SERVICES
Commissioning, Retro-commissioning, LEED Commissioning
CALGREEN
MANDATORY COMMISSIONING REQUIREMENTS
TAKE EFFECT ON JANUARY 1, 2011
ARE YOU READY?
FIVE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW:
REQUIRED DOCUMENTS
The Owner’s Project Requirements (OPR) documents the functional requirements of a project and expectations of the building use and operation as it relates to systems being commissioned, describes the physical and functional building characteristics desired by the owner, and establishes performance and acceptance criteria. The OPR is most effective when developed during pre-design and used to develop the Basis of Design (BOD) during the design process. The OPR’s complexity will vary according to building use, type and systems.
The Basis of Design (BOD) describes the building systems to be commissioned and outlines design assumptions not indicated in the design documents. The design team develops the BOD to describe how the building systems design meets the Owner’s Project Requirements (OPR), and why the systems were selected. The BOD is most effective when developed early in the project design and updated as necessary throughout the design process.
Commissioning measures in the plans and specifications should be clear, detailed and complete to clarify the commissioning process. Title 24, Part 6 requires that specific functional test procedure forms be included in the construction documents. These test forms form a subset of the broader CALGreen commissioning requirements.
The Commissioning Plan (Cx Plan) establishes the commissioning process guideline for the project and commissioning team’s level of effort by identifying the required Cx activities to ensure that the Owner’s Project Requirements (OPR) and the Basis of Design (BOD) are met. The Cx Plan also includes a commissioning schedule from design to occupancy.
The Systems Manual documents information focusing on the operation of the building systems and provides information needed to understand, operate, and maintain the equipment and systems. It is assembled during the construction phase to be available during the contractors’ training of the facility staff. This document is in addition to the record drawings and the O&M Manuals supplied by the contractor.
The Commissioning Report documents the commissioning process and test results. The report includes confirmation from the commissioning agent verifying that commissioned systems meet the conditions of the Owner’s Project Requirements (OPR), Basis of Design (BOD), and Contract Documents.
COMPLIANCE DOCUMENTATION AND TRAINING REQUIREMENTS
The Owner’s Project Requirements, the Commissioning Specifications, the Commissioning Plan, and the Basis of Design are required to be submitted when applying for a building permit. The owner or designer of record can also provide forms attesting that these documents have been completed.
The completed Functional Performance Tests and corrected deficiencies, Systems Manual, training verification, and the Commissioning Report will be verified for compliance by the building official during onsite enforcement. The owner can also provide forms attesting that these requirements have been completed.
The Systems Operation Training verifies that a training program has been developed and specified for each equipment type and system. The Systems Manual, Operation and Maintenance (O&M) documentation, and record drawings are prepared and available to the maintenance staff prior to implementation of any training or the development of a written training program. The training program is to be administered when the appropriate maintenance staff is available.
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Commissioning Team - The key members of each party involved with the project designated to provide insight and carry out tasks necessary for a successful commissioning project. Team members may include the commissioning coordinator, owner or owner’s representative, building staff, design professionals, contractors or manufacturer’s representatives, and testing specialists.
Commissioning Coordinator – The person who coordinates the commissioning process. This can be either a third-party commissioning provider, a commissioning consultant contracted directly by the owner who is not responsible or affiliated with any other member of the design and construction team, or an experienced member of the design team or owner in-house staff member.
Commissioning (Cx) - Building commissioning as required in this code involves a quality assurance process that begins during design and continues to occupancy. Commissioning verifies that the new building operates as the owner intended and that building staff are prepared to operate and maintain its systems and equipment.
The purpose of the CALGreen commissioning requirement is to improve public health, safety and general welfare by enhancing the design and construction of buildings through the use of concepts that reduce negative and increase positive environmental impacts. Commissioning verification of building system operations has several potential cost savings for the construction process. Through design review, installation verification and functional testing, it is a proven and effective method of saving time and money for the project.
FUNCTIONAL PERFORMANCE TESTING REQUIREMENTS
The Functional Performance Tests document that all components, equipment, systems and system-to-system interfaces were installed as specified, and operate according to the Owner’s Project Requirements, Basis of Design, and plans and specifications. Tests should include verification of proper operation of all equipment features, each part of the sequence of operation, overrides, lockouts, safeties, alarms, occupied and unoccupied modes, loss of normal power, exercising a shutdown, startup, low load through full load (as much as is possible) and back, staging and standby functions, scheduling, energy efficiency strategies and loop tuning.
QUALIFICATIONS OF COMMISSIONING COORDINATOR
Selecting Personnel for Commissioning Verification
This code requires that “Commissioning shall be performed by trained personnel with experience on projects of comparable size and complexity.” The trained personnel manage and facilitate the commissioning process.
The CALGreen code states that trained personnel may include appropriate members of owner staff, contractor and design team as well as independent commissioning professionals.
It is essential that a single person, the Commissioning Coordinator, be designated to lead and manage the commissioning activities.
The designated Commissioning representative may be an independent third-party commissioning professional, a project design team member (e.g. engineer or architect), an owner’s engineer or facility staff, contractor or specialty sub-contractor. Methods of evaluating the designated commissioning representative and trained personnel include review of the following:
1. Technical knowledge
2. Relevant experience
3. Potential conflict of interest concerns
4. Professional certifications and training
5. Communication and organizational skills
6. Reference and sample work products
CALGreen commissioning guidelines are being finalized. For more information on CALGreen requirements, click on the link below:
http://www.bsc.ca.gov/CALGreen/default.htm
Talk to Maia, Tim, Rick or Bernie about CALGreen Commissioning!
Maia Speer, mspeer@gb-eng.com, 415-655-4056
Tim Fryxell, tfryxell@gb-eng.com, 415-655-4059
Bernie Keister, bkeister@gb-eng.com, 415-269-1897
Rick Dale, rdale@gb-eng.com, 415-655-4047