Warning Labels

Warning labels and signage are everywhere but do people really understand what message is being conveyed? Compare these two examples of a warning against pinch points.

Both examples warn of the same hazard but one of them was much easier and faster to comprehend.

The ANSI Z535 series of standards for the design, application, and use of signs, colors, and symbols intended to identify and warn against specific hazards and for other accident prevention purposes.  The three common characteristics to a compliant warning sing or label include 1) A Signal Word such as DANGER, CAUTION, or WARNING; 2) A message panel regarding the hazard; and 3) a Symbol Panel that graphically illustrates the hazard being warned against. Compliance with this standard helps to establish commonality and consistency in how warnings are presented and conveyed and allows users to more easily understand what the hazard is and how severe the risk is.

Sometimes warning signs and labels are a critical piece of evidence in a personal injury event. That’s where you can benefit from the knowledge and expertise of an experienced engineer and a team that can identify the critical aspects of the event sequence and piece the puzzle together for you.  Please contact Traci Campbell, PE, CXLT and our team of engineers and technicians and put our experience and expertise to work for you.

Position Filled

BEC Consulting LLC, an established engineering firm in Tallahassee, FL with over 36 years in business, has the following immediate opening:

Graduate engineer to assist with work involving engineering, accident reconstruction and product liability analysis. 

Candidates with related experience or education in mechanical engineering,  automotive mechanics, police investigation techniques, project management, AutoCad, FARO, Drone Technologies, Pro-E, Rhinoceros, HVE, Mathcad, SolidWorks, Office-Word/Excel/PowerPoint, Pinnacle Studio-Or video editing software, Adobe Acrobat Pro, Adobe Photoshop, or Google Earth preferred however, all interested candidates should apply. 

This is a great opportunity to train in forensic engineering.  Position is responsible for assisting an engineering team with project case management for multiple concurrent projects, field work and site investigations, graphics presentations, deposition and other file material summarization, engineering calculations, research and other technical/engineering services. 

For this position, interpersonal and communication skills are essential.  Experience working with insurance companies and legal practitioners a plus.  Individual should possess strong analytical skills, have the ability to work in a team environment, meet deadlines, strong computer graphic skills and excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Salary commensurate with education/experience and competitive benefit package.  Non-smoker.  Limited travel may be applicable.  Learn more @ www.becconsult.com, apply online HERE, or mail resume, salary requirements and work availability to:  HR (Eng.), 3660 Hartsfield Road, Tallahassee, Florida  32303 or Fax 850-575-8454. EOE/Drug Free Work Place.

Guardrails 101

Since shortly after the first automobiles rolled off an assembly line, guardrails, bridge rails, crash cushions, and other safety devices have been installed on roadways in an effort to improve the safety of the traveling public.  Just as automotive safety design has improved tremendously over the years, the design and application of roadside safety appurtenances has improved vastly as well.  State Highway Departments and the Federal Highway Administration were the original driving force behind many of these safety improvements, but over the last 30 years or so private industry has provided much of the innovation that has led to products which make the roads safer.  This is especially true with guardrail terminals.

The purpose of a guardrail is to shield motorists from natural or man-made obstacles located along either side of a traveled way.  An impact with a guardrail system should prevent contact with the hazard being shielded, and be less severe than an impact with that hazard.  A typical guardrail system is anchored on both ends, and when an errant vehicle impacts along the length of guardrail, tension is developed in the rail and the vehicle is redirected away from the hazard.  The ends of the guardrail system are potential problem locations, as a vehicle impacting an untreated guardrail end can be stopped abruptly resulting in high deceleration forces for the occupant, or the guardrail could penetrate the occupant compartment and cause serious injury.  In the early days these guardrail ends were left untreated, resulting in many vehicles being ‘speared’ with the guardrail during a collision.

Guardrail “Terminals” were eventually developed to improve the impact performance of the ends of the guardrail systems.  These terminals started out as basic as twisting the guardrails and anchoring it at ground level, and have evolved over the years to sophisticated “energy absorbing” terminals which capture the errant vehicle and bring it to a controlled stop.  The technology used for many of these modern guardrail terminals is proprietary, and are only available for purchase from the company owning rights to the patents.

Having worked for ten years designing and crash testing roadside safety appurtenances, Dr. Brian Pfeifer had the opportunity to lead the development of several of these lifesaving designs, and has seen first-hand the difference that this technology can make in the dynamics of a collision.   Of course, guardrails and guardrail terminals cannot be designed to safely bring vehicles to a stop under every impact condition, but they must be crash tested under specified impact conditions and approved for use by the Federal Highway Administration before they can be used in any projects using federal funds (a large majority of roadway projects receive at least some amount of federal funding). 

Even with all of this improved safety technology, people die as a result of impacts with guardrail terminals every day.  Some of these deaths are the result of extreme or unusual impact conditions, but many are the result of poor product design, improper terminal selection, or faulty installation.  If you have a case that involves these issues, it is very important to understand the role that the safety device played.  In order to understand these issues, it is important to involve an expert familiar with the design and operation of roadside safety devices early on in your investigation.

Please contact Brian Pfeifer, Ph.D., P.E. and our team of engineers and technicians and put our experience and expertise to work for you.

2017 Donation on Behalf of BEC Consulting’s Clients

With the New Year upon us, we can’t help but remember all of those affected by the hurricanes in Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico and beyond as well as the wildfires out West.  We have made a donation to the American Red Cross on behalf of our clients to show our appreciation for your business.  

Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to work with you over this past year.

Happy Holidays from all of us at BEC Consulting!  

May the New Year bring prosperity and peace to you all!

Retail Safety

One of the most common areas where there is an interaction of the public (non-employees) and a workplace is in Retail facilities. Here the retailer must be concerned with not only establishing and maintaining a safe workplace for their employees but they also have to be aware of creating a safe shopping environment for their customers (also called business invitees). The term “Retail Safety” implies that the concern is surrounding safety issues related the sale of merchandise.  The reality is that retail facilities have the same safety concerns that every work place has.  These hazards range from slip, trips, and falls, ladder safety, material handling issues, and potentially powered industrial trucks like forklifts.

OSHA, ANSI, and General Industry have long recognized the need for standards, rules, and guidelines to govern the safe operation of workplaces and this also includes Retail facilities. The questions come when assessing what applies to the employees and what applies to the customers. The truth is that the standards and guidelines for safe operations apply to everyone.  This is where you can benefit from the knowledge and expertise of an experienced engineer and a team that can identify the critical aspects of the event sequence and piece the puzzle together for you.  Please contact Traci Campbell, PE, CXLT and our team of engineers and technicians and put our experience and expertise to work for you.

Forklift Safety

Forklifts are one of the most common pieces of material handling equipment in use today. You can find forklifts in warehouses, shipping yards, construction sites, and even retail facilities. As such, forklifts can be found interacting with everything in a workplace environment from storage racks, loading docks, tractor trailers, other heavy machinery and most dangerously, pedestrians. OSHA, ANSI, and General Industry have long recognized the need for standards, rules, and guidelines to govern the safe operation of forklifts. These authorities set forth the framework to have and maintain a successful and safe operating environment.

Whenever forklifts are involved in personal injury events, it is important to be able to sift through all the factors that played a role in what transpired. That’s where you can benefit from the knowledge and expertise of an experienced engineer and a team that can identify the critical aspects of the event sequence and piece the puzzle together for you.  Please contact Traci Campbell, PE, CXLT and our team of engineers and technicians and put our experience and expertise to work for you.

Photogrammetry 101

Photogrammetry has been in use for centuries and for many different uses. The Tomahawk Cruise missile, for example, uses an advanced form of sophisticated photogrammetry to guide it to its intended target. Photogrammetry in accident reconstruction is used to supplement or verify existing scene measurements. It may also be used to create scene measurements when there were none taken on the date of the accident.  All, of course, are contingent on good, reliable photographs. In instances where little or maybe no measurements were taken at an accident scene where other evidence of significance was overlooked and may be visible in the scene photos the use of photogrammetry to place those pieces of significant evidence can mean the difference between determining if one has a case worth pursuing or not.

In this subject case the fluid spill became a significant piece of evidence, but had not been measure-documented at the time of the accident. Only photographic documentation (Fig. 1) was available. Knowing, however, some specifics about typical highway lane striping and utilizing a date-sensitive aerial photo, basic assumptions could be made about lane line separation and roadway widths. With these known physical characteristics the needed physical evidence could be placed on a scale diagram (Fig. 2) by a simple method of photogrammetry. At BEC Consulting we can use this simple method of photogrammetry to locate and diagram physical evidence for your cases that were not thoroughly and completely measure-documented at the time of the accident.

Position Filled!

BEC Consulting LLC, an established engineering firm in Tallahassee, FL with over 35 years in business, has the following immediate opening:　

Administrative Assistant - Full Time　

This is a terrific opportunity for an experienced, detail oriented applicant to work directly with our engineering teams in work involving forensic engineering, accident reconstruction and product liability analysis.

Position is responsible for coordinating directly with clients and team personnel to schedule appointments and travel, assist with project case management (for multiple concurrent projects) as well as complete general day to day administrative tasks. 　

Requires 3 - 5 yrs related education/experience with proficiency in Office-Word, Excel and PowerPoint. 　

Interpersonal and communication skills are essential. Experience working with insurance companies and legal practitioners a plus.

Individual should possess strong analytical skills, have the ability to work in a team environment, meet deadlines, strong computer skills and excellent written and verbal communication skills.　

Salary commensurate with education/experience and competitive benefit package. Non-smoker. Apply on line HERE or mail resume, salary requirements and work availability to: HR (Admin), 3660 Hartsfield Road, Tallahassee, Florida 32303 or Fax 850-575-8454. EOE/Drug Free Work Place.

FARO 3-D Scanning

Portable 3-D scanners and software technology can be used in a variety of engineering applications.  The precise and detailed digital scans, which include high resolution photographs, deliver realistic and accurate three dimensional models, providing our consulting engineers with thorough details of accident scenes, vehicles, product designs and more.  These powerful graphics are used in the analysis of each case file and provide effective results and deliverables for our clients.

• Detailed Digital Scans
• High Resolution Photographs
• Three Dimensional Models
• Powerful Graphics

Trips

A trip is when the momentum of a foot is impeded by an object to the extent that a loss of balance occurs.  Some common causes include foreign objects in walking paths (wheel stops in parking lots, torn carpet, etc.), sudden changes in elevation (jagged sidewalk expansion joints, unexpected steps, etc.), or even inattention and/or familiar complacency (knew it was there but forgot). How do you think a cell phone might contribute to a pedestrian’s attention or inattention?

Did you know that a change in elevation on a walkway surface greater than ¼ inch is likely to be non-code compliant and creates a potentially unsafe walking surface?

Slips

Slips arise from the failure of traction on the interface between the footwear and the walking surface. Four factors that affect footwear traction include floor surface, contaminants on the floor, footwear, and human gait dynamics. Can you identify which of these factors are controllable and which are not? Part of slip accident investigation includes being able to identify the elements of the accident in these four factors and then provide analysis and evaluation as to the proper specification and execution of these elements. Traci Campbell, P.E., CXLT and our team of engineers and technicians have the expertise and experience to answers these critical questions for you.

Coefficient of Friction and slip resistance of surfaces also plays a big role in slip accidents. Traci Campbell, P.E., CLXT is a certified XL Tribometrist and able to assess the slip resistance of your floor and advise on how it plays a role in your accident.

Position Filled

BEC Consulting LLC,  has the following immediate opening:

Graduate engineer to assist with work involving engineering, accident reconstruction and product liability analysis.  

Candidates with related experience or education in mechanical engineering,  automotive mechanics, police investigation techniques, project management, AutoCad, Pro-E, Rhinoceros, HVE, Mathcad, SolidWorks, Office-Word/Excel/PowerPoint, Pinnacle Studio-Or video editing software, Adobe Acrobat Pro, Adobe Photoshop, or Google Earth preferred however, all interested candidates should apply.  

This is a great opportunity to train in forensic engineering.  Position is responsible for assisting an engineering team with project case management for multiple concurrent projects, field work and site investigations, graphics presentations, deposition and other file material summarization, engineering calculations, research and other technical/engineering services.  

For this position, interpersonal and communication skills are essential.  Experience working with insurance companies and legal practitioners a plus.  Individual should possess strong analytical skills, have the ability to work in a team environment, meet deadlines, strong computer graphic skills and excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Salary commensurate with education/experience and competitive benefit package.  Non-smoker.  Limited travel may be applicable.  Apply on line @ www.becconsult.com or mail resume, salary requirements and work availability to:  HR (Eng.), 3660 Hartsfield Road, Tallahassee, Florida  32303 or Fax 850-575-8454. EOE/Drug Free Work Place.

Falls

A fall occurs when you leave an erect position suddenly and involuntarily. Many times a fall will result from being unable to recover your balance from a slip or a trip. Some common causes of falls including uneven floor surfaces, unsuitable floor coverings, unguarded holes or openings, wet floors, changes in levels, poor lighting, and poor housekeeping. Being able to assess the root cause of a fall can be critical in the evaluation of an accident.

Falls are often associated with other safety issues such as guarding, slip resistance, and equipment operation. Traci Campbell, P.E., CXLT and our team of engineers and technicians can help put all the pieces of the puzzle together and give you a full scope analysis of your accident.

What About Construction Zone and Roadside Safety?

Construction zones can be a dangerous place for motorists, pedestrians, and construction personnel. When an accident does occur, you need the right team to analyze the situation. Dr. Brian Pfeifer, and our team of engineers and technicians will evaluate the maintenance of traffic (MOT) plan to determine whether or not it was developed and executed properly.

Even after the construction is over, roadside safety is critical to the traveling public. Roadside appurtenances such as guardrails, bridge rails, crash cushions, and sign supports are installed along roadways for this very reason. To maintain safety, however, proper implementation of these devices is crucial. Our engineers have training and experience unique to these issues and can assist you in evaluating your case.

BEC Announces Cell Phone Forensics Capabilities

In an effort to continuously expand and refine our service offerings, BEC is always looking into what
tools, software and equipment will best suit the needs of our clients. With the popularity of cell phones, GPS units, and other mobile devices, everyone knows there is a wealth of data contained inside these portable computers and now we have the ability to access that information. Location data, phone usage, and times and dates of calls/messages can be the silver bullet to winning your case.  The following are just a few of the things BEC can now provide via download from a cell phone or mobile device:

• Calls, SMS (text messages), MMS (multimedia messages)
• Media, emails, calendar, and contact files
• Location information decoded from apps, GPS, cell towers, Wi-Fi and media files
• Direction and route traveled

BEC’s new cell phone forensics capabilities can give you the data you need to help visualize the big picture. This data can be provided to you with a proven and repeatable forensic process and in a robust, but easy to read report structure.

If you have any questions about our new capabilities, please contact Chris Yates at 904-707-5480 or via email at cyates@becind.com.

BEC on the Road

Summer is in full gear and BEC is out and about. We have several conferences lined up for August, so if you would like to come out and meet one of our representatives we look forward to you doing so.

July 30th - August 1st: BEC will be attending the GTLA 2015 Auto Torts Workshop at the Hilton Sandestin Beach Golf Resort, in Destin, FL. Erich Breedlove will be attending and exhibit set up is in the Coastal Ballroom Foyer . Erich will also be available through Saturday evening for further one-on-one meetings as needed.

August 7th - August 8th: There will be multiple BEC representatives on-hand for the FDLA 2015 Annual Meeting at The Vinoy Renaissance, in St Petersburg, FL. Dr. Brian Pfeifer will be there and available for the full event. On Friday, Richard Lackinger from our Orlando office will also be on hand, and on Saturday Pat Weber from our Venice office will be attending. We will be located in the foyer at table #11 and look forward to seeing you there.

August 13th: Chris Yates, from our Jacksonville office will be attending the JJA Membership Meeting at the River City Brewing Company in Jacksonville, FL. If you would like an appointment with Chris at this event or any other time please send him an email at CYates@BECind.com.

August 27th: The PBCJA Barrister's Bash is being held at Revolutions City Place in West Palm Beach, FL. Dr. Pfeifer will be attending.   If you would like to arrange to speak with Dr. Pfeifer while in the area, please email him at BPfeifer@BECind.com.

As always, please also contact our main office located in Tallahassee, FL @ 850-558-3100, we look forward to working with you.

Meet Traci Campbell, P.E.

Traci is an Industrial Engineer with specialties in industrial accident reconstruction, including forklifts, construction machinery, appliances, and manufacturing equipment. She also specializes in slip/trip/fall cases and is a Certified XL Tribometerist. Traci achieved her BS Industrial Engineering degree from Florida State University in 1993 and is a Professional Engineer in Florida, Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina. She has over 21 years of experience which includes vehicular accident reconstruction involving automobiles, trucks, tractor-trailers, and recreational vehicles, as well as slip, trip, and fall analysis, product failure analysis, and workplace-safety related issues. Please click HERE to review a full copy of Traci's CV.

Located in our headquarters in Tallahassee, Florida, Traci remains available to assist BEC's clients throughout the domestic United States. If you have a case that you would like to consult with her on, please contact Traci directly by phone (850-558-3135) or email (tcampbell@becconsult.com).

Meet Brian Pfeifer, Ph.D., P.E.

Brian is a senior consulting engineer with a strong background in design, development, and implementation of roadside safety hardware. He attained his Bachelors and Masters in Mechanical Engineering and Doctorate in Civil Engineering from the University of Nebraska and has over 17 years experience in forensic engineering. Brian's current work includes vehicular accident reconstruction, evaluation of construction zone accidents, premises liability, investigation and analysis of mechanical systems and product failures, as well as the development of automated material-handling systems.  His specialty is roadside safety and analysis of maintenance of traffic issues.

Located at our headquarters in Tallahassee, Florida, Brian assists BEC's clients throughout the domestic United States. If you have a case that you would like to consult with him on or, if you would like to arrange a speaking engagement at this time, please contact Brian directly by phone (850-558-3121) or email (bpfeifer@BECind.com).

Good-bye 2014 - Welcome to 2015

2014 was been a great year and looking back, we here at BEC realized that we had a lot to celebrate:

• Providing 32 years of top-level consulting engineering services and accident reconstruction to clients including law firms, insurance companies, state and local agencies, manufacturing companies, and clients who are seeking product design analysis and other engineering related services.
• We were thrilled to announce that Matt Soicher, Ph.D., had  joined our ranks as a biomedical engineer.  Matt has a strong background in the field of biomechanics and biomechanical engineering, specifically applying principles of force and motion to the human anatomy.
• We expanded our ability to serve our clients in and around the Jacksonville area and more opening a new satellite office with Chris Yates, P.E. Chris is a mechanical engineer specializing in accident reconstruction. His current work involves the analysis and reconstruction of vehicular accidents, including vehicular dynamics and occupant restraint as well as the investigation of industrial accidents and product analysis.
• Brian Pfeifer, Ph.D., P.E.  who presents a strong background in the design, development and implementation of roadside safety hardware with current work consisting of vehicular accident reconstruction, analysis of maintenance of traffic issues, premises liability, investigation and analysis of mechanical systems and product failures as well was development of automated material-handling systems, was invited to provide the following informative presentations:
• “Offshore and Intermodal Applications of the GRID System”, for the International Port and Terminal Technology Conference, in Savannah, GA, May, 2014.
• “Investigating Auto Cases – How to Work With Your Expert to Prepare Your Case”at the Florida Justice Association’s Masters of Justice Seminar in Orlando, FL, September 2014.
• “Evaluating the Bicycle Case – an Expert’s Perspective” to the Florida Justice Association’s – “Hell on the Highways III” Conference, in Boca Raton, FL, December 2014.
  (Please be sure to contact BEC regarding future speaking opportunities with Brian or another member of our staff)
• Our engineering design work continued adding further credential to our staff with the following patents being awarded:
• Benedict, Charles E., Scott K. Bladen, Brian G. Pfeifer, et al., for “Port Storage and Distribution System for International Shipping Containers.” European Patent No. 2,146,894, issued June 25, 2014.
• Benedict, Charles E., Scott K. Bladen, Brian G. Pfeifer, et al., “Port Storage and Distribution System for International Shipping Containers.” Chinese Patent No. 2007800519399, issued June 04, 2014.
• Benedict, Charles E., Brian G. Pfeifer, Christian A. Yates, James R. Dobbs, Scott K. Bladen, and Richard E. Lackinger “Automated Automotive Vehicle Parking/Storage System” U.S. Patent No. 8,734,078, issued May 27, 2014.
• Benedict, Charles E., Brian G. Pfeifer, Christian A. Yates, James R. Dobbs, Scott K. Bladen, and Richard E. Lackinger “Warehouse Storage System” U.S. Patent No. 8,651,790, issued February 18, 2014.
• Benedict, Charles E., Brian G. Pfeifer, Christian A. Yates, Scott K. Bladen, et al, “Material Handling and Storage/Warehouse System” U.S. Patent No. 8,628,289, issued January 14, 2014.
• BEC continued to provide up to date training opportunities for our personnel
• We enjoyed celebrating our employees and their families through our participation in Take your Child to Work Day, Administrative Professionals Day and  Bosses Day, as well as recognizing recent graduates, marriages and birthdays.
• We took pride in serving our local community through United Way and donations to the Leon County Animal Service Center and Grace Mission.

As you can see 2014 was a busy year.

BEC looks forward to 2015 and wishes one and all a very happy new year with joy and prosperity.

Our engineers represent a broad range of engineering disciplines enabling them to work on a variety of cases with a team approach. With staff comprised of engineers, technical and graphics specialists, research and administrative personnel, each case is given personal attention and prompt and efficient service. We have four locations in Florida;  Tallahassee, Venice, Orlando and Jacksonville, but also serve  Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee and South Carolina as well as other states in the US.

Our areas of expertise include:

Engineering consulting, all areas of accident reconstruction, failure analysis,  product design, product development and computer animation and electronic graphics.

Every aspect of this firm is designed to serve our client’s with a commitment to customer service.  We have attained regional and national recognition as a leader in forensic engineering services and new product development. This excellent example and tireless dedication to serving our client’s needs has resulted in a devoted client base and strong reputation.

We look forward to serving you.

Hello Jacksonville

BEC is happy to announce its newest satellite office.

Located in Jacksonville, Florida, Chris Yates, P.E. is a mechanical engineer with over 20 years of accident reconstruction experience. Chris' previous work includes  analysis and reconstruction of vehicular accidents, including vehicular dynamics and occupant restraint as well as the investigation of industrial accidents and product analysis. Chris also has specialized training and experience with downloading automobile and tractor/trailer ECMs (black boxes).

If you need an engineer with the ability to quickly respond to the north and central Florida area and beyond, Chris can be reached at 904-707-5480.