Engineering and Trades, Codes and Quality
Engineering that I do is the practical and economical application of technology to meet a customers objectives. The product of this service usually results in some plans that I or others can use to implement the design intent. Trades implements designs of our own or that of others to the satisfaction of the Inspecting Code Official. When engineers, contractors and code officials work this way, the result is a facility that does meet code, is permitted and inspected for your safety and health and is done well and effectively. Quality is what you expect, and all contractors bidding fairly to the same set of rules give you the quality level as specified by the Engineer. That approach is the norm in the commercial market, known as plans and specs jobs.
Dan Killilea Engineering and Trades work does meet code, is permitted and inspected for your safety and health. Quality is what you expect to have and is provided by me. Quality is often found to be sacrificed by market driven forces of anything goes, inconsistent system design, low bid, minimal and cheap when the plans and spec approach is not used in the bidding process. Our combination stops the trend and gives you the Quality Value you want and still remain affordable. Click on Engineering to learn more about it.
Let’s look at the codes we must follow, and understand a very serious misconception held by many and recognize some serious weaknesses that affect you because of the Ohio building system. If you watch those TV shows, I can assure you there are many points missed, glossed over, mis-represented or incorrectly done by many do-it-yourself, let’s flip the house and make big bucks TV shows.
First we have to understand the codes are the law of the land coming from our federal and state governments down to the local level. Often these codes were developed because someone was injured and the legislators felt action was needed to protect their constituents. The cops are the building inspectors who do have many powers, especially approval and enforcement and have the services of the local prosecutors to help them do their job. However they have to follow the rules that are in the codes and on the approved plans. Like all good cops, they certainly are our welcomed friends and do contribute to our health and safety and want you to do the job well. They are here to protect you only to the limit of the codes, and help you keep your insurance in force. The inspectors show up when there is a permit requested and you call for their review or when a complaint is made by others.
The permits you get in many cases will not result in an increase in your property tax, the permit fee is collected just to defray the building department costs of providing the services that you need without taxing everyone for your or a builders benefit. The inspector will stay on the assignment during the inspection according to what is in the permit. The zoning permit usually is the trigger that raises your taxes.
Secondly, the codes are written for the licensed design professional to use as a minimum criteria for a given situation when the licensed design professional’s training and experience suggests nothing extra needs to be done. The licensed design professional has someone equally trained and experienced who checks his work, called a licensed plans examiner. The plans examiner job is to check to make sure all points of the code and other laws are met. It is not the plans examiner’s job is to ensure the customer will be happy with the design, materials, workmanship or costs.
Third, the code is a legal standard to protect the licensed design professionals and their insurance companies and even the state licensed and insured contractor. The code is also a legal standard for those doing the work to be measured. A code is not a design manual although it may look like one to the untrained person and many people think of as a design manual. There are many areas for correct engineering design, sizing and material selections that codes DO NOT ADDRESS and never will. Many people have a misconception that meeting code is adequate, when in fact the system will perform miserably over it’s life, which is usually the life of the structure of 50+ years. Maybe that is why you are not so happy with some of the systems you have used in your life, be it the structural, insulating, heating, cooling, electrical or plumbing systems.
Buildings are about 90% engineering and about 10% architecture. Sophisticated building owners know that content ratio and use engineers to manage and run their building projects for maximum economy. The building owners use the plans and specs approach to get their very best building buy in the form or lump sum or time and material. Lump sum (fixed price as most homeowners would know it) the contractor takes all the risks and charges appropriately. Time and material contracts are often found to be the very best buy for the building owner but do require building owner management skills or that of a construction manager.
If you are a single to three family homeowner in some parts of Ohio, the designer(s) of the house and its many systems DID NOT OR DO NOT have to be a state tested, licensed, design professional. Add to that, the construction frequently DID NOT OR DOES NOT require a state tested, licensed, insured and possibly bonded contractor.
Your residential house plans, classified as non-commercial house plans usually show only where the plumbing fixtures are to be located. That’s it ! It is up to the plumber to come up with how the place is to be piped up, with what materials and where the pipes are to be routed inside the building. Many will think, “hey that is just what I want, let the market place drive the solution”. I regret to inform you there are a variety of ways to do the task and who gets into the space first claims it at the expense of other contractors. Some solutions are very cheap and quick to put in, but in the long haul will have significant operating expenses, operating problems, require constant maintenance and usually does not satisfactorily meet the home buyer’s expectations or needs. The low bid contractor is long gone, will not return to repair or service his work and you have no option but to “live” with it. Trust me, the builder put the maximum markup on his subcontractors work for his own piggybank and usually responds to the disgruntled homebuyer by saying “that is the way I do it”. But let’s look further into the bidding situation.
When a quality trades contractor is No 2, 3 ,4 when bidding a job the time and effort that went into bidding an unsuccessful job becomes part of the contractor’s overhead expense. Too many lost bids and he will not be in business. Every state licensed quality contractor expects to win his share, and lose some of the bids, but they do expect to bid against fair, state licensed quality contractors and are licensed to do commercial work, really their peers.
Sometimes a quality state licensed quality contractor is requested to bid against the untrained, unskilled, inexperienced, state unlicensed, un-insured, not bonded, and not constantly retrained contractor. These are “residential” contractors that are not permitted to do any kind of commercial work. These “residential” contractors do not have these extra financial burdens of training, insurance and bonding which lowers their overheads. Some builders, some landlords and some homeowners that only want the very lowest price use these contractors. It is the homeowner who ultimately comes out the loser with the shortcuts in place. The quality state licensed, insured and bonded contractors will usually not waste their time at that stage of the building’s life and compete against these “low bid” contractors who give their profession a bad reputation. Just remember, any change you ask for while building will be given a very heavily inflated price and you are forced to use the low bid residential contractor on the job.
From the market driven forces should it surprise you to see on the market the minimal, often inadequate and cheap because of the competitive bidding that is used to drive the cost to build down and profits up for the builder is supplied by some who are not really qualified? Are you really getting value or just a lot of hidden shortcuts that are problems for you in the future? Do you want it done right for once where everything works correctly and saves you money in the years ahead the first time and there is no grief? That is skill of the Licensed Professional Engineer and state licensed, insured and bonded contractor. The standard is high to get these state licenses, and they all require training, experience, testing and significant and continuing education and occasional retesting. Do your search, you will find there are very few contractors that have this skill set to do your work. The commercial property owners have had the benefit of this caliber of talent for years, is it not about time you, as a home owner, receive the same quality of service for one of your largest expenditures, without having to ask for it?
The model codes expect the engineering and construction work be done by qualified trades, the State of Ohio laws and codes eliminates many of those provisions to your disadvantage as a homeowner. And for the homeowner on a tight budget, a long term game plan is an excellent solution to lower their ownership costs over the years. When you click on Useful Stuff you can learn about what other areas of the country have done to protect the buyer, and to learn more about how Dan Killilea Engineering and Trades can help you.
Call Dan at 330-268-9208 to come out and help you have your situation evaluated. Or send a note to him through this Help Me Dan button. Dan will promptly return your call and inquiry