OUR WORK

HUD "Big Buy" Lead Evaluation Services

Through HUD's Lead Evaluation Program, the Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control (OHHLHC) is responsible for eliminating lead-based paint hazards in Section 8 project-based housing by December 2010. This translates into lead-based paint evaluations and risk assessments for nearly 5,000 properties and 120,000 apartments. OHHLHC turned to DBTS, a District-based consulting firm, to perform lead-based paint inspections and risk assessments, manage the completion of project deliverables, ensure quality throughout the project lifecycle, and deliver final project reports in accordance to HUD specifications.

DBTS utilizes relevant past experience, top-notch staffing, as well as industry-standard methodologies, to ensure optimal performance on the HUD contract.

Lead-Based Paint Inspections and Risk Assessments

DBTS performs lead-based paint inspections for multi-family housing, in accordance with the HUD Lead Evaluation Protocol and the HUD Guidelines for Evaluation and Control of Lead-based Paint Hazards in Housing. Certified Lead-Based Paint Inspectors and Risk Assessors ensure that all work is performed according to industry standards and DBTS' quality assurance criteria.

Project Management and Oversight

DBTS provides the project management and oversight necessary to ensure that project tasks and deliverables are achieved on schedule and according to the highest levels of quality. The DBTS Project Director is responsible for overseeing the contract to ensure quality and timely performance and to prevent, detect, and correct any deficiencies without the need for HUD intervention. Throughout the life of the project, the DBTS Project Director tracks the status of project efforts through routine communication with team members and contractors and the use of Microsoft Project software.

Quality Assurance

DBTS incorporates quality assurance planning and management in everything we do. On the HUD project, the DBTS Quality Assurance Manager is responsible for all quality assurance reviews. Before proceeding with the performance of any field work, the Quality Assurance Manager developed a detailed Quality Assurance Plan to guide all internal quality assurance activities throughout the life of the project. This plan identifies quality control objectives and all quality control assessment tasks, which occur at each phase of the project. In addition, the Quality Assurance Analyst makes ad-hoc field audits routinely throughout the project.

DBTS adhered to the following quality assurance principles in the development of the Quality Assurance Plan:

• The Quality Assurance Plan should be understandable to all stakeholders, effectively administered, and cost effective to operate.
• The criteria which define the performance required of individuals for them to perform successfully should be appropriate to purpose, explicit, and clearly communicated.
• Assessment should be valid, reliable and practicable and assessment results should be in line with qualification criteria.

HUD management has repeatedly applauded the DBTS team for the exceptional nature of its project management and quality assurance work. DBTS is proud to play a part in helping HUD meet its lead evaluation goals.

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