Forensic Engineering in the times of COVID

When COVID hit, it was unclear what it would mean for the Forensic Engineering world. Would group inspections be possible? Would courtrooms move cases through the legal system? Would reduced economic activity result in fewer failure incidents?

In the end, COVID did not greatly affect Beacon Engineering. Our work continued generally unabated and small adjustments were able to keep everybody safe.

Group inspections were able to continue by taking prudent precautions regarding PPE and distancing. If a participating party was not comfortable being in close physical proximity to others they were able to participate via video link.

Courtroom activity slowed but legal teams took the time to drill down into cases and work toward resolution outside the courtroom. There was an interesting confluence of more depositions and fewer trial testimonies.

Failure incidents did not appear to decline at all. Even the nature of failures did not shift in any measurable way. The world remains a complicated place with lots of moving parts leaving us prone to negative outcomes.

The availability of a private airplane perhaps smoothed the edges on what could have been some changes for Beacon Scientific. We are able to respond quickly and schedule events with greater precision as we are not generally tied to commercial travel limitations. We remain sharp by saving hours sitting in airplanes and on tarmacs.

All in all, COVID has not changed much for Beacon Scientific. We remain prepared to assist our clients and partners with their failure analysis needs and look forward to uncovering the facts around interesting events.