Shift Left | Data Center Journal

SHIFT LEFT IN MISSION CRITICAL CONSTRUCTION B Y M IK E F E R N H O L Z Compressed schedules. Less room for error. Tight budgets. Construction challenges may sound familiar, but innovations implemented at the beginning of projects are helping teams overcome them—so why should commissioning be any different?

In today’s quest for even faster deployment of mission critical facilities, it is imperative to find opportunities to not only shorten schedules, but also to reduce the risk for delays. One way to do that is to shift commissioning activities left, creating fully functional systems off site earlier in the process to head off potential misalignments and project delays.

Because it is an unconventional change in the schedule—and mindset—it is vital that all parties buy in from the beginning. The method is a shift in the approach to commissioning, not only in the timing but also to the process, so expectations must be set in the beginning to ensure all partners find the greatest success.

Once green lighted, the first step is to find a testing integrator and an associated warehouse to use as a staging area. The closer to the jobsite, the better, as this reduces shipping costs and allows more flexibility in the schedule by eliminating transit time. Shorter delivery distances also reduce the risk of damage in transit. When evaluating potential integrators, it is critical that the space is both climatecontrolled to meet the manufacturer’s storage requirements and large enough to hold and hook up all required testing equipment. It must have access to temporary power sources, access to false loads

for testing (i.e. load banks – water or air-cooled), as well as meet security requirements. Lastly, it is extremely important to analyze the risk strategy to determine if the warehouse needs to be bonded.

To see the most success, it’s crucial to include the electrical testing agency, Cx agent, vendor support, and the power monitoring system (PMS) integrator for electrical equipment. This is where the magic really happens. Though it may seem similar to factory witness testing (FWT), it’s important to note the differences—differences that make shaving time off the schedule possible. The left shift approach expands the FWT to include all physical and electrical testing of bussing, breakers and components, and fully integrated sequence testing, so you know what you get before it shows up. It doesn’t just simulate compatibility between control devices, monitoring devices, and hardware; it incorporates fully all the smarts and parts associated with an integrated group of equipment. This enhanced level of testing involves a lot of coordination with multiple vendors, not just the single vendor for one piece of equipment. This coordination may be challenging up front, but the reward of reduced system modifications thanks to fully testing the equipment up front will pay off substantially in the long run.

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A good example of this method in action is a switchboard with gen controls. A standard FWT of a switchboard or generator will showcase a stand-alone test that will provide some benefit. However, if you take the generator controller to the switchboard factory and simulate the generator (or better yet get a complete generator to the switchboard factory) you can simulate real-life sequences with load to determine start time, transfer time, failure scenarios, etc. Getting this done in the factory before the building is ready removes potential troubleshooting during equipment startup. Additional coordination that must be considered for this effort includes NETA testing of the equipment. This requires the coordination study to be completed early as well. And lastly, the PMS can be fully set up and tested with the 4 //

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appropriate technical experts available. This eliminates the confusion that PMS integrators face when trying to set up these systems onsite.

Configuring mechanical equipment off site well ahead of typical commissioning activities affords opportunities that are not available using traditional FWT. These are highlighted using the example of a BMS system in a chiller plant. Like the electrical component, this process also requires a lot of coordination with many partners. The requirements for this test would include the TAB contractor, the Cx Agent, the Vendor startup technicians, and the BMS integrator. The test would also require equipment controllers from all vendors to be at the test location for complete integration off site (i.e. the chiller

controller or a VFD). The BMS network and hardware must be fully developed and programmed with graphics screens live for the test.

This is inherently different from how the BMS integrator typically deploys the scope, so you must make this effort clear. However, this is where you can save time on the back end—by coordinating all points and ensuring a complete product before you deploy the system in the field.

Sometimes there will be instances where it would be impractical to bring the device to the site. I would make this a limited exception, but, to supplement these devices, a graphics board with lights and switches could be used to manual simulate these machines. This can

only be used for hard wire signals, not BACNet or other networked devices.

It is important to include the TAB technician during this test setup, so they will be able to better understand what and how they will be testing the system. Make sure the TAB technician provides a written notation from the test.

Once the complete setup is finalized, the test can commence by running through all the sequences of operation (SOO) and making sure the points are mapped back to the controller. One of the most common issues you will find in this process is a deviation from the points list provided with the project specifications. Make sure you AS SEEN IN : DATA CENTER JOURNAL | OCTOBER 2018 | DATACENTERJOURNAL.COM

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“ The standard

trial-and-error method is no longer viable, and the reliability of systems working the first time in becoming invaluable. ”

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work with the Owner and document the changes accordingly.

Seeing the benefits of these examples, it’s safe to say most recognize the advantage of the left shift concept. So, why isn’t everyone just implementing this strategy? Why isn’t it already the norm? The obvious answer to this question is cost. While the advantages are clear, there is also a distinct cost component that can be easily determined. Owners have a difficult time justifying the costs without the ability to substantiate an offset savings. This is de ja vu.

centers to protect our data, and we needed uptime. We needed quality. Schedule was a secondary item. Then, the colocation market challenged industry with the costs. Their purpose was to get costs down, to lower redundancy because they saw it as waste—and get it done fast. Schedule and costs seemed to fight for priority depending on circumstance, but the pendulum has begun to swing the other direction. Schedule is the driver, and people are fighting to eliminate more time.

The construction industry saw the same issue when computerized 3-D modeling and coordination effort (VDC and/or BIM) was introduced.

Why should owners pay more to offset an unknown/unquantifiable future risk? What’s the ultimate payoff? For 3-D modeling, the risk has proven worth the reward, and BIM has prevailed. The industry has seen the benefits, and BIM has now become the standard procurement method for data center projects.

With that fight becoming more prevalent, the industry is taxed at the end of the projects and are requiring quicker startup efforts to bring the building online. The standard trial-and-error method is no longer viable, and the reliability of systems working the first time in becoming invaluable. Testing these systems before the building is complete gives trade partners a chance to work out all the bugs and allows the Owner/Engineer to agree to the final product in an environment that is favorable for calmer heads and good decisionmaking. We have an obligation to our clients to develop new ways of shrinking the schedule and shifting Cx activities left has proven an innovative way to do that.

Understandably, BIM or otherwise, the mission critical industry has had a couple of pendulum swings when costs were involved. For early data centers, costs were no object. We were building data

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