About this course

This course was originally presented at BuildingEnergy Boston 2020, a conference presented by the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA)

Central ventilation systems in multifamily buildings are a vital building system with significant implications for energy, sustainability and occupant health and safety. In this session, we compare and contrast the building stock in Boston and NYC and explore a variety of techniques for restoring and improving these systems. We consider how to evaluate candidates and how to structure the project from commissioning back through design to achieve results based on optimizing energy savings, complying with finance-related and building owner requirements, and how to get these things to just plain work. We build on lessons learned from 10 years’ experience and offer practical recommendations for designing and constructing both new and retrofit systems.

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Learning Objectives

  • Describe system design considerations, equipment tolerances and field conditions that impact how central ventilation systems actually work
  • Identify good candidates for this work and understand how to balance performance, energy savings and project costs
  • Specify and set performance objectives during the design phase that will reliably and cost-effectively be achievable
  • Understand techniques that can be used to inspect, evaluate, commission and recommission projects such that building performance objectives are achieved and sustained

Course outline

1 module • 5 assignments • 1:24 hours of video lectures

Module 1 • 3 assignments
Multifamily Central Ventilation: A Tale of Two Cities

  • Multifamily Central Ventilation: A Tale of Two Cities (01:24:42 hours)
  • Presentation Materials (.pdf)
  • OPTIONAL: Subscribe to NESEA Communications

Authors

  • Thomas Holmes

    Senior Project Manager, Aspen Environmental Services, LLC
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    Tom is Senior Project Manager with Aspen Environmental Services in Methuen, MA. He specializes in ventilation related building performance work, including turnkey retrofits of multifamily central ventilation systems. Before coming to the Greater Boston area in 2015, Tom worked extensively in the NYC market implementing ventilation retrofits and as a Senior Energy... Learn more

  • Doug Kumph

    Senior Manager, Operations, Petersen Engineering
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    Doug Kumph is a senior manager at Petersen Engineering, Inc. Doug worked as an industrial hygienist and chemical engineer before starting his career in the MEP/FP industry at Petersen Engineering from 1999-2006. Prior to rejoining Petersen Engineering (2018), he was the Director of Operations for Cornerstone Commissioning, Director of Operations for Air Solutions and... Learn more

  • John Twomey

    CEO/Co-Founder, IAQ Champs
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    John is the Founder & CEO of Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Champs. Serving NYC’s mid to high-rise multi-family building stock with holistic performance-based ventilation retrofits, IAQ Champs continues to implement new technology and methods to restore exhaust/supply shafts. We love any and all ventilation problems and have made it our mission to provide healthy IAQ for as... Learn more

Frequently asked questions

How does this course work?
This is a free course. Enroll today and get access to all of the materials instantly. The lecture video and other materials are available any time.
How long do I have access to the materials?
For free courses there is no guarantee for how long the course materials will be available.
Is there a certificate of completion?
Certificates of completion are only provided to HeatSpring Membership subscribers. This course has not been approved by any credentialing organizations (NABCEP, AIA, USGBC etc) for Continuing Education Credits (CEUs). This course is for self education purposes only and completion does not indicate a level of professional expertise or credential.
Can I register multiple people?
Yes, this is a free course so you can share this page with other people from your team.

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