Forensic Engineers and Consultants

Tag Archive: forensic engineer

  1. The Life of a Smoke Alarm – How A Decade Flies!

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    A smoke alarm milestone birthday party!

    No kidding, I’m passionate about fire protection!  To prove it, I could tell you stories about the damage I have seen from various failures from freezes to fire pump cooling to what happens when a fire hydrant’s weep holes are clogged…. But instead, I will tell you about smoke alarms!

    Although it’s still new in my head, my home just turned 10 years old. The decade has seen the replacement of two household appliances and at least one HVAC repair… now what? A paint and décor refresh?  Maybe, but that’s not what the fire protection engineer is thinking! It’s time to replace the smoke alarms! (more…)

  2. Why Pedestrians Overestimate Their Visibility: A Dive into the Psychology of Road Safety

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    When we step out onto the road as pedestrians, most of us assume that we are easily visible to oncoming drivers. However, research shows that pedestrians frequently overestimate their visibility, especially at night or in low-light conditions. This overconfidence can lead to dangerous situations, contributing to accidents and fatalities. Understanding why pedestrians overestimate their visibility is crucial for improving road safety and preventing accidents. (more…)

  3. Human Factors and Halloween Hazards: Trip and Falls

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    Trick-or-treating is a fun and festive activity, but it comes with certain hazards that can pose risks to children and even adults. In addition to vehicle and pedestrian collisions and accidents, tripping and falling while trick-or-treating is a common hazard, especially for children navigating unfamiliar and dimly lit areas at night.

    Children and adults can face tripping hazards on walkways while trick-or-treating.

    Tripping hazards can be mitigated through compliance with walkway safety standards such as ASTM F 1637-2021: Standard Practice for Safe Walking Surfaces. ASTM F1637 is a standard that provides (more…)

  4. Human Factors and Halloween Hazards: Vehicle/Pedestrian Collisions

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    Trick-or-treating is a fun and festive activity, but it comes with certain hazards that can pose risks to children and even adults. In addition to trip and fall hazards while trick-or-treating, there is also an increased risk of vehicle/pedestrian collisions due to the increased pedestrian activity in the roadway at night.

    Child trick or treating during Halloween in the roadway.

    At night, there are two significant problems facing drivers that contribute to pedestrian/vehicle collisions: (more…)

  5. Materials in HVAC Plenums

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    What materials are suitable for installation in Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) plenums?  Let’s first define a plenum.  The 2021 edition of the International Mechanical Code (IMC), a subset of the International Building Code (IBC), defines a plenum as “an enclosed portion of a building structure, other than the occupied space being conditioned, that is designed to allow air movement, and thereby serve as a part of an air distribution system.” (more…)

  6. FORKLIFT Etiquette: DON’T BE A LOUSY TIPPER!

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    That is always good advice to follow if you are a forklift driver!  Operating a forklift can be a dangerous occupation.  There are approximately 1 million forklifts (powered industrial trucks) in the US workplace today, and it is estimated that just over 10% of those are involved in some type of accident every year.  Forklift accidents result in dozens of deaths and thousands of non-fatal injuries annually.  About one out of every four of those accidents involves a tipping or overturning forklift, making this the most common type of industrial truck accident.  (more…)

  7. Understanding Heat Transfer: A Guide for Fire Investigators

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    In the realm of fire investigation, understanding heat transfer is crucial. Heat transfer plays a significant role in how fires start, spread, and ultimately, how they can be analyzed and investigated. There are three primary modes of heat transfer: conduction, convection, and radiation. In this article, we’ll delve into each of these modes and explore examples of how fire investigators can apply this knowledge to their work. (more…)

  8. Hot ’til It’s Not Part II – Heating System Maintenance

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    As cold weather sets in for those of us that actually get a winter in the Northern Hemisphere, a property owner needs to think about another expensive home system that is often taken for granted, your HVAC system.

    Whether you have a heat pump with electric backup, a gas fired furnace, a fuel oil fired furnace, or even  electric strip heat, your heating system requires some routine attention to maximize efficiency and get the most life out of the unit.

    As a homeowner, the easiest and cheapest thing you can do to maximize the efficiency of your heating system is (more…)

  9. Civil Twilight Pedestrian Collision: A Case Study

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    Susan, a 45-year-old runner, was jogging in the early morning approximately an hour before sunrise, also known as “civil twilight.” Civil twilight occurs both before sunrise and after sunset when the sun is below the horizon and the sky is partially illuminated. Susan was wearing dark athletic clothing and grey tennis shoes for her morning run. She was running on the sidewalk in a suburban area and began to cross the four-lane road at an unmarked crosswalk. (more…)

  10. Turkey Fryers- Product Design is Critical to Consumer Safety

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    As the holiday season nears, thoughts turn to wonderful home-cooked meals with family.  Few things in life are more pleasurable than a traditional holiday turkey feast. Yet for an unfortunate few, holiday meal time can turn tragic if a turkey frying accident occurs.   While fried turkeys may be tasty, many fire safety experts feel that the reward is not worth the risk.  (more…)

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