Common Commissioning
Problems
Melek YALCINTAS, Ph.D., P.E., CxA, LEED-AP
AMEL Technologies, Inc.
Manoa Innovation Center
2800 Woodlawn Drive, Suite 251
Honolulu, HI 96822
Phone: 988-0200
E-mail: [email protected]
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
LEED Certified Buildings – where
Commissioning is a mandatory requirement
Claim:
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Saves Energy
Better Indoor Air Quality
Protects Environment
Conserves Resources
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
LEED Certified Buildings - Energy
The Claimed benefits of LEED Certified facilities are being questioned:
Recent peer reviewed research papers:
“Do LEED-certified buildings save energy? Yes, but …”
(Newsham, et al., 2009)
http://archive.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/obj/irc/doc/pubs/nrcc51142.pdf
“Do LEED-certified buildings save energy? Not really…”
Schofield (2009)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S037877880900187X
Then, USGBC States (2013)
Once again, GSA recognizes that LEED works
http://www.usgbc.org/articles/once-again-gsa-recognizes-leed-works
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
LEED Certified Buildings - Energy
Energy Consumption Evaluation of U.S. Navy LEED-Certified Buildings
(Menassa et al., 2012):
9 of 11 LEED buildings did not achieve a 30% savings in electricity consumption,
while seven of eleven met water consumption savings requirements
http://ascelibrary.org/doi/abs/10.1061/(ASCE)CF.1943-5509.0000218
Post-Occupancy Energy Consumption Survey of Arizona’s
LEED New Construction Population (Oates and Sullivan, 2012)
http://ascelibrary.org/doi/abs/10.1061/%28ASCE%29CO.1943-7862.0000478?journalCode=jcemd4&
The LEED NC sample also underperformed both the design and baseline
energy use simulations
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
LEED Certified Buildings - IAQ
Indoor Air Quality- Occupant Satisfaction in LEED and non-LEED Certified
Buildings
(Altomonte and Schiavon, 2013)
http://escholarship.org/uc/item/4j61p7k5
• 144 buildings (65 LEED certified) and 21,477 individual occupant response
(10,129 LEED Buildings)
• Not a significant influence of LEED certification on occupant satisfaction with
indoor environment quality
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
What is the true story?
Why LEED certified buildings save energy or cannot save energy?
• Design team has to demonstrate/prove the facility is energy efficient
What Makes a LEED Certified Building to Save Energy
and Provide Better Indoor Air Quality?
COMMISSIONING
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
What is New-Construction
Commissioning?
A systematic quality assurance process of verifying that
building systems are designed, installed, tested, and they
are capable of being operated, and maintained to perform
as intended, or as the owner expects.
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
What does Owner Expect from
Commissioning Authority?
CxA conducts a series of tests to see how the building
will work under normal operating conditions. These
tests will detect any faults and problems before the
owner takes possession and occupies the building.
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Benefits
Benefits to Owner:
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Improved Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) and Occupant Comfort
Documented Maintenance Requirements
Improved Staff Training
Increased Life of Equipment
Reduced Operating Costs
Fewer Comfort Problems
Benefits to Contractor:
• Reduced Warranty Issues
• Reduced Contractor Callbacks
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Process
• Review Owner’s Project Requirements
• Coordinate Basis of Design Document
• Commissioning Specifications
• Commissioning Plan
• Design review
• Review submittals
• Construction observation
• Pre-functional checks
• Functional testing
• Cx Issue resolution
• Training
• Review O&M manuals
• Systems manual
• Re-Commissioning
• Commissioning Report
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Team
Owner’s Team:
• Construction Engineer
• Project Manager
• Facility Manager
• Maintenance Team
Contractor’s Team:
• Project Manager
• Quality Control Manager
• Subcontractors: HVAC, Plumbing, Electrical, Controls Test & Balance
Design Team:
• Architect, Mechanical Designer, Electrical Designer
Commissioning Authority:
• Certified by ACG (AABC Commissioning Group), ASHRAE, BCA
(Building Commissioning Association), NEBB (National Environmental
Balancing Bureau)
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems
• Related to Design
• Related to Installation
• Related to Owner
• Related to Contractor
• Related to Commissioner
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Design
• Sequence of Operation does not
Integrate Energy Savings Operations
• Important IAQ Details for Building
Pressurization Missing
• Demand Control Ventilation at Minimum
VFD Position does not Perform
• Sufficient Maintenance Clearance not
Provided
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Design
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Design
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Installation
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Duct Leakage
Weather Proofing
Corrosive Couplings, Bolts & Nuts
Un-insulated/Incomplete Duct Work
Modulating Dampers/Actuators not Installed
Correctly, & therefore not Responding to
Control Commands
• Condensation because of Improper Installation
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Installation
Duct Leakage
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Weather Proofing
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Installation
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Installation
Corrosive Couplings, Bolts & Nuts
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Installation
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Installation
•
Condensation because of Improper Installation
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Installation
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Owner
• OWNER needs to take part in commissioning activities
• OWNER needs to respond to comments in Cx issue
resolution log
• OWNER needs to actively monitor the building
performance after turnover
• OWNER’s input and support is strongly needed
especially when CxA makes recommendations that will
effect building energy performance, but not necessarily
included in the original construction documents
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Contractor
• Contractor needs to understand that they benefit most from
commissioning: reduced warranty issues, reduced contractor callbacks.
• Contractor needs to understand Cx comments are not to show
contractors mistakes but to coordinate successful completion and turn
over of the building.
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning Problems Related to Commissioner
• Less involvement during design phase
• HVAC and building system sequences are nor verified
during commissioning
• Functional Tests are developed for individual equipment
but not whole systems
• Sensor calibration not verified
• Building schedule is not coordinated
• Rigorous of commissioning testing is brief, not detailed
enough
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Commissioning can Delay Equipment Failure
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
You Decide/Answer:
“Do LEED-certified buildings save energy? Yes, but …”
http://archive.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/obj/irc/doc/pubs/nrcc51142.pdf
“Do LEED-certified buildings save energy? Not really…”
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S037877880900
187X
Energy Savings Potential is Still Real
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Conclusions
• LEED Certification is not a guarantee for energy saving and better
indoor air quality
• Commissioning is the key for saving energy and better indoor air
quality, provided that Commissioning Comments are taken into
consideration during Design and Construction.
• Commissioning can extend the life of the building and equipment;
resulting less maintenance time.
RECOMMENDATIONS
• Commissioning Authority should be hired by Owner, independent of
design team and contractor
• Measurement and verification must be mandatory
• Measurement and verification must be conducted continuously
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013
Thank You
Melek YALCINTAS, Ph.D., P.E., CxA, LEED-AP
AMEL Technologies, Inc.
Manoa Innovation Center
2800 Woodlawn Drive, Suite 251
Honolulu, HI 96822
Phone: 988-0200
E-mail: [email protected]
SAME, Honolulu HI
November 12, 2013