August is back-to-school time and while it’s always a busy point of the year, it’s particularly challenging for building engineers and complex mechanical systems. These challenges extend beyond the education industry, because for much of North America, the back-to-school period also marks the transition from warm to cooler temperatures.
If your environment is preparing for, or working through, back-to-school challenges, this is a good time to consider system upgrades or enhancements, including the use of Off-Site Construction (OSC) to speed up replacement or upgrade timelines and minimize downtime risks.
Although OSC isn’t a quick fix to urgent infrastructure repairs, many clients find that including OSC in their upgrade or retrofit plans early in the process can help streamline both planning and construction. Off-site constructed central utility systems can be rapidly installed, tested and started-up, which dramatically reduces the risks associated with upgrading systems that serve operating facilities.
Smart facilities professionals know that August is a time for changing demands and system loads. In the educational world, there will be more people in buildings, meaning dormant systems will become operational, demands on climate control systems will increase and higher capacity will be needed for virtually every mechanical system.
Ironically, once educational facilities clear the hurdle of late-summer cooling loads, they then face a rapid transition to the demand for heat. September will bring cooler temperatures and the transition from cooling demands to heating needs. Compounding that challenge, the seasonal change is rarely consistent, and buildings may require cooling one day and heating the next. All of which can strain boiler systems, air handlers, chillers and cooling towers. This is when systems and controls can experience breakdowns, or raise red flags that signal the end-of-life state is approaching.
If you encounter mechanical system challenges with the transition from summer to fall and winter, now is the time to get in touch with the experienced team at Epsilon and start the conversation about your options.
