Health-focused Investigation and Consequence Mitigation

Mold litigation has expanded beyond personal injury claims to building owner negligence, design deficiencies, defective workmanship and construction defects. Recently, damp indoor spaces and a host of associated factors: bacteria, endotoxins, cell wall components, VOCs, and viruses have taken center stage.

Commercial construction projects nearing completion typically develop a punch list, perform operational tests, air balance, and inspections by agencies, the owner's representative, architect and design team. Building commissioning procedures validate that the building systems operate as designed. All of these take place before occupancy, but don't guarantee building functionality or a healthy indoor environment.

Building Science generally concerns itself with the internal dynamics of the building after the introduction of people. Building performance problems, health effects and expensive litigation confirm that, while building science can be considered from the earliest design stages and integrated into the overall building performance assessment, including post-occupancy, it rarely is.

Once occupied, the development of building-related complaints and health symptoms should signal the owner that prompt, health-focused investigation before business interruption and litigation is crucial. Parallel investigations are needed: one, of the occupants' health complaints by a physician and another, of building performance and occupancy characteristics by a building scientist. Simultaneous integration of health, building science and incident risk management provides an expedited strategic consequence mitigation and solution pathway. Once the problem is identified, analysis of the solution can begin immediately. Health implications become an integral part of the analysis and planning.

Building Health Sciences has combined in-house building science and construction defect expertise with medical doctors. Our multi-professional incident response team assesses the building problem, while simultaneously evaluating any associated health complaints or risks.  Should remediation be necessary, associated health implications, risk communication and medical oversight for the occupants can be provided. Thus, when needed, BHS' team brings health-engineered redesign and renovation to building failures and related systems performance.