Vertical Access News


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Kelly Streeter Presents at Philadelphia Facade Symposium presented by Delaware Valley PA Chapter of ICRI
February 11, 2011

Vertical Access partner, Kelly Streeter, along with collaborators Michael Luciani of Hill International and Carl Dress of Historic Design Collaboration are participating on a panel to inform attendees of legal requirements of the mandatory facade inspection ordinance of the City of Philadelphia. For more details and registration information, click here.

Vertical Access approved as an AIA CES provider
July 12, 2010

Vertical Access has been approved as an AIA Continuing Education System provider. VA partners Kent Diebolt, Kelly Streeter and Evan Kopelson are available to present courses such as "Using Technology to Document Historic Buildings," "Using Industrial Rope Access for Facade Ordinance Inspections." and other topics designed to meet the needs and interests of course participants. AIA member participants will receive one CE learning unit for each course.

See our list of courses


Infrared Thermography for Buildings
March 12, 2010

In February, Vertical Access technicians Keith Luscinski and Evan Kopelson completed a 34-hour "Infrared Thermography Level 1 for Building Applications" course provided by Snell Infrared. The course covered the operation of thermal imagers, theory of heat transfer and application of thermal imaging to the investigation of building, electrical and mechanical systems.

Vertical Access owns a FLIR b40 thermal imager, which it has used in building investigations to assist in the location of embedded structural steel, analysis of moisture infiltration and documentation of other facade conditions. Infrared thermography is one of several NDT capabilities that VA incorporates into its investigations where appropriate.


City of New York Special Rigger License
March 4, 2010

Vertical Access Partner Evan Kopelson received a special rigger's license from the City of New York Department of Buildings in February, 2010. In New York City, a valid rigger's license (special rigger or master rigger) and CD-5 permit is required to perform industrial rope access inspection work. The licensed rigger is responsible for the preparation of the CD-5 permit application, which includes documentation of required insurance, rigging plans and information on public and site safety at street level.

Kent Diebolt has held a special rigger's license since 2000, and will continue to maintain his license for Vertical Access LLC, along with Evan.


Vertical Access Becomes a Voting Member of ANSI
December 2, 2009

On November 12th, Vertical Access was officially accepted as a voting member of The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Accredited Z359 Standards Committee (ASC) for Fall Arrest/Protection. The committee meets twice a year at the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) headquarters near Chicago to further a group of standards on fall arrest and protection.

VA is active on the following subcommittees:

• Z359.2: Managed Approach to Fall Protection
• Z359.5: Safety Requirements for Personal Fall Arrest Systems (PFAS)
• Z359.8: Industrial Rope Access and Descending Devices
• Z359.9: Descending Devices

Vertical Access has been participating in ANSI Z359 committee meetings since 2007. We are looking forward to participating in the important work of creating and refining this incredibly important group of standards.


5th Annual New York City Bridge Conference

The 5th Annual New York City Bridge Conference was held on August 17th and 18th. The Bridge Engineering Association (BEA) was the primary sponsor and organizer of the meeting. The packed two-day program included conference tracks on Cable-Supported & Long Span Bridges, Bridge Analysis & Design, Bridge Security & Management and Bridge Inspection, Evaluation & Management.

The conference attracted attendees from 15 different countries and from disciplines ranging from academia, product manufacturing, engineering and project management. Several presentations concentrated on analysis of recent bridge failures including extensive coverage of the I-35W Bridge in Minnesota on August 1, 2007. That bridge failure has been attributed to the undersizing and failure of two gusset plate connections combined with non-standard construction loading present at the time of the collapse. Guidance was offered and discussed on the newly-recommended inspections of all truss bridges with gusseted connections. This focus represents an entirely new area of research and study as gusset plates were not previously considered inspection-critical components.

Other seminar tracks concentrated on security monitoring of bridges including a comprehensive talk on the fixed monitoring of scour-critical bridges. Bridge scour defines the process by which river sediment is washed away from the area around and beneath bridge piers and is the cause of approximately 60% of bridge failures in the United States. Monitoring is installed to give bridge operators a warning when scour conditions are present and is recognized by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) as an appropriate security measure for scour-critical bridges.

The Bridge Inspection, Evaluation and Management track concentrated on the different database programs that regional departments use to complete their asset management inspections. The slow pace at which the bridge industry is turning paper records into electronic records was a common theme of several presentations. Once they do commit to going digital, there is no standard database system used. This individual regional approach to bridge inspection inhibits the ability for bridge engineers to learn from the large amounts of bridge inspection data that are taken each year.

More information on the Bridge Engineering Association can be found on their website.
More information about Vertical Access's bridge information can be found on the bridge and truss page of our site.
Please contact Kelly for more information.


Vertical Access Expands Our NDT Capabilities

Vertical Access has recently expanded our NDT capabilities with the addition of infrared thermography. We have purchased a FLIR b40 thermal imager which will enhance our building inspections and condition survey deliverables. Last summer Dave Dayan passed the 40 hour Level I Thermography course with FLIR. This course gave him the general understanding of thermal imagers to know how to properly utilize them and analyze the results. This thermal imager will be a very useful tool for analyzing moisture infiltration, finding structural steel, and documenting other facade conditions.

Shown to the right is a thermal image and a visible light image taken with the b40 and showing the same section of a mosonry wall. Notice the darker area above the opening in the infrared image indicating a cooler surface temperature, most likely due to moisture in the building. This condition is not noticeable in the visible light image or using visual observation.




Industrial Rope Access Training and SPRAT Certification

Dave Dayan, Evan Kopelson Kelly Streeter and Kent Diebolt practicing rescue �pick-offs� on rope during the training session.

Between May 31 and June 3, Vertical Access conducted an in-house training program in Ithaca, NY for all Vertical Access staff. The training included review of general site safety procedures, practice of rope skills applied to various rigging situations, rescue procedures to �pick-off� a casualty on rope and setting up mechanical advantage systems for raising and lowering casualties or objects. Vertical Access used the Ithaca Fire Department�s High Angle Rope Rescue and Aerial Operations facility, a wooden structure that allows simulation of many rigging and rescue scenarios that Vertical Access might encounter in our work on buildings. The training was organized and led by Mike Gilbert, Vertical Access'

Kent Diebolt and Donn Hewes practicing a rescue �pick-off� with Vicente Galvañ observing.

chief rigger and a SPRAT level 3 supervisor.

Following the training, an independent Society of Professional Rope Access Technicians (SPRAT) evaluator was on site to evaluate three Vertical Access workers for re-certification. Part of the certification process included a written and oral exam to test knowledge of safe practices for industrial rope access and an understanding of the equipment and principles involved with rope access work. The main part of the evaluation was a demonstration of the safe application of rope access skills practiced during the training. Kent Diebolt re-certified as a level 2 lead technician, responsible for physically conducting rope access operations and safety evaluations of rope access operations. Evan Kopelson also certified as a level 2 lead technician. Kelly Streeter became a level 3 supervisor, responsible for the overall rope access operations on site. SPRAT certifications are renewed every three years.


AIC Annual Meeting: Conservation 2.0 New Directions

The American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC) held its annual meeting in Los Angeles, CA from May 19 to 22. AIC is the professional organization representing conservators, educators, scientists and others dedicated to the preservation of cultural heritage ranging from paper and electronic media to paintings and architecture. The Architecture Specialty Group (ASG), one of 10 specialty groups that comprise AIC, held its session of presentations and business meeting on May 22.

The number of people in attendance for the presentations was an indication of the interest in the conservation topics and case studies discussed. For the most part, there was standing room only during most of the day for the session organized by Program Chair Charles Phillips. Several presentations focused on innovative and multidisciplinary approaches to conservation, including the conservation and interpretation of Menokin, an 18th century building being interpreted using 21st century technology; the use of microbes in the treatment of bronze sculpture; and the application of polyacrylic acid to conserve the exterior paint coatings on the National Building Museum in Washington, DC.

Other papers presented in the ASG session described a study undertaken for the conservation of an Islamic-style Spanish ceiling in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a laboratory testing program to evaluate Arte Mundit cleaning paste on various natural stones, the conservation treatment of the Carrara marble capitals at the Philadelphia Merchant�s Exchange, treatment of a room in a Hollywood house painted in 1934 by Millard Sheets and the concrete repairs performed in the recent conservation effort at Frank Lloyd Wright�s Guggenheim Museum in New York.

At the ASG business meeting, ASG Chair Kevin Daly and Secretary/Treasurer Linnaea Dawson reported on the activities of the group. The ASG is in sound financial position; most of the discussion about the group�s finances were related to agreeing on appropriate ways to spend down reserves. As usual, there are only a handful of people involved in the active committees of the group and more participation among ASG members and others would be welcome. Information on the ASG and its committees can be found on the ASG website: http://www.conservation-us.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Page.ViewPage&PageID=479.


APT Workshop: Nondestructive Evaluation Methods for Historic Structures

Rick Miles of Sparks Engineering demonstrating the use of a concrete rebar scanner to locate reinforcing in a concrete floor slab, with Tom Vitanza of the NPS Historic Preservation Training Center observing.

On May 6 and 7, APT held a workshop on Nondestructive Evaluation (NDE) Methods for Historic Structures. The workshop was sponsored in part by the National Park Service National Center for Preservation Technology and Training, National Park Service Historic Preservation Training Center and the Association for Preservation Technology Washington, DC Chapter. Presentations by leading practitioners in the preservation field covered planning an investigation, concrete evaluation, wood investigations, surface penetrating radar, infrared thermography and in-situ masonry evaluation and testing. The classroom work was supplemented by hands-on demonstrations of the diagnostic methods at the Historic Preservation Training Center in Frederick, MD.

One of the key points raised in the presentations is that judgment and experience play an important role in the application of NDE techniques and in the interpretation of the data generated by the equipment. Another common theme in the presentations and discussions of the NDE methods is that there is usually not any one technique that by itself will be sufficient to perform an investigation of a historic structure. Often a combination of NDE methods are required, beginning with visual observation.

Ron Anthony explaining resistance drilling as part of the investigation of wood timbers.

During the second half of each day of the workshop, instructors demonstrated the use of NDE techniques at the shop building of the Historic Preservation Training Center (HPTC) in Frederick, MD. The HPTC shops are housed in an early 20th century industrial brick structure with timber framing, which was an ideal laboratory for demonstrating techniques such as resistance drilling in wood, surface penetrating radar on the concrete floor slab, flat jack testing in the brick walls and infrared thermography. Other techniques such as rebar location and half-cell potential in concrete were demonstrated using mock-ups prepared for the workshop. Workshop participants had the opportunity to use the equipment as part of the demonstrations, which was particularly useful to gain a better understanding of the capabilities and limitations of each technique and the field application of the NDE methods used for historic structures.


Biocolonization of Stone Workshop

On April 20 and 21, Kent Diebolt, Vicente Galvañ and Evan Kopelson of Vertical Access attended the Biocolonization of Stone: Control and Preventive Measures Workshop organized by the Museum Conservation Institute of the Smithsonian Institution. Eight research papers and four case studies were presented by microbiologists, chemists and conservation scientist from Europe and the United States. Several research papers focused on the structure of microorganisms and methods used to identify them. The case studies included presentations on in situ testing and analysis of zinc and bronze strips for the control of biological growth, research on proprietary biocides to control algal growth on marble grave markers, and the analysis of red staining in marble. Future directions for research of control and preventive measures were discussed, including chemical treatments, microbe viruses, organic extracts and zinc strips.

One of the key points of several of the papers presented is that the mere presence of microbiological growth may not be detrimental to the stone on which the microbes are found. It is important to understand not just type of microbes present, but also whether they are metabolically active and whether their activity leads to stone deterioration. Another key point common to many of the papers was that microbes are everywhere and can never be completely eliminated. Thus, it becomes a question of controlling the effects of the microorganisms, such as through changes to the local environment. However, one must be careful that altering the environment does not have the opposite effect of what is intended and results in greater deterioration from biocolonization.


ANSI Z359 Committee Meetings

From April 14th through 16th, Kelly Streeter was in Chicago to participate in the meetings of the ANSI Z359 Committee on Fall Arrest/Protection Systems. ANSI, the American National Standards Institute, coordinates voluntary standardization systems for many private sector industries. The Z359 Committee on Fall Arrest/Protection Systems is co-administered by the American Society of Safety Engineers, ASSE, and is comprised of several subcommittees.

During the ANSI meetings, Kelly worked in the Z359.8 subcommittee on Safety Requirements for Rope Access which is refining the portion of the standard which will specifically address how the equipment and the methods of fall protection used in Industrial Rope Access differ from traditional fall protection systems.

Kelly also participated in the Z359.17 subcommittee on Safety Requirements for Horizontal Lifelines for Personal Fall Arrest Systems. Horizontal lifeline design is a relevant topic for Vertical Access because of the Fall Protection consulting projects that have kept Vertical Access busy over the last two years.

Kent Diebolt of Vertical Access has participated in two previous ANSI Z359 committee meetings, which are held approximately every six months. Vertical Access plans to continue to be involved in this effort to help define safe practices for fall protection and rope access work in the United States.


Vertical Access Technicians Take NDT Course for Composite Materials

Vertical Access in class with John Register of R-CON NDT Inc.

From April 6-8th, John Register from R-CON NDT Inc. came to Vertical Access' Ithaca office to train our technicians and staff in non-destructive techniques for evaluating composite materials. A composite material is comprised of two or more materials that may be bonded together using an adhesive, or multiple sheets of a woven material held together with a resin. Composite materials can be much stronger and lighter than traditional building materials, making them ideal for wind turbines.

Mike Gilbert getting hands-on experience with the bond tester.

During the three day course, we learned about the most widely used methods for non-destructively testing composite materials such as: Visual, Borescopes, Tap Testing, Ultrasonics, Radiography, Eddy Current, Laser Shearography, Infrared Thermography, and Bond Testing. There was a focus on ultrasonics and bond testing with in-depth theory and hands-on testing with actual composite samples. The course was concluded with a final test that everyone passed.