MEC&F Expert Engineers : 03/14/16

Monday, March 14, 2016

EPA Inspection Reveals Hazardous Waste Violations at FRC Component Products in Mason City, Iowa

Release Date: 03/14/2016
Contact Information: Angela Brees, 913-551-7940, brees.angela@epa.gov

Environmental News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Lenexa, Kan., March 14, 2016) - An EPA Region 7 compliance evaluation inspection of FRC Component Products in Mason City, Iowa, revealed violations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) related to the storage and handling of hazardous waste. In a settlement filed by EPA in Lenexa, Kan., the company will pay a $3,356 civil penalty to the United States.

As part of the settlement, the company is also required to complete a Supplemental Environmental Project, which will consist of a comprehensive lightbulb retrofit, replacing 2,920 lamps at its manufacturing facility. The cost of this retrofit is estimated at $40,774 and must be completed within six months. This project will supplement FRC Component Products' already existing solar panel program further reducing its environmental footprint.

EPA representatives inspected the facility in August 2014 and determined the company failed to perform waste determinations on multiple paint materials and solvents. FRC Component Products also failed to obtain a RCRA permit for the treatment of its hazardous waste, container management, and posting of emergency equipment. The company also failed to comply with waste management requirements by not closing, labeling and dating some universal waste containers.

In addition to the penalty and lightbulb retrofit, FRC Component Products is required to provide photographic evidence that storage containers are kept closed, and that hazardous waste containers are labeled. The company is also required to submit copies of waste-related shipping papers for 2014 and 2015.

By agreeing to the settlement, FRC Component Products has certified that it is now in compliance with all requirements of RCRA and its implementing regulations.

The RCRA program's goals are to protect human health and the environment from the potential hazards of waste disposal; conserve energy and natural resources; reduce the amount of waste generated; and ensure the wastes are managed in an environmentally-sound manner.

Coast Guard suspends search for 2 on Lower Mississippi River



Mar 14th, 2016 

 



NEW ORLEANS – The Coast Guard suspended their search for two missing boaters in Claiborne County, Miss., around 8:03 p.m., Sunday.

Response crews covered 934 river miles, and searched for over 84 hours for the missing boaters.

“Our condolences go out to the friends and family of the missing people,” said Capt. Timothy Wendt, Commander, Coast Guard Sector Lower Mississippi River. “We would like to extend a special thanks to the other agencies and volunteers for their support in the search effort.”

Participating in the search was Coast Guard Sector Lower Mississippi River, Coast Guard Aviation Training Center Mobile, Coast Guard Auxiliary air crews, , Natchez County Game Warden, Jackson County Game Warden, Claiborne County Sheriff’s Office, Tensas Parish, and Civil Air Patrol.

The search is suspended pending further information.

Coast Guard, locals searching for 2 missing people on the Lower Mississippi River

Coast Guard, locals searching for 2 missing people on the Lower Mississippi River

25-foot response boatNEW ORLEANS -The Coast Guard and local rescue agencies are searching for two people in a fishing vessel near mile marker 363 on the Lower Mississippi River, in Claiborne County, Miss., Friday.
Watchstanders with Coast Guard Sector Lower Mississippi River received a report from the Claiborne County Sheriff office at 10:46 a.m., Thursday that a fishing vessel with two people aboard was overdue. Last contact with the vessel was at 12 a.m., Wednesday as they were leaving Bayou Pierre and entering the Lower Mississippi River at mile marker 395.
The boat is an 18 ft. long, six to eight foot-wide, flat bottom Commercial Fisher. The hull is aluminum and is not painted. The vessel also has onboard a black, 40-horse power outboard Mercury engine.
Coast Guard Sector Lower Mississippi River deployed a 25-foot Response Boat and crew to search for the vessel.
The search area extends from mile marker 363 to 303 on the Lower Mississippi River.
Also searching are:
*       Natchez County Game Warden
*       Jackson County Game Warden
*       Claiborne County Sheriff  Office
*       Tensas Parish
*       Civil Air Patrol and Coast Guard Auxiliary Air resources

Anyone with information regarding the missing people is asked to contact Coast Guard Sector Lower Mississippi River command center at 901-521-4804.

Crocker Park gas explosion | OSHA investigators look at all aspects of construction site Did a gas leak touch off explosion?











Zoning wars in Jackson Township, residents angry with Trustees- Tara Molina




Joe Pagonakis
10:30 PM, Mar 11, 2016
9:27 AM, Mar 12, 2016





     


WESTLAKE, Ohio - Investigators with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration spent Friday combing through the explosion site at Crocker Park in Westlake, and interviewing workers and witnesses.

OSHA told newsnet5.com it is looking at all aspects of the construction site under its liquefied petroleum guidelines.

Nationally known fire investigator Bob Comer explained the fire and explosion may have been caused by an initial gas leak that created flames causing the liquefied propane to boil.

The mounting pressure and heat then caused the explosion.

"Leaking gas got ignited, which caused the fire around the tanks that heated the tanks and caused the explosion," Comer explained. "So was there security? And the big question is: why didn't they fix the leaks?"

Several teams of investigators were also on the scene of a construction site fire and propane tank explosion in that happened late Thursday morning. A structural engineer, BCI investigators, State Fire Marshal and OSHA investigators were on the site Friday.

Fire officials have not said what sparked the initial fire that caused one of two propane tanks to explode, damaging three floors of the American Greetings building that is under construction.

A State Fire Marshal declined to comment on his initial findings Friday.

A spokesperson for AmeriGas confirmed that the company had two 1,000 gallon propane tanks on the premises for temporary fuel during construction. The tanks were then leased by Walsh construction company.

Boston Fire Department sues truck maker after NIOSH report










By Owen Boss and Chris Villani
Boston Herald

BOSTON — Fire officials, hit with a scathing federal report criticizing the department in the deaths of two firefighters in 2014, said they are preparing to sue the manufacturer of a diesel engine now in more than a dozen problem-plagued city fire trucks in order to thwart future disasters.

Fire Commissioner Joseph E. Finn fought back tears yesterday while saying a “perfect storm for a tragedy” led to the deaths of fire Lt. Edward Walsh Jr. and firefighter Michael R. Kennedy on March 26, 2014, in a Back Bay brownstone as a wind-whipped blaze engulfed the building.

But Finn blamed budget cuts under the administration of the late Mayor Thomas M. Menino for forcing fire officials to put the replacement of equipment ahead of proper training and staffing.

Finn said he is working with the city’s lawyer to file a lawsuit against Navistar International, the company that created the MaxxForce engines inside some of the department’s vehicles.

“There’s 47 lawsuits across the country attributed to this engine and a number of class-action lawsuits and we’re going to be joining that,” Finn said last night.

“They make up about 35 percent of our fleet and they’re taking up about 80 percent of our service and maintenance time,” he said.

“We are going to be filing our own single-action lawsuit and we’re working with the city’s attorney on how we can best approach that.”

Finn’s comments came on the heels of a 77-page National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health report that found inadequate wind-driven fire training, subpar staffing and poor tactical decisions contributed to Walsh and Kennedy’s deaths.

Finn also attributed the risky state of the department’s fleet to “very poor choices” made by his predecessor.

“They’re out of service so much because of this engine problem that we’ve had to push into service our reserve fleet, which are engines over 15 years old that are now up on front-line service and you can imagine what that’s doing for us,” Finn said.

The 14 pieces of equipment with problematic Navistar engines, Finn said, have even left parts of the city exposed to fires without coverage from the ?department’s “invaluable” ladder trucks.

“In the last month or two we’ve had areas of the city that did not have a ladder truck because one of these went out of service and we didn’t have one to replace it with,” Finn said. “It’s a significant issue.”

Mayor Martin J. Walsh also blasted the current state of the department’s fleet, calling fire trucks purchased in 2010, 2011 and 2012 “lemons” that already have to be replaced.

“When we talk about re-establishing the fleet, we’re looking at it right now in the budget, we have to start by re-establishing the newer trucks, which is a problem,” Walsh said. “It’s going to take several years to get to where we need to get to.”

When asked why no one in the department was disciplined after the fatal blaze, Finn said: “They’re all gone and we’re here. And you know what? We, my team, the people who work with me, we have done everything we can in 18 months to ?turn this around and we’ve made some significant strides in doing that.” Copyright 2016 the Boston Herald

Worker collapses, 2 others sickened by Hanover plant chemical vapor in Pennsylvania



Worker collapses, 2 others sickened by Hanover Twp. plant chemical vapor




One worker collapsed and two others were sickened by a chemical vapor Friday night at a food and perfume processing plant in Hanover Township, Northampton County, officials said.

Paramedics and firefighters rushed to Unger & Co. at 110 N. Commerce Way at 3 p.m. after the first worker had trouble breathing, passed out and hit his head, Hanover Township Manager Jay Finnigan said.

"It was discovered that they had a situation where there was a chemical interaction that caused respiratory distress," said Finnigan, who also is the township's deputy emergency coordinator.

A hazardous materials emergency was declared, he said, and 20 workers were evacuated from part of the Unger plant.

County, state and federal officials joined local emergency workers at the plant and worked with Unger officials to track down and repair the equipment malfunction that produced the chemical vapor, Finnigan said.

The emergency was declared over about 6 p.m., he said.

The worker who hit his head and the two other men who inhaled the vapor were taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Muhlenberg for treatment.

Hanover Township, East Allen and Nancy Run fire companies were on the scene, as were local ambulances and representatives of county Emergency Management Services, the state Department of Environmental Protection and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Finnigan said he did not know which chemical or chemicals were involved in the incident. Residents downwind of the plant reported smelling the odor, but no one else was injured, he said.

— Frank Warner

ALSS Recycling Inc. faces $84K in fines after failing to correct previously cited workplace safety hazards



March 14, 2016
ALSS Recycling Inc.  faces $84K in fines after failing
to correct previously cited workplace safety hazards

Employer name: ALSS Recycling Inc.

Inspection site: 2600 Republic Blvd., Birmingham, Alabama 35203

Citations issued: The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued ALSS Recycling failure-to-abate citations on March 11, including one serious and three other-than-serious safety violations. The inspection was initiated as a follow-up to a previous assessment at the facility in June 2015.

Investigation findings: The serious violation was cited for not ensuring employees were trained to operate powered industrial trucks. The other-than-serious citations relate to the employer not inspecting fire extinguishers annually and failing to ensure employees voluntarily wearing respirators were medically cleared. Additionally, the company did not develop and implement a written hazard communication program for employees who handle recycled iron products.

Proposed penalties: $84,000

Quote: "ALSS Recycling did not fulfill its requirement to ensure the hazards that were cited in the previous inspection were corrected," said Ramona Morris, OSHA's area director in Birmingham. "We are expecting management to take immediate action to permanently correct the hazards in order to protect its employees."

The citations can be viewed at: http://www.dol.gov/sites/default/files/documents/newsroom/releases/OSHA20160471.pdf*

ALSS Recycling Inc. recycles sintered iron and sells it to foundries. The recycler has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and proposed penalties to comply, request a conference with OSHA's area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

To ask questions; obtain compliance assistance; file a complaint; or report amputations, eye loss, workplace hospitalizations, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, the public should call OSHA's toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742) or the agency's Birmingham Area Office at 205-731-1534.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

The Hayner Hoyt Corporation to Pay $5 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Liability

Monday, March 14, 2016



Government Contractor and Several Individuals Admit That They Violated Laws Designed to Enhance Contracting Opportunities for Our Nation’s Service-Disabled Veterans

Syracuse-based Hayner Hoyt Corporation has agreed to pay $5 million, plus interest, to resolve allegations that its chairman and chief executive officer, Gary Thurston, its president, Jeremy Thurston, employees, Ralph Bennett and Steve Benedict and Hayner Hoyt affiliates LeMoyne Interiors and Doyner Inc., engaged in conduct designed to exploit contracting opportunities reserved for service-disabled veterans.

The United States has long used government contracting to promote small businesses in general and specifically small businesses owned by veterans who have service-connected disabilities. Congress has established a targeted procurement program for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), which requires the VA to set annual goals for contracting with service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. To be eligible for these contracts, an applicant must qualify as a “small business.” In addition to being a small business, a service-disabled veteran must own and control the business and handle its strategic decisions and day-to-day management.

The settlement resolves allegations that the defendants orchestrated a scheme designed to take advantage of the service-disabled veteran-owned small business program to secure government contracts for a now-defunct company, 229 Constructors LLC, that Gary and Jeremy Thurston created and controlled and subcontracts for Hayner Hoyt and its affiliates. The Thurstons – neither of whom is a veteran – exerted significant influence over 229 Constructors’ decision-making during the bid, award and performance of these contracts in various ways, including by staffing the company entirely with then-current and former Hayner Hoyt employees and their spouses. They also provided 229 Constructors with considerable resources, which provided it with a competitive advantage over legitimate service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses neither affiliated with nor controlled by a larger, non-veteran owned corporation. Hayner Hoyt officials caused false certifications and statements to be made to the government representing that 229 Constructors met all requirements to be a service-disabled veteran-owned small business when they knew, or should have known, that 229 Constructors did not meet such requirements. By diverting contracts and benefits intended for our nation’s service-disabled veterans to Hayner Hoyt and its affiliates, the defendants undercut Congress’s intent of encouraging contract awards to legitimate service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses.

The investigation revealed that Bennett – a service-disabled veteran who allegedly ran 229 Constructors, served as its president and oversaw its $14.4 million government-contracts portfolio – was not involved in making important business decisions for the company. He was instead responsible for overseeing Hayner Hoyt’s tool inventory and plowing snow from Hayner Hoyt’s property. Jeremy Thurston set up an email account in Bennett’s name in such a way that all emails received by the veteran were automatically forwarded to him. After the government began to question 229 Constructors’ affiliation with Hayner Hoyt, Gary Thurston wrote others that he and Jeremy Thurston would likely terminate operations of 229 Constructors. A few months later, service-disabled veteran Bennett and Benedict, who was simultaneously the “co-owner” of 229 Constructors and listed on Hayner Hoyt’s website as one of its five “key” officials, transferred a total of $52,000 to Gary Thurston’s personal bank account allegedly to show their appreciation for the assistance he had provided.

Defendants make various admissions in the settlement agreement, including that their conduct violated federal regulations designed to encourage contract awards to legitimate service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. They also admit that 229 Constructors provided more than $1.3 million in service-disabled veteran-owned small business subcontracts to Hayner Hoyt, LeMoyne Interiors and Doyner and that those companies generated $296,819 in gross profits as a result.

“Those who do business with the federal government must do so honestly,” said U.S. Attorney Richard S. Hartunian for the Northern District of New York “As today’s settlement demonstrates, this office will vigorously pursue those individuals and entities who game programs designed to help our nation’s veterans succeed in starting small businesses.”

“Federal contracting programs designed to help service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses should never be undermined by actions such as the ones taken by Hayner Hoyt Corporation officials to divert contracts to ineligible large firms,” said Inspector General Peggy E. Gustafson for the Small Business Administration (SBA). “The Office of Inspector General (OIG) will continue to work with the U.S. Department of Justice and partnering agencies in using all available remedies to deter parties from taking advantage of contracting programs designed to assist deserving service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses.”

“This settlement demonstrates the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General’s continued commitment to aggressively pursue individuals and companies that misrepresent themselves as service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses and deny legitimate disabled veterans the opportunity to obtain VA set-aside contracts,” said Special Agent in Charge Jeff Hughes for the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA-OIG). “The VA-OIG will continue to work diligently to protect the integrity of this important program, which is designed to aid disabled veterans. I also want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners in this effort.”

“This civil settlement is a positive result of a joint investigation that proved Department of Defense contractor Hayner Hoyt executed a scheme to exploit and violate SBA and VA regulations in order to obtain service-disabled veteran-owned small business set aside contracts,” said Special Agent in Charge Craig W. Rupert of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service’s (DCIS) Northeast Field Office for the U.S. Department of Defense Office of the Inspector General. “Through these schemes, Hayner Hoyt denied small businesses, owned by legitimate service-disabled veterans, the opportunity to obtain government contracts. Such schemes erode public confidence and undermine the mission of our government. The DCIS and its law enforcement partners will continue to tirelessly pursue and investigate procurement fraud allegations in order to safeguard the American taxpayer and its military veterans.”

The government’s investigation was triggered by a whistleblower lawsuit filed under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, which allows private persons, known as “relators,” to file civil actions on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery. The relator in this case will receive $875,000 of the settlement proceeds. The case is docketed with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York under number 14-cv-830.

The investigation and settlement were the result of a coordinated effort among the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York, SBA-OIG, VA-OIG and DCIS. The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam J. Katz.

Metropolitan Engineering, Consulting, Forensics, and Environmental Remediation Services. Construction, Investigation, Remediation and Forensic Expert Engineers


Construction Defects, Construction Claims, Engineering, Property & Casualty Investigations, Assessment, Site Investigation, Remediation, Litigation and Indoor-Air Expert Engineers

Bill Stephan, PhD, PE, CIH, CHMM, JD, MBA
Principal Engineer

P.O. Box 520
Tenafly, New Jersey 07670-0520
Phone: (973) 897-8162
Fax: (973) 810-0440



__________________________________________________



Firm Overview


The engineering and forensic firm of Metropolitan Forensics and Consulting Engineering and Environmental Services was established for the purpose of providing a high value service to the insurance industry and to the insured companies or individuals. Our founding principal (Bill Stephan) is a licensed professional engineer in several states, including, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Delaware.



We specialize in the in-situ remediation of petroleum and chlorinated spills, the defense of liability claims, the investigation and defense of first or third party insurance claims and the handling of subrogation claims.  We are also experts on oil and gas energy sector issues (design, investigations, construction oversight), renewable energy sector (wind turbines, solar panels, biofuels, etc), vapor intrusion evaluation, vapor phase and transport and in design on vapor mitigation systems.  Additionally, we offer forensic engineering services, including age-dating of contaminant releases, construction defects, oversight, evaluation of remedial alternatives, sub-slab ventilation system design and installation.  The list of our core services is:



  • Cause and Origin Investigations
  • Construction Failure Analysis (Residential, Industrial and Commercial)
  • Structural Integrity Evaluation
  • Site Investigation
  • Tank removals and tank installations; licensed and insured to perform entire UST work
  • In-Situ Remediation of Soil and Groundwater
  • Vapor intrusion, indoor air evaluation and mitigation
  • Causation
  • Forensic Investigations (age-dating)
  • Oversight
  • Review of Remedial Action Work Plans
  • Reserve Estimation
  • Cost Allocation
  • RAWP Preparation
  • Site Remediation
  • Cleanup Level Development and Negotiation
  • Subrogation
  • Expert Witness/Litigation Support
  • Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP) Services
  • Construction Claims (Delay, Differing Site Conditions, Loss of Productivity, Acceleration, and others)

 



















Additional Specialty Service Areas

Age Dating
Boilers & Burners
Bridges
Building Codes
Building Inspections


Construction Accident
   Reconstruction
Construction Defects
Construction Delay Claims

Construction Surety Claims
Construction Disputes
Construction Differing Condition Claims
Construction Oversight
Construction Management
Construction Acceleration Claims

Construction Failures
Construction Injuries
Contractor Performance Issues
Corrosion


Defective Designs
Defective Roadway Design
   Evaluations


Earthquake
Electrical Accidents/Injuries
Electrical Equipment Failures
Electrical Fires
Elevators, Escalators
   & Conveyors
Embedded Software Hazards
   & Analysis
Equipment Failures
Errors and Omissions
Explosions

Failure Analysis
Fire
Fire Codes
Fire Protection Systems
Fire Suppression Systems

Flood Damage Assessment

Foundation Systems

Gas Systems

Hailstorm damage

Heating & Ventilation Systems
Heavy Construction
Highway/Roadway Design
Human Factors


Indoor Air Quality
Laboratory Services
Ladders, Scaffolding Falls
   & Failures
Lightning

Mechanical Defect Evaluations
Metallurgical Age Dating
Mold Causation
Natural Disasters/Weather
   Related Issues
Nuclear Energy
Occupational Hazards
   & Illness

Piping
Playground Equipment Injuries
Plumbing
Product Failures
Roofing Problems & Failures
Safety Codes
Safety & Human Factors
   Engineering
Scalding
Scene Mapping and Photographs
Sick Building Syndrome
Sports Equipment Injuries
Standardized Codes
Steam Systems
Subrogation Issues


Transportation Issues
Trips, Slips & Falls
Underground Storage Tanks
Utilities Expertise
Vibration
Water Damage
Windstorm



Mission Statement


Our mission is to work as an extension of our clients to expeditiously achieve the most economically favorable resolution of claims on their behalf and on behalf of their insured. We have developed and will continue to create new solutions to the technical problems and issues which are facing the insurance industry and the insureds today.  

Metropolitan provides forensic engineering work (age-dating or fingerprinting), site remediation, auditing, cost control and litigation support services to insurance carriers, their insureds and to private or public companies.  In its risk management role, examines, manages and audits environmental claims to ensure that assessment and remediation services provided to both carriers and policy holders are reasonable and necessary, properly rendered and appropriately charged. 



In its litigation support role, Metropolitan assists carriers and their counsel to ensure that litigious disputes are resolved fairly and reimbursement benefits are provided when appropriate.  The corporations service area includes the entire United States, with our corporate office located in Northern New Jersey.  The Firm's professional staff also travels regularly throughout the United States on assignment.


Forensics at Metropolitan


There are many issues associated with disputes over responsibility for cleanup. Who, what, when, where, and how chemicals were released can be investigated. The tools of forensic investigation include mathematical models, statistical models, fate and transport calculations, chromatography, lead isotope analyses, time of travel assessments, library search site characterization, tracer additives, and recently developed software applications.



Effective forensic project management should include an evaluation of multiple forensic tools based on site specific circumstances. The process of evaluation and the ultimate selection of the forensic tool are critical to a successful outcome. When project budgets allow, combining forensic methods for corroborative evidence can substantially strengthen your client’s position in an effort to prevent or support litigation. The effective forensic consultant must be well acquainted with an ever expanding list of analytical methods, environmental regulations, assessment procedures and remedial technologies.



The forensic field is one that utilizes a wide range of scientific tools to identify and characterize complex adverse environmental events. Some of the scientific disciplines involved in forensics include engineering principles (biological, physical and chemical), hydrology, lithology, geology, site history, site practices, mathematics, and statistics. These areas may be combined with technologies such as respiratory analyses, chromatography/mass spectrometry and chemical fingerprinting methods to answer complex questions with the ultimate goal of establishing responsibility for a particular event. Accurate, defensible forensic analyses are an essential component of any strategy that attempts to resolve the extent of the insurer or insured client responsibilities in the cleanup of contaminants.


Contact us online or call 973-897-8162 to learn more about our forensic services.



Property Damage Services at Metropolitan

Metropolitan assists property owners, claims professionals, businesses, and attorneys in   the assessment of the cause & origin (C&O), extent of damage and required restoration after pipe bursts, settlements, manufacturing and construction failures, fire, flood, earthquake, or storm damage.  Our teams of engineers have extensive experience in the many systems that make up a building including structural, mechanical and electrical systems.   We also have the necessary background to evaluate property damage to items such as communications towers or solar panels. We can help determine alternative, appropriate, and cost effective solutions for repair or restoration of any damaged property, both commercial and residential. 

Providing Competent, Expert and Objective Investigative Engineering and Consulting Services.

Our experts are multi-skilled, competent, and objective professionals who apply their analytical and common sense skills to reconstruct, determine the root cause, and document the events that give rise to property, casualty, and liability claims.  Thorough investigations and detailed measurements/research help us distinguish between pre-existing conditions and sudden and accidental losses.


 















Our investigations are:

·         Comprehensive & Accurate

·         Legible & Easy to Understand

·         Timely Performed

·         Delivered Quickly

·         Cost Effective

·         Clear & Concise

·         Developed by Professionals

·         Dependable

·         Our own uniform reporting system saves time and money.


Our Fast Track Investigation and Uniform Format Reporting systems allow us to conduct and deliver a comprehensive response to the assigned claim.  In most cases, we will obtain findings based on a site visit, visual observations, photographs, interviews, and field measurements.  Further investigations and testing will be provided upon request and approval by the client.



Forensic Investigation of Property Damage Claims

Metropolitan Consulting, Engineering & Forensics understands your need to complete a claim investigation accurately and efficiently as possible.  Whether it is accident reconstruction, damage due to environmental forces such as wind, water, hail, snow, tornado, etc.; fire origin & cause investigation or any other claim, the engineers at Metropolitan understand both you and your client want to resolve the claim.  The analysis you receive from Metropolitan will be accurate and complete, giving you the information needed in the claim adjustment and analysis.

Our services have extended beyond the forensic analysis phase into the remediation and repair phase of many large loss claims.  Upon the completion of the cause and origin (C&O) investigation, Metropolitan can provide our clients with complete working drawings and specifications needed to repair or rebuilt damaged buildings or other structures.  Metropolitan Consulting & Engineering’ staff possesses many-many years of experience in rehabilitation design, construction management, and project oversight to ensure the loss is restored in a timely and cost-effective manner without sacrificing quality.  Building code knowledge allows us to identify possible code upgrades as needed.  Metropolitan understands constructability and realizes making an insured whole goes beyond forensic investigation and design. We pride ourselves in providing practical solutions contractors can understand and follow.

At the forefront of available technology, we provide professionals and staff capable of handling a variety of engineering evaluations.  Our reports are clear, concise, complete and efficiently produced.  Our engineering objectives are achieved in an ethical manner consistent with the traditions and character of engineering professionals.

Contact us online or call 973-897-8162 to learn more about our property damage services.


Extensive Experience helping Sureties

Metropolitan also has extensive experience helping sureties fulfill their bond obligations resolve disputes after a contractor has defaulted.  This work includes the evaluation of contractor bid pricing, evaluation of the contractor’s ability to perform work, risk assessment, evaluation of termination, construction completion services, claim and litigation support services, loss recovery services, evaluation of payment bond claims, negotiation and settlement of payment bond claims, and construction defects investigation services.  Metropolitan has provided these services for commercial, development, educational, and assisted living projects.

Construction is a business fraught with risk.  Disputes over even the smallest of issues can quickly escalate, with crippling consequences to the project and the parties.  Over the years, the construction industry has developed various methods of contractually allocating the risk of project delay and disruption.  Some of these methods include liquidated damages provisions, "no damages for delay" clauses, mutual waivers of consequential damages, provisions that limit liability, claims notice provisions, and provisions addressing responsibility for the adequacy of the construction plans and specifications.  Parties frequently litigate the sufficiency of these risk-shifting efforts in conjunction with the underlying merits of delay and disruption disputes.
Construction Claims & Disputes
The most frequently encountered claims include:
1.            Construction Delay Claims
2.            Disruption and Loss of Labor Productivity Claims
3.            Design and Construction Defect Claims
4.            Force Majeure Claims
5.            Acceleration or Compression of the Schedule Claims
6.            Suspension, Termination and Default Claims
7.            Differing Site Conditions Claims
8.            Change Order and Extra Work Claims
9.            Cost Overrun Claims
10.         Unacceptable Workmanship or Substituted Material Claims
11.         Non-payment Claims (stop notice (or Notice to Withhold) claims, mechanics’ lien (only for private construction projects) and payment bond claims)



Forensic Engineering Experience Case Studies


Metropolitan staff has developed and utilized scientific methods to assist clients in a variety of ways related to their claim issues. The following is a partial list of such projects:

  • Provided expert witness services for plaintiff seeking remediation of contaminated groundwater that caused indoor air inhalation problems;
  • Testified that engineering and scientific evidence was improperly collected and analyzed and was inadequate to show the age of the release;
  • Origin and cause of retaining wall failures.  
  • Lightning damage to structures or electrical systems and equipment
  • Roof failure or collapse as a result of accumulated load, additional weight and snow drift at hundreds of commercial and residential properties.
  • Demonstrated that solvents in groundwater at client's property originated from off-site dry-cleaner and that client's site actually provided remediation for the off-site release of dry cleaning solvent;
  • Expert witness for property owner impacted by industrial waste disposal from industrial manufacturer;
  • Demonstrated that environmental analysis by a previous consultant for a manufacturing site was inadequate; as a result, the lender's concerns were alleviated and financing proceeded;
  • Chemical "age-dating" and contaminant transport analyses of petroleum in groundwater at a gas station showed that contaminants originated from other parties;
  • Age-dated petroleum release at a former gas station to show that the previous owner of the gas station caused groundwater contamination;
  • Age-dated petroleum releases at an industrial facility to show that the on-site plume was the result of an off-site source;
  • Prepared age-dating reports for over one-hundred residential fuel oil spills;
  • Assisted insurance companies attorneys in defending subrogation claims; was able to demonstrate that the forensic data collected by the first party consultant were collected and analyzed using invalid methods;
  • Demonstrated that structural damage to a residence was from a source other than the alleged high lake level
  • Collected evidence (for the primary responsible party) that identified other responsible parties to share in the cost of a Superfund cleanup;
  • Review of the site data at a bulk petroleum facility indicated that the site releases were not the result of regular oil transfer operations and that they were caused by the negligent actions of the insured’s agents; the case was settled in favor of the insurance company;
  • Was able to demonstrate that the majority of the removal actions at petroleum release sites were neither reasonable nor necessary; as a result of our opinion, the insurance client settled the claim in favorable terms;
  • At several drycleaner sites we were able to demonstrate that the age of the release was much earlier than the parties originally believed; as a result, the insurance client settled the claim at a fraction of the alleged liability;
  • We performed numerous flood and wind damage assessments at commercial and residential properties.
Contact us online or call 973-897-8162 to learn more about our forensic engineering services.




Site Remediation Services


 Characterizing and remediating contaminated sites involve some of the most complex and difficult issues for environmental lawyers and their clients. Problem areas include responding to regulators; negotiating enforcement settlements; negotiating or litigating cost allocation and recovery claims; working with the insured or insurer client, lawyers and regulators to develop efficient, cost-effective remediation approaches; and selling, buying, or developing contaminated properties.



Metropolitan staff has developed and applied an innovative approach to the use of sodium persulfate for the sequential in-situ treatment of subsurface contaminants through chemical oxidation followed by enhanced biological degradation through sulfate reduction. This approach has broad applicability to a wide range of contaminants, and shows strong cost-saving benefits through reducing the initial volume of chemical oxidant necessary and enhancing the in-situ biological degradation of contaminants.



Through proper subsurface geochemical characterization and chemical dosing design, the approach focuses on utilizing the oxidant for immediate mass reduction at the source area, followed by degradation or polishing of the residual contamination using sulfate reducing bacteria.  Depending upon the oxidant activation method, this approach is applicable to petroleum hydrocarbons including both volatiles and PAHs, chlorinated volatile organic compounds (CVOCs) including chlorinated ethene, ethane and methane groups, as well as PCBs.


Contact us online or call 973-897-8162 to learn more about our Site Remediation Services.





Vapor Intrusion and Indoor-Air Studies


Vapor intrusion has received increased attention over the last few years near contaminated sites because some contaminants have the potential to migrate into nearby buildings and negatively affect indoor air quality. The accumulation of these volatile vapors in buildings can result in significant safety and health concerns.
To properly evaluate vapor intrusion a thorough evaluation of the building's ventilation system and subsurface conditions needs to be conducted by a knowledgeable professional in accordance with state and federal established procedures. 
The evaluation process typically includes a thorough building chemical inventory, the advancement of soil gas probes and the collection of soil gas samples. When indoor air quality problems are identified they can normally be resolved through the modification/installation of a properly designed ventilation system.
Metropolitan is well experienced with U.S. EPA and State vapor intrusion investigation techniques. We have completed numerous vapor intrusion and indoor air quality studies at commercial and residential properties. We have the experience to identify and resolve indoor vapor intrusion problems and the practical know-how to resolve indoor quality issues in an efficient and cost effective manner.
Contact us online or call 973-897-8162 to learn more about our Vapor Intrusion and Indoor Air Studies.




Metropolitan Engineering, Consulting, Forensics, and Environmental Remediation Services.


Construction, Investigation, Remediation and Forensic Expert  Engineers

P.O. Box 520

Tenafly, New Jersey 07670-0520

Ph.: (973) 897-8162

Fax: (973) 810-0440



Contact: Dr. Bill N. Stephan, PhD, PE, JD, CIH, MBA, CHMM





Insurance claim examiners, insureds, insurers, insurance adjusters and risk managers use Metropolitan for determining cause, evaluating the extent of damage, determining the age of the release, separating unrelated damage, analyzing loss scopes and managing restoration data, determining costs to repair, restore or replace, and preparing for insurance appraisals.



Attorneys call on Metropolitan for help when preparing for Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution such as arbitration and mediation