Different types of equipment, including consumer products and industrial, commercial and construction equipment, have the same or very similar requirements for mechanical integrity, safety design, and safety features. Mechanical integrity is the ability of equipment to avoid failure under various conditions. Safety design covers techniques and features to design out hazards and provide fail-safe design (a design that will not allow the creation of a safety hazard as a result of a failure) for aspects of the equipment that impact safety. Safety features include warnings and safeguards (barrier guards, light curtains, fail-safe safety instrumentation, dual operating buttons, etc.). Equipment features for mechanical integrity, and safety, and their use, when applicable, are similar or the same among various types of equipment. The requirements for mechanical integrity, and specific safety features are determined primarily by the potential hazards, with operational considerations, not the type of equipment.
Equipment items and the need for mechanical integrity and safety features as related to an accident, are analyzed by us using generally accepted engineering and safety design principles, including the safety design hierarchy. These engineering principles have application to all equipment and all equipment accidents, and are used in the analysis of the requirements for, and the use and performance of, safety features in all equipment, including consumer products and industrial, commercial and construction equipment.
determine whether industrial, commercial and construction equipment and consumer products involved in accidents were defective, in regard to safety, in:
● residential maintenance equipment:
- their design
- their manufacture
- their installation
Our reconstruction of accidents involving industrial equipment and consumer products determines whether such equipment caused or contributed to the accident. Work in this area also includes determining whether revision of the equipment or related equipment systems was feasible and required for safety.
● determine whether such equipment had adequate warnings
● determine whether such equipment conformed to appropriate:
- accepted engineering practices
- codes and standards
- regulations, including state and federal regulations for safety
● household and residential utility items:
- walk-behind lawnmowers
- riding lawnmowers
- snowblowers
- string trimmers
- ladders, etc.
● infant and young children products:
- strollers
- highchairs
- child car seats, etc.
● recreational equipment:
- swimming pools and decks
- grills
- playground equipment
- exercise equipment
- bicycles, etc.
● motor vehicles:
- automobiles
- motorcycles
- trucks, etc.
- chairs
- space heaters
- furnaces, etc.
● commercial equipment for use by the public, or with which the public has access:
- chairs
- coffeemakers
- vending machines
- display stands
- powered vehicular gates
- passenger and freight elevators
- material lifts used as elevators
- car washes, etc.
● construction, heavy maintenance and mining equipment:
- scaffolding
- hand tools
- front end loaders
- excavators and similar mobile equipment, etc.
● commercial and light maintenance equipment:
- clothes washing, cleaning and pressing equipment
- food preparation equipment
- floor buffers, etc.
● farm, landscaping and garden equipment:
- tractors
- farm trailers
- commercial lawnmowers
- harvesters
- trimmers, etc.
● industrial equipment:
- forklifts/towmotors, and similar mobile equipment
- cranes
- hoists
- banders
- grinders
- punch presses
- forming presses
- drill presses
- printing presses,
- conveyors
- industrial heating equipment
- wood-working machinery
- blow-molders, for plastics processing
- calanders, for rubber processing
Madden Accident Analysis & Forensic Engineering
8803 Brecksville Road, Suite 7-216, Cleveland, Ohio 44141
phone: 440-838-1191 fax: 440-838-1192
email address: maddenforensic@yahoo.com
website: www.maddenforensic.com
MAAFE
Madden
Accident
Analysis &
Forensic
Engineering
MAAFE
Copyright 2011 Madden Accident Analysis & Forensic Engineering, all rights reserved
This website contains photographs which are licensed with restrictions that prohibit
downloading, re-publication, re-transmission, and reproduction .
Also see .
Consultation is available before starting a case. We invite you to
consult with us. There is no charge for an initial phone consultation.
Call us, or if you prefer we can schedule the consultation in advance.
Consultation with James D. Madden, PE, a Professional Engineer, and Forensic
Engineering Consulting and Testifying Expert Witness, is available to the client at all
times during the work - before, during, and after the investigation,
engineering analysis, reconstruction, report, and any other work on the case.
The qualifications of James D. Madden, P.E., Senior Forensic Engineer, Consulting and Testifying
Forensic Engineer and Accident Reconstruction Engineer, are listed on the Qualifications and Forensic Specialties pages.
Download a Summary or Detailed Curriculum Vitae (CV) / Resume' for James D. Madden, P.E.,
email us, and bookmark this website.
ualifications of James D. Madden, P.E., Senior Forensic Engineer
ownloads and Links - Curriculum Vitae, Email and Bookmark
D
Q
For mailing address, phone, fax and email address click a button below the Fee Schedule section.
Contact us by phone, fax, mail or email for a copy of the Fee Schedule for charges for engineering
and consulting services and testimony. Click a button below for contact information.
ontact information
ee Schedule
F
C
Over the last 28 years we have regularly worked on accidents which occurred in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, New York and nearby, including inspections of accident sites, equipment, and facilities, with reports and testimony. During these 28 years we have also worked on accidents which occurred in other states, and equipment and facilities located in other states, with inspections of accident sites, equipment, and facilities, from Utah to Vermont, to North Carolina, with reports and testimony for these accidents, when applicable.
eographic Area of Practice - North America
Contact us to discuss your case by phone at NO CHARGE.
This consultation can be scheduled in advance to meet your schedule.
G
We analyze equipment that was involved in accidents for mechanical failure, safety design and the presence of required safety features, particularly safeguards, such as barrier guards, light curtains, dual operating buttons, safety instrumentation, etc., and warnings.
Examples of equipment which has been analyzed to date include:
● took extensive college coursework in engineering design of equipment
earned 2 Engineering degrees, Bachelor of Science and Master of Engineering, and took additional post-degree coursework, with coursework in physics, chemistry, mathematics, engineering mechanics, mechanical engineering, chemical engineering and normal psychology
● over 40 years of engineering experience, with:
● 17 years experience in industrial operations, engineering design and construction assistance
● 28 years experience in forensic engineering, including:
● working on over 1000 cases
● issuing over 600 reports and over 60 affidavits
● testifying in over 90 depositions and over 75 trials
at the start of forensic work, completed refresher and additional post-degree college credit coursework and continuing education coursework in mechanical engineering, metallurgy and materials
● attended the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) seminar on product liability
● attended engineering seminars presented by the National Academy of Forensic Engineers
regularly attend additional technical courses and seminars each year to meet the requirements for continuing engineering education for the Professional Engineer's license
We analyze equipment that was involved in accidents for mechanical failure, safety design and the presence of required safety features, particularly safeguards, such as barrier guards, light curtains, dual operating buttons, safety instrumentation, etc., and warnings.
Examples of equipment which has been analyzed to date include:
Our Engineering Analyses of Industrial and Commercial Equipment and Consumer Products cover mechanical failure, safety design and safety features, particularly safeguards (such as barrier guards, light curtains, dual operating buttons, fail-safe instrumentation, etc.) and warnings, with the intent to:
determine whether such equipment had appropriate safeguards, such as barrier guards, light curtains, dual operating buttons, safety instrumentation, etc.
● verbal reports, by telephone or in face-to-face conferences
We present the results of our investigations, engineering analyses and reconstructions in
the client's choice of any, or all, of the following:
resentation of results of our work
For more on qualifications click on >>>
P
Our work investigating, analyzing and reconstructing accidents, and presenting the results, may include any
or all of the following, depending on the needs of the case:
● inspection of the accident site, such as a roadway, outdoor facilities, building or industrial facilities
● inspection of the involved equipment, during operation (such as industrial equipment), or in damaged
condition (such as crashed vehicles)
● interviewing witnesses (often during the inspection of the accident site, product and/or equipment)
● coordinating or interfacing with others while they are preparing specialized exhibits such as video
animations and videos of demonstrations
● review and study of case documents, evidence and applicable codes, standards and recommended practices
● written reports and affidavits, and exhibits
● drawings, calculations, graphical analyses, computer analyses, etc.
as required to analyze and reconstruct the accident, and
to present the engineering analysis and reconstruction
● testing accident items and exemplar items (such as consumer products)
● photography and/or video of the accident site and involved equipment
● testimony in deposition, trial and arbitration
ur Typical Work Activities and Products, when warranted by the case
O
● written reports and affidavits
● deposition testimony, including video deposition
● trial testimony and arbitration testimony
James D. Madden, P.E., while performing Forensic Engineering work full-time for over
the last 28 years, for both plaintiff and defendant, has to date:
orensic Engineering Work by Senior Forensic Engineer James D. Madden, P.E.
F
● completed over 1000 cases
● written and issued over 600 reports
● testified in over 90 depositions
● written and issued over 60 affidavits
● testified in over 75 trials
xperience and Qualifications of James D. Madden, P.E. in regard to Consumer
Products, and Industrial, Commercial, and Construction Equipment Accidents
●
E
click on red underlined words to use links - if no word is underlined try hovering the mouse over words to see underlines
M
A
A
F
E
^ ^ ^ click on buttons
earned the Professional Engineers license (P.E.) by taking the National Council of Engineering Examiners' (NCEE) examination in Fundamentals of Engineering and the Mechanical Engineering and Chemical Engineering sections of the NCEE examination in Principles and Practices of Engineering
designated a Diplomate Forensic Engineer by the National Academy of Forensic Engineers in accordance with the standards of the Council of Engineering and Scientific Specialty Boards (CESB)
See details of the pre-forensic work on the and the .
See details of the forensic work throughout this website, and a summary on the .
See more about qualifications of James D. Madden, P.E. on the .
ur Engineering Analysis of Equipment and Consumer Products
O
xamples of Industrial, Commercial, and Construction Equipment We have Analyzed • including
mining equipment, and farm and garden equipment
E
xamples of Consumer Products We have Analyzed • including residential and recreational products,
and vehicles
E
<< click for a description of the typical activities and work performed
over 175 incidents involving consumer products and industrial and commercial equipment have been investigated and reconstructed as part of the forensic engineering work during the last 28 years
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
●
<< click for examples of Consumer Products analyzed
<< click for examples of Industrial, Commercial and Construction Equipment analyzed
28 Years in Forensic Engineering
see the sections above for: (a) description of our engineering analysis of equipment accidents and (b) examples of consumer products analyzed
hydraulic press
exercise equipment
Click below to go to
the webpage for ....
G
E
N
E
R
A
L
S
P
E
C
I
A
L
T
I
E
S
Contact us ▪ ph 440-838-1191 ▪ fax 440-838-1192 ▪ maddenforensic@yahoo.com
Return to Specialties list on
Equipment
Consumer Products
Consumer Products, Machinery,
Industrial, Commercial and Construction Equipment
100 / 1100 T65 B70
Madden Accident Analysis & Forensic Engineering
M
9,0
Product Liability, Machine, Workplace Accident, Workplace Incident,
OSHA, Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Madden Accident Analysis & Forensic Engineering, Expert Witness Crash Accident Investigator and Reconstructionist - Ohio Pennsylvania Michigan New York Indiana Illinois Maryland Kentucky
Madden Accident Analysis & Forensic Engineering James D. Madden Jim Madden Cleveland Akron Canton Toledo Warren Youngstown Columbus Mansfield Dayton Springfield Cincinnati Lima Findlay Ohio Pittsburgh Erie Pennsylvania Detroit Ann Arbor Port Huron Kalamazoo Michigan Buffalo New York
300 / 1130 T75 B90
James D. Madden, P.E. Jim Madden Forensic Engineer Mechanical Chemical Engineer Expert Witness Crash Accident Investigator and Reconstructionist - Ohio Pennsylvania Michigan New York Indiana Illinois Maryland Kentucky
Our work with consumer products and industrial, commercial and construction equipment includes investigation and reconstruction of accidents associated with this equipment, and investigation and engineering analysis of unsafe operation and/or failure of the involved equipment, when either occurs.
Our work includes assessment of the activities of the persons involved in the accident as these activities relate to the product or equipment involved. Engineering analysis of the design, construction, and assembly of the involved equipment is included in our work. In particular we assess and evaluate the conformance of the equipment to the requirements of Safety Design principles and the applicable Codes, Standards and Recommended Practices. We determine the requirements for the presence of safety features including Safeguards and Warnings, and determine whether the required safety features were in place and performing properly at the time of the subject accident.
Our work includes assessment of the operation of the involved equipment, particularly as it relates to safety and the accident events, both as a result of the accident events and as the cause of accident events, when either, or both, is the case.
Our engineering analyses of products and equipment cover mechanical failure, safety design and safety features. Safety features analyzed include safeguards, such as barrier guards, light curtains, dual operating buttons, fail-safe instrumentation, etc., and warnings. These analyses are for the purpose of determining the safety of this equipment, and if it is unsafe, the source of this defect. Our engineering analyses are discussed further in 'Our Engineering Analysis' below. Also see 'Typical Work' below for other activities typically involved in our work. Click on the red underlined words in this website to link to the sections named.
Our reconstruction of accidents involving industrial equipment and consumer products determines whether such equipment caused or contributed to the accident. Work in this area also includes determining whether revision of the equipment or related equipment systems was feasible and required for safety.
We have analyzed a broad range of consumer products and industrial, commercial and construction equipment. Example of the products and equipment that have been analyzed are included in 'Examples of Consumer Products We Have Analyzed ...' and 'Examples of ... Equipment We have Analyzed' below.
Our analysis of product and equipment accidents includes consideration of the human-mechanical interface in the accident, as understood through Human Factors and from extensive experience in the safety design of equipment and equipment systems, including control instrumentation. See 'Experience and Qualifications...' below for this experience and the other qualifications for work with Product and Equipment Accidents. Also see''Engineering Design' on another page for examples of equipment, equipment systems and facilities designed while a design engineer. Also see the closely related specialty 'Industrial and Commercial Operations and Construction Activities' on another page.
See 'Human Factors' on another page for more information regarding Human Factors work with the forensic work. Also see 'Safeguards', 'Warnings', 'Safety Design' and 'Codes and Standards' on other pages for more information regarding work in these areas as it relates to the forensic work.
