Fire Escape Inspection, Repair and Certification
Structural engineering topic
Fire Escape Inspection, Repair and Certification
Inspection, repair design, load testing and the City of Portland Fire Escape Affidavit, for building owners and property managers.
Expertise team · Fire Escape Evaluations
Talk to Andrew Leichty
Leads the team · direct line
Topic Overview
The Problem
What brings clients to us for Fire Escape Inspection, Repair and Certification
Signs you need a fire escape evaluation:
- Official requests - Your required recertification is due, or the City, Fire Marshal or your insurance provider has requested an evaluation.
- Visible physical deterioration - You notice rust, loose or missing bolts, or cracks near wall connection points.
- Property transactions or renovations - You are purchasing, refinancing, or renovating a building with an existing fire escape.
- Safety reports - A tenant, inspector, or contractor has raised concerns about structural stability or damage.
Fire escapes are critical life-safety exits, commonly found on older buildings. Decades of exposure to weather can severely degrade the framing and its anchor connections - damage that often remains hidden without a detailed structural inspection. A structural evaluation determines whether your fire escape can safely support emergency loads and outlines the steps needed to keep it compliant and safe.
Contact us for a free copy of our Portland Fire Escape Evaluation Checklist, outlining City of Portland requirements, anticipated timelines, and what to expect during the evaluation and certification process.
How It's Approached
What an engineer does, and what's involved
No two fire escapes are alike. Most were installed on older buildings decades ago, and a fire escape's true structural safety often comes down to what is hidden in plain sight: how it is anchored into the wall and the condition of the steel where moisture collects. Our structural evaluation focuses on these critical areas, resulting in either immediate certification or a clear, actionable list of necessary repairs to achieve compliance.
- Comprehensive Inspection - An engineer visits and observes each fire escape: stairs, landings, ladders, railings, and the anchors into the building.
- Structural Analysis - We analyze suspect or degraded components to calculate the available load capacity and safety margins.
- Repair Engineering - If deficiencies are found, we set out the repairs, either in a letter with recommendations or in stamped structural drawings that define how and where the repairs are to be made, ready for contractor pricing and construction.
- Load Test Coordination - We define the load testing requirements and oversee performance of fire escape testing by a testing company.
- Official Certification - Once testing and repairs are complete, we provide the signed and stamped City of Portland Fire Escape Affidavit.
What You Receive
What you receive from us
- A record of what we observed on each fire escape, and the deficiencies found (if any);
- Repair recommendations, in a letter or in stamped repair drawings that a contractor can price and build;
- Load-testing requirements for the testing company;
- The executed City of Portland Fire Escape Affidavit, after a successful test.
Who Does What
What we do, and what others do
Miller Consulting Engineers
We evaluate each fire escape, design any repairs, set the load-testing requirements, and execute the City of Portland Fire Escape Affidavit after a successful test.
Building owner or property manager
Arranges access to the building, chooses the contractor and the testing company, and keeps the certification current.
Contractor
Makes the repairs set out in our repair letter or stamped drawings. (Our engineers don't do the physical repair work, so you can use the contractor you prefer or complete the work yourself, if applicable.)
Testing company
Carries out the load test to engineer's specifications.
Questions People Ask
Common questions about Fire Escape Inspection, Repair and Certification
Can you certify a fire escape in Portland?
Yes. Once any repairs are complete and the load test has passed, we execute the City of Portland Fire Escape Affidavit.
Do you test fire escapes yourselves?
No. We write the load-testing requirements, and a testing company carries out the test.
What if the evaluation finds problems?
If problems are identified, we draw up the repairs, your contractor makes the repairs, and the load test follows before certification.
Do you do the repairs?
No. We design the repairs, and your contractor completes them to our repair letter or stamped drawings. The choice of contractor stays with you.
Can you evaluate a fire escape before we buy a building?
Yes. An evaluation tells you the condition of each fire escape and what repairs are likely, before you commit.
