Specialty Assessments & Design Peer Review

Our seasoned engineers and architects excel at addressing specialized systems and unique challenges.

Architectural Exterior of Building
Architectural Exterior of Building

Specialty Assessments & Design Peer Review

Our seasoned engineers and architects excel at addressing specialized systems and unique challenges.

Our Experience

The value we bring to our clients lies in our ability to navigate the most complex issues and provide actionable recommendations. This expertise is derived from years of experience across all asset types.

HVAC equipment
Lobby
Elevators
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Building System Assessments

Our experienced professionals offer thorough assessments and design reviews, leveraging broad knowledge across all building systems or the focused expertise of specialists in specific areas. These assessments and design consulting services can be conducted alongside our core transaction services, or stand alone as issues or concerns arise. Our typical services include the review of the following building and facility systems:

Site utilities and amenities

Site Utilities and Amenities

Coordination and delivery of utility services present an extraordinary risk to property Owners and developments. Our experience across the nation with various service providers and municipalities helps us understand and present these risks to our clients. With each assessment or review of existing or planned site utility improvements, we provide a narrative commenting on their general condition and configuration as well as detailed descriptions and review of site utilities, storm drainage systems, landscaping, irrigation systems, retaining walls, and hardscapes.

Pavement Systems

Drive lanes and parking areas are the life stream of most a property; and understanding the design and condition of these systems is important to ensure efficient navigation for its users. We are able to identify the type of pavements, note their overall condition and design, highlight specific problem areas observed, and provide a parking count. Pavement coring and scans can be conducted to more accurately determine thickness, strength, and reinforcing for heavy-use applications and in the review and diagnosis of pavement failures.

Construction Site

Structures and Foundations

Structural and foundation issues can occur in new and older buildings and across all asset types. We can often observe reported problem areas and representative sections of structures and foundations that are visible without removing architectural finishes. Additionally, we compare our observations with available design drawings, specifications, and geotechnical reports, noting any discrepancies in our report.

Worker Executing Vertical Jobs on a building and Safety Equipment

Exterior of Buildings

The building envelope is a high-risk system with most asset types and systematic issues can result in poor user experience and expensive and invasive remediation efforts. Poor workmanship, varying material quality, and regional design variations result in conditions that can result in deficiencies throughout the façade. We prioritize the inspection of building exteriors for signs of distress, deterioration, moisture infiltration, and other common issues.

Rooftop of a building with plumbing

Roofing

Roofing deficiencies and improper design details result in roof leaks. Our typical assessment includes thorough observations of roof systems, copings, flashings, drains, and penetrations to evaluate overall condition and identify signs of distress or deterioration. We are experienced in estimations for remaining economic service life of the roofs, which is based on our observations and interview information.

Interior Finishes

Interior Finishes

For residential and hospitality properties, we review the condition of interior finishes in a sample of units or rooms. For commercial properties, we assess representative office, retail, and/or industrial/warehouse spaces, as well as common areas and amenities.

Inside of an elevator

Vertical Transportation

While not specialty consultants in vertical transportation, we provide general observations of existing systems to determine manufacturer, age, capacity, and review existing service contracts where available. For detailed analysis, we can engage specialty consultants as needed.

Building Plumbing and mechanical room

Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing (MEP)

PR&A has in-house mechanical engineers that have years of experience across all system types. It is important to thoroughly identify MEP systems in use at the facility, understand system types, materials, and general condition based on our observations and interviews with maintenance personnel. This allows us to effectively make recommendations for repairs, replacement, upgrades, and other projects.

Fire protection equipment

Fire Protection and Fire Alarm Systems

We can provide general observations of fire protection and fire alarm systems to determine system types, materials, and general condition based on our inspections and interviews with maintenance personnel. Specialty consultants can be engaged for detailed analysis upon request.

Code and zoning research

Code and Zoning Compliance Inquiry

We submit Freedom of Information Act requests to local building code, zoning, and fire departments to identify any outstanding issues or retroactive code changes affecting the property. We also note observed code compliance or zoning discrepancies during our site observations.

Accessibility features

Accessibility Screening

PR&A is experienced in the evaluation of facilities for general compliance with Title III of the ADA and/or the Federal Fair Housing Amendment Act, depending on the property type. Our assessment includes parking areas, accessible entrances, and common areas. For detailed accessibility analysis, specialty consultants can be engaged as required.

Specialty Subconsultants

PR&A has developed national network of high quality specialist consultants. The value we bring to our clients lies in the ability to identify the need for these services and manage these technical scopes of work. This provides a technical and administrative advantage for our clients because we have the framework and experience to manage scope development, contracting, field work, and reporting by these specialist to ensure that our clients are getting the highest quality work product. PR&A will help interpret the specialty consultant report so that the recommendations and findings can be integrated into the overall assessment of the property or project. These specialty consultant reviews are often provided alongside our other services and are prescribed based on the property type or initial findings.

Typical Subconsultant Scopes

  • Property Risk Assessment
  • Fire Life and Safety
  • Vertical Transportation
  • Pavement (Coring and Scans)
  • ADA / FHAA / ANSI
  • Building Envelope, Curtain Wall & Roofing
  • Exterior Wall and Roof Infrared and Vector Mapping
  • Environmental Site Assessment
  • Geotechnical Assessments
  • Waterfront & Bulkhead Assessments
  • Sound Transmission & Acoustical Review
  • Specialty and Life Science MEPF Systems
  • Parking Garage Structural Review
  • Seismic & Building Earthquake Loss Evaluation (for facilities in high seismic zones)
  • Technology & Telecommunications assessment
  • Acoustical & Sound Transmission Consulting
  • Termite & Pest Inspection
  • Infrared scans (electrical equipment)
  • Building area calculations
  • CAD drawings of site or building floor plans
  • Energy analysis
  • MEP systems capacity calculation
  • Survey of interior finishes or appliances
  • Indoor air quality survey
  • Mold/fungi survey or investigation
Exterior of a Building

Our extended network specialist allows us to scale for large portfolio transactions while maintaining a high level of service.

By the Numbers

10000 +

Assessments

(Nationwide)

25 +

Years of Service

1500 +

Development Projects

50

States

Experience Across all Asset Types

Our experience extends across all asset types and we have worked alongside many of the major operators, managers, and developers for each asset class across the nation.

Multifamily

PR&A has assessed thousands of multifamily properties including single family rental, student housing, senior living assets in garden style, mixed use, and mid- and high-rise multifamily properties.

Multi Family Building

Office & Health Care

PR&A has assessed and provided construction oversight for many of the office buildings that shape our nation’s skylines including high-rise towers, corporate campuses, life science and biomanufacturing facilities, medical office buildings, and hospitals.

Office Building

Retail & Mixed Use

Our team has experience with mixed use and retail properties across the country including regional mall portfolios, anchored retail centers, mixed-use developments, and adaptive reuse projects.

Interior View of a Mall

Hotel

PR&A has assessed over 10,000 rooms across our hospitality portfolio. This includes coastal resorts, golf courses, business lodging, luxury towers, adaptive reuse projects, and historic buildings.

Hotel Lobby

Historical Properties & Adaptive Reuse

We apply the appropriate disciplines necessary to bring buildings and systems back to optimum conditions. This applies to industrial facilities, office buildings, hospitals, college and university buildings, parking facilities, and a broad range of other facilities.

Explore Projects
Historical Remodel of the University Club

Experience Across all Asset Types

Our experience extends across all asset types and we have worked alongside many of the major operators, managers, and developers for each asset class across the nation.

Multi Family Building

Multifamily

PR&A has assessed thousands of multifamily properties including single family rental, student housing, senior living assets in garden style, mixed use, and mid- and high-rise multifamily properties.

Office Building

Office & Health Care

PR&A has assessed and provided construction oversight for many of the office buildings that shape our nation’s skylines including high-rise towers, corporate campuses, life science and biomanufacturing facilities, medical office buildings, and hospitals.

Interior View of a Mall

Retail & Mixed Use

Our team has experience with mixed use and retail properties across the country including regional mall portfolios, anchored retail centers, mixed-use developments, and adaptive reuse projects.

Hotel Lobby

Hotel

PR&A has assessed over 10,000 rooms across our hospitality portfolio. This includes coastal resorts, golf courses, business lodging, luxury towers, adaptive reuse projects, and historic buildings.

Historical Remodel of the University Club

Historical Properties & Adaptive Reuse

We apply the appropriate disciplines necessary to bring buildings and systems back to optimum conditions. This applies to industrial facilities, office buildings, hospitals, college and university buildings, parking facilities, and a broad range of other facilities.

Explore Projects
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Commitment to Client

We are proud to be a preferred consultant for many of the nation’s largest and most diligent investors.

You can rely on PR&A to execute at a high level for every transaction or development.