Professional and Career Topics

It's hard to believe that four years have passed since this tragedy.

Not to be dismissive of those investigating the collapses, but I worry that the length of this investigation is becoming counterproductive in terms of improving the design-build-maintain process. The Implications for the Future from the ongoing study feel to me like recommendations for immediate action.

Who else has kept up with this, and what are your thoughts?

https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2025/06/nist-releases-extensive-video-update-champlain-towers-south-investigation

From the link:

Implications for the Future

"Two clear questions coming out of this investigation are why the design and construction problems were not discovered when Champlain Towers South was built, and how do we evaluate the structural safety of existing buildings?" said Bell.

While the video presentation does not offer recommendations for changes to codes or practice, it does highlight some areas that industry experts could consider. These include how special inspections that are mandated for safety might impact construction quality control by giving builders a false sense of security that someone else will catch their errors later.

Mitrani-Reiser also shares that the investigation found no records from the original construction of the building, and few from its early life, and notes the importance of records retention going beyond initial drawings to include "quality assurance records and, particularly, peer review reports where they exist."

Finally, Mitrani-Reiser calls on the engineering and construction professions to take seriously the apparent lack of quality control and quality assurance found in the case of Champlain Towers South. She noted that, "this tragic event has revealed flaws in our systems, and quality is at the heart of it."

It's hard to believe that four years have passed since this tragedy.

Not to be dismissive of those investigating the collapses, but I worry that the length of this investigation is becoming counterproductive in terms of improving the design-build-maintain process. The Implications for the Future from the ongoing study feel to me like recommendations for immediate action.

Who else has kept up with this, and what are your thoughts?

https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2025/06/nist-releases-extensive-video-update-champlain-towers-south-investigation

From the link:

Implications for the Future

"Two clear questions coming out of this investigation are why the design and construction problems were not discovered when Champlain Towers South was built, and how do we evaluate the structural safety of existing buildings?" said Bell.

While the video presentation does not offer recommendations for changes to codes or practice, it does highlight some areas that industry experts could consider. These include how special inspections that are mandated for safety might impact construction quality control by giving builders a false sense of security that someone else will catch their errors later.

Mitrani-Reiser also shares that the investigation found no records from the original construction of the building, and few from its early life, and notes the importance of records retention going beyond initial drawings to include "quality assurance records and, particularly, peer review reports where they exist."

Finally, Mitrani-Reiser calls on the engineering and construction professions to take seriously the apparent lack of quality control and quality assurance found in the case of Champlain Towers South. She noted that, "this tragic event has revealed flaws in our systems, and quality is at the heart of it."