Everything that is important to know about seismic improvement of warehouses

The current construction sector technical standards do not specify the obligation to reduce the seismic risk on an existing construction prior to 2008, but concern only new buildings and the obligation to build them following the seismic safety standards dictated by them.

However, it is also necessary to consider Legislative Decree no. 81/2008 (Consolidated Law on the protection of health and safety in the workplace) as a regulatory reference.
This decree prescribes measures with the aim of protecting the health and safety of “users” and “workers” in all work environments, both public and private, through scrupulous research into occupational and non-occupational risks.
These objectives are followed through the drafting of the “Risk Assessment Report” and the consequent elimination or containment of the identified risks before they produce potential damage or unwanted effects.

Therefore, if this assessment has revealed the inadequacy of the level of seismic resistance of the company building, it is necessary to identify precise protection and prevention interventions, among which seismic improvement will most likely also be present.

When considering intervening in structures that host a production cycle that cannot be interrupted, it is essential to operate in the least invasive way possible.

Thanks to this need, local strengthening interventions have been developed, which are performed locally, on structural elements or on individual parts.
These works are often custom-designed for the individual client company, in order to bypass any possible problems.
For example, with interventions that bypass the plasterboard walls by operating exclusively on the masonry, operating from the roof covering or from the outside or scaffolding to climb over machinery or similar.

To do this, an innumerable number of specific restraints have been developed for the most disparate situations, with variable shapes and dimensions depending on the pre-fabricated warehouse on which one is going to operate.

No, through a series of measures it will be possible to implement the intervention without interrupting the company production cycle.
The main strategy will be to alternate the construction site with production activities.

For example, interventions can be carried out during traditional company closure periods when production would be suspended anyway.
It is therefore possible to perform a seismic improvement of an industrial warehouse by working with a massive workforce, in a short time and without interruptions, in such a way as to guarantee the return of the premises in time for reopening of the business.

Or, if the activity follows specific times, working in counter shifts; for example, if a company is active mainly during the day, it may be advantageous to schedule the seismic improvement intervention during the night-time slot or vice versa if the company works at night.

Yes, in Italy there is an incentive that allows you to offset the costs of making a warehouse seismically safe: the Sisma Bonus, a tax deduction specifically for interventions that improve the seismic safety of buildings located in the most at-risk seismic areas, i.e. the 1, 2 and 3.
This deduction can amount to up to 85% of the costs incurred for anti-seismic interventions on warehouses.

The 2022 Budget Law extended the possibility of accessing the Sisma Bonus until 31 December 2024, together with that of taking advantage of the invoice discount and the transfer of credit for all construction bonuses.
Furthermore, the obligation of a further check has been introduced, when requesting the approval of conformity and the certification of the adequacy of the expenditure, by the directives of the new Anti-fraud Decree (Legislative Decree 157/2021).
Among the costs deductible with the Sisma Bonus, in addition to safety works at company level, other expenses incurred for verification and seismic classification are also deductible.