From Construction Defects to Property Loss: Meet LB's Forensic Team

From property condition assessments to forensic investigations, the Lerch Bates Forensics team provides a wide range of services to help you navigate property loss. With 120+ forensic engineers, construction consultants and experts available across the nation, Lerch Bates is ready to respond quickly, provide unbiased guidance and determine realistic repair options that we design ourselves.

“After a $5 million fire loss, I needed structural engineers to get on the site quickly. Lerch Bates recognized the magnitude and the time sensitivity associated with this and got there the same day. To me, that’s a huge value.” – Independent Claims Adjuster

Team Member Highlight:

Bret Schleissing leads Lerch Bates’s Forensic team in Florida, where the natural environment is unique and often challenging, such as hurricane catastrophes. Schleissing and his team also handle insurance claims and expert witness construction litigation work from offices in Tampa, Miami, Orlando, Jacksonville and Naples.

Project Highlight:

A single grain bin, under construction, at a rural farming operation near Craig, Iowa is claimed to have sustained damage during a wind storm.  Lerch Bates was asked to evaluate the condition of installed and uninstalled portions of the grain bin structure and to offer an engineering opinion as to the cause of any damage sustained.

Based on a review of the available information and Lerch Bates observations, a determination based on a reasonable degree of engineering certainty showed that the lack of an appropriately designed and installed temporary bracing system to provide stability of the structure during the erection process was causal to the grain bin failure.  Although the loading condition created by the wind storm event initiated the collapse of the bin, it was determined that the documented wind speed of 68 miles per hour would not be sufficient to cause the damage observed, if the structure had been properly braced.

Whether you need engineering analysis, structural evaluation or assistance with property loss, our team is here to help. Click here to learn more.

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