Commissioning

Phase-I-during design, preparation, construction and final occupancy:

The objective of commissioning is to confirm and document that a facility fulfills the functional and performance requirements of the building owner, occupants, and operators.  To reach this goal, it is necessary for the commissioning process to establish and document the owner’s criteria for system function, performance, and maintainability; as well as, to verify and document compliance with these criteria throughout design, construction, start-up, and the initial period of operation. In addition, complete operation and maintenance (O&M) manuals, as well as training on system operation, should be provided to the building operators to ensure the building continues to operate as intended.

• As commissioning provider (CP) we will be involved throughout the project up to completion and beyond. The primary role of the CP during the overall design phase is to develop detailed commissioning specifications and review design to ensure it meets the Owner’s objectives. During construction, the CP develops and coordinates the execution of a testing plan, which includes observing and documenting all system’s performance to ensure that systems are functioning in accordance with the Owner’s objectives and the contract documents. Based on the warranty scope the commissioning will continue beyond project completion and occupancy to assure the best quality and end results.
  The CP is not responsible for design or general construction scheduling, cost estimating, testing, adjusting, balancing, construction management, creating as-builts, creating O & M manuals, training staff, re-engineering or modifying the design but may assist with problem-solving or addressing non-conformance issues or deficiencies.  
• Assemble commissioning team, hold a scoping meeting and identify responsibilities.
• Develop a draft design-phase commissioning plan.
• Attend commissioning meetings as needed with project manager and design team.
•  Review the Owner Objectives documentation (design intent) for clarity and completeness.
• Coordinate the commissioning work during design.
• Develop or update the design phase commissioning plan.
• Perform focused reviews of the design, drawings and specifications at various stages of development
• Assist and review the development and updating of the Design Record documentation by design team members
• Develop a draft construction phase commissioning plan.
• Coordinate with and integrate commissioning into the specifications of the architect and engineers. The commissioning specification will include a detailed description of the responsibilities of all parties, details of the commissioning process; reporting and documentation requirements, including formats; alerts to coordination issues, deficiency resolution; construction checklist and startup requirements; the functional testing process; specific functional test requirements, including testing conditions and acceptance criteria for each piece of equipment being commissioned.
• Coordinate a controls integration meeting where the electrical and mechanical engineers and the Commissioning Provider discuss integration issues between equipment, systems and disciplines to ensure that integration issues and responsibilities are clearly described in the specifications.
• Coordinate and direct the commissioning activities in a logical, sequential and efficient manner using consistent protocols and forms, centralized documentation, clear and regular communications and consultations with all necessary parties, frequently updated timelines and schedules and technical expertise.
• Coordinate the commissioning work and, with the contractor and construction manager (CM), ensure that commissioning activities are being scheduled into the master schedule.
• Revise, as necessary, the construction phase commissioning plan developed during design, including scope and schedule.
• Plan and conduct commissioning meetings as needed and distribute minutes to the commissioning team.
• Request and review additional information required to perform commissioning tasks, including O&M materials, contractor start-up and checkout procedures.  Before startup, gather and review the current control sequences and interlocks and work with contractors and design engineers until sufficient clarity has been obtained.
• Review and approve normal Contractor submittals applicable to systems being commissioned for compliance with commissioning needs, concurrent with the A/E reviews.
• Review requests for information and change orders for impact on commissioning and owner’s objectives.
• Review coordination drawings to ensure that trades are making a reasonable effort to coordinate.
• Write and distribute construction checklists for commissioned equipment.
• Review the enhanced start-up and initial systems checkout plan with contractors for selected equipment.
• Perform site visits, as necessary, to observe component and system installations. Attend selected planning and job-site meetings to obtain information on construction progress.  Review construction meeting minutes for revisions/substitutions relating to the commissioning process. Assist in resolving discrepancies.
• Verify with the QC manager that the HVAC piping pressure test and flushing are sufficient to be confident that proper procedures were followed. Include testing documentation in the Commissioning Record.
• Verify with the QC manager that the ductwork testing and cleaning are sufficient to be confident that proper procedures were followed. Include documentation in the Commissioning Record.
• Document construction checklist completion by reviewing completed construction checklists and by selected site observation.
• Document systems startup by reviewing start-up reports and by selected site observation.
• Review air and water systems balancing by witnessing the contractor to perform spot testing and by reviewing completed reports and by selected site observation.
• With necessary assistance from installing contractors review their proposed functional performance test procedures for equipment and systems and ask them to modify to meet intent. This will include manual functional testing, energy management control system trending and may include stand-alone data-logger monitoring.
• Analyze functional performance trend logs and monitoring data to verify performance.
• Coordinate and document manual functional performance tests performed by installing contractors. Coordinate retesting as necessary until satisfactory performance is achieved. The functional testing shall include operating the system and components through each of the written sequences of operation, and other significant modes and sequences, including startup, shutdown, unoccupied mode, manual mode, staging, miscellaneous alarms, power failure, security alarm when impacted and interlocks with other systems or equipment. Sensors and actuators shall be calibrated during construction check listing by the installing contractors, and spot-checked as witnessed by the commissioning provider during functional testing. Tests on respective HVAC equipment shall be executed, if possible, during both the heating and cooling season. However, some overwriting of control values to simulate conditions shall be allowed. Functional testing shall be done using conventional manual methods, control system trend logs, and read-outs or stand-alone data loggers, to provide a high level of confidence in proper system function, as deemed appropriate by the commissioning provider and the Building owner.
• Prepare test plans for, assist with execution of, and document tests of commissioned equipment overseen by regulatory authorities and ensure that such tests meet the testing rigor desired by the Owner.
• Maintain a master issues log and a separate record of functional testing. Report all issues as they occur directly to the CM. Provide directly to the CM written progress reports and test results with recommended actions.
• Review equipment warranties to ensure that the Building owner’s responsibilities are clearly defined.
• Review and oversee the training of the Building owner’s operating personnel.
• Review and oversee the preparation of the O&M manuals for commissioned equipment.
• Compile a Commissioning Record, which shall include:
• A brief summary report that includes a list of participants and roles, brief building description, overview of commissioning and testing scope, and a general description of testing and verification methods.  For each piece of commissioned equipment, the report should contain the disposition of the commissioning provider regarding the adequacy of the equipment, documentation and training meeting the contract documents in the following areas:
• Equipment meeting the equipment specifications, 2) Equipment installation, 3) Functional performance and efficiency, 4) Equipment documentation, and 5) Operator training.
• All outstanding non-compliance items shall be specifically listed.  Recommendations for improvement to equipment or operations, future actions, commissioning process changes, etc. shall also be listed. Each non-compliance issue shall be referenced to the specific functional test, inspection, trend log, etc. where the deficiency is documented.
• Also included in the Commissioning Record shall be the issues log, commissioning plan, progress reports, submittal and O&M manual reviews, training record, test schedules, construction checklists, start-up reports, functional tests, and trend log analysis.
• Compile a Systems Concepts and Operations Manual that consists of the following: Owner Objectives (by owner); Design Narrative and Basis of Design (by designer); Performance metrics, if completed during design; space and use descriptions, single line drawings and schematics for major systems (by designer); control drawings, sequences of control (by contractor); and a table of all set points and implications when changing them, schedules, instructions for operation of each piece of equipment for emergencies, seasonal adjustment, startup and shutdown, instructions for energy savings operations and descriptions of the energy savings strategies in the facility, recommendations for re-commissioning frequency by equipment type, energy tracking recommendations, and recommended standard trend logs with a brief description of what to look for in them.

• Coordinate and supervise required opposite season or deferred testing and deficiency corrections and provide the final testing documentation for the Commissioning Record and O&M manuals.
• Return to the site at 10 months into the 12 month warranty period and review with facility staff the current building operation and the condition of outstanding issues related to the original and seasonal commissioning.  Also interview facility staff and identify problems or concerns they have with operating the building as originally intended. Record any changes in the O&M manuals under contractor’s 12 months warranty. Identify areas that may come under warranty or under the original construction contract. Assist facility staff in developing reports and documents and requests for services to remedy outstanding problems.

SYSTEMS TO BE COMMISSIONED
The following systems and assemblies will be commissioned as may be applicable:

• Central building automation system
• All equipment of the heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems
• Scheduled or occupancy sensor lighting controls
• Daylight dimming controls
• Refrigeration systems
• Emergency power generators and automatic transfer switching
• Uninterruptible power supply systems
• Life safety systems (fire alarm, egress pressurization, fire protection)
• Laboratory, clean room, hoods and pressurization
• Electrical
• Domestic and process water pumping and mixing systems
• Equipment sound control systems and testing
• Data and communication
• Paging systems