I was inspired by the Engineered Systems November 2005 special section about intelligent buildings. The efficiencies and performance available through integrating building systems of all types is very enticing and exciting. Systems such as HVAC, security, lighting, life safety, employee time tracking, paging, white noise, etc., can share data and make decisions based on the information available from all systems.
Building systems commissioning exists in part because traditional project delivery processes don't address the critical need for communication and coordination between divisions of the traditional CSI specification. Lip service is paid to the legal fact that the general contractor is ultimately responsible for delivering a building that works and meets the contract document requirements.