Determining whether design, manufacturing, or warnings failed.
Engineering analysis of design defects, manufacturing defects, and failure-to-warn claims for attorneys and insurers.
We evaluate whether a product's design, manufacturing, or warnings contributed to an injury, and we go further than a single incident review when it's useful: forecasting future failures, assessing product quality and reliability, and using statistical methods and risk assessment to predict how a product will actually perform in the field.
Investigations may involve consumer products, automotive components, industrial machinery, plumbing systems, medical devices, and complex mechanical equipment. In each case we look at whether a defect, material failure, manufacturing deficiency, or improper use contributed to the incident.
Design defect claims, manufacturing defect claims, failure-to-warn claims, product recalls, warranty disputes, and cases where a product's foreseeable use or misuse is in question. It's rarely too early to bring in an expert on product liability, before you file is when a solid theory of liability, or the alternative theories you hadn't considered, actually change your strategy.
Product evaluation, material failure analysis, and design review, methods we've applied to product liability cases since the firm's founding in 1967. Beyond the technical analysis, we help define the theory of liability itself, and how it might be attacked, so you're not finding out the hard way what an opposing expert already knew.
How this differs from accident reconstruction. Product liability asks whether a product, component, or mechanical system failed, and if so, why. Accident reconstruction asks how a collision occurred and what physical and environmental factors contributed to it. The two disciplines are distinct but often overlap. When a mechanical or product failure may have contributed to a collision, our experts in both areas work the case together, so you get one coordinated engineering investigation.
Representative example, not a specific engagement.
Investigating equipment performance
An incident involving an alleged equipment malfunction may require examination of product design, component materials, mechanical performance, maintenance history, and warnings. Forensic engineers may conduct inspections, engineering calculations, material evaluations, and appropriate testing to distinguish among potential causes, including design deficiencies, manufacturing defects, deterioration, maintenance issues, and misuse.
Do you test the physical product? We don't conduct physical testing at our office. Our work centers on engineering evaluation, material failure analysis, and design review.