In my personal experience, there are two approaches building automation contractors often take when it comes to assigning resources to projects, and the choice between them is often driven by the size of the staff and the volume of the projects.
The first approach, which is more typical of smaller teams, is a system where a single person handles virtually all aspects of a project once the contract has been booked. While this is typically excellent from a standpoint of detail-oriented project delivery, some of downsides of the approach deal with efficiency, scheduling challenges, and a very real possibility that things like project documentation get put on the backburner.
The second approach, which is more typical of medium to large contractors, is one where aspects of each project are divided up into teams, and some project aspects are driven in parallel.
For example, an engineering team will be assigned to handle site surveys, shop drawings, and parts ordering for all projects. Meanwhile, a programming team will be assigned to handle controller configuration, networking configuration, and graphical interfaces. A project manager will be assigned to handle all financial aspects, subcontractor management tasks, and owner/prime contractor correspondences. Another team common in this approach is a group of direct digital control (DDC) startup technicians. From a strict reading of job descriptions, DDC startup technicians serve as quality control for instrument and wiring installation as well as verify that all systems operate together as intended. However, in truth, they do a lot more than that.
These folks are the ones who often really do “make it work,” and they are some of the last team members to touch the work products delivered in a building automation project. Being late in a multistep process executed by multiple teams often leads to a challenging cognitive load, balanced by being the one to see how all the pieces come together. In my line of work, I occasionally spend time with DDC startup technicians. I’ve tried to synthesize here some of the challenges they encounter and what they find rewarding about their jobs.