Division of Fisheries and Wildlife Headquarters

Building Enclosure Commissioning
Westborough, MA

The Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM) engaged Gale as the building enclosure commissioning agent for the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife Headquarters Project. The project was selected by the Commonwealth to be a demonstration on achieving zero net energy in a public building project. The building will produce all of its annual energy needs through a 294 kilowatt rooftop solar panel array. Energy needs have been reduced to approximately 60% below what typical buildings of this type require through the design of a high-performance exterior building enclosure and the use of energy efficient heating and cooling systems, including a closed-loop geothermal well system, radiant ceilings, and outside-air ventilation with heat recovery.

In order to assist DCAMM reach the project goals, Gale performed two peer reviews of the exterior building enclosure and met with DCAMM and the project architect to review details and specifications. Gale lead the commissioning process through construction where services included submittal peer review, construction coordination meetings, mock-up reviews, mock-up testing, periodic construction monitoring, and enclosure testing. Enclosure testing included air and water infiltration testing of the fenestration, air testing of the air barrier system, infra-red scanning of the exterior enclosure, and a whole building air test. Based on the final whole building air test, the building enclosure commissioning process was able to assist DCAMM exceed the Army Corps of Engineers standard of 0.25 cfm of air leakage when tested at a pressured differential of 75 pascals, by testing to 0.07 cfm air leakage rate.