Documenting verification that new buildings operate as intended before they open for use

As one of the state of Texas' largest architectural and engineering organizations specializing in building technologies, Page has a broader perspective on total building commissioning than typically found at single-service commissioning or engineering firms. The Page Commissioning Team has worked on highly variable scopes of services, fully recognizing that each project and client has unique needs.

A multidisciplinary firm with planners, architects, electrical and mechanical (HVAC, plumbing, and fire protection) engineers, Page is known throughout the industry for successfully commissioning complex projects with highly sophisticated mechanical and electrical systems. We have subject matter experts specializing in all building-systems types, allowing us to leverage our expertise across a wide range of market sectors.

Each of our professionals maintains his or her technical relevance by remaining active in professional organizations, participating in these organizations up to the highest national levels and staying current in a wide breadth of disciplines.

Services

• Healthcare
• Academic
• Commissioning
• Corporate / Commercial

Looking out for clients' long-term interests

When considering the total costs incurred during a typical building’s lifespan, initial costs of design and construction account for just 2% of the total. Operations and maintenance costs equal 6%, and personnel costs equal 92%*. Those percentages have not changed drastically over time. Our clients understand that properly functioning buildings are crucial for optimizing energy use and reducing energy costs, but most importantly providing a safe and healthy environment for the people occupying the building space.

*Sustainable Building Technical Manual / Joseph J. Romm, Lean and Clean Management, 1994

Large to small, we do it all

Page completed commissioning services for ExxonMobil’s new 385-acre Houston-area campus totaling approximately 5 million square feet and accommodating approximately 10,000 employees. The scope included 23 energy-efficient buildings,  and Page successfully delivered this project largely due to the ability to provide the necessary resources allowing simultaneous deployment of Commissioning teams throughout multiple buildings.

Page’s Commissioning services tested, verified, and documented that systems serving 14 office buildings, Computation Facility, Upstream Research Center Laboratory, Wellness Center, and Energy Center, as well as over 3 million square feet of parking garages and an extensive tunnel system tied to a 360,000 GSF central utility plant having a cooling capacity of approximately 17,000 tons all operated as designed.

Getting the classrooms our clients pay for

Academic institutions typically operate on tightly controlled budgets so it’s critical that their buildings are commissioned to ensure they will operate as intended to serve students’ and administrators’ needs. Page has served Lone Star Community College System, one of the fastest-growing community college systems in the United States, on several campuses by providing new building commissioning to verify and document that the building systems and building envelope function as intended.

We provided commissioning services for the new Process Technology Center at Lone Star College’s new 8-acre campus at Generation Park. The Process Technology Center curriculum prepares students for careers as process technologists and operators in industries like petrochemical and pharmaceuticals. The facility contains a 900 square foot pilot plant, process lab spaces, classrooms and training spaces as well as offices and support spaces.

Injecting new life into aging healthcare facilities

Ben Taub General Hospital, located in the renown Texas Medical Center, opened in Houston, Texas in May 1963. It is respected worldwide as an outstanding acute care facility and elite Level I trauma center. An expansion included a transition from on-site-produced steam and chilled water to centralized, offsite-generated services piped to Ben Taub. Page commissioned the conversion to steam and chilled water utilities delivered from the Thermal Energy Corporation (TECO) District Utility System.

We conducted functional performance testing and verification of all portions of the steam infrastructure supporting TECO-delivered steam service within the newly-reconfigured Central Plant as well as the new TECO chilled-water tie-in, which included new decoupling heat exchangers served by new hospital-side primary pumping and TECO-side booster pumps. Additionally, our team commissioned new in-plant emergency generators and newly-upgraded emergency switchgear.

Identifying and addressing potential issues before they develop

Services include enhancing building performance and reducing operating life-cycle costs. During the implementation of the commissioning process, the Page Commissioning team has been instrumental in helping project teams resolve crucial sequence-of-operations issues which, if left uncorrrected, might have caused building performance to suffer, potentially to the point of infrastructure damage.

Page is recognized for its team-building approach and for promoting the collaborative effort needed for project success. This allows for effective communications, particularly in facilitating enhanced coordination between the engineer of record and the controls contractor, serving to minimize or eliminate many of the controls integration issues that are common on projects today.

How we stay in the know

Page is a proud member of the Building Commissioning Association (BCxA) and has chosen to provide services in accordance with their “Essential Attributes of Building Commissioning”. As a member of the premier professional association for commissioning, Page actively participates at the regional and national levels, setting direction and developing best practices for the commissioning industry.

Select client list

Page provides commissioning services for many public and private clients such as:

• Baylor College of Medicine
• The University of Texas System
• United States General Services Administration
• NASA Johnson Space Center
• City of Houston
• Houston Independent School District
• CenterPoint Energy
• ExxonMobil
• Shell Oil Company