Yongin City Vows to Prevent Basement Leaks in Apartments... Announces Measures Against Construction Defects

Mandatory External Waterproofing Design... Introduction of Supervision Report System for Waterproofing Works
Lee Sangil: "Measures to Prevent Defects at Every Stage to Ensure Quality Construction"

Yongin City in Gyeonggi Province will make external waterproofing design mandatory to prevent basement water leakage, which has recently become a major defect in newly built apartment complexes.

On May 23, Yongin City announced that it has established a set of countermeasures to prevent construction defects and strengthen management throughout all stages of apartment construction, including design, construction, and supervision.

First, the city will require external waterproofing design for the basement levels of apartment buildings from the design stage. 'External waterproofing' is a method that creates a waterproof layer on the outside of the exterior walls of underground structures. Although it is more expensive than 'internal waterproofing,' it is more effective. For sections where external waterproofing is difficult to apply, the city will require developers to establish a leakage prevention plan at the project approval stage and to consult with the approval authority.

During the construction phase, in addition to the existing three safety inspections by specialized agencies, the city will conduct an additional safety inspection before pouring the top slab of the basement. The purpose is to repair cracks in the top slab and exterior basement walls at an early stage and to fundamentally prevent initial water leakage.

To further strengthen the supervision and management responsibilities of construction supervisors, the city will introduce a 'supervision report system' for waterproofing works. Under this system, in addition to the quarterly supervision reports required by the Housing Act and other relevant regulations, supervisors must also submit a construction supervision report during waterproofing works on the basement and top floor slabs.

Before the pre-inspection by prospective residents, which takes place 45 days before move-in, the city’s quality inspection team will first check for defects. If any deficiencies are found during the inspection, the city will immediately order corrections. If construction is found to be inadequate, the city will require corrective measures to be completed before allowing prospective residents to visit the site.

Additionally, the city will implement measures such as imposing penalty points on relevant construction professionals if substandard construction is discovered after the apartment’s occupancy inspection.

This set of measures was prompted by Yongin Mayor Lee Sangil’s directive to strengthen defect management throughout the entire apartment construction process, following recent issues with defects at the Gyeongnam Honorsville Descent apartment complex in Yangji-myeon, Yongin.

Mayor Lee Sangil stated, "We have decided to implement measures to prevent defects throughout the entire construction process so that apartments without defects can be built in our region," adding, "Building on the efforts and achievements of the past few months for prospective residents of Gyeongnam Honorsville in Yangji-myeon, we will actively provide administrative guidance to ensure that apartments residents can trust are constructed."