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New Orleans, Louisiana
Forensic Engineering in New Orleans, LA
Distress investigation in New Orleans starts from an unusual baseline: everything here is settling, so the question is rarely whether movement occurred but whether it exceeded what competent design should have anticipated. Differential settlement between pile-supported structures and the grade-supported flatwork around them, slabs spanning to piles that were driven short, flood-exposure damage layered onto pre-existing deterioration, these are the recurring cases. We document conditions with elevation surveys against defensible benchmarks, core per ASTM C42, sample the profile where the movement hypothesis demands it, and apply petrographic examination per ASTM C856 for moisture and deterioration histories. Chain of custody is maintained, with licensed engineers engaged in Louisiana for evaluation and testimony.
The pile-supported structure sinking-sidewalk pattern, buildings holding elevation while surrounding grade subsides, is normal here; forensic questions turn on rates, differentials, and connection details rather than the existence of movement.
- Concrete distress investigation: cracking, scaling, spalling, low strength results
- Core sampling and testing of hardened concrete per ASTM C42
- Petrographic examination of hardened concrete per ASTM C856
- Foundation and pavement performance investigations
- Documented chain of custody and photo documentation built for litigation
FAQ · New Orleans
The building is fine but everything around it dropped. Is that failure?
Often it is the design working: piles hold the structure while unsupported grade settles. The investigation quantifies the differential and evaluates whether utility connections, entries, and adjacent flatwork were detailed for the movement the site was always going to deliver.
Can pre-storm and post-storm damage be separated this long after an event?
Frequently, yes. Deterioration mechanisms leave dateable evidence, corrosion progression, moisture signatures, repair layering, and petrography plus documentation history can bracket when damage initiated relative to the event in question.
Scheduling & proposals
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