Commercial Inspection

New England Inspection Service is one of the few inspection companies capable of conducting a comprehensive commercial building inspection. Most home inspectors are not registered professional engineers, and therefore lack the engineering background and knowledge to be proficient in assessing the physical condition of large systems in a commercial/industrial building. For example, your inspector would have to be proficient in all the different types of commercial roofing systems, steel and concrete structures, large horsepower boilers, commercial plumbing systems, fire protection systems including sprinkler systems, air conditioning chillers, fan coils, and cooling towers. The registered professional engineers at New England Inspection Service have the expertise in evaluating and reporting on these systems.

The field survey will be conducted by one engineer or several engineers depending on the size of the building. The following areas will be inspected:
a) A site survey of the parking lot including drainage, condition of asphalt, grading around the building, etc.
b) An exterior inspection of the building envelope including the masonry, concrete, windows and window fenestrations, parapet walls, etc.
c) An interior inspection of the building structure, basement, if applicable, structural steel and concrete. Details of the type of construction will be described in the report.
d) Electrical distribution systems including electric rooms, computer rooms.
e) Plumbing and Fire Protection Systems. Sprinkler systems will be inspected for corrosion, leaks, proper house and street pressures, the existence of a backflow preventer. (i.e. if a backflow preventer has to be added, the cost can vary from $4,000 to $10,000 depending on the size of the building.)
f) Large horsepower boilers, fire tube and water tube systems will be inspected. Maintenance records will be reviewed, if available.
g) Air conditioning systems including roof top units, chillers, closed loop and open loop cooling towers, etc.

The inspection report prepared by New England Inspection consists of sections describing the building system components, assessing the condition of each major building system, making recommendations, when applicable, providing cost estimates, and including a 10 year maintenance and capital expenditure schedule. Moreover, 25 to 100 photographs with captions describing the building defects will be included in the appendix of the report.

A typical field inspection can require between 4 hours to 2 days depending on the size of the building, and the scope of work outlined in the clients contract. Moreover, the inspection may be conducted by one or several registered professional engineers, depending on the condition, size, and complexity of the project.