Aerial view of a construction site with heavy machinery drilling into the ground and building foundations nearby.

Engineering and Due Diligence for Commercial Property

Usually a closing date is driving it.

Commercial projects often have firm deadlines, whether a lender requires a Phase 1 assessment before funding, a buyer works within a due diligence window, or an association faces a compliance deadline. Because we run the assessments, direct the drilling, and test in our own laboratory, the schedule stays under our control.

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Commercial due diligence: Phase 1 and Phase 2 ESA's

Lenders funding a commercial acquisition, sale, or refinance typically require a Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessment before closing, a records and observation review to ASTM E1527 with no sampling involved. If it turns up a recognized environmental condition, a Phase 2 follows: soil and groundwater sampling to ASTM E1903, which we schedule ourselves to keep on the same timeline as the first step.

Phase 1 ESA

Records and observation review to ASTM E1527. No sampling. Identifies whether a property carries a recognized environmental condition before a transaction closes.

Phase 1 ESA

Phase 2 ESA

Soil and groundwater sampling to ASTM E1903, triggered when a Phase 1 flags a recognized environmental condition. We schedule the drilling ourselves, which keeps the second step on the same timeline as the first.

Phase 2 ESA
Construction site along waterfront with steel sheet piling and yellow floating barrier in water near residential area

Building condition and structural questions

Foundation evaluations, structural inspections, ground depression assessments, and pond failure investigations, each sealed by a licensed Florida Professional Engineer. The seal is what building departments, lenders, insurers, and boards require before they will rely on the finding.

Commercial inspections

Geotechnical, Materials & Forensic Engineering

Geotechnical findings guide the design, materials testing confirms what gets built, and forensic investigation determines what went wrong when something fails.

  • Geotechnical Engineering

    Soil borings and foundation recommendations developed before design begins, including stormwater recovery analysis to support the drainage permit.

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  • Construction Materials Testing

    On-site testing during construction that verifies soils, concrete, and other materials meet the specifications the geotechnical report established.

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  • Forensic Engineering

    Investigation of a building, pavement, or embankment failure where the cause determines what happens next, producing a defensible sealed report for the parties involved.

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Modern fast-food restaurant building at dusk with illuminated signage and outdoor seating area.

A commercial program: RaceTrac Petroleum

We have completed geotechnical studies for more than forty existing and new RaceTrac service stations across Florida: preliminary site investigations, soil borings, laboratory testing, settlement analyses for building foundations, canopy foundation recommendations, underground storage tank foundation preparation, and pavement sections.

Multi-site programs reward consistency. The same scope, the same laboratory, and the same report format across forty sites is worth more to an owner than a slightly cheaper one-off.

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Common questions

How long does a Phase 1 ESA take?

Typically ten to fifteen business days. What most often extends it is records availability, which varies by county, and some Florida jurisdictions return municipal file reviews more slowly than others. If your closing is tighter than that, tell us on the first call and we will tell you honestly whether it is workable.

How long is a Phase 1 ESA valid?

Components older than 180 days must be updated, and a report older than one year cannot be used to establish landowner liability protections under the All Appropriate Inquiries rule. If your closing has slipped past either threshold the report needs a formal update, which is faster and costs less than a new assessment.

Can you handle the environmental and the geotechnical work together?

Yes, and on a development site that is usually the cheaper route. One mobilization can cover soil borings for foundation design and sampling for a site assessment, and the same laboratory runs both.