The Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, sets very strict standards for commercial construction to ensure that people with physical disabilities have full access to public buildings and places of all kinds. Because the provisions of the ADAS, ADA standards, are constantly evolving, many construction and architectural firms, and local and state inspectors are unaware of how the different aspects of ADA codes impact the specific construction of various structures, including the need for ramps, compliant parking stalls and upgraded access and barrier removal in the case of building remodels and renovation.

ADA certification in the form of ADA Expertise particularly important in the state of California, because of the constant turnover of property management and ownership. Often the first sign that anything is amiss with a particular building or business’s ADA compliance comes in the form of a property inspection, visitor complaint or drawing revision, with expensive consequences in exposure to litigation, retrofitting to comply with California Building Code and the ADA standards and other related costs of remediation. While ADA Expert certification is not yet commonplace, it is believed to become far more important among construction-industry professionals in the coming years.

Calvac Paving has been serving the Bay Area for over 40 years, and has been closely monitoring changes and amendments to the ADA standards since they were first put in place in 1991. Several years ago, Calvac Paving’s President, Jim Adam, decided to take this aggressive monitoring several steps further and pursue full CASp, or Certified Access Specialist, certification. This rigorous training and certification program requires applicants to be fully trained and cognizant of issues concerning building and business access for disabled persons at both the state and federal levels to ensure compliance with all ADA provisions.

Jim explained that his purpose in seeking this certification was to better serve Calvac Paving’s clients and the general public. “By training for years to understand the history, goals and application of the Americans with Disabilities Act, I am better equipped to ensure Calvac Paving’s clients a final product that will provide the barrier removal and access that the current CBC [California Building Code] and ADAS require on their properties.”

The ADA Expertcertification benefits all the stakeholders in the building process, as well as the general public. “{CASp} certification gives a confidence level that the project will be correct and that you will be able to avoid potential litigation…while getting the final product you need to be CBC and ADAS compliant.” As more construction professionals become ADA Expertcertified, Jim says the multiple points of view will help to reduce conflicts between differing objectives and strategic building outcomes while ensuring all members of the design and execution team are familiar with the code requirements that ADA imposes. Jim says this is a win for everyone, but especially the end user, which is why he sought out ADA Expertcertification to begin with.

He says he’s known for years that ADA certification would be an important step in Calvac Paving’s future ability to serve clients and the public more effectively. “The process for me started more than ten years ago when I hired ADA compliance experts to educate myself, our estimators and lead field personnel long before there was a ADA Expertprogram. Then a couple of years ago I started the training process to become ADA Expertcertified. We’re trained and tested on all barrier removal and accessibility codes…it allows us to be true experts in barrier removal.” Jim also feels that Calvac Paving benefits directly from his ADA compliance expertise, because it allows him to ensure his crews can do their jobs more efficiently and “do it right the first time,” as he puts it.

Having access to the ADA Expertcertification gives Calvac Paving another powerful tool to serve its clients and help reduce potential compliance issues and costs for everyone involved, and Jim believes that as ADA Expertcertification grows in popularity, it will further establish Calvac Paving as an industry leader in ADA compliance and building accessibility for all. This, he feels, will also give stakeholders more confidence and alleviate concerns about whether or not their buildings and businesses meet applicable building codes for accessibility. For more information about Calvac Paving’s ADA Expert certification and how this can help expedite your construction project and ensure project compliance, click here to email us or call (408) 225 – 7700!