Marcon Forensics

Forensic assessments are made through site inspections, analysis and the review of available documents.  Where destructive testing is necessary, it is done in a "peel-the-onion" fashion, with investigative personnel on site for the duration of the testing.

 

Field investigations are based on SEI/ASCE 11 ("Guidelines for Structural Condition Assessment of Existing Buildings") and SEI/ASCE 30 ("Guidelines for Condition Assessment of the Building Envelope"), adjusted for past experience and the specifics of the work scope as defined by the client.

 

Photographs and other field data collected are downloaded into an in-house developed database system and coded per an in-house developed coding system for ease of search. 

Marcon Forensics began as Martin Structural Design, Inc., a structural engineering design company formed in 1986.  Besides structural design, starting in the late 1980's MSDI performed property evaluation reports, forensic studies, and construction litigation support.  As that work expanded, MSDI was reorganized in 1996 into Marcon Forensics, a building forensics company.  

 

Marcon Forensics has published reports for storm, fire, earthquake, water intrusion, vehicular strike, tree damage, foundation, and defective construction damage for single-family and multi-unit residences, concrete and steel office buildings, retail centers, and warehouses in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, and Nevada.

 

Marcon Forensics has offices in Laguna Beach, California, and in Orlando, Florida. 

Felix Martin received a Bacheor of Science in Engineering in 1977 and a Master of Science in Civil Engineering in 1984, both from California State University, Long Beach.  He was elected to Chi Epsilon, the national civil engineering society, and to Tau Beta Pi, the national engineering honor society.

 

In 1977, Mr. Martin joined Correia Consulting and Design.  During his tenure there, Mr. Martin was involved in the design of tract and custom housing, condominiums, and small office buildings.Upon graduation, Mr. Martin began a career in structural design with the Bechtel Power Corporation, where he worked in the design of pipe support systems for nuclear power plants.  

 

In 1984, Mr. Martin accepted a position with Culp & Tanner Engineers of El Toro, California.  At C&T Mr. Martin was project engineer for steel office buildings, concrete tilt-up warehouses, retail centers, plus wood and masonry office buildings.In search of broader opportunities, Mr. Martin joined Robert Lawson, Structural Engineers.  At RLSE, Mr. Martin was in charge of design of small to medium size office buildings, retail centers, plus high density and custom residential buildings.  

 

In 1986, Mr. Martin formed Martin Structural Design, Inc., where he directed the design of single and multi-family residences, steel office buildings, concrete tilt-up and masonry warehousing, retail centers, parking facilities, schools and churches.  in 1996 he reorganized MSDI into Marcon Forensics.

 

Mr. Martin is a licensed Professional Engineer in California, Florida, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington State.  He has served in the Post-Tensioning Institute Slab-on-Ground Committee and was the past Chairman of the Structural Engineering Institute's Performance of Wood Structures Sub-Committee.  He has been published in Structure Magazine and in industry newsletters.  He has presented papers at the Convention of the Structural Engineers of California (2005), the ASCE 6th Congress on Forensic Engineering (2012), and the SEI national Structures Congress (2011 and 2014).

Marcon Forensics is an engineering firm specializing in the forensic investigation of existing structures. In this capacity, Marcon Forensics conducts onsite field testing, prepares calculations and repair plans, writes evaluation reports, and provides expert testimony.  This work has been done for condominium associations, insurance companies, attorneys, and property owners in order to investigate defective construction, structural damage, water intrusion, fire damage, vehicular strike, tree damage, and earthquake/wind damage.