The ideal Commissioning (Cx) Agent is an individual with great people skills, great technical skills, and independence from the Architects, Engineers, and Contractors that are putting together a very complex set of systems that make up a modern day building.

Great People Skills
If buildings were designed and constructed by robots, this would not be a necessary attribute for a Cx Agent. Many people with diverse backgrounds, personalities, personal interests and motivations are involved in a building project. A Cx Agent must play the role of quality control coordinator and try to mesh the skills of all of these people into a successful final product. This requires diplomacy and tact to avoid affronts to the egos and professionalism of the many players, while still accomplishing the most important goal of the project, giving the Owner the building that meets all of his needs.

Great Technical Skills
There is no substitute for experience. A good Cx agent must be an accomplished system designer with exposure to many types of HVAC systems and building types. As the owner’s advocate, he needs to be able to supplement the Engineer’s design recommendations with examples and experiences about system choices that will work best for the owner’s particular needs. When the systems are started up, he must demonstrate excellent systems knowledge and troubleshooting ability to help the contractor quickly get the systems operating according to the Engineer’s design specifications.

Independence
As the overall quality control coordinator, the Cx Agent can only be effective as an Owner’s advocate if he has no vested interest in any of the three main service providers, Architect, Engineer, or Contractor. While all these players are striving for the best possible project for the Owner, none is perfect. When problems arise, and they usually do, the Owner needs someone to provide an objective opinion and suggest the best solution, untainted by any possible conflict of interest.