Commissioning Data Center

Last week we walked around the new data center for the management company to perform pre-functional and functional testing (depending on the equipment). The UPS still couldn't be tested because there were still issues with a transfer switch. We looked at the 4 CRAC units, one of which was still hooked up to the vacuum to remove moisture before being re-charged with refrigerant. The two larger CRACs had to have their refrigerant removed, be cut in half to get in the elevator, and then re-assembled. There were a couple of problems with the wiring of one of these, the result of a wiring harness being re-installed improperly. Both of the large units needed to have insulation added since it was removed when it was cut (photo to the right). There was also a very small domestic water copper pipe used for humidification that should be insulated and secured to the frame so that it didn't vibrate against the frame and eventually wear through (photo on the left - the larger diameter pipe was secured with a vibration dapening clamp). One of the large CRAC units was moving 16% less air than it should and the motor was going to be re-shived to fix.

Another of the issues we looked for were un-sealed penetrations in the floor and ceiling since both were being used as a plenum for supply (floor) and return (celing) air. The floor was sealed pretty good with only a couple of penetrations that were missed (photo on the left), but the ceiling had lots of unsealed penetrations (photo on the right). Kevin Sheehan (on the ladder) and Kevin Bright (in the floor) are using a flashlight to look for these issues in the photos below.





















Another issue we identified during this trip was the chilled water pressure gauges, which were supposed to be 6" diameter and instead were 4" diameter. Obviously this isn't a huge deal, but they were pretty clearly called for in the spec and we've asked the contractor to replace.

Meselson Lab Commissioning

On Friday, we visited the Meselson Lab in the Biological Labs Building at Harvard University as part of the commissioning process. The space's renovation is nearing completion and the Office for Sustainability team was there to functionally test some of the equipment. We verified that the fan coil units (FCUs) and baseboard heating responded according to changes in the thermostat. OFS staff would adjust the thermostats to call for heating or cooling, Talli from Siemens would verify that the the BAS indicated that the system would react accordingly (picture above on the right), and OFS staff would watch the control valves turn and verify the temperature of the coils with a temperature gun (picture below on the right). While the systems reacting appropriately was generally the case, we did find one control valve for the baseboard heating that was unable to open or close because the metal baseboard cover prevented it from turning. This resulted in the perimeter heating being always on regardless of what the thermostat called for or what the FCU was doing. A simple change in control valve location will fix this.

Another potential issue was a discrepancy between the mechanical drawings and the actual HVAC system in one small room. The drawings called for a transfer grille between the small room with an unducted biosafety cabinet and a larger adjacent lab. Since there were insufficient existing wall penetrations, the contractor had used the location of the transfer grille to run the supply air duct. As a result, the room was very positively pressurized with the only path for air to leave being under the door into the hallway. You can see Kevin and Jay from OFS looking over the drawings with Talli from Siemens in the picture below.

We also looked at whether or not the fan coil units reacted to the manual fan speed switches (picture below on the right). Most did, though one seemed to only have an on / off reaction instead of the off / hi / med / low that was called for. We'll come back with a balometer or the testing adjusting balancing (TAB) contractor to confirm. The TAB contractor was supposed to be there on Friday (the reason we selected that date) but he didn't show up, so we'll have to come back to witness test some of the balancing, especially when it is done for the fume hoods. We also confirmed the occupancy sensors (Kevin is covering the sensor with masking tape in the picture below in the center) that control the lighting and the lighting levels at the bench level (Andrea is confirming the light levels in the picture below on the left). This space is not equipped with photo-sensors or dimming ballasts, so we weren't adjusting the light settings, just comparing the actual light levels to the Owner's Project Requirements and Basis of Design.

Francis Lab Commissioning

On Friday, March 5th, Kevin Bright, Kevin Sheehan, Philip Kreycik, and I met with representatives from the electrician, controls contractor, balancer, and construction manager as part of the commissioning process for the Francis Lab in the Harvard Biolabs building. We checked every occupancy sensor in the space, including those that control the overhead lights and thermostats as well as those that control the task lighting at all of the lab benches. Many of the overhead occupancy sensors were located too close to air diffuser vents and would never shut off, so we had to re-set the sensitivity (in most cases electing to switch them to infrared only rather than using the ultrasonic / infrared dual technology). We also put each fan coil unit into heating and cooling modes and checked schedules and worked with Siemens to fix anything we found such as opportunities for simultaneous heating and cooling or non-responsive thermostats. While there, we compared what was installed to the drawings to see if the as-built drawings needed to be updated. We found a couple of concrete penetrations without sleeves, but determined this was outside the scope of work for this project. We also found a hole in a compressed air line that would need to be repaired. Finally, we checked the face velocity for the fume hoods, making sure that they stayed at 100 fpm at all sash heights. Unfortunately, some peculiarities with the building's HVAC system didn't allow us to run the face velocity any lower. The first fume hood we tested wasn't programmed properly and wasn't responding to the sash height. Kevin Bright continued the functional testing process for the remaining building systems after the rest of the Harvard Office for Sustainability team left and we've since shared our list of issues with the project manager. This is one of multiple visits to the site as construction winds down, which is part of the functional testing component of commissioning. At OFS, we always try to conduct full ASHRAE Guideline 0 commissioning and include plumbing systems in addition to energy systems and include user training in addition to occupant training. We've found the process to be extremely beneficial and cost effective for the interior fit-out projects that we're targeting.

Owner's Project Requirements Charette

On Wednesday we held a goal setting meeting for the Sherman Fairchild project (a laboratory building full gut renovation). Representatives from the Architect, MEP Engineer, Project Management, Operations and Maintenance, Occupants, Office for Sustainability (both the green building services and the occupant engagement groups), Engineering and Utilities, IT, and EH&S were present to decide what constituted a "successful" project. Establishing goals and measures of success up front is important to getting everybody on the same page and should help quicken the design process and minimize change orders as all stakeholders have had a chance to provide their feedback.

Project goals were collected in the areas of "Project Performance", "Environmental Performance", "Human Health and Comfort", "Operations and Maintenance", and "Training and Education". OFS staff lead the meeting using the Nominal Group Technique, which collects a list of ideas from all stakeholders, gives attendees time to ask clarifying questions, and then ranks the goals to identify the most important. We'll take the results and compile a ranked set of project goals and the Owner's Project Requirements (OPR). The design team will respond to these documents in each of their design submittals and the commissioning authority will use OPR during the commissioning process. The agenda for the four hour meeting is attached here.

Kovac Lab Commissioning

Jesse Foote, Kevin Sheehan, and I visited the Kovac Lab on Thursday to do some of the functional testing / witness testing. The lighting controls weren't ready yet, but we confirmed the air balancing for supply and exhaust, went over the heat pump and condensate pump checklist, verified fire dampers and access panels, checked as-built drawings, looked for pipe insulation and labels, and reviewed the thermostat settings. The project looked really good and the gentleman from Comfort Air Solutions out of Framingham was really helpful. We found a large wall penetration above the ACT for cables that should be filled in (the lab calls for negative pressure and deck-to-deck partitions). We also found one fire damper that was covered up and made inaccessible as well as some un-labeled piping. The biggest concern was a lack of control dampers on the two outside air ducts. We drilled holes for a traverse in one and found the outside air to be over 37% higher than called for by the design engineer, which would result in a lot of extra heating and cooling energy. We didn't bother testing the second intake because of the lack of a control damper made making changes impossible at this time. A couple of issues were outside of the scope of work of the current project team, like no air being exhausted from the restrooms (despite supply air being delivered and an exhaust air grill) and existing air diffusers in one room directing supply air directly at the exterior wall and windows (we suggested rotating the diffuser 180 degrees). Our final recommendation was to review the thermostat schedule with the occupants and include occupant training as part of building turnover, as it seemed like the current occupied hours setting of 6:00 AM to 7:00 PM for weekdays and 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM for weekends might be unnecessarily long. We'll return soon to confirm the lighting controls.

Holyoke 4th Floor Commissioning

This morning we conducted functional testing as part of our commissioning of the Holyoke Center 4th Floor fit-out. During the electrical portion of the commissioning, we confirmed all occupancy sensors were working correctly and set to the proper timing (the first project we've looked at with all occupancy sensors working correctly before commissioning). However, we noticed that the light fixtures were not dimming up and down based on the presence of daylight as they were supposed to. It turns out they needed to be set up with the photosensor tool before they'll dim, but this had not been done. We were able to work with the lighting installer and have them set the minimum (nearly off) and maximum (set to provide just over 50 foot candles at the work surfaces rather than fully on) levels for each fixture. We also made sure operating the daylight responsive dimming feature was added to the operator training planned for the next day.

Hip Hop Archive Cx part II

In a previous post we showed some photos of the commissioning process from the Hip Hop Archive. One of the items we added to our issues list was the lack of a fresh air duct that was supposed to be connected to one of the heat pumps. Though the duct was shown on the construction documents and as-built drawings, we couldn't find it in the field. After a lot of back-and-forth with the contractor, it turns out the duct never made it from the fresh air intake and no fresh air was being provided to the spaces served by this heat pump. The two pictures attached show the same access panel before commissioning (no duct) and after (with duct). The team also found that the filter could not be accessed in one of the other heat pumps, another item that the contractor has since fixed. This is our first attempt at self-commissioning a small fit-out project and the experience proved very valuable.

Larsen & Longfellow Commissioning

On April 28, the Office for Sustainability commissioning team, along with Bob Phillos, Assistant Director of Operations from the Graduate School of Education, and Kevin the HVAC technician from Facilities Maintenance Operations, commissioned recently renovated spaces in Larsen and Longfellow Halls. They checked the lighting, lighting controls, programmable thermostats, and split system air conditioners that were associated with the renovation projects. Everything looked good with the AC condensing unit (as verified by the two Kevins and Andrea). We found three meeting rooms with ceiling mounted occupancy sensors that weren't connected correctly (these have since been fixed). We were told by the occupants of Longfellow that they'd like to be trained on how to use the thermostats (training is being arranged). We also noticed that the lighting levels varied drastically from one office to the next even with the lights on (from 15 FC on the desk of some unrenovated offices to between 30 and 50 FC in the renovated spaces). The commissioning was part of the LEED for Commercial Interiors program and included reviewing balancing reports for a new air handler, which was separatley commissioned by a third party.

Hip Hop Archive Cx

A few weeks ago the Harvard Office for Sustainability and Harvard Facilities Maintenance Operations commissioned the newly renovated Hip Hop Archive in Cambridge, MA. The project is part of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research. These pictures show Kevin Sheehan (FMO) and Kevin Bright (OFS) looking at one of the heat pumps and the associated condensate pump (pouring in a cup of water to make sure it starts up correctly). The project is finishing up the LEED for Commercial Interiors certification process and will be submitted soon. The picture on the bottom should include an outside air duct brought into the heat pump (as shown on the "as-builts"), but it isn't there. We added it to our report.

Commissioning 10 Akron St.

This picture shows Kevin Short of Facility Dynamics Engineering verifying the temperature and pressure inside the Harvard Real Estate Services 10 Akron Street dormitory. Tim Scruby is on the other end of the walkie talkie confirming that the building management system is giving the same readings.

Commissioning Rock Hall

This picture shows commissioning authority Larry Voltin of Facility Dynamics Engineering looking over the shoulder of the Siemens' building controls sub-contractor as part of his final walk-through of Harvard Divinity School's Rockefeller Hall.