Remove the Brakes on Your Pumps by Installing VFDs It is quite commonplace to find variable frequency drives (VFDs) installed on pumps in any new construction or retrofit project and of course, they are necessary for any type of variable volume pumping system. However, VFDs can also be utilized on constant flow pumping systems. [...]
HVAC System Trim & Response Resets When a building is newly constructed, one of the last steps performed on the HVAC system is the testing, adjusting, and balancing (TAB). The purpose of TAB is to verify the design air and water flows are properly supplied throughout the building. One of the most critical components [...]
Before the days of advanced control systems, buildings would be preheated or precooled prior to occupancy using a standard warm up or cool down mode of operation. These primitive sequences would start the air handling units at a set time interval before the building entered into occupied mode. The air handling unit would then [...]
Discussing building energy management can be overwhelming. Everyone wants to save energy and money, but utility contract negotiations, retrofitting HVAC systems, renewable energy, and battery storage can add a lot of complexity to the conversation. With numerous retro-commissioning projects under our belt, we want to share our knowledge with building owners and facility managers [...]
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 [...]
What is it, which strategy is right for you, and how does this test benefit your building? ASTM E 1186 is a testing standard for air leakage as applies to building envelopes & air barrier systems. Air leakage is the cause for many concerns related to occupant comfort and indoor air quality. It also [...]
Every few years the Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) certification program goes through a review process and is updated to reflect the constantly changing technologies of today’s world and ways in which to leverage them to improve building performance. When the LEED program was updated to Version 4, a new option was [...]
Seeing the Invisible There are few instruments that can provide as much information in a short amount of time as the infrared camera. The IR camera offers a look at how heat energy is moving within a system by showing infrared radiation not visible to the human eye. Infrared thermography (conducted using an IR [...]
Since the beginning of the modern HVAC industry, the design, installation and testing of a building automation system (BAS) has remained relatively untouched. The process is as follows: First, an engineer will develop control drawings and desired sequence of operations for the various pieces of HVAC equipment in their design documents. From there, an [...]
The building envelope can be thought of as a bubble that creates a physical barrier between the interior and exterior. This bubble is comprised of the walls, windows, roof, and foundation all coming together as one system. A poorly constructed envelope allows unwanted air or moisture movement (in or out of the building) that [...]
