Traditional

The number of service providers offering traditional due diligence services has grown significantly over the past 10-years.  This growth is mainly attributable to two reasons:

First, the sheer volume of debt-side due diligence needs has spurred several low-price providers.  This particular brand of provider has branched out to the equity-side using low pricing as leverage.  Typically, these companies are comprised of a group of individuals with little or no design, construction, or reverse-engineering experience.  These individuals come from a variety of fields, but are generally not trained in the those relating to building and supporting system construction/design and can be identified by rapid walk-through’s of existing buildings (or, in the event of new construction/rehabilitation reviews, a quick glance of construction drawings) with a typical analysis consisting of the application of equipment estimated useful lives (EUL’s).  This approach however gives rise to potentially significant oversights and does not accurately convey existing building conditions as it relates to equipment replacement, with no depth of thought executed.  At their heart, deliverables are simply “check list” data reports.

Second, real estate investors have in many cases chosen to recruit the original building designers with the central thought being that there would be no one better to assess a buildings current condition than those who designed it.  This interest has spurred Architectural and MEP firms to offer ancillary services to their typical offerings.  It should be noted though, that the number of individuals involved in such a design do not necessarily have experience with the actual construction, commissioning, and operation of building systems.  Consequently, report deliverables are not necessarily reflective of actual building conditions.

In the end, these providers are not direct competitors of NOI Engineering.  Our methods are derived from our engineering backgrounds and years of in-the-field experience, thus our Traditional Due Diligence services are quite detailed in nature and provide a truly revealing view of the subject asset(s).  These methods are well suited toward uncovering non-obvious deferred maintenance issues that cannot be identified by simple rapid walk-through. 

Are NOI Engineering’s Traditional Due Diligence Services Right for You? In short, if your existing provider has adequately covered your needs, then probably no.  However, if certain issues have come to light after closing, perhaps you should reconsider your organizations' due diligence criteria.  In addition to our detailed and thorough inspection of existing building systems; ask yourself, does your current provider offer the following? 

• Degreed and Certified Engineers
• Wall Moisture Testing
• Capital Expenditure Layout within 2-business days subsequent to site tour
• Verbal communication of onsite observations within days of a site visit
• Typical one-week report turnarounds
• Direct communication with engineer(s) for follow-up questions
• Reports include outdoor air calculations (both existing and design)  for ASHRAE 62 compliance
• Reports include mechanical plant calculations (both existing and design)  for ASHRAE 15 compliance 

Those questions listed above should provide a hint of insight to gauge NOI Engineering’s typical Traditional Due Diligence scopes.  If any questions remain, a simple comparison of our deliverables with respect to your current providers’ should readily allow such a determination.