Construction Defect

Hospital Emergency Room Evacuation

Challenge:

In a hospital facility undergoing renovation and construction of an emergency room expansion, an indoor environmental and air quality problem arose. The matter progressed to litigation. The case attorney was challenged by the need to integrate medical and building construction expertise. We were consulted to determine the root cause of the building failure that created the indoor environmental and air quality incident, resulting in employee evacuation. We were also retained to furnish an expert opinion as to whether or not the claimed medical conditions were causally-connected to the incident.

Solution:

We analyzed the coordination and scheduling of manpower, subcontractors, equipment submittals, delivery times, workmanship, trade customs and HVAC system configuration. We demonstrated the contractor's failure to maintain the construction schedule and meet critical dates. The contractor was behind schedule to a point where his incomplete and incorrectly performed work resulted in building conditions that contributed to the claimed medical symptoms. Our investigation efforts were then repurposed and used in pursuit of recovery from the contractor.

Reflection:

The value of medically-engineered solutions which integrated two separate components – occupant health and building performance – provided the basis for a successful outcome in the face of critical, health-related, environmental construction defects.

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