L&R Developers Limited
Engineering Consultancy in Jamaica
A straight answer before you spend the money, and an independent one when something has already gone wrong. Written up in plain language, with the technical detail attached for anyone who wants it.
Independent
If we are inspecting other people work we are not bidding to replace them.
A real recommendation
Not a list of observations that leaves you to decide.
Report in days
Most inspections are one visit with the report following shortly after.
Free first call
Describe it on the phone and we will say whether a visit is worth it.
The service
Advice you can actually act on
Sometimes the most valuable thing an engineer can tell you is not to proceed. We get asked to look at land before purchase, at quotations that seem suspiciously low, and at buildings that have started cracking. In each case what you need is a clear view and the reasoning behind it, not a hedged document that protects the author.
We give that in writing, in plain language, with photographs and the technical detail attached. If the answer is that the building is fine, you get that too, and it is worth every dollar of the fee.
- Site inspections before you buy land or a building
- Feasibility checks on what a site can realistically take
- Review of another contractor quotation or drawings
- Defect investigation on cracking, settlement, leaks and damp
- Progress inspection for owners who cannot attend site
- Reports for insurance, financing or a dispute
What is included
What people ask us to look at
Everything below is part of the service. If your project needs something that is not listed, tell us and we will say plainly whether we can do it.
Before you buy
Access, slope, drainage, flood risk and ground. A cheap piece of land on a bad slope stops being cheap once the retaining wall is priced.
Before you sign
We read the quotation and the drawings and tell you what has been left out. A price well below the others usually has a reason.
While it is being built
Independent inspection at the stages that matter, particularly before concrete covers reinforcement.
When something has failed
What is actually moving or leaking and why, then what it takes to put right and roughly what that costs.
For a third party
Reports written for a bank, an insurer or a dispute, where the document has to stand up to someone else reading it.
Feasibility
What a site will realistically yield before you commit to a scheme or a purchase price.
Why L&R
Why an independent view pays for itself
It is cheap compared with the mistake
An inspection fee is a small fraction of a land purchase or a build contract. It is the cheapest point at which you can still change your mind.
We tell you the cause, not the symptom
Anyone can report that a wall has cracked. The useful part is why it cracked, whether it is still moving, and what actually fixes it.
We declare our interest
Where we would stand to gain from the outcome, we tell you before you engage us. That is the whole point of an independent report.
We are reachable afterwards
A report you cannot ask questions about is half a service. We will get on a call and walk you through it.
How it runs
How a consultancy job runs
Every job follows the same order, so you always know which stage you are in and what happens next.
1
Phone conversation
Describe what you are looking at. We will tell you honestly whether an inspection is worth doing. This call costs nothing.
2
Fixed fee quoted
Once we know the location and the scope, you get a fixed fee for the inspection and the report before anything starts.
3
Site inspection
Usually a single visit, photographed thoroughly. Where monitoring or testing is needed we say so up front rather than discovering it later.
4
Written report
Findings, photographs, the cause, and a clear recommendation. Followed by a call to walk you through it if you want one.
In detail
The detail, by type of instruction
The technical detail behind the service, for anyone who wants to understand what they are paying for.
We look at access, gradient, drainage and flood risk, what the ground is likely to be, and what you would realistically have to spend on civil works before you could build anything at all. On sloping land that figure is frequently larger than buyers expect, and it is the single most useful number to have before you negotiate.
We compare the quotation against the drawings and tell you what is missing, what is provisional and what has been priced optimistically. The aim is not to talk you out of a contractor, it is to make sure you know what you are actually agreeing to before you sign.
Cracking, settlement, damp and leaks all have a cause, and treating the symptom is why owners end up repairing the same wall three times. We work out what is moving and why, and design the repair around the cause.
For owners who are overseas or simply cannot be on site. We attend at the stages where it matters, particularly before reinforcement is covered, and send a dated report with photographs so you can see the building as it actually is.
Scope of works
What we are usually asked to price
We price every job from a written scope after seeing the site, so the figures below are quoted rather than listed. The first visit and the quotation cost you nothing.
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Pre purchase site inspection
On quotationLand or building, with a written report and a clear recommendation.
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Structural defect investigation
On quotationCause diagnosis with photographs and a repair design.
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Quotation and drawing review
On quotationIndependent read of what you have been offered before you sign.
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Stage inspection during build
On quotationAttendance at the stages that matter, with a dated photographic report.
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Report for a bank or insurer
On quotationWritten to stand up to a third party reading it.
Our work
Recent projects
Work at every stage, from the first cut in the ground through to handover.
Where we work
Engineering Consultancy across Jamaica
We take engineering consultancy work across Jamaica. Most of our projects are in Kingston, Saint Andrew and Saint Catherine, and we travel to the other parishes where the project justifies it.
Parishes we cover: Kingston, Saint Andrew, Saint Catherine, Clarendon, Manchester, Saint Ann, Saint Mary, Portland, Saint Thomas, Saint Elizabeth, Westmoreland, Hanover, Trelawny and Saint James.
Questions
Frequently asked about engineering consultancy in Jamaica
I am buying land in Jamaica. What should I check first?
Access, drainage and slope, in that order. A plot can look ideal and still need a retaining wall and a drainage scheme that cost more than the land did. An inspection before you negotiate gives you a real number to negotiate with.
A contractor quoted much less than everyone else. Is that a problem?
Not always, but it is worth understanding why. Usually it is because something has been left out of the scope, priced provisionally, or assumed to be simpler than it is. We read the quotation against the drawings and tell you which of those it is.
Can you inspect a building I am buying?
Yes. We look at the structure, the drainage, signs of movement and any obvious defects, and give you a written report with a recommendation. It is the same principle as a survey, focused on what an engineer can see.
I live overseas and my build is underway. Can you check on it?
Yes, and this is a large part of what we do. We attend at agreed stages, photograph everything and send you a dated report, so you are not relying on somebody telling you it is going well.
Will you take on the repair work you recommend?
We can, and plenty of clients ask us to. Where that is a possibility we tell you before you engage us for the report, so you can judge the advice knowing where we stand.
How much does an engineering report cost?
It is a fixed fee, quoted once we know the location and the scope, and agreed before any work starts. The initial phone conversation costs nothing.
Get started
Tell us about the project
Send us the location and what you need. We will come and look at the site, and come back to you with a written scope and a price. The visit and the quotation cost you nothing.
Telephone
Office hours
Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 5:00pm
Request a quotation
Works with this
Services people usually pair with this
Structural Engineering
Structural design and checks for new builds, extensions and remedial work. Beam and column sizing, foundation design, and drawings you can build from.
Civil Engineering
Roads, drainage, culverts, retaining walls, site clearing and earthworks. The work that has to hold up when the rain comes.
Property Management and Development
Land development from raw title to serviced lots, and ongoing management of finished buildings for owners who are not on the island.