Commissioning is arguably the most critical aspect of the development cycle as it ensures that a building is handed over to operate safely, efficiently and in accordance with how the owner intended. From our experience in trouble shooting issues in existing buildings, we have found that most issues stem from improper commissioning of the building at handover. Proper commissioning is not just a testing and verification process and must start early in the project and continue until a comprehensive handover to the operations and maintenance team is achieved. Furthermore, one must look beyond simply commissioning individual systems as the complex buildings of today require very careful integration of numerous interdependent systems.

Karma’s team have a personal mission to raise the standards of the commissioning industry as we strongly believe that this is essential to not only improving the efficiency of buildings and reducing maintenance costs but also overcoming safety issues in the regions building stock.

We provide third party commissioning verification and commissioning management services throughout a projects lifecycle, from pre-design right through to retro commissioning. We follow CIBSE and ASHRAE standards for commissioning and our team of experienced engineers and commissioning managers provides assurance to Clients that when they appoint Karma they will have a partner that will ensure their building operates as they intended.

Commissioning management is a systematic process of managing the overall commissioning of a building from design to handover. We know from our experience that every construction project is unique and has its own unique features and challenges that must be overcome. We also know that despite the best planning efforts, there are always unforeseen issues that arise, particularly during the testing and commissioning phase. Our team have decades of practical experience of commissioning in the region and have therefore been involved in solving thousands of challenges that have risen in the commissioning process. Our collaborative, expert led, hands on approach to troubleshooting is what we believe differentiates us in the field of commissioning management.

• Reviewing design and shop drawings for commissionability.
• Preparing coordinated commissioning programs.
• Performing pre-functional testing / installation verification of building systems.
• Coordinating and overseeing functional testing of building systems.
• Collating and verifying commissioning results.
• Collating and verifying O&M manuals.
• Coordinating handover activities such as facility management training.

Karma provide independent services on behalf of the Client in order to provide assurance to the Client that at point of handover the building systems operate as intended. Our experienced engineers ensure that no shortcuts are taken in the commissioning process and we work collaboratively and proactively with the project team to ensure that the Clients interests are met without compromising project programs.

• Reviewing design and shop drawings for commissionability.
• Conducting installation inspections.
• Witnessing of pre-functional and functional testing.
• Verification of commissioning results.
• Verification of O&M manuals.
• Verification of facility management training.

Recommissioning (RCx) is a re-optimization process for existing buildings that improves a building’s overall performance by optimizing energy efficient design features and directly addressing equipment performance and system integration issues.

Studies have shown that recommissioning can achieve energy savings of 5-15% without the installation of any additional equipment. Our experienced team of commissioning engineers and Certified Energy Managers provides Clients with expertise to not only ensure on-going safe operation of the building but also maximize energy savings. Karma’s re-commissioning services include;

• Facility inspections and asset surveys
• Building fine tuning
• Functional testing of building systems
• BMS recalibration and update sequences of operation
• As-built documentation and O&M manual review
• Rebalancing of HVAC systems
• Review of startup/shut-down procedures
• Review equipment scheduling
• Thermographic surveys of electrical systems

Many of us in the industry know that the majority of a building’s energy use in this harsh climate is attributable to the air conditioning system. What a lot of us are not aware of however is the fact that a large portion, upwards of 30%, of this air conditioning consumption is due to leaky building fabrics. Karma offer a number of specialist services to optimise the performance of a building envelope, including:

• Infrared Thermography
• Air Tightness Testing
• Blower door Testing
• Smoke Testing
• In Situ U-Value testing and analysis
• Site Inspections
• Drawings Reviews
• Specification Development

We do not stop there. By using diagnostic tools such as infrared thermography, smoke simulation, blower door testing and in-situ U-Value analysis using a heat flux sensors, we can quantitatively test completed facades and identify any areas of leakage that require remediation.

Testing of Operation sequences/Interlocks/Safety measures.

Final balancing of systems and calibration of controls.

System operation under all operation modes and all conditions of load.

Inter-system operation and correct interfacing connections under all operating conditions and under simulated fire conditions.

Full functional and operation of BMS system.