A Survey of O&M Practices for High Performance Buildings in the Building Industry

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to document in part the study that was conducted for a research project ASHRAE RP-1650, which investigates the training requirements for sustainable high-performance building (HPB) operations and maintenance (O&M). This paper documents the intent, procedures and findings of a portion of the research project, which includes a survey of O&M practices for high performance buildings in the industry. The purpose of the survey as reported in this paper was to confirm and refine the level of understanding of KSCs for operating HPBs as perceived by O&M personnel in the industry. The details of the survey and the results are presented in this paper. The survey was sent out to facility managers in the industry who are involved with the O&M of HPB systems and equipment. 221 facility managers were surveyed in this study. This study utilizes a concurrent mixed-method research, which considers both qualitative and quantitative responses. The study found that while most technicians were ‘moderately well' to ‘very well' trained for the configuration and components as well as the installation, repair and replacement of different high performance equipment and systems, they lacked essential knowledge to address issues such as: controls; tracking of variables; programming and operation of modulation devices implemented in high-performance systems and equipment. This finding implied a lack of ‘Systems Thinking' approach, which the study found to be pertinent and essential for the O&M of HPB systems and equipment. The study is utilized to identify gaps between the training requirements for O&M of HPBs identified from the literature review of the research project and the current industry practices. The identified gaps are valuable to develop learning objectives for training programs that are aimed to train personnel responsible for the O&M of HPBs.