The Commissioning Team Members and their Responsibilities
A successful commissioning process cannot occur with the Commissioning Authority or the Commissioning Agent operating in solitude. Every party which has a hand in completing the project, must contribute to the commissioning process to achieve, in the end, a building which functions to meet the needs of the owner. The roles of these team members must be clearly defined within the contract. These parties are listed below (along with their responsibilities):
All Commissioning Team Members
- Attend commissioning meetings
- Act promptly on items of work indicated in commissioning meeting minutes
- Work with other team members to derive a realistic commissioning schedule
- Ensure commissioning schedule is maintained
- Provide required documentation promptly
- Cooperate with the other commissioning team members to complete the project as efficiently as possible (this is to everyone’s benefit)
Owner's Representative
- Assign a person to be responsible for overall system knowledge
- Organize personnel to be demonstrated to and trained
- Sign-off “Demonstration to the Owner”
Mechanical Engineer
- Inspect static completion items (such as seismic restraint, code compliance, maintenance concerns, etc.)
- Ensure static system tests have been performed (such as pipe pressure testing, duct leakage testing, etc.
- Clarify contractual documents as required
- Indicate design intent as required
- Sign-off “Demonstration to the Engineer”
Mechanical Contractor
- Organize own resources and those of sub trades (suppliers, sheet metal, controls, fire protection, duct cleaning, etc.) to meet the schedule and perform corrective work as required
- Keep informed on commissioning meeting minutes and ensure minutes are responded to by appropriate parties
- Keep the Commissioning Agent fully informed on all aspects of the project (change orders, supplier delays, scheduling problems, etc.)
- Perform equipment startups (with suppliers as required)
- Operate equipment during tests
Controls Contractor
- Perform own controls commissioning
- Show commissioning agent control system in sufficient detail to allow Commissioning Agent to perform his checks
- Coordinate the engineer’s approval of a detailed sequence of operation
Balancing Agent
- Produce independent report to the approval of the mechanical engineer
- Report, to the Commissioning Agent, problems as they are encountered
General Contractor
- Organize own resources and those of sub trades (painters, drywall, flooring, millwork, electrical, etc.) to meet schedule and perform corrective work as required
Mechanical Commissioning Agent
- Assist mechanical contractor in the overall responsibility for the commissioning of the project as per above definition and contractual documents
- Predict problems before the occur, as is possible, and initiate resolution
- Identify and initiate resolution to problems as they occur
- Derive commissioning schedule and monitor for accuracy
- Review design intent and ensure that design intent is understood by commissioning team
Hold commissioning meetings and generate minutes - Prepare commissioning item lists and status reports for the commissioning team which identify and document current commissioning issues
- Perform pre-start checks on equipment
- Witness and document system verifications
- Ensure that documentation is obtained as per the requirements of the specifications
- Coordinate demonstration of systems to engineer and owner
- Issue a final commissioning report
Commissioning Authority
- Oversee the Owner’s Commissioning Process
- Review the Owner’s Requirements and Basis of Design
- Prepare a Master Commissioning Plan
- Review design documents. Ensure that the project specifications are written to support the Master Commissioning Plan including detailed review and comment of trade specific commissioning sections particularly, the Mechanical Commissioning Agent’s specification section.
- Hold or attend regular design stage and construction phase commissioning meetings as required.
- Ensure that the commissioning process is implemented by the trades as per the project specification requirements.
- Review and comment on commissioning schedule (The Commissioning Authority may prepare the commissioning schedule)
- Oversee equipment pre-functional tests and start-ups.
- Oversee systems functional testing
- Oversee training
- Oversee seasonal testing
- Prepare a final commissioning report for the Owner
- Assemble the Systems Manual (if required)
LEED Commissioning Authority
- Oversee the LEED commissioning process.
- Accomplish LEED Fundamental Commissioning tasks (as per the LEED® Canada Reference Guide (2009) and this LEED Commissioning Plan).
- Accomplish LEED Best Practice Commissioning tasks (as per the LEED® Canada Reference Guide (2009) and this LEED Commissioning Plan).