Recently, we have seen a number of water damage losses stemming from gas-fired and electric tankless water heaters exposed to freezing temperatures. Tankless hot water heaters have been growing in popularity and use due to their energy savings over traditional water heaters. These units are typically installed on the exterior of a home or business in areas of the country where prolonged freezing or extremely low temperatures are not common. Read More
The ongoing frigid temperatures serve as a reminder of the many investigations by Warren engineers involving fire sprinkler systems that have failed when some part of the system was exposed to the sub-freezing conditions. Interestingly, failures do not necessarily occur within the area of greatest freeze exposure, as the failure mechanism is the extreme pressure that results from the growth of an ice plug inside the exposed pipe in which the high pressure will rupture the weakest component which may even be located in a heated area of the sprinkler system. Read More
On a cold winters night a family is gathered in the living room of their home enjoying the warmth of their fireplace. After using the fireplace all day, they go off to bed to a nice restful sleep. However, they are soon rudely waked by the sound of a smoke alarm in the home. Rushing out into the cold night they can see smoke, but no flame in the home. Outside, they can see that the chase around the fireplace chimney is burning. The fire department is called and thankfully extinguishes the fire before it does widespread damage, however the family must leave the home for several months as repairs are made. Read More
Mobile cranes depend on stability through their outriggers. These are the four “legs” that are deployed onto soil or other working surfaces adjacent to the crane. When a mobile crane is set up at a site, the outriggers are deployed by a hydraulic mechanism that extends the four outriggers beyond the crane body and then jack the crane free of its wheels so that it is supported by the outriggers only. Read More
For years, many water heater-related fires, injuries, property damage claims, and deaths were attributed to “consumer misbehavior.” By 2002, however, the NFPA National Fuel Gas Code began to reflect several key realizations: the existence of fugitive vapors and how appliance design can limit the risks they pose. Read More
Property damage claims to sensitive electronic equipment due to a direct or nearby lightning strike are frequently difficult to substantiate to a high degree of confidence. Electrical damage to common consumer electronic equipment (televisions, computers and accessories, wireless routers, telephones, fax machines, electronic security systems, etc.) is most frequently not visible to the naked eye during a physical inspection of the allegedly failed equipment. So, how do we investigate an electrical loss when an insured claims he has $30,000 worth of non-functioning equipment? Read More
Electric motors are the work horses of the electrical industry. Their use is so pervasive in our industrial society that approximately 75% of electrical power sold to industry is used for the operation of electric motors. With so many electric motors in operation, it becomes imperative that they be utilized and maintained properly. A failed electric motor causes delays in production, which in turn impacts the bottom line. Read More
As an experienced safety consultant, I’m called to investigate a wide range of premises liability incidents. One common premises incident that often results in serious injury is a trip or a fall.
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Two of the top causes of workplace accidents, according to the United States Department of Labor’s Occupation Safety and Health Administration, are a lack of machine guarding and improper control of hazardous energy. At first blush, these types of incidents can mistakenly be attributed to an employee’s actions without considering how a machine’s design or the improper control of an environment or situation may have contributed.
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The recent Texas fertilizer plant explosion has focused the nation’s eyes on the important matter of workplace safety. When an employee is injured or killed on the job, Warren investigators are often called in to identify what went wrong and how it could have been prevented.
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