What a forensic construction report does
A forensic construction report is the written record of an investigation. It describes the building, the conditions observed, any testing performed, and the conclusions drawn from that evidence.
In a construction defect matter, the report often becomes the reference point for everyone involved. Attorneys use it to understand the issues, owners use it to plan repairs, and other experts review it to test the findings.
Because opposing parties will read it closely, a sound report separates observation from opinion. It ties each conclusion to the evidence behind it, so a reader can follow the reasoning and check it. Many reports are also read long after they are written, by people who never saw the site, which makes clear organization and photographs essential.
Reports grounded in field investigation
de Haan & Associates generates comprehensive field reports, photo documentation, conceptual repair scopes, and cost estimates promptly. Each begins with field work, where our personnel identify and document defects at the site. Those field observations are the raw material for every conclusion in the report.
Gregg de Haan, our founder and principal, leads field investigations and gathers field data. He specializes in preparing repair scopes, cost estimates, and complex defect reports. Repair scopes and cost estimates often appear alongside the findings they address.
Our associates are active in the building trades and are familiar with current building materials. They are also educated on past and current building codes, SB800, and building product performance testing.
Complex defect reports
Some matters involve a single leak at a single window. Others involve many buildings, many trades, and conditions that interact with one another. A complex defect report has to keep those threads organized, so a reader can follow each issue from location to cause to proposed repair.
Our investigative specialties cover the building envelope, the site, and the building systems. They range from cement plaster, siding, roofing, and windows to subgrade waterproofing, decks, podium slabs, and mechanical and plumbing systems. A report can address any of these, alone or together.
Our goals in any dispute are clarity and accuracy. The report is where those goals are tested first. Every statement in it should be one that can be supported under questioning.
What a construction defect report may include
The contents depend on the matter and on what the client needs. Not every report needs every element. A focused report on a single condition may need only a few pages and clear photographs, while a matter involving many buildings calls for a more structured document.
Where a material may have a manufacturing defect, we are 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.
Drawing on our field work, research, and analysis, a report can bring together the elements listed below. The mix depends on the questions the matter raises.
- Comprehensive field observations
- Photo documentation of the conditions found
- Field testing data, including window and door water testing
- Conceptual repair scopes and cost estimates
- Plan and detail analysis for constructability and code compliance
- Reference to present and past product literature and testing data
From report to resolution
Our reports support each forum in which we provide expert witness services: settlement conferences, mediations, arbitrations, depositions, and trial. Gregg de Haan prepares field testing data for trial and appears at trial as an expert witness for owners and builders.
Building envelope and construction problems sometimes need to be resolved through litigation or arbitration. When they do, information must be presented in a way that makes sense to attorneys, and an organized report is the foundation for that. A reader should be able to find any condition, see it in a photograph, and understand the proposed repair.
We are retained by attorneys, insurance carriers, building owners, homeowner associations, and contractors in California, Arizona, and Montana. Each of those readers needs the same facts, presented the same way.
What we examine
- 01Conditions observed and documented in the field
- 02Building envelope and waterproofing assemblies
- 03Concrete, masonry, decks, and podium slabs
- 04Electrical, mechanical, and plumbing systems
- 05Field testing data
- 06Past and current building codes
- 07Repair scope and cost
What you receive
- Comprehensive field reports
- Complex defect reports
- Photo documentation
- Conceptual repair scopes and cost estimates
- Field testing data prepared for trial
How the work proceeds
- 01
Field investigation
Our field personnel identify and document defects at the site, led by Gregg de Haan.
- 02
Documentation and testing
Conditions are recorded with photo documentation, and windows and doors can be water tested where relevant.
- 03
Research and analysis
Findings are read against past and current building codes, SB800, and our library of product literature and testing data.
- 04
Report
We prepare comprehensive field reports or complex defect reports, with conceptual repair scopes and cost estimates.