Why I Attend NCBC Every Year (Well, Almost…)

Submitted by Craig Hawkins, CxA from McKinstry Co. on why he attends NCBC almost every year…
(by the way, the earlybird rate expires on April 30 so register now if you want to save $75)

You’re going to another NCBC? Why?I have been asked this question several times by my fellow CxA’s in the past few months.  And my answer is…………

Truth is; I have several reasons for going. You see, I have been to 13 of the past 19 NCBCs and each has been a unique experience. Admittedly, some have been more interesting than others and some have been in locations that were not exactly at the top of my list of places to go see (or in many cases, return to). But for me, the positive benefits far outweigh the detractions. Those positive benefits include:

• Affiliation
  When I attend the NCBCs, I get a sense of being a part of a vibrant, growing industry. Many of us in this industry work alone or within small companies and we sometimes get to the point where we feel like we are fighting the world alone. I owned and operated my commissioning company for 15 years with no employees and going to the NCBC’s gave me a chance to feel like there was an entire industry of people with like minds and similar situations.
• Education:
  The speakers and industry booths provide a quality source of information about new, cutting-edge technologies within our industry, the latest trends in the marketplace, updates on pending legislation changes related to commissioning and case studies that can be used in marketing.  Some of the sessions have been “roundtables” or panel discussions where hot topics are discussed. These lively debates have proven to be not only interesting but extremely informative with several ideas and positions being presented and discussed. No other Cx industry forum allows for this type of in-person interactions in a group setting.
• Connection:
  What better place, than at the NCBC, can one go to meet fellow industry members from all over the globe? Forget “what better place”……..this is the only place!  The NCBC is the only conference dedicated to commissioning that is open for anyone to attend. I met people at my first NCBC (back in 1994) that I am still in contact with today. I met my former business partner at an NCBC and we went on to operate a successful commissioning partnership for several years.  I have met someone new at every NCBC I have attended.

So why do I continue to attend the NCBCs?  Because they offer great value, they help grow and showcase MY industry, and I enjoy them.  But remember- NCBC is like anything else in that you get out of it whatever you put in. So if you do go (and I hope you do) don’t just go and sit in the back of the rooms, go and participate!  Join in on the open discussions, meet new people, talk and listen to those around you at the dinners and lunches. I challenge each and every one of you reading this to go to the NCBC and walk up to someone you don’t know, have never met, and introduce yourself.  Get to know your fellow industry partners. Come to the NCBC and listen, learn, and support your industry. Come to the NCBC and enjoy yourself.

The Human Element: An Often Misunderstood Part of the Cx Process

Marco De Zan, CEM, CBCP, EBCP, CMVP, presenter in the session entitled “Cx + OM = Success” discusses the human element of Cx.

At NCBC we’ll be discussing a wide variety of topics related to the commissioning of both new and existing buildings. There will be many topics, ranging from technical to finances to certification, but I will focus on an often misunderstood critical element of the commissioning process: the human element.
 
It’s time to start having a new kind of conversation when we consider commissioning (Cx) services.

We know that Cx is impressive and delivers impressive results. We know every architect and engineer should request Cx for their projects. We have the data. We have the proof. We see payback from Cx services as soon as four days and up to four years after the efforts. There are energy and non-energy benefits to the work we do each day. It is widely accepted that Cx is a valuable process.

Now, it’s time to evolve the conversation and focus on this: How do we make
the benefits for which our clients have invested good money last? And, how
can we, as a firm, help them accomplish this? Essentially, we need to start
answering the question of what exactly happens after we leave.

We’re seeing that Cx seems to have more permanent effects if it is involved
early in the building process. Corrections and adjustments made during those
initial phases are life-long and can create permanent advantages.
The story with retro-commissioning (RCx also referred to as EBCx) is different. We continue to see that energy savings are not consistent after a few years. The benefit remains, but it is not as impressive. There are various sources of information, but we tend to see that 65-75% of the peak RCx savings last beyond four years. That is good, but not great.
We need to help our customers strive to maintain 100% or even increase the savings through time and we believe it can be done. The difference can be found in how facility personnel are trained and involved in the process. The data proves that sites with high levels of training have strong energy savings and persistence in those savings. Conversely, sites with less training have less persistent savings.

We also need to educate owners on the idea that RCx is a one-time event and
nothing else. It’s simply not true. This notion could not be more wrong.
RCx services need to extend beyond physical energy saving implementation.
We need to guide the building owner and maintenance personnel on how to
maintain those savings if we want projects to operate at full efficiencies.
It won’t be an easy task – but this slight change to broaden our goals will be worth the rewards. When RCx focuses on education, ownership and long-term, consistent performance, then it delivers building owners and staff with the tools they need to make right decisions moving forward.

It is imperative that igniting this desire for improvement in the Cx and RCx
community and our customers be part of our focus.  A change in mindset can
enable us to see greater short-term and long-term energy savings and
stronger built environments all together.

I look forward to meeting with as many of you as I can in Nashville.

NCBC 2012…20 years and Counting!

This post was submitted by Liz Fischer, a 20-year veteran of the National Conference on Building Commissioning

Just over 20 years ago I was asked to help organize PECI’s first National Conference on Building Commissioning.  It seems like yesterday in some respects, but when I see the growth and advancement in the commissioning industry over these past two decades I realize how far we’ve come. In preparing for NCBC in this milestone year, I thought you’d like a glimpse into how NCBC was born.

In the early 1990’s, conversations at PECI were about how to make the commissioning process “business as usual.” At that time I had only worked in the industry, and for PECI, for two years. I thought this was a great opportunity to meet the industry leaders. Partnering with the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), we determined one of the best ways to provide education on the commissioning process and move the industry  forward was to bring the key stakeholders from architecture, engineering, building owners, industry associations and research organizations together and have a dialog about making commissioning “business as usual”. 

During that first conference a summary report was developed that identified a list of key issues discussed at the conference.

1. The need for a whole building commissioning guidelines and standards.
2. Understanding the owners’ role and responsibility in the commissioning process.
3. Understanding the roles of the lenders, appraisers, and insurers.
4. Understanding who does the commissioning, who do they report to, and who pays them.
5. Understanding the interface between commissioning and design professionals.

As I reread this summary report and some of the papers from that first conference, I was impressed with what we have accomplished. Still, there is always work to do and we as an industry still have a few more items to address.  In many aspects, we’ve succeeded in making commissioning “business as usual.” But now is the time to move beyond that, to move forward and embrace the next level of efforts needed to create greater efficiency across the built environment.  Some of the upcoming challenges I have been hearing about include developing more commissioning authorities and moving from HVAC commissioning to a whole building approach, including the building envelope. 

At the lunch on May 16^th, I will be looking back more closely at what we have accomplished at NCBC over these past 20 years. Then, my colleague and friend Craig Hawkins will take a look back at the history of the Building Commissioning Association (BCA). Craig is a founding member of the association and an advocate for industry education and training. Finally, we will hear about the current state of the commissioning industry and future plans for the NCBC and the BCA.

I am proud of the advancements we have made in this industry and honored to have played a part in NCBC for the past 20 years.  Watching commissioning evolve and hearing conversations get elevated every year is exciting, I won’t lie. And at the conclusion of NCBC each year, I leave with confidence that we continue to make strides and the hope that all industry players continue the necessary conversations to create the framework for success. 

I invite you to join us in the conversation as well and be a part of the next 20 years.  See you in Nashville!