Sherlock Holmes, Cx Agent In building construction, so many issues can be hidden from plain view — sometimes literally behind brick walls — and often no one even knows they’re there, until the day they become a problem. That’s where we come in. At SES, we work with a wide range of building designs [...]
Most of what I’ve learned in this industry hasn’t come from books or the classroom. A lot of what I’ve learned has come from the field. The field is where the buildings and their systems tell you their real story, where people bring their perspectives and expertise, and where collaboration either comes together or [...]
At Sustainable Engineering Solutions (SES), we’ve built our firm around a simple idea: when you take the time to understand the real "why" behind a project, everything else falls into place. That belief is embodied in what we call The SES Way — a structured yet flexible approach to every service we offer, built [...]
There’s no one size fits all solution for selecting and sampling envelope testing specimens. Each project is a different size with differing types of windows and owners with unique needs and goals. All these variables play a factor when approaching envelope testing on a project. Specifications might outline exactly how the testing should be [...]
While you could wait until construction starts before bringing a Commissioning Agent (CxA) onboard, you’d be missing out on significant benefits by waiting until that point, and could even be doing your project a disservice. Involving a CxA early in the process will help you make sure your goals and needs for the project [...]
When performing envelope testing, whether spray testing or adhesion testing, the results are clear immediately following the test. Same-day results could trick some into thinking that the benefits of envelope testing are short-term. However, most of the benefits of building envelope testing occur in the long term, as they provide peace of mind that [...]
What are the Connecticut State Building Code Commissioning Requirements? Building and energy codes are constantly changing, evolving and often reference additional codes and standards. In the State of Connecticut, commissioning is not only standard good practice for construction but also a code-driven requirement in the Connecticut State Building Code. Like all codes, they often [...]
Across the nation, various energy efficiency, sustainable and high performance programs require building commissioning to be incorporated into construction projects. Many national, state, and municipal codes also require commissioning. While engaging a design and construction team in a project is standard practice, commissioning still is often approached with ambiguity. Given how long commissioning has [...]
As the field of commissioning has grown and evolved over the past 25+ years, it has become a valued component of building projects in the Architecture/Engineering/Construction (A/E/C) industry. There are hundreds of highly respected and qualified commissioning providers throughout the country. Many of them are part of a team within larger engineering firms. When [...]
The Benefits of Near End of Warranty Reviews Most people that have been in the construction industry are familiar with the phrase “taillight warranty.” The phrase is used to describe how the only warranty service at the end of a construction project was watching the taillight of your contractors as they drove away, never [...]
