Walter Bell
Atlanta, GA 30357-4088
Office: 404-549-5433
I provide forensic flooring failure analysis and expert consulting for complex floor covering, coating, and concrete slab disputes. My practice is grounded in scientific investigation, engineering-grade analytical testing, and root-cause determination.
I have extensive experience working with attorneys, facility owners, managers, and other stakeholders in commercial, industrial, and healthcare facilities, where flooring performance issues require disciplined forensic evaluation of materials, substrates, environmental conditions, and installation performance beyond the scope of typical inspections.
FloorSciences applies forensic methodologies to determine the root cause of flooring failures and the technical significance of observed conditions. Depending on the issue, that may include testing, evaluation, and analysis of coatings, substrates, subfloor flatness, concrete pH and in-situ relative humidity, tensile bond strength, material hardness, dimensional measurements, concrete core laboratory testing, and ground penetrating radar for subsurface investigation and slab thickness assessment.
Our highly analytical approach evaluates the interaction among the flooring system, substrate, installation process, and environment. Visible distress is often only the symptom of a deeper condition involving moisture, adhesion, compatibility, curing, contamination, or structural variability. Reliable conclusions require disciplined field investigation, accurate measurement, and an understanding of the relevant materials and standards.
FloorSciences assists in matters involving coating failures, adhesive failures, delamination, debonding, blistering, cracking, bubbling, curling, buckling, lippage, hollow-sounding installations, moisture-related distress, and premature flooring deterioration. We also evaluate floor covering and coating performance where the source of failure may involve substrate preparation, installation methods, environmental exposure, product selection, or combinations of these factors.
I also have extensive experience with forensic imaging, technical documentation, and data-driven scientific reporting. Forensic-grade photographs, precise measurements, and organized documentation are essential because they allow the evidence to be reviewed, challenged, and understood by counsel, insurers, contractors, and, when necessary, the trier of fact.
My background includes work on healthcare, commercial, industrial, and institutional flooring where performance expectations are high and failures can have substantial financial and operational consequences. I have been retained in disputes involving slab moisture, resinous coatings, underlayments, resilient flooring, terrazzo, and other systems where scientific technical analysis is needed to separate installation issues from material limitations, substrate conditions, or environmental influences.
In addition to casework, I am the appointed Technical Contact and Task Group Chair for more than a dozen ASTM standards under development or revision for tensile bond strength, material hardness, humidity measurement, forensic imaging, and resilient floor testing. My ASTM involvement reflects active leadership in standards development, test method refinement, and technical consensus work, not simply membership in a professional organization.
Whether the issue involves moisture, adhesion, material compatibility, substrate condition, or installation performance, my objective is to provide clear, defensible, science-based conclusions grounded in objective evidence. I work with attorneys, facility owners, managers, insurers, contractors, and other stakeholders who need a forensic analysis that goes beyond routine inspection and addresses the actual cause of flooring failure.
FloorSciences provides nationwide consulting, forensic investigation, and expert witness support. For more information about capabilities, methods, and representative work, please visit https://floorsciences.com or call me at 404-549-5433.
- Adhesives
- Concrete/Cement
- Construction
- Failure Analysis
- Flooring
- Materials
- Materials Engineering
- Paint & Coatings
- Photography
- Polymers
- Q: Please list your professional accreditations, degrees, licenses, and certificates granted:
- A:
• Certified Concrete Coating Inspector | SSPC: The Society for Protective Coatings
• Certified Concrete Slab Moisture Testing Technician | International Concrete Repair Institute (ICRI)
• Concrete Flatwork Technician | American Concrete Institute
• Construction Quality Management Contractors Certificate (CQM-C) | U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
• Forensics@NIST Workshop Certificate | National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
• Healthcare Construction Certificate | American Society for Health Care Engineering (ASHE) - Q: Please list your affiliations or memberships in any professional and/or industry organizations:
- A:
• ASTM International Technical Committees involvement that includes being appointed the Task Group Chair and Technical Contact for over a dozen industry standards in revision or under development in four different committees.
‣ C09 Concrete
‣ C11 Gypsum
‣ D01 Coatings
‣ D11 Rubber (Hardness)
‣ D22 Air Quality (Meteorology)
‣ E06 Building Performance (Vapor Retarders)
‣ E30 Forensic Science
‣ E36 Accreditation & Certification
‣ E58 Forensic Engineering
‣ F06 Resilient Flooring
• International Accreditors for Continuing Education & Training (IACET) Standards Development Committee (SDC): Was appointed to join an elite group of 24 professionals from six countries to serve on this ANSI-accredited standards body.
Other trade organizations:
• American Bar Association (ABA) | Forum on Construction Law
• American Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT)
• American Society of Health Care Engineering (ASHE)
• American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
• Association for Learning Environments - Georgia (GA4LE)
• Claims & Litigation Management Alliance (CLE)
• Georgia Association of School Facility Administrators (GASFA)
• International Risk Management Institute (IRMI)
• Structural Engineers Association of GA (SEAOG)
• World Floor Covering Association (WFCA) - Q: Have any of your accreditations ever been investigated, suspended or removed? (if yes, explain)
- A: No
- Q: On how many occasions have you had your deposition taken?
- A: I operate a highly technical, data-driven forensic practice with uncontested scientific findings.
My scientific based forensic reports, advanced engineering-grade instrumentation data, and strict adherence to national consensus standards have proved so definitive that no report has ever been formally challenged in court or arbitration.
My scientific assessments regularly compel opposing parties to settle complex, multi-million dollar commercial flooring and coating claims prior to deposition or trial testimony. We deliver ironclad data that resolves disputes before they reach the courtroom. - Q: What services do you offer? (E.g.: consulting, testing, reports, site inspections etc.)
- A:
ADVANCED ANALYTICAL IN-FIELD TECHNOLOGICAL CAPABILITIES
• CONCRETE SLAB SUBSURFACE SCANNING AND SLAB THICKNESS MEASUREMENT
Ground penetrating radar (GPR) used nondestructively to locate post-tensioning cables, rebar, conduit, and other embedments, and to accurately measure slab thickness for precise ASTM F2170 moisture testing depths.
• TENSILE STRENGTH ANALYSIS OF COATINGS, UNDERLAYMENTS, AND CONCRETE SLABS
Digitally controlled electromechanical tensile testing instrument determines tensile bond strength of terrazzo, coatings, underlayments, and toppings bonded to concrete, as well as near-surface tensile strength of concrete slabs (ASTM C1583, ASTM D7234).
• FLOORING MATERIALS HARDNESS TESTING
German-engineered precision digital durometers for Shore A and Shore D readings per ASTM D2240.
• FLOOR TILE AND PLANK PRECISION MEASUREMENTS
Digital calipers up to 5-foot for in-field dimensional measurement of resilient floor tiles and planks for specification conformance.
• VERTICAL SURFACE DEVIATION PRECISION MEASUREMENTS
Precision indicators and gauge bridge-stands used to measure bubbling, cupping, curling, doming, lifting, lippage, peaking, and vertical offsets.
• PROFESSIONAL FORENSIC IMAGE DOCUMENTATION
High-resolution Nikon imaging equipment for forensic documentation of site conditions, macro defects, and expert testimony support.
• NONDESTRUCTIVE ULTRASONIC COATING THICKNESS MEASUREMENT
Precision electronic ultrasonic gauging measures dry film thickness (DFT) of polymer coatings without damaging the finished surface (ASTM D6132).
• ELECTRONIC SUBFLOOR FLATNESS MEASUREMENT
Electronic altimeters and precision levels used to evaluate subfloor flatness prior to resilient flooring installation.
• ADVANCED MOISTURE DIAGNOSTICS
Diagnostic meters used to identify and quantify in-slab and ambient moisture conditions (ASTM F710, ASTM F2170, ASTM F2659).
• CONCRETE SURFACE pH QUANTITATIVE DIGITAL ANALYSIS
Electronic pH meters used for on-site concrete slab surface pH analysis (ASTM F3441).
• CONCRETE AND COATINGS LABORATORY TESTING
Laboratory analysis of concrete cores and coating samples to evaluate contamination, material composition, and bond performance.
Available Upon Request