Scope of Inspection

Special Inspections is the third-party monitoring of materials, construction procedures, and workmanship while work is in progress as specified in the Abu Dhabi Building Code (2009 IBC) Chapter 17. Many areas of inspection (but not including mechanical, electrical and plumbing) are now the responsibility of the building owner / developer, as opposed to the building department of the local authority.

Special Inspections often require continuous inspection, in which case the Special Inspector must be on site at all times while work is in progress. Others require only periodic inspection.  The inspection schedule is planned in advance and is described in the Statement of Special Inspections submitted to the municipality as part of the application for the building permit.  The Statement of Special Inspections must be approved by the Municipality prior to issuance of the building permit.

Special inspections are in addition to the inspections performed by the Municipality, which are limited in time and nature. Special Inspectors, who are retained by the Project Owner or Project Designer to assist in quality control of construction, are not an extension of the municipality’s inspection services, i.e., they do not perform the same duties and are not a substitute for Municipality building inspections.

A Special Inspector is an individual who is certified through a national and/or international recognized certification agency such as the International Code Council (ICC), American Welding Society (AWS), American Society of Non-destructive Examiners (ASNT), American Concrete Institute (ACI), National Institute for Certification of Engineering Technologies (NICET), American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) or any certification agency approved by the Building Official.

Thomas Bell-Wright International Consultant’s Special Inspectors are western educated, certified and experienced in the following categories and building code sections:

1704.2 Inspection of Fabricators
1704.3 Steel Construction
1704.4 Concrete Construction
1704.5 Masonry Construction
1704.6 Wood Construction
1704.12 Sprayed Fire Resistive Materials
1704.13 Mastic and Intumescent Fire Resistant Coatings
1704.15 Special Cases