No Two Days are the Same for Building Safety Professionals

William McKinney, Building Official for the City of Nashua, New Hampshire, and Manager of the Department of Building Safety began his career in code administration as an assistant building inspector more than 22 years ago.

He had previously worked in the construction field across multiple trades, serving as an apprentice electrician, as well as various roles in plumbing and heating. He eventually started and operated his own business, a decade-long journey that lasted until he was offered a water system maintenance job with the Public Works Department in Milford, NH.

Then in 2001, McKinney had the opportunity to get back into the construction trades as an assistant building inspector with the Building Department. He was later promoted to building inspector, code official, zoning official then health officer. He made the move to Nashua in 2012 and has served as Code Official and Manager of the Department of Building Safety ever since.

While his responsibilities are mostly in the office, McKinney goes in the field as needed and tries to do a ride-along with his inspectors every other week. This gives him an opportunity to stay informed about what’s going on at construction sites and provides a way for him to initiate one-on-one conversations with each inspector.

“I want the inspectors to feel comfortable telling me what’s going on and what adjustments we should be making,” said McKinney. “But the majority of my time is in-office dealing with more of the political side of the job versus being out in the field.”

In addition to his role as a building safety official, McKinney serves as Chairman of the International Code Council’s Region VI chapter, which encompasses New York and New England. He is also the President of the New Hampshire Building Officials Association and the Chairman of its Legislative Committee.

A Wide Range of Responsibilities

During his 8-to-5 schedule, McKinney takes the time to interact with his team members every day and personally visits his two permit technicians to see if there are any concerns or issues that need to be addressed. He also meets with the department’s two plans examiners, as well as his four inspectors, and takes note of anything that needs immediate attention.

From there, McKinney’s day-to-day operations may take him to the Mayor’s Office to work on regulations they’d like to see in the city, or he may work with the Nashua community development director or meet with clients and contractors.

“It’s always different and that’s what I like about the profession,” said McKinney. “No two days are the same.”

His schedule is far from set in stone. While he starts each day with a plan, it’s not uncommon for interruptions – a particularly nasty fire or an unanticipated motor vehicle collision, for example – to shake things up. 

In a typical month, Nashua building safety officials respond to an average of one to three automobile incidents in which a vehicle has crashed into a building. These accidents vary in severity and may involve drivers who forgot they were accelerating while pulling up to a store, causing minor damage. In other instances, the vehicle may cause structural problems that limit the building’s safety and functionality until repairs are complete.

“From that point on, we work with the owner to take the appropriate steps to assist with having the building repaired,” said McKinney. “We’re there to assess structural concerns, as well as any electrical, gas piping, or plumbing issues, since any of those systems can be affected when a vehicle hits the building, or a fire occurs. We must determine whether the building can be reoccupied or not.”

Staying Inspired by Building Safety

While the challenges of any job may seem overwhelming at times, McKinney is continuously inspired by his work.

“I just love the profession of code administration,” he said, adding that he plans to be doing this job until he retires.

“The whole idea of preserving people’s property and lives, and making sure the properties that everybody lives, works and plays in are safe. It’s an important role and the variety of the work keeps you coming back every day. I could have a week where all I do is write reports and letters, and the next week is just a totally different variety of meetings with clients, and developers, trying to problem solve an issue that comes up.”

In essence, McKinney said there are good challenges that come with the job. He spoke fondly about the times when he and his department assisted in resolving problems that allowed multimillion-dollar projects to continue after some hiccups. He is also proud to help homeowners by offering simple solutions to what they thought were major problems.

“A code official needs to be knowledgeable,” McKinney explained. “They need to continuously train and improve on what they know about the codes, construction materials and processes. They need to understand how products are supposed to be used in the field.”

When looking at future generations, McKinney noted that education is the biggest part of this job. He also stressed the need for code officials to be strong communicators while urging people to stop staring at their devices and speak directly with others.

“Look them in the eye and have good communication with your contractors, homeowners and other clients,” he affirmed.

McKinney said that communication (and a willingness to work with inspectors and the code requirements) is essential for any party involved in the construction process. He said it is also important for code officials to be honest and fair.

“Many times, we hear about inspectors who make a decision and maybe that’s really not what the code requires,” said McKinney. “You need to be honest about what the code requires, and when you’re in difficult situations, you need to be able to work with that contractor or client and come up with a fair resolution.”

Advocating For the Community

As a code official, McKinney strives to support his community as much as possible. In addition to being involved with the legislature and the code development process, as well as the many associations he serves, he works hard to communicate clearly and regularly with stakeholders.

McKinney provides weekly department activity updates to city leaders. In turn, they’re able to share that information with Nashua’s Chamber of Commerce, rotary groups, and other people and divisions that can benefit from that information.

“We’re very forthcoming in keeping the public educated, and especially the different groups and organizations in our city, so that they understand all the good going on,” said McKinney. “We often hear about the not-so-good – the crime, the homelessness, the unpleasant side of the city. It’s great to be able to say, ‘There’s still a lot of good going on here.’”

Learn how you can advocate for your community through Week 4 of the Code Council’s Building Safety Month campaign.