If you're a contractor getting ready to start construction on a building you may have heard the term Threshold Inspector or Threshold Inspection thrown around. You may have also been dealing with an engineering firm for your project as well. A threshold inspection is a structural inspection that must be done on any building that is three or more stories, exceeds 5,000 square feet, and will have an occupancy of 500 or more people. The goal of this kind of inspection is to improve the safety of the buildings structure during construction and ensures that the design requirements and inspection schedule meet Florida Building Code standards.
Tip #1 - Check Licensing-
Threshold inspectors MUST BE performed by a licensed structural engineer. Additionally, that engineer must be certified in special and threshold inspections. In order to gain that certification an engineer must:
Have at least 2 years experience the structural architecture of threshold buildings,
Have 3 years experience conducting structural inspections,
Three of the buildings they have inspected must be threshold buildings.
Tip #2 - Ask for references for your Threshold Inspector
Don't be shy to ask your engineer for references. Ask them of other inspections of this kind they have done, what did they find while they were at that project? What recommendations did they make to that client?
Tip #3 - Be knowledgeable
Do your research and look up what it means to perform a threshold inspection. Reading blog posts like these is a good way to get more information. Remember threshold inspections consist of:
Inspection of all structural elements of a building
Verification of shoring & reshoring
Placement of concrete and slump
Reinforcement of steel parts prior to construction
At SPEC we can claim that we helped create the threshold inspection. Our very own Mark LeBlanc conducted one of the first threshold inspections in Broward county Florida during the construction of the Broward County Jail. You can read more about Mark's experience and why choosing a knowledgeable and experienced threshold inspector is so important here :
Threshold inspections can save a lot hassle, time, and effort while ensuring that a construction project is done being built as safely as possible. If your in need of finding a threshold inspector with integrity and experience look no further than Specialty Engineering Consultants. Contact us today to inquire about our inspection services!
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