Gillespie Engineering Inc

12/18/2018

This is why I always specified LeJeune Bolts. If the contractor wanted to substitute they had to submit for approval, which unless manufactured in the USA, I denied. Those Chinese bolts are crap and get slipped into projects by sh*tty contractors finding a loophole in the contract specs. The Port Authority engineers need to tighten up their spec language from "or Equal" to " Approved Equal" on their connectors. So 80% of structural failures happen at the connections, so this is a MAJOR issue! Sorry for the rant, it just makes me so angry.

State officials have confirmed they are looking into the issue but won't comment on the investigation.

10/17/2017

If you have a question about a Structural problem at your property and not sure if you need an engineer, feel free to post your question (be succinct). We can comment with Some free advice and answers.

If you are an engineering student, the answer is no, we won’t do your homework 😊

09/16/2017

Hurricane Tip #5: this might sound like self promotion; however, if your property was flooded or had substantial wind damage, hire a structural engineer or a qualified LOCAL home inspector to assess your damage. The insurance company's adjusters are pretty good but tend to miss items such as foundation pier rotation, brick face tie corrosion from salt water, and whole building racking to name a few.

09/11/2017

Hurricane Tip #4: Do you have family with special needs, disabilities, or seniors living alone? NJ has a registry to inform emergency workers in your town so they may provide assistance in case of evacuation or other emergencies. Visit www.registerready.nj.gov

“Register Ready – New Jersey’s Special Needs Registry for Disasters” allows New Jersey residents with disabilities or access and functional needs and their families, friends, caregivers and associates an opportunity to provide information to emergency response agencies so emergency responders can be...

09/10/2017

Hurricane Tip # 3: for those frugal folks who have "minimal" insurance on your cars, go online and add Comprehensive Insurance to your policy now. It's cheap, like $5/ mo. Your basic insurance does NOT cover flood or wind damage on your car. So without it, if the car gets flooded, you're SOL.

09/08/2017

Hurricane Season Tip # 2: Make sure your garage doors are down and locked, Especially in ranch style and one story houses. If the garage door fails, an excessive amount of interior upward wind force can essentially not double but triple the uplift force on your roof, which may result in losing the roof sheathing then the roof structure itself. Stay Safe

08/27/2017

With Hurricane season here, I will be posting some "tips" for residential properties.

Tip #1: If sheltering at home, stay in the room with the least amount of window or door openings. Your walls especially those that have plywood on one side (outside walls typically) are designed to resist wind forces. Openings in the walls reduces their strength so you want to be in a room with the most amount of solid wall lengths, these rooms are the strongest and safest.

05/12/2016

This is exactly why a qualified structural engineer is needed on a job like this. I would have taken 1 day to find this defect well in advance of design and no delay in construction. A foundation certification should have been required by the building department also before permits were issued.

03/12/2016

Always research your contractors. Luckily no one we do business with is on this list.

Point Pleasant, NJ - N.J. provided a list (see below) of 208 contractors, and their towns, who were fined the most in 2015 in consumer restitution and penalties. | Patch

02/27/2016

Its that time of year again when NJ requires Continuing Education for Professional Engineers. The 8 courses I have chosen this year are:
Design of Commercial Buildings to Mitigate Terrorist Attacks,
Cost Benefit of ICF,
Design of Heavy Duty Concrete Floor Slabs on Grade,
Home Builders Guide to Earthquake Resistant Building Design,
Hurricane Mitigation: Summary Report On Building Performance,
New Jersey - Ethics, Statutes, and Regulations for Professional Engineers,
Deterioration of Concrete, &
OSHA-Construction Site Safety

12/21/2015

Twas the Years After Sandy

Twas a month before Christmas and all thru the house
All the creatures were stirring including the mouse
The chimney was swaying and so was the stair
Cause Super Storm Sandy soon would be there.

The children were scared and clung to their beds
While visions of tidal waves danced in their heads.
And Mom in her raincoat and me deep in mud
prepared ourselves for the oncoming flood.

Then after the storm, the roof was a tatter
The foundation broken, the house took a batter.
Away were the windows, gone in a flash
Tore off the shutters, it all turned to trash.

The sun on the breast of the new fallen snow
Gave cover to all the debris below.
When what to my teary eyes should appear
A truck with a sign “Structural Engineer”.

With a little computer, all charged and quick
I knew in a moment, that engineer chick.
More rapid than light years, the drawings they came
She signed and sealed and called them by name…

Now House Lift, Now Footing
Now Masonry on Piles
On Floor Joists on Girders
On Sheathing and Tiles
To the top of the porch
To the top of the walls
Fix Away, Fix Away
Fix Away All!

-Merry Christmas to all my Clients and Supporters-
Most Sincerely, Valerie.

11/13/2015

Good job Poland, but all those people on a bridge is making me nervous. Foot traffic in this concentration is actually heavier than vehicle traffic. Yikes.

Described as the 'largest demonstration in Polish history', Around 50,000 demonstrated yesterday in the city center of Warsaw against the invasion of Europe