TORRANCE, CA—Partner Engineering and Science has launched its first construction lender risk management roundtable. The event began last night with a cocktail gala at the JW Marriott in Dessert Ridge Resort and Spa in Phoenix, AZ. Industry leaders from across the country, including lenders, lawyers, architects and engineers, will gather at the roundtable to discuss the policies and issues.

“The regulatory environment in banking has changed. Banks know that they are going to get increased scrutiny on their construction risk management policies, but they don't have a lot of specific instruction from regulators,” Joe Derhake, Partner Engineering and Science president, tells GlobeSt.com. “A lot of banks are looking forward to an opportunity to put their heads together to understand what are the best practices. Essentially, we are taking more of a proactive approach towards this increased regulatory scrutiny.”

During the two-day roundtable discussion, industry leaders will talk about document cost reviews, seismic risk assessments , construction loan administration and how to better understand plans and spot problems. These issues are becoming more and more pertinent as construction is growing nationwide. “We would like to see consistency in document cost review and construction fraud inspections. The reason we want consistency is for the sake of quality, but also because it is difficult when different lenders are relying on the same reports but have vastly different expectations,” says Derhake. The event will encourage attendees to speak openly about problems and successes.