Case Studies
This project involved determining whether repairs to the floor structure and foundation of a single-family residence were completed sufficiently by the homeowner’s contractor.
When evaluating the structure, a J.S. Held professional engineer (PE) determined that the work the contractor claimed to have performed was not completed or necessary. The PE issued a report, stating that the claimed work had not been completed by the contractor. The PE discovered that the photos provided by the contractor were obtained from various online sources. The PE leveraged reverse image searches to locate the photos on multiple websites and utilized historic aerial imagery and other imagery to determine the conditions of the structure prior to the report.
Upon submitting the report to our client, the matter was investigated by their special investigations unit and forwarded to the local district attorney’s office for suspected fraud. Our PE was then retained by the local district attorney’s office to evaluate the residence against other work that this contractor had claimed to have performed and was paid to complete. The list of projects that the contractor had billed over three years was reviewed and compared to the conditions present at the subject property. The local district attorney’s office used the J.S. Held report in criminal proceedings against the contractor.
Michael Jackson, PE
Professional Engineer
Forensic Architecture & Engineering Practice
+1 720 592 3751
[email protected]
> Structural Engineering
Our team is composed of civil and structural engineers who specialize in forensic investigations, repair scopes, code upgrade/compliance evaluations, and repair plans. We provide detailed forensic analysis of property and infrastructure damage by leveraging our understanding of the built environment and the impact of wind, water, fire, deterioration, construction defects, and outside forces.
> Forensic Engineering
J.S. Held’s forensic engineering experts include civil, structural, mechanical, electrical, geotechnical, and biomechanical engineers. Our forensic engineering analyses address what happened, why it happened, when the incident occurred, extent of damage, repairability, and applicable code upgrade/compliance requirements.