A Guide to Construction Commissioning

During project closeout, an owner wants to receive any documents, training and warranties needed to take over the management and maintenance of their building. But they also want assurance that the completed building meets their requirements and is functioning as designed.

In construction, commissioning is a quality assurance process to verify and document the performance of a building’s systems, equipment and components to ensure they meet design specifications, owner requirements and building regulations. Proper commissioning is part of delivering a high-quality project, investing in its long-term performance and ensuring it’s ready for comfortable and safe usage. 

This article covers the benefits, best practices and the steps involved in commissioning. 

The Basics of Construction Commissioning

Commissioning has generally become standard practice during project closeout, particularly on large buildings with complex systems. However, it is typically a requirement for owners who are submitting their building for green grants or certifications, such as LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design). These specialized programs often have specific requirements for system performance or for additional commissioning. 

As a process, commissioning includes a series of tests, inspections and documentation to ensure a building’s systems are installed correctly, operating according to their design specifications and meeting the owner’s requirements for performance and efficiency. 

Building systems that usually undergo  commissioning include: 

Commissioning generally assesses newly installed systems. Retro-commissioning or re-commissioning is the analysis of systems that are already installed and being used. These processes can help determine whether a system needs to be repaired or replaced. 

Commissioning vs Start-up Reports

The phrase “commissioning,” is often used interchangeably with “start-up reports,” but they are technically different processes that often happen concurrently. 

Start-up reports usually verify equipment and systems are able to be turned on and fulfill their most basic functions without necessarily focusing on performance, such as whether a drain line drains, pipes don’t leak or an A/C blows cold air. Commissioning reports, on the other hand, focus on system performance, such as verifying that a duct is receiving the right amount of air and at the correct temperature.

The Value of Commissioning

For owners, commissioning is an important step in ensuring they receive the building they paid for and that it meets their expectations. For contractors, commissioning can sometimes feel like an extra step and extra paperwork but it usually provides numerous benefits and helps identify and address potential issues. 

For all stakeholders, commissioning usually offers many benefits, including: 

• Quality assurance by ensuring work meets specified standards and requirements and verifying systems and equipment are energy-efficient and operating as designed.
• Reducing costs by ensuring systems are operating efficiently, which can help reduce energy and operational costs over the building’s lifetime.
• Risk mitigation by identifying issues before the building is occupied and while contractors have time to resolve them without disputes, callbacks or warranty claims.
• Ensuring compliance with relevant regulations, codes and standards, including certification requirements such as LEED. 
• Establishing a baseline of performance, which can be used to assess future performance and determine the urgency of repairs or replacements.
• Reducing contractor liability by creating a record of the completed work to help settle or mitigate any future claims or disputes.
• Facilitating closeout, as commissioning reports and documents are often required parts of closeout documents.

The Commissioning Process

Some projects have specific equipment that might require special commissioning. For example, a medical facility might require a commissioning report for the medical gas system or a power plant might require testing for specialized cooling or fuel supply systems. 

However, the process of commissioning is usually very similar for all projects and happens throughout the stages of construction.

1. Pre-design

   The owner and the design team determine the systems and equipment needed to fulfill the building’s intended purpose. From there, they establish commissioning requirements for each system, including performance goals, sustainability targets and any specific documentation. These requirements can be based on a number of factors, including the needs of the building, local regulations and information from a manufacturer about how a piece of equipment should function. 

   Many organizations that oversee and award specifical certifications, grants or building programs will provide specific commissioning requirements on their website, such as the U.S. Green Building Council.  

2. Design

   While designing the building, engineers and architects will include commissioning requirements as part of the project specifications and drawings. This will serve as a guide to the general contractor (GC) to know what systems need to be commissioned, what testing should be done and specific performance goals. 

3. Construction

   Subcontractors and trade teams reference the commissioning requirements to understand how equipment and materials should work and how they will be assessed. Members of the project or commissioning teams will conduct periodic inspections to check that the work is on track to meet project specifications.  

4. Testing

   Commissioning is typically scheduled shortly before the project is handed over to ensure all systems are installed before any commissioning takes place, which is usually important because many systems are intertwined. For example, the fire safety systems require plumbing and electricity. Commissioning before either of those systems have been installed could give incorrect results.

   This step can include a range of tests, from basic functionality, such as checking air and water flow or a building’s electrical load, to advanced performance, such as energy efficiency or air quality. 

   Commissioning is often included as part of a subcontractor’s scope of work, and is often included on the punch list. The team that installed the system can conduct the tests or they might have a department specifically devoted to commissioning and quality control. In some cases, an owner or GC might hire their own commissioning agent or team, as this allows them to more closely manage and oversee the process.

5. Issue Correction

   Ideally, commissioning is simply a process of confirming things work as designed. However, when issues arise, they need to be addressed as promptly as possible. The GC might submit many Requests for Information (RFIs) or host meetings to determine the nature of the issue and its cause. If the problem is deemed to be a design issue, the design team will need to adjust the plans and rework will likely be required. If it was an issue in installation, the subcontractor will try to work quickly to fix it without delaying the closeout process. 

6. Documentation

   Commissioning documentation is often included with the closeout documents. These documents assure an owner that their equipment and systems work correctly, as well as providing them with a reference for future performance.  

   Some GCs track commissioning and any issues discovered during commissioning on the punch list. Others include commissioning reports as a required submittal. Both options ensure issues are easy to track and documents are easy to organize.

7. Re-commissioning

   Some owners may continue commissioning even after the building is occupied. Periodic re-commissioning or retro-commissioning can help ensure systems continue to perform as intended. In some cases, a potential warranty claim might require re-commissioning to determine whether a defect has occurred.

Commissioning Best Practices

There are a few habits and mindsets that usually improve the likelihood of a successful commissioning process:

Integrate commissioning into project planning.

Commissioning should be included in the project management process, including factoring testing into the project schedule and budget. Many GCs try to align the commissioning process with the timing of the punch list, as issues can be included in the closeout workflow and the project team hasn’t demobilized. This timing also ensures all systems have been installed, which increases testing accuracy.

Establish clear roles and responsibilities.

The commissioning process involves many stakeholders, including the owners, the design team, the GC, subcontractors and the commissioning team. To further complicate things, some equipment is only part of a more complex building system. 

For example, the fire damper system serves as a smoke block in the HVAC system in case of a fire. The commissioning of the fire damper system could feasibly fall to the three different commissioning agents — the one responsible for the life-saving systems, the one for the HVAC system, or one doing the electricity system. 

To avoid this confusion, the commissioning scope should be clearly defined in the project specifications and in a subcontractor’s scope of work. The GC should identify when the process will require subcontractors to coordinate schedules and processes. 

Communicate effectively.

Foster open and effective communication among all stakeholders. This can improve the commissioning process, as well as the process for resolving issues. Determining the cause of an issue might require a thorough investigation that involves numerous stakeholders. 

Having systems of communication in place before a problem arises can help ensure they’re resolved promptly and effectively. Leveraging communication channels that are already in use — submittals, RFIs and punch lists — can help to streamline correspondence.

Keep documentation organized.

The commissioning process requires an immense amount of thorough documentation. It’s easy for this process to become chaotic, as subcontractors might prefer to use different formatting and include different information on their respective reports. GCs should work to establish clear systems of document management and convey their expectations. This might include providing a template for all commissioning documents or a sample report as a reference and prior to the start of testing. 

The Future is Energy-Efficient

The construction industry has been putting an increased emphasis on sustainability and energy efficiency, which appears will only increase in the future. This likely means that commissioning will only become more common and more important, as it’s a crucial step in ensuring projects meet energy standards and qualify for green certifications. Embracing commissioning and being open to future innovations will allow owners, contractors and commissioning agents to make the process even more precise and impactful.

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