Before you can repair a structure, you need to understand it. That sounds obvious — but in practice, it is one of the hardest parts of the job. Incomplete records, hidden deterioration, structures that have been performing quietly for decades before suddenly becoming a problem: the assessment and investigation phase is where the real forensic work happens, and where the decisions that shape everything else are made.
Session I of the European Conference 2026 brings together five presentations that tackle this challenge from different angles.
Karla Hornbostel (Norwegian Public Roads Administration / NTNU) opens with practical experience from Norway on the inspection of prestressed concrete bridges — one of the most technically demanding inspection scenarios, where the consequences of missing a problem can be severe and the access and measurement challenges are significant.
Aleš Jakubík (SSBK CZ / Redrock Construction) presents on biogenic corrosion of sewer structures: from diagnostics through to durable repair design. A reminder that the underground infrastructure keeping our cities running faces some of the most aggressive deterioration conditions of all.
Miguel Prieto Rábade (RISE Research Institutes of Sweden) addresses the assessment of corrosion-damaged structures for safe and sustainable service-life extension — combining advanced testing, non-destructive evaluation, and predictive modelling to answer the question that matters most to asset owners: how much life is left, and what can be done to extend it?
Valbona Mara (AFRY) traces the journey from crack mapping to asset management through the investigation of Angeredsbron — a case study that shows how thorough structural investigation translates into smarter, longer-term infrastructure strategies.
George Sergi (Vector Corrosion Technologies) closes the session with a presentation on simplifying cathodic protection for the long-term sustainable performance of existing steel-reinforced structures — bridging the gap between technical complexity and practical, scalable application.
Together, these five presentations make a compelling case: the quality of what we know about a structure before we intervene determines the quality of everything that follows.
📅 European Conference 2026 | 25–26 November | Grand Hôtel Stockholm