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25. Building Foundations ( quality control, safety and health )
Engineer Chris Clay has a soil engineering consulting firm that has to keep its fees low
to match its competition. Chris’s firm works for several high-volume developers who
insist on keeping first costs low. They will stop around to find an engineer who will seal
foundation plans that are the least expensive. Less-expensive foundations will include
less concrete and steel.
Chris provides and seals standardized plans to developers regardless of soil or site
conditions. Chris hears from an unlicensed junior engineer that a field inspection of
several of the foundations designed by the firm are producing large cracks in the
exterior and interior of the residences that rest on them. The residents are angry and
are considering a lawsuit.
Chris knows from attending a legal seminar that the firm cannot be held negligent and
therefore liable for damage claims if there are no accepted standards for the design of
concrete slabs on the ground.
Chris knows of an attempt by other engineers to agree upon a standard of care for
design that would require slabs to be heavier, adapted to actual soil and site conditions,
and designed in accordance with engineering mechanics. This would mean ,ore costly
foundations.
The state engineering board of registration is somewhat lax in enforcing the standards
of conduct for engineers and must have a really egregious case before it takes action.
Chris also knows that the licensing board members are politically appointed and can be
influenced by pressure from elected officials.
Should Chris support the development of design standards that, while rising costs, will
ensure greater protection for building foundations? As long as Chris’s firm will not incur
any legal liabilities for its work, is it justifiable to oppose the development of standards
for site investigations, laboratory testing, or estimation of soil mass-movement patterns
(relying instead on the use of “engineering judgment”)?