent and a severity indicator, and compiled into a structured defect schedule for the CP's report.

   Typical: 1–2 weeks (overlapping with site work)

8. Report preparation by the Competent Person

   The CP consolidates the visual record, the close-range findings, the defect schedule and any further investigation results into the PFI report, recommends rectification where required and signs off. Submission to BCA follows the prevailing requirements and rests with the appointed CP.

   Typical: 2–4 weeks

9. Follow-up repair planning

   Where the CP recommends rectification, the owner or MCST plans the remedial works — scope, budget, access, contractor and programme. We can quote the remedial works as a separate package using the same access plan, or hand the defect schedule over to the owner's preferred contractor.

   Typical: separate works programme