Blog

October 27, 2015

Commissioning and the Condo Market

 

quarter inch hole

Theodore Levitt, credited with coining the word ‘globalization’ is also famous for saying, “People don’t want to buy a quarter-inch drill, they want to buy a quarter-inch hole.”

CFMS-West will keep this in mind as we prepare for the upcoming 19th Annual Condo Conference:  condo developers and managers don’t necessarily want to buy commissioning…..but they will want the end results that commissioning produces.

Those end results of the commissioning process are;

  • Quality control during construction, improving the quality and performance of buildings handed over.
  • Lower operating costs – from 8 % to 20% lower than non-commissioned buildings.1
  • Efficiency! A building operated most efficiently over time reduces expenses and is better for the environment.
  • Cost savings in the range of $0.29/sq.ft. per year through commissioning of existing buildings2.
  • Reduced occupant complaints.

Commissioning services have slowly been working into the condominium market over recent years.  Our CFMS-West office in Ancaster, and our sister-office CFMS in Richmond Hill, have noticed the slowly growing trend to include independent commissioning services for condo projects.  In some cases, the projects sought LEED certification requiring a minimum of Fundamental commissioning services.  Or savvy owners have simply recognized that investing in commissioning results in reduced operating costs and fewer complaints in the long-run.

On November 13 & 14, CFMS and CFMS-West will spread the word about commissioning and its many benefits to the attendees of the 19th Annual Condo Conference and tradeshow, taking place at the Toronto Congress Centre.  Our knowledgeable staff from CFMS and CFMS-West will answer questions about the commissioning process and discuss the benefits for new construction and existing buildings.  This will include some common condo inefficiencies that raise operating costs for existing buildings, and can be improved through existing building commissioning.

At Booth 1105 we hope to see some of our current customers from the condo market, and to meet many new contacts interested in increasing efficiencies and reducing operating costs through commissioning.

Booth 1105

1 NIBS Whole Building Design Guide

2 Evan Mills, “Commissioning: A Highly Cost-Effective Building Energy Management Strategy,” Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 2012

Why Commissioning