By: Kristopher J. Seluga, PE
Tel: (203) 329-9909
Email: Technology Associates
Doors and gates, whether automated or manual, can pose a serious hazard to users if not designed, manufactured, installed and maintained properly. The different types include automatic doors, overhead garage doors, elevator doors, sliding doors, swinging doors, and automatic gates. Door injuries are typically associated with an impact between the door or gate and a user. To reduce such injuries, standards have been developed to limit the speed and energy associated with a closing door or a gust of wind blowing a door open. Additional safety requirements exist for automatic doors, gates and door closers. Testing can determine whether a door meets applicable standards.
We have extensive experience in many aspects of door accidents including:
Through scientific analysis, we can help you answer pertinent questions such as:
Windblown Glass Door Shatter:
An improper closer on a store's glass front door permitted the wind to blow the door open rapidly. The subsequent impact with a nearby structural element shattered the plate glass and caused a long piercing cut on a customer's arm. Our analyses of the door closer and wind forces convinced the jury that the door closer was deficient and the customer was awarded a large cash settlement.
Elevator Door Closing:
A woman claimed to have been injured by a closing elevator door at her apartment complex. An inspection of the door determined that its closing speed and closing force complied with the applicable elevator standard requirements. Our biomechanical analysis showed that the forces imparted by the door during the alleged impact would not have been severe enough to cause the claimed injuries.
Kristopher J. Seluga, PE, is a Mechanical Engineering, Accident Reconstruction, Biomechanics, and Safety Expert with over 20 years of experience. He received his Bachelor's and Master's degrees from the Mechanical Engineering department at MIT where he worked on the development of novel three-dimensional printing technologies. Mr. Seluga is also a licensed Professional Engineer in New York and Connecticut, and has served as a member of the ANSI engineering committee for the Z130.1 and Z135 standards for golf cars and PTV's. His research interests and peer reviewed publications span the topics of Motor Vehicle Dynamics, Product Safety, and Biomechanics.
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7/31/2009· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction
Forensic Engineering Experts: Falls
Second only to automobile accidents, falls are the leading cause of injury and deaths. Of these, accidents due to slipping or tripping form a large proportion. Slips and trips occur on floors, streets, walkways, stairs, etc.
9/6/2017· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction
Case Study: Retained by Plaintiff Injured Motorist
By: Richard Beaubien
A motorist exiting a rural freeway was struck by a motorist on the intersecting State Route at the top of the exit ramp. At the westbound exit ramp from the Interstate freeway the State Route a stop sign is posted at the end of the ramp requiring exiting traffic to stop before entering the State Route. However, the eastbound off ramp traffic is not required to stop before entering the State Route. A stop sign is posted on southbound State Route at the ramp terminal. This is an unusual traffic signing pattern for interstate off ramps. Expert observations of the operation of this intersection showed that a large proportion of the eastbound off ramp traffic slowed down at the end of the ramp, expecting to stop at the State Route.
10/24/2018· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction
By: Jeffrey Warren and Aron Olson
Welcome to the third and final post in our multipart series of blog posts about a young boy's fall and serious injury at a public playground. In our first post we gave a brief overview of the incident and our investigation. In the second post we discussed some of the safety standards applicable to public playgrounds. In this post, we will examine some of the impact-absorbing playground surfaces available to protect children at playgrounds from injury. If you would like to read the first two posts, they are available here and here.
