Tuesday, January 31, 2017: 8:00 AM-9:30 AM
Building Operation and Performance
Chair:
Robyn Ellis, City of Hamilton - Public Works
Technical Committee: 7.3 Operation and Maintenance Management
The typical HVAC system operates 40% below specified capacity and efficiency once it is installed in a building. During routine maintenance visits, changes in the performance of an HVAC system can be diagnosed in less than seven minutes by recording and comparing seven simple airside field measurements. This test method compares benchmarked data to pinpoint the causes of deterioration in system airflow, economizer performance and duct system functionality and enables detection and surgical correction of the uncovered and often invisible system defects.
1 Performance Perspective
Falke – Performance Approach
While most maintenance agreements include a checklist that insinuates acceptable performance, little evidence is provided that verifies how well the installed system is functioning. Emerging technology offers a scoring method that includes key performance indicators that can be field measured during each maintenance visit. Any change in this data can pinpoint changes in the performance of the system and allow for immediate surgical repairs to the system
2 Utilities Perspective
Maintenance programs with no requirement to collect measured performance data run great risk to customer satisfaction and achieving utility savings goals. It has become clear that even the most well maintained systems are often not efficient at all. This is due to past maintenance programs only focusing on the equipment on the roof versus the system as a whole. Adding technologies to maintenance programs has proven to produce fewer saving than anticipated because existing undetected system degradation prohibited the technology to function as designed, reducing savings throughout the life of the system.
3 Engineering Perspective
By documenting several key metrics at the time of commissioning or retro-commissioning, the performance of a system can be benchmarked. The benchmarks can then be used for a variety of purposes including comparison to manufacturer data, tracking performance degradation over time, and diagnostics. Creating and affixing a label to the equipment with commissioning data and space for ongoing data recording provides a record that is accessible to any personnel who may service the unit. Details of the metrics and proposed commissioning label are provided.