Our reports helped to guide the conservation of Greenwich Palace, designed by John Webb in 1663, and Sir Christopher Wren's Royal Naval Hospital (1696), including the domed chapel. This outstanding historic complex, now part of Greenwich University, is the centrepiece of the Greenwich World Heritage Site.

We carried out archival research and detailed inspections in conjunction with specialist thermographic photography, to identify cracking and delamination in the Portland Stone masonry detailing that could have led to failures. Typical defects in such masonry buildings are due to atmospheric pollution, historic construction methods, such as the use of built-in ironwork, and inappropriate past maintenance and alterations. In this particular case our research identified further causes of settlement and cracking including previous buildings on the site, the effects of the high water table due to the adjacent river Thames, and wartime bombing and reconstruction.