What do Building Enclosure Commissioning Agents do?

So What Exactly does an Enclosure Commissioning Agent (BECxA) do? Understandably, there is a lot of confusion in the design and construction industry about the role of building enclosure commissioning agents (BECxA). Owners and architects do not know what a BECxA does during design and construction and how (or if) this discipline adds value to
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What are Sustainable Construction Documents?

What are Sustainable Construction Documents? Everything you’ve always wanted to know about Sustainable Construction Documents, but were afraid to ask. An Architects Explains Sustainable Construction Documents From time to time I find myself explaining the process and make up of sustainable construction documents to various people. So it recently occurred to me that it would
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Building Enclosure Commissioning Overview, Part 2

Why Commission the Enclosure? Building Enclosure Commissioning Overview, Part 2 In the ideal world, all components of the building enclosure providing waterproofing and air leakage mitigation – air and water resistive barriers, flashings, primary and secondary membranes, sealants, coatings etc., would be thoroughly analyzed for compatibility and detailed with great care to maintain integrity at
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Building Enclosure Commissioning 101 – Part 1

building enclosure commissioning 101
Building Enclosure Commissioning 101, the Why? – Part 1 Building Enclosure Commissioning 101 is relatively new and many teams don’t yet understand its value. I remember attending a seminar on HVAC commissioning at the Pacific Energy Center in San Francisco 18 years ago. This was a new, upcoming service at the time and commissioning agents
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Building Science Terminology

building science terminology
Building Science Terminology This blog shares recommended terminology from the US DOE. We are considering terminology and frequently used words and phrases in this blog, not definitions of building science terms. Building science terminology is sophisticated and can be confusing, but I’m not sure that the DOE’s recent efforts will help the industry. According to
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LEED Envelope Commissioning (Enclosure Commissioning)

What is Envelope Commissioning or Building Enclosure Commissioning (BECx)? Most of us have heard of Commissioning (Cx) as it deals with HVAC equipment and digital controls. But what is “Enclosure Commissioning” or “Envelope Commissioning,” and what about LEED Envelope Commissioning? Its scope is vast and skills and knowledge required are pretty intensive as well. LEED v4
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Envelope Commissioning Guidelines and Standards

Envelope Commissioning Guidelines
Envelope Commissioning Guidelines and Standards include ASHRAE 202P, NIBS Guideline 3, ASTM E2813, and LEEDv4 Enhanced Commissioning credit requirements. The December 2012 issue of Environmental Building News had a great article, Verifying Performance with Building Enclosure Commissioning, that did a great job outlining the differences between traditional mechanical Commissioning (Cx) (HVAC, lighting controls, plumbing, etc) and Building
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Building Enclosure Commissioning

ASHRAE Guideline 0-2005 Commissioning Process
What is the “building enclosure?” The building “enclosure” also known as building “envelope” or building “shell” consists of all the exterior faces of the building, such as foundations, exterior walls and roof. The enclosure manages everything that might get into and out of a building: water, wind, light, sound, air, pests, and people. How the
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Building Envelope Commissioning (BECx)

building envelope commissioning
“Building Envelope Commissioning” or “Building Enclosure Commissioning” The terminology is so new we’re not sure which term will stick… so we’ll start with what we like. “Envelope” sounds more lovely than “enclosure.” “Building Envelope Commissioning (BECx) comes to the San Francisco Bay Area” For centuries we’ve understood air infiltration and moisture intrusion waste energy and
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