The data center is an indispensable component of the client’s national business operations, handling all facets of U.S. retail pharmacy store business including point of sale, inventory management, and critical patient prescription records. The project involved replacement of major electrical and mechanical equipment in an active data center, which had to remain operational throughout construction and testing. GBA oversaw the installation and the functional testing of all new mechanical and electrical equipment.
- The firm’s engineers attended weekly construction meetings to coordinate work with representatives of the owner, general contractor, and electrical contractor. Because of the facility’s critical role in the client’s national operations, shutdowns and crossovers involved in replacing the equipment had to be carefully coordinated to avoid disruptions. GBA also worked with the manufacturer’s representatives to collect information about the equipment before to installation and testing.
- Commissioned equipment included generators, switchboards, transfer switches, uninterruptible power supply (UPS), UPS distribution systems, emergency power off (EPO) system, rooftop units, air-handling units, a computer room air handler (CRAH), and exhaust fans.
- GBA created the MOPs (Methods of Procedure), which provided direction for the installation and electrical connections of most equipment. MOPs and functional testing documents were created to provide step-by-step instructions for testing the new equipment.
- Each of the MOPs was reviewed and approved by the owner’s project manager.
- GBA’s electrical engineer was present during all equipment crossovers, and advised contractors as to the correct implementation of the MOPs at each step of the process.
- The MOPs written by GBA also included instructions for future maintenance of the equipment.
- GBA functionally tested each piece of mechanical equipment based on the functional performance test procedures. The interface with the existing building automation system was also verified.
