Take Charge of Your HVAC Design for the Good of the Environment
Ensure the project’s engineered solution is environmentally responsible through value engineering rather than as an HVAC alternate based on a return on investment.
This summer, we have seen record-high outdoor temperatures, drought, and numerous wildfires throughout the world. Little concern is given to these issues, and they are not receiving the attention they should get from our government now or in the past. Listening to a scientist “tell it like it is,” he said, “It is too late to reverse climate change. We can only stop climate change.” So, this got me thinking back to when the energy crisis was identified in the early 1970s. I chose to be proactive and responsible.
Back then, I was the design engineer for a major new high school project scheduled through a design-bid-build delivery. No construction manager or estimating consultant was assigned to assist with the project budgeting in the design phase. Back then, the design engineer was responsible for producing the HVAC budget estimate. I also knew that any HVAC “frills” (aka embellishments) would not go over well with the lead architect because any funding for such frills would be used for aesthetics and not a more energy-efficient mechanical system, even though we were experiencing an energy crisis for the first time. If I wanted to present energy and/or environmental savings, I would have to submit an analysis based on an acceptable return on investment (ROI) before the lead architect would possibly consider the idea(s).