Page 194 - Forensic Structural Engineering Handbook

THE FIRST STEPS AFTER A FAILURE 5.27

(b)
FIGURE 5.19 (Continued)

• Submittal logs
• Daily job reports
• Inspection reports
• Test reports
• Correspondence
For cases where a failure occurs during the services life of the building or structure, it
may also be important to obtain maintenance records, renovation drawings, and other his-
torical information.
The most reliable information is usually obtained from the original creators of the doc-
uments, whether they are engineers, architects, contractors, or inspectors. These persons
are more likely to have the latest issue of their own documents in an organized fashion.
Other potential sources include the owner of the facility and local building officials.
Documents filed with local building officials may not reflect the as-built condition if
changes were made subsequent to the initial filing.
Besides project-specific documents, it may be helpful to obtain additional documents,
such as
• Climatalogical data (Fig. 5.20)
• Relevant codes
• Industry standards of practice