Expert opinion - The procedure
The provision of an expert opinion in the case of damage to machinery, industrial equipment, in mechanical engineering and its evaluation generally requires: on-site visit(s), examination of documents, recording of damage, determination of the cause of damage and the amount of damage.
What is the general procedure for providing an expert opinion?
Contact
You contact us (by phone, e-mail, conventional mail or even fax) and describe the problem. A joint on-site appointment will be arranged immediately and will usually take place at very short notice.
On-site visit
The on-site visit is particularly important in the event of damage, because it enables the inventory to be taken. In important and urgent cases, the on-site visit can take place on the same day as the damage occurred.
Documents
Necessary documents are provided and additional information is usually requested. With the provision, the processing can be continued with detailed checks.
Recording
Machines, technical plant and operating equipment are recorded for evaluation, photographed and compared with existing documentation (e.g. plant overview).
Cause of damage & amount of damage
If requested and commissioned, the cause and extent of the damage will be determined.
Expert Opinion
The findings and results are documented in writing in a written expert report.
"Brief Report" ....
It happens again and again that requests are made for a “short report”. Experience shows that some companies wrongly assume that a “short” report is necessarily associated with lower costs. However, this assumption is not correct, as the costs of a report do not primarily depend on its length or scope, but rather on the complexity of the issue, the nature of the facts and the effort required to prepare a well-founded and comprehensible assessment.
In practice, only reports based on a clearly formulated and unambiguously defined task and which provide a concrete, well-founded result are accepted. The essential requirement for such a report is that it enables the reader to understand the entire process of finding the result. This includes a transparent presentation of the methods used, the data used and the conclusions drawn from the information reviewed. Regardless of the length of a report, the key aspect remains that an expert presents his decisions and assessments in a comprehensible manner.
In mechanical engineering and related industrial sectors, questions about damage, especially major damage, are of great importance. These often involve complex technical issues that usually have significant financial implications. The amount and scope of such damage require an in-depth and careful investigation.
In such cases, a “short” report cannot do justice to the complexity and the detailed analyses required. A meaningful report that fully covers the relevant aspects and provides a sound basis for decisions or legal action must therefore be of a corresponding scope.
Therefore, in our work it is not possible to take on orders for expert opinions where potential clients want to specify the scope and processing time of an expert opinion in advance. An expert opinion always requires a free and independent way of working. The quality of an expert opinion must not be influenced by strict specifications or time limits, as these could impair the thoroughness and objectivity of the investigation. We attach great importance to the fact that every expert opinion we prepare is based on a careful, unbiased and detailed analysis, the depth and clarity of which meets the requirements and expectations of the client.
Our work follows the principle that a report is always the result of an open and carefully conducted investigation process. This is the only way to ensure that the report as a whole meets the necessary requirements and can serve as a reliable basis for decision-making.
Recommendation:
Call anytime if you have questions. Very few clients from the industry are familiar with the procedures unless they have already had a claim.
