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UMASS PHYSICAL SCIENCES BUILDING

AMHERST, MASSACHUSETTS

CHALLENGE AND OPPORTUNITY

As part of a larger campus strategy and paradigm shift in their approach to new construction commisisoning, UMass Amherst contracted B2Q to deploy Monitoring-based Commisisoning (MBCx) software on the newest research laboratory facility on campus with the goal of delivering a safe, efficient, comfortable, and reliable building meeting the intent of the design team.

B2Q used the FacilityConneX MBCx platform to automatically and continuously monitor the building's HVAC and laboratory control system operations over a multi-year period that began during the start-up and acceptance phase and continued through the first 10 months of the warranty period. B2Q configured nearly 100 customized analytics that were used to flag issues and determine their causes and corrective actions across all 385 air- and water-side systems in the facility, including nearly 50 labs with critical airflow and pressurization controls.

Using FacilityConneX, B2Q uncovered 43 issues within the first 30 days and over 60 additional issues in the subsequent months, including over 40 qualified to be addressed under warranty and additional opportunites to reduce energy consumption and improve comfort. Several findings related to potential lab safety issues were also identified and quickly addressed. Key findings include:

  • Lab air change rates greater than design due to improper minimum flow set-points

  • Improper lab pressurization

  • Ineffective heat recovery due to improper sensor placement

  • Failed fume hood sash position sensors

Market:

Colleges and Universities

Services:

Energy Efficiency and Analysis
Building Systems
Building Commissioning

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