Duties and rights upon discovery of unsafe conditions 1

[Geoffre14]

As structural engineers, we were retained to design an addition to a building. Partway through the design process, we realized that many aspects of the recently-constructed building did not satisfy basic structural building code. Namely, the building has zero lateral (wind or seismic) force resisting systems, in addition to an insufficient foundation (spread footings founded on thick layers of crummy landfill, clays, and organic matter). We alerted the client to this fact in writing--in a way that was professional and not alarmist. But believe me--it's a very serious problem. It's really unsafe.

The client is unlikely to take on the expense of doing any work at all--remediation or future addition. They sort of got screwed over by the previous designer and by the fact that somehow the building department didn't notice any of this when they permitted the construction. Nonetheless, I don't want to be on the hook for when something goes wrong. I also don't want tenants, neighbors, bystanders, or future buyers of the property to be at risk.

In addition to notifying the owner, I want to bring this to the attention of the local building dept. If you put on your lawyer's hat, would we be doing the right thing? Could a nasty lawyer potentially say we should mind our own business? Would this be within the engineer's code of ethics?

 

[JedClampett]

I had a professor in college who talked about doing some load tests on an old existing concrete building that was to be demolished. They loaded it up with waterbeds to get the ultimate load and when they demolished they would compare the reinforced sections to the analyzed capacity.
It apparently took a hefty load (I think he said they stopped loading it when they got to 200 psf or so and it hadn't failed), but when the demolished the floor, it had no reinforcing. It should of taken no load, maybe even failing while supporting the dead load. He said that the only load carrying mechanism that he could figure in that floor was inertia.

 

[Geoffre14]

I have seen a lot of messed up construction and feel it would take a lot of negligence to produce a structure that would collapse in a design wind event. Not saying you're wrong, but your statement seems a bit conservative. Is the building entirely skinned with windows or something? Are you omitting contribution of drywall?

To add to what Forensic74 said, hasn't the building been exposed to a windy day already? If the building was that bad, it would be creaking and moaning for every breeze. The owner would know there's something wrong.

In the x-direction, the entire first floor has garage door, doorway, sliding glass door, or floor-to-ceiling windows. Imagine your classic "soft story." I am not exaggerating. There is 1 interior partition but it is drywall over slab on grade. I imagine that's a big part of what's holding everything up.

There is unreinforced CMU in the y-direction. That out-of-plane bending capacity is likely also contributing to strength, but this is also showing obvious signs of cracks and is not designed for this behavior. It is on a shallow strip footing that would clearly rotate when exposed to out-of-plane moment except I guess it is probably using the top few inches of soil in passive resistance.

I agree with your statements in general, but this building truly is bad. The building is new i.e. 2 years occupied, so it hasn't seen much loading yet. It is indeed showing cracking and gapping at connections.

 

[JedClampett]

Geoffre14, since you seem pretty sure, I'd advise retaining legal counsel. Sending off letters is the common sense solution, but you don't want to muddy responsibility. You need a statement that scares the owner enough to fix a building that's standing there just fine, but firmly reminds him its not at all your fault. Don't expect any more business from this client. There's no gratitude in doing the right thing. When all else fails, remember this immutable law of nature:
NO GOOD DEED GOES UNPUNISHED.

 

[dik]

The Architect should be put on notice by the client and be given an opportunity to remedy. If this fails, then to take off the gloves. If dangerous then should happen ASAP.

Dik

 

[lacajun]

As a PE, you need to read your state's laws and regulations.

In my situation of code violations, I wrote the owners listing all of the code violations and gave them a month to respond with an affirmative that all had been or were being addressed. I wrote that a missed deadline with such a response would prompt me, according to state law, to contact the local authorities such as the city and state governments as well as the local OSHA office. They responded. Had they not, I would have contacted all governing bodies because it an Professional Engineers responsibility to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public, to promote the public welfare, and to establish and maintain a high standard of integrity and practice. Public means everyone so you cannot pick and choose who you include in "public" based upon circumstances.

Included in my letter to the owners were the relevant statutes. As PEs, we are responsible for all federal, state, and local laws, codes, and regulations. Every state in which I am licensed the state expects knowledge of the existence of the laws and rules and to be familiar with their provisions and to understand them. Ignorance is no excuse.

This is from Colorado's 3.0 Rules of Conduct:

3.1.1 - Primary Obligation of Licensees. Licensees shall at all times recognize that their primary obligation is to protect the safety, health, property, and welfare of the public. If their professional judgment is overruled under circumstances where the safety, health, property, or welfare of the public is endangered, they shall notify their employer or client and/or such other authority as may be appropriate.

3.1.8 Compliance with Applicable Laws, Regulations, and Codes. Licensees shall exercise appropriate skill, care, and judgment in the application of federal, state, and local laws, regulations, and codes in the rendering of professional services and in the performance of their professional duties. It will be deemed a violation of these rules if a licensee violates local, state or federal laws or statutes that relate to the practice of architecture, engineering, or land surveying.

Those were included along with others to help them understand the nature of the law regarding my responsibilities and behaviors as a Professional Engineer.


Pamela K. Quillin, P.E.
Quillin Engineering, LLC
NSPE-CO, Central Chapter

 

[hokie66]

lacajun,
Agree with all that, but just curious as to whether those Colorado clauses are the Law, or in a Code of Practice pursuant to the Law.

 

[dik]

There are too many exclusions for this to be law... likely a policy or guideline for professional practice.

It's interesting to look at the logical construct of " If their professional judgment is overruled under circumstances where the safety, health, property, or welfare of the public is endangered, they shall notify their employer or client and/or such other authority as may be appropriate."

Dik

 

[lacajun]

Title 12, Article 25 of the Colorado Revised Statutes begins with to safeguard life, health, and property and to promote the public welfare, the practice of engineering is declared to be subject to regulation in the public interest.

The Rules of Conduct are Bylaws and Rules set by the State Board. Bylaws and rules, as I understand them set by each State Board, are to be followed, too. A bylaw is an ordinance or regulation made by a local authority, i.e., the State Board.

This is a point under the Preamble of the Preamble and Bylaws - All persons licensed under the Title 12, Article 25, Parts 1, 2, and 3 of the Colorado Revised Statues are charged with having knowledge of the existence of these rules and shall be deemed to be familiar with their provisions and to understand them. In these rules, the word “licensee” shall mean any person holding a license, certificate, or enrollment issued by this Board.


One thing I've learned is not to take any of the law, bylaws, or rules as guidelines. Your experience may differ. The State of Colorado and the State Board are much bigger and more powerful than me so I think it best to take them at their word.

Pamela K. Quillin, P.E.
Quillin Engineering, LLC
NSPE-CO, Central Chapter

 

[Scratch3r]

As a common courtesy you should call the architect and mention your involvement. You should be objective with the other professional. You don't know if there are other lateral resisting systems added during construction that aren't shown on the drawings.

I think it's one of the most basic statements in our codes of ethics that we, as engineers are to hold the safety of the public in the highest regard. So, you must inform the authority having jurisdiction if there is indeed a problem.

I've been in almost exactly these shoes. I sent a letter stating the problems with a new structure where the owner took a "shortcut". Nothing happened, except that I have covered my ass against future lawsuits.

Don't be the guy who knew but didn't say anything.