Contents

• 9/17/08: OPR, BOD, SM – Expensive, Useless Encumbrances or Valuable, Cost-Effective Tools – It’s Up to You
• 10/22/08: Best Practices in Commissioning Existing Buildings
• 11/12/08: Commissioning Issues of Open-Protocol Building Automation Systems

OPR, BOD, SM – Expensive, Useless Encumbrances or Valuable, Cost-Effective Tools – It’s Up to You

September 17, 2008 (Wednesday)
10:00–11:30 am PT
1:00–2:30 pm ET

Presenter: Kent Barber, P.E., LEED AP, Keithly Barber Associates

Three commissioning-related documents can be cost-effective keys to successfully commissioning and sustaining building functionality.

• Owner’s Project Requirements (OPR)
• Basis of Design (BOD)
• Systems Manual (SM)

Each of these may be developed as a part of the overall project process with little to no additional project cost. As properly applied tools, the documents add to project efficiency by promoting team collaboration, facilitating a common understanding of the goals and requirements, and enhancing the exchange of knowledge.

After the owner takes possession of the building, the OPR, BOD and SM continue to provide information regarding design intent, basis of design and functionality for the life-long operation and evolution of the building. Understanding this process is highly beneficial to owners, architects, engineers and commissioning agents.

Unfortunately, the fundamental purposes of the OPR, BOD and SM are frequently not understood. Inexperienced project teams may separate the development of these documents from overall project production, and may not apply them effectively to the progression of designing, building, and operating the building. As a result, they become burdensome, expensive and provide little value.

This presentation will:

• Describe a cost-effective approach for the development and long-term application of the OPR, BOD and SM.
• Explain how these documents provide a venue for utilizing vital information upon which the systems are based, instead of, information that is often addressed at the time it’s first needed, and later forgotten.
• Detail the relationships among OPR, BOD and SM, including the sequential manner in which each document forms the basis for the next.
• Describe how these documents, when properly maintained, may be used to optimize systems operation throughout the life-long operation and evolution of the building.

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Best Practices in Commissioning Existing Buildings

October 22, 2008 (Wednesday)
10:00–11:30 am PT
1:00–2:30 pm ET

Presenter: Mark Miller, P.E., C.C.P, Strategic Building Solutions, LLC

Existing Building Commissioning (also known as retrocommissioning) is emerging as an important process trend utilized within the building industry. To address market demands, the BCA has authored Best Practices in Commissioning Existing Buildings. The term “Best Practice” generally refers to the best possible way of doing something and is derived from the process of taking the most successful elements from many different sources and combining them to create the optimal process or approach. These Best Practices are intended to provide a practical process that provides guidance and assists in the standardization of the Existing Building Commissioning industry. The Best Practices in Commissioning Existing Buildings document developed by BCA is the culmination of two years of work that included input by dozens of commissioning-industry professionals, multiple industry associations, utility-program personnel and input and comment by the public.

This presentation will: 

• Define Existing Building Commissioning
• Discuss the latest trends within the Commissioning industry and how the industry has evolved over time
• Explain why Existing Building Commissioning is such a hot topic and explore the market forces driving the industry
• Review the BCA’s Best Practices process for Existing Building Commissioning
• Explore the practical application of the Best Practices to existing buildings through case studies and examples that highlight some of the key steps involved in implementing Existing Building Commissioning

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Commissioning Issues of Open-Protocol Building Automation Systems

November 12, 2008 (Wednesday)
10:00–11:30 am PT
1:00–2:30 pm ET

Presenter: Carl Lundstrom, P.E., C.C.P., EMC Engineers

Many building owners are requiring open-protocol data communication for MEP systems connected to the building automation systems. This may also involve the integration of building controls into the facility-wide enterprise-level control system.

This presentation will:

• Describe basics of open-protocols used in control systems
• Identify the serious technical issues that can occur with open-protocol installations, which commissioning authorities should be aware of when performing:
  • design reviews
  • submittal reviews
  • functional testing,
  • as-built and O&M reviews
• Discuss edits that should be made in Cx specifications to cover open-protocol issues

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