Why a forensic construction investigation comes first
Building inspection and field documentation are among the most important aspects of construction defect conflict resolution. Every later step depends on them, from the report and the repair scope to expert meetings and testimony. Conditions that are not recorded early may be impossible to establish later.
A forensic construction investigation looks past the visible symptom to the condition that caused it. A stain on an interior wall may trace to a window installation, a flashing lap, a deck connection, or a plumbing line. The same symptom can have several causes, and more than one can be present at once. Telling them apart takes careful observation in the field.
Our field personnel identify and document defects promptly. Gregg de Haan, our founder and principal, leads field investigations and gathers field data.
Associates who know the trades and the materials
Our associates are active in the building trades and are familiar with current building materials. That familiarity matters when the question is whether a condition comes from the material, the installation, or the design. Hands-on trade knowledge helps an investigator recognize where a material is commonly cut, lapped, fastened, or sealed incorrectly.
If building materials are found to have manufacturing defects, de Haan & Associates is aligned with several laboratories that test and analyze product failure. We also take field samples to store at our office in case they are needed at trial.
Our associates are educated on past and current building codes, SB800, and building product performance testing. That background allows field observations to be read against the requirements and product data that applied to the work. Many conditions can only be judged fairly against the standards in place when the work was done.
Investigative specialties
Our investigative specialties span the building envelope, the site, and the systems inside the walls. Many defect matters involve more than one of them, because water and movement rarely stop at a trade boundary.
We are experienced in inspections of schools, commercial buildings, multi-residential buildings, and single-family homes. Each type brings its own access constraints, occupants, and building systems.
Each specialty has its own typical trouble spots. Cladding problems often show at openings and transitions, decks and podium slabs at drains and edges, and below-grade walls at joints and penetrations.
- Cement plaster, wood siding, and composite siding
- Subgrade waterproofing
- Concrete
- Masonry
- Roofing and sheet metal
- Windows and doors, including product and installation water testing
- Site drainage
- Decks
- Podium slabs
- Waterproofing and building paper installation
- Electrical
- Mechanical and plumbing
Documentation that carries through the matter
We use state-of-the-art cameras and video documentation techniques to provide trial-ready exhibits. The visual record preserves conditions that may later be repaired, altered, or removed.
We also generate comprehensive field reports, photo documentation, conceptual repair scopes, and cost estimates promptly. Together they provide an organized account of what was found, where it was found, and what repair may involve.
In a construction dispute, the same set of conditions is often examined by more than one party. A clear, organized record of the original observations helps everyone discuss the same facts.
From the field to resolution
We are retained by attorneys, insurance carriers, building owners, homeowner associations, and contractors in California, Arizona, and Montana. Our goals in any dispute are clarity and accuracy, and our team of associates regularly provides case development and testimony services for litigation.
Investigation findings carry into the rest of a matter. Gregg de Haan attends expert meetings, mediations, and arbitrations, prepares field testing data for trial, and appears at trial as an expert witness for owners and builders.
Early investigation is generally valuable. Conditions change as buildings age and as repairs proceed, and evidence recorded at the outset is often the most reliable account of what was there. It also gives every party a common point of reference for the discussions that follow.
What we examine
- 01Cement plaster, wood siding, and composite siding
- 02Subgrade waterproofing, podium slabs, and decks
- 03Concrete and masonry
- 04Roofing and sheet metal
- 05Windows and doors, including product and installation water testing
- 06Site drainage
- 07Waterproofing and building paper installation
- 08Electrical, mechanical, and plumbing systems
What you receive
- Comprehensive field reports
- Photo documentation
- Trial-ready exhibits
- Conceptual repair scopes
- Cost estimates
How the work proceeds
- 01
Site investigation
Gregg de Haan leads the field investigation, and our field personnel identify and document the defects.
- 02
Photo and video documentation
Conditions are recorded with cameras and video documentation techniques suited to trial-ready exhibits.
- 03
Samples and laboratory testing
Where materials may have manufacturing defects, we take field samples to store at our office and draw on aligned laboratories that test and analyze product failure.
- 04
Reports, scopes, and estimates
We prepare comprehensive field reports, conceptual repair scopes, and cost estimates promptly.