Verifying Building Enclosure Performance from Design Through Construction

Technical Assurance was engaged by Heapy Engineering to provide building enclosure commissioning (BECx) services for Greenon Local School District’s new PK–12 school. The approximately 188,400-square-foot facility was designed to consolidate elementary, middle, and high school students into a new building serving more than 1,500 students.

Technical Assurance’s role began during design and continued through construction and performance testing, providing independent third-party verification that enclosure systems were designed and installed to meet the project’s performance requirements.

Integrating Enclosure Performance Into the Design

During the design phase, Technical Assurance reviewed and refined the Owner’s Project Requirements and developed the BECx plan. The process considered enclosure durability, performance, energy efficiency, maintenance, material and system options, occupancy, climate, acoustics, aesthetics, and security.

Independent reviews of enclosure-related drawings and specifications were performed during design development and construction documents. Technical Assurance also established performance metrics and testing standards and developed the BECx specification for incorporation into the bid and permit documents.

Verifying Installation and Performance During Construction

During construction, Technical Assurance reviewed shop drawings and technical submittals and performed mockup testing, quality observation, functional testing, and other enclosure quality assurance activities. The primary objective was to verify continuity of the building’s weather and thermal barriers and confirm that installed systems complied with the design intent.

Field activities included adhesion testing of the spray-applied weather barrier and quality observation during roof installation. Technical Assurance identified installation issues requiring correction while work was underway, allowing deficiencies to be addressed before they were concealed within completed assemblies.

Confirming Completed Enclosure Performance

Performance testing included infrared scanning of roof systems to identify potential moisture infiltration and adhesion testing to verify weather-barrier performance. The commissioning process provided Greenon Local School District with independent verification of enclosure performance from design through completed construction.