MADISON, Wis.—Commissioning training can provide technical professionals with the skills and credentials they need for increased job opportunities and recognition in the industry. UW-Madison recently interviewed students who completed commissioning courses, receiving the QxCP designation. To see how this designation has helped their careers, read below.
To receive the Qualified Commissioning Process Provider Certificate (QCxP), students must complete training, pass an exam, and provide proof of professional experience. For more information about the certificate, click here.
Richard Davis, US Army Corp of Engineers (Japan)
EPD: How has the QCxP helped you in your daily work?
RD: The QCxP has helped me in my daily work in many ways…in Japan, building commissioning is still a new concept. I am now better able to explain the building commissioning process to customers, Japanese contractors, and even our own workforce so they have a better understanding of the process and the intent behind building commissioning. The course provided me with excellent examples of pre-functional checklists and function performance tests that I have used to review and comment on commissioning plans submitted by commissioning authorities. The course also enabled me to better define the scope of work for commissioning authorities that we solicit for our projects. Finally, I have been in contact with several Japanese agencies that express an interest in better understanding building commissioning. The QCxP gives me the credibility and knowledge required to provide these agencies with the best practices and processes for building commissioning.
EPD: Is there anything specific you learned that has made a big difference in how you do your job?
RD: The main point I learned in the course was the emphasis on Owner’s Project Requirements (OPR). This sets up the foundation of building commissioning, so getting the OPR correct as early as possible is the key to successful building commissioning. I have been able to use this knowledge to focus on clearly defining the OPR for projects by the parametric design stage. This enables us to focus better on which systems the project owner feels are important and to integrate the commissioning authority into the project earlier and easier.
EPD: Would you recommend this course to others? If so, why?
RD: Yes, I definitely recommend this course to others. The course is very well organized with excellent instructors that have a great deal of practical building commissioning experience. The instructors demonstrated practical application of the priniciples and practices of proper building commissioning. Equally beneficial was interaction with other students, some of whom also had a great deal of practical experience with building commissioning both within the United States and in other countries (Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, South Africa). Discussing the issues and solutions other students used in a variety of projects (academic, data servers, housing, retail, administrative) provided a wealth of knowledge I have been able to use in my own work. Several of us routinely continue to correspond to share information, best practices, and lessons learned.
Paul Carew, PJCarew Consulting (South Africa)
EPD: How has the QCxP helped you in your daily work?
PC: We already have someone that attended the course, who has been heading up the start of our commissioning services – as the owner and head engineer of my company this has helped me better understand what he’s doing and support him both strategically and as a resource.
EPD: Is there anything specific you learned that has made a big difference in how you do your job?
PC: Even though I had made myself familiar with the ASHRAE CxA documents, the experienced lecturers and the knowledge of the diverse students assisted significantly in providing context and content. This really helped me in prioritizing aspects in the development of our services. In addition it provides significant credence in our country where there are very limited CxA service providers.
EPD: Would you recommend this course to others? If so, why?
PC: Definitely – it accelerates understanding significantly, the presenters are excellent in both communication skills as well as depth of experience. It is very well organized and the effort and updating of the material is clearly evident through the quality of the learning experience.
Adam Sanders, Elara Engineering (Illinois)
EPD: How has the QCxP helped you in your daily work?
AS: Provided us with a grounded and knowledgeable background which allowed us to confidently lead meetings with other professionals.
EPD: Is there anything specific you learned that has made a big difference in how you do your job?
AS: We were able to directly utilize many items from the course into our current projects. In particular, what to say and not to say in proposals/interviews was extremely useful in providing better opportunities for our company.
EPD: Would you recommend this course to others? If so, why?
AS: Yes, we would recommend this course to others and have already made recommendations to other professionals. The course provided clear guidance for the entire commissioning process and the tools with which to help secure future business.