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Construction and Building Inspectors

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Inspect structures using engineering skills to determine structural soundness and compliance with specifications, building codes, and other regulations. Inspections may be general in nature or may be limited to a specific area, such as electrical systems or plumbing.

Related: Aviation Inspectors Civil Engineering Technologists & Technicians First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades & Extraction Workers Government Property Inspectors & Investigators Transportation Vehicle, Equipment & Systems Inspectors

Industries: Government Professional, Science, & Technical Construction

Summary
Details

Confer with owners, violators, or authorities to explain regulations or recommend remedial actions.
Issue permits for construction, relocation, demolition, or occupancy.
Inspect bridges, dams, highways, buildings, wiring, plumbing, electrical circuits, sewers, heating systems, or foundations during and after construction for structural quality, general safety, or conformance to specifications and codes.
Conduct inspections, using survey instruments, metering devices, tape measures, or test equipment.
Measure dimensions and verify level, alignment, or elevation of structures or fixtures to ensure compliance to building plans and codes.
Conduct environmental hazard inspections to identify or quantify problems, such as asbestos, poor air quality, water contamination, or other environmental hazards.
Inspect and monitor construction sites to ensure adherence to safety standards, building codes, or specifications.
Estimate cost of completed work or of needed renovations or upgrades.
Maintain daily logs and supplement inspection records with photographs.
Evaluate project details to ensure adherence to environmental regulations.
Review and interpret plans, blueprints, site layouts, specifications, or construction methods to ensure compliance to legal requirements and safety regulations.
Inspect bridges, dams, highways, buildings, wiring, plumbing, electrical circuits, sewers, heating systems, or foundations during and after construction for structural quality, general safety, or conformance to specifications and codes.
Train, direct, or supervise other construction inspectors.
Evaluate premises for cleanliness, such as proper garbage disposal or lack of vermin infestation.
Measure dimensions and verify level, alignment, or elevation of structures or fixtures to ensure compliance to building plans and codes.
Measure dimensions and verify level, alignment, or elevation of structures or fixtures to ensure compliance to building plans and codes.
Inspect and monitor construction sites to ensure adherence to safety standards, building codes, or specifications.
Review and interpret plans, blueprints, site layouts, specifications, or construction methods to ensure compliance to legal requirements and safety regulations.
Approve building plans that meet required specifications.
Inspect bridges, dams, highways, buildings, wiring, plumbing, electrical circuits, sewers, heating systems, or foundations during and after construction for structural quality, general safety, or conformance to specifications and codes.
Monitor installation of plumbing, wiring, equipment, or appliances to ensure that installation is performed properly and is in compliance with applicable regulations.
Inspect facilities or installations to determine their environmental impact.
Train, direct, or supervise other construction inspectors.
Monitor construction activities to ensure that environmental regulations are not violated.
Examine lifting or conveying devices, such as elevators, escalators, moving sidewalks, hoists, inclined railways, ski lifts, or amusement rides to ensure safety and proper functioning.
Sample and test air to identify gasses, such as bromine, ozone, or sulfur dioxide, or particulates, such as mold, dust, or allergens.

Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.

Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

5 years or more work experience

Training

1 to 12 months on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

89360/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

42.96/hr

Currently Employed

4,140

Yearly Projected Openings

540

Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They do well at jobs that need:

Integrity
Attention to Detail
Dependability
Self Control
Independence
Cooperation

Adjustable widemouth pliers
Adjustable wrenches
Air samplers or collectors
Air sampling pumps
Air velocity and temperature monitors
Ammeters
Axes
Borescope inspection equipment
Calibrated resistance measuring equipment
Carbon monoxide analyzer
Circuit tester
Concrete or cement testing instruments
Conductivity meters
Desktop calculator
Desktop computers
Digital camcorders or video cameras
Digital cameras
Dissolved oxygen meters
Distance meters
Drafting kits or sets
Electronic measuring probes
Force or torque sensors
GFI circuit testers
Gas detectors
Handheld thermometer
Hydrometers
Hygrometers
Inspection mirror
Insulation testers
Laser measuring systems
Laser printers
Level sensors or transmitters
Levels
Liquid leak detectors
Lux or light meter
Manometers
Measuring wheels for distance
Megohmmeters
Metal detectors
Microfiche or microfilm viewer components or accessories
Microwave leakage meters
Moisture meters
Multimeters
Notebook computers
Optical character recognition systems
Personal computers
Plumb bobs
Portable data input terminals
Power drills
Power meters
Pressure indicators
Pressure or vacuum recorders
Radon detectors
Remote reading thermometers
Scales
Scanners
Scientific calculator
Screwdrivers
Shovels
Single gas monitors
Spectrometers
Stud finders
Surface thermometers
Tablet computers
Tape measures
Temperature humidity testers
Theodolites
Thermographs
Two way radios
Ultrasonic examination equipment
Vibration testers
Voltage or current meters
Water analyzers
pH meters

Accounting software
Calendar and scheduling software
Compliance software
Computer aided design CAD software
Data base reporting software
Data base user interface and query software
Electronic mail software
Enterprise resource planning ERP software
Geographic information system
Internet browser software
Map creation software
Office suite software
Presentation software
Procurement software
Project management software
Spreadsheet software
Word processing software

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