As part of its enforcement of the latest New York City Building Codes, The New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) is now requiring Special Inspections to verify that projects are constructed in accordance with DOB-approved drawings. The Special Inspection Program was officially mandated to replace the Controlled Inspection Program in July, 2009. The main differences between the two programs are that Special Inspectors must be independently accredited, must meet specific qualification criteria listed in Subchapter A of Chapter 100 of Title 1 of the Rules of the City of New York, and must be hired directly by the building owner rather than the contractor. These criteria increase the level of independence and expertise necessary to verify that a finished project reflects the approved design.

WB received accreditation from the International Accreditation Service (IAS) to provide Special Inspections in March, 2011 for various categories pertaining to fire protection, plumbing, and mechanical systems. (WB is designated as Special Inspection Agency SIA-140-NY.) To attain this accreditation, WB developed a special Inspections Quality Manual following the IAS AC291 Accreditation Criteria for IBC Special Inspection Agencies. The Quality Manual identified quality control and technical leadership roles for specific personnel in the company and formalized confidentiality, impartiality, training, reporting, security, recordkeeping, self-auditing and management review procedures for the Special Inspection program.

In general, a Special Inspection verifies that the construction materials used in a project and the configuration and installation of those materials are in accordance with the plans that were officially approved by the DOB. In addition, the Special Inspection Program implements specific verification tests when required by code. As an engineering firm that been accredited by the IAS to conduct these Special Inspections, WB will play an integral role in current and future construction projects, which will need to meet the latest New York City Building Codes in order to attain Certificates of Occupancy.