Draft Owner's Project Requirements: Ashrae Headquarters
Draft Owner's Project Requirements: Ashrae Headquarters
Draft Owner's Project Requirements: Ashrae Headquarters
ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
Atlanta, GA
1 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
Executive Summary:
The Draft Owner’s Project Requirements (OPR) is a document that establishes ASHRAE’s goals
for the New ASHRAE Headquarters ahead of the selection of the Design and Construction
Management Teams. It is a tool that will be used to help evaluate the selection of the teams to
provide these services and their ability to meet the goals defined herein. The OPR is considered
a “living” document during the design phase of the project, and as such is subject to change as
the design progresses, although every effort possible has been put into the completion of this
document in order to minimize future changes. By establishing the goals of the New ASHRAE
Headquarters in a single document, the OPR becomes a record by which ASHRAE, and other
parties involved in the project, can judge the degree of success in meeting the owner’s defined
objectives and criteria. In part, the success of the project will be tracked by the minimization of
the need to change core tenets of this document.
An existing building will be renovated into the new ASHRAE Headquarters. The facility will
have administrative offices, publication development areas, reference library and document
archive, website and IT support, computer server room, shipping and receiving, a staging area for
ASHRAE off-site activities, meeting, conference, and learning center. This document prioritizes
a list of programmatic and performance goals from concept through construction and operation.
This document represents the Headquarters Technical Advisory Subcommittee’s (HQ TASC)
understanding of the project and was approved as a draft for review and comment by the Ad Hoc
building committee and ASHRAE senior staff. The draft will be modified based on the results of
the Integrated Design Process (IDP), client engagement and programming processes. as will
form the framework for the design team to develop the Basis of Design (BOD) document
throughout the Integrated Design Process.
This document may, however, require updating and minor modification upon the completion, by
the design team, of the programming exercises with the owner.
2 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
Table of Contents
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 4
2. Key Owner’s Project Requirements........................................................................................ 4
3. General Project Description .................................................................................................... 7
4. Objectives ............................................................................................................................... 8
5. Functional Uses ..................................................................................................................... 13
6. Occupancy Requirements ..................................................................................................... 15
7. Budget Considerations and Limitations ................................................................................ 16
8. Performance Criteria ............................................................................................................. 17
9. Commissioning ..................................................................................................................... 30
3 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
1. Introduction
This Owner’s Project Requirements (OPR) document has been developed to provide direction to
the Design and Construction teams, through the IDP, from project programming through
construction and final occupancy and even through the post occupancy warranty period.
The ultimately selected design and construction teams shall use this OPR as requirements as the
BOD is developed and finalized for review by the owner and commissioning authority.
4 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
5 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
6 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
7 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
4. Objectives
ASHRAE desires to make a statement with this renovation by exceeding the provisions of the
Society‘s energy and indoor air quality standards. ASHRAE wants a building that will be
restorative, livable, and resilient.
Features like water efficient plumbing and landscape, energy efficient HVAC and lighting
systems, as well as the ability to harness on site energy production and be a “net zero building”
are defined herein as project requirements.
ASHRAE’s objective is to develop a high-quality headquarters building by applying sustainable
development principles in a practical, well planned and cost-effective manner that will meet:
● The occupant’s needs to fulfill their daily mission.
● Operation and maintenance needs, featuring an easily maintainable and secure facility
that has low operations and maintenance costs.
● Excellent indoor environmental quality requirements that facilitate occupants’
productivity by providing a comfortable environment, good HVAC system performance,
good space utilization, good acoustical qualities, unified interior style and high durability
of finishes. Design team should examine these areas with respect to possible
inadequacies of the current space related to these items.
● A building which creates a work environment that enhances the general health, fitness,
and wellbeing of the workforce. Some of its requirements are addressed in the building
design, most are achieved in the policy and programs offered to the staff. It is recognized
that there are health and wellness certification programs that may be used to substantiate
this criteria.
● A building that is both resistant to disruptions from weather, utility outages and other
causes as well as a building that can “bounce” back and be resilient. The level of service
during extreme events should be defined ranging from no disruption of operations to the
ability for the organization to function at some level during longer interruptions. These
features will be integrated into the building envelope, HVAC systems, and through
storage and renewable systems. While a generator may be used for life-safety, it is not
considered part of the resistance and resilience.
● ASHRAE’s desire to be sustainable. This may be substantiated through available
certification programs such as LEED, Green Globes, Fitwell or WELL Building or
Living Building Challenge.
The Objectives for the project are provided in two categories; mission critical and highly
desirable. All mission critical goals are required for the project to be successful and are not
listed in the order of priority. The highly desirable goals are listed in order of their priority with
the direction that the design and construction teams utilize their collective ingenuity through the
IDP process to meet as many of the highly desirable requirements as are feasible within the
limits of the budget.
8 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
9 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
10 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
● Building occupancy schedule for HVAC systems will be easily modified by zone.
● The building will be functioning as a “Living Lab” to be used for educational
purpose. In addition to requirements above, HVAC systems will also be designed
with the following intentions:
○ Provide energy, demand, and environmental data from the HQ building through
web interface accessible to ASHRAE members.
○ Where appropriate, consider making mechanical and electrical systems and
components visible within the space as an educational feature.
○ Consider providing additional sensors and monitoring capability in several spaces
(e.g. conference rooms) in the building so that they could support experimental
work for ASHRAE Research, if it is determined that this feature can be achieved
within the confines of the available project budget.
4.3. Energy efficiency and Sustainability goals
The building shall have a Building EQ score of 100 or zero energy as defined by the DOE
Common Definition for Zero Energy Buildings.
The maximum demand side site EUI for the building shall be 21.4 kBtu/SF/yr consistent with the
energy targets in in the Advanced Energy Design Guide for Zero Energy Office Buildings. A
secondary (or stretch) goal for the project shall achieve an EUI of less than 15.0 kBtu/SF/yr, not
including site PV. Once the primary goal is met, this stretch goal shall be considered and
included in the energy model for verification of its achievability.
The design team shall investigate opportunities for electrical utility partnering to improve
operation of renewable energy systems to be more integrated with the utility daily and annual
carbon emissions profile
4.4. Water and waste efficiency goals
Water efficiency goals should be enough to achieve 11 of 11 LEED Water Efficiency points
The site has existing landscaping and irrigation. While much of the landscaping is not in the
scope of the project, a plan should be developed such that any landscaping changes shall not use
any irrigation water after initial establishment. The Owner intends to shift the site landscaping to
indigenous and adapted plant species in the future to minimize watering, fertilization, and pest
management requirements.
Plumbing fixtures shall be selected for Best Available water efficiency. The Design team shall
investigate opportunities for recovering water effluent from building systems for potential re-use
for building non-potable end-uses. Effluent assets to be investigated, include HVAC condensate,
stormwater run-off from the roof and wash-water. Non-potable end uses include cooling tower
make-up, if applicable, toilet flushing and irrigation.
4.5. Resiliency and expansion
A resilient building is one that is both resistant to disruptions from weather, utility outages and
other causes as well as having the ability to recover quickly and return to full operation after
such disruptions. The Design Team shall facilitate a resiliency workshop with the client to
establish goals for the resiliency of the building and its operations. The level of service during
extreme events should be defined ranging from no disruption of operations to the ability for the
organization to function at some level during longer interruptions. These features will be
11 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
evaluated for integration into the building envelope, HVAC systems, and through storage and
renewable systems. While a generator may be used for life-safety, it is not considered part of the
resistance and resilience.
Building Resiliency Design Objectives to be examined for feasibility shall include the following:
● Design team shall research and determine the effects of severe storms, potential flooding,
wildfires and other impacts resulting from a warming climate. If impacts are significant, the
building design shall include building elements to address these issues.
● Critical building systems shall be located to withstand flooding and extreme weather events.
● Climatic design conditions shall be based on future conditions (20 years) rather than utilizing past
climatic design data.
● Building shall be capable of sustaining occupiable conditions in the event of an extended loss of
power. (Acceptable low and high drift temperatures 45 - 90 ˚F (7 - 32 ˚C) Define number of hours
and/or number of days
● Utilize durable building materials, windows capable of withstanding storm event winds predicted
based on future conditions (20 years) and interior finish materials that can dry out in the event
they become wet.
● Optimize use of on-site renewable energy systems.
● Recover and reuse water to the extent possible. Rainwater harvesting and condensate collection
systems shall be considered. (Gravity fed if feasible. Optimize use of existing stormwater pond.
Consider lake on generator powered pump.)
● Consider redundant water supplies or on-site water storage for use during emergencies. (Potable
water: 3 liters per person per day, Non-potable water: 20 liters per person per day.)
● Reuse existing building materials to the extent possible.
● Utilize locally available building materials.
● Utilize building products and materials that do not off-gas or leach hazardous substances in the
event of flooding or fire damage.
● Consider redundant electrical service.
● Utilize existing 350 kW emergency generator. (Is it sufficient to power entire facility? If not what
systems should be on emergency power service?)
● Building design should include a storage room sufficiently sized for non-perishable food storage
and water that could sustain occupants for 1 week. Design should provide for 3 liters of potable
water per day and 20 liters of non-potable water per day.
● Incorporate a safe room in the building design.
The Design and Construction team shall study and advise ASHRAE throughout the Design
Process on the best possible benchmarking of the design against available popular resiliency
certification programs and provide recommendations on the program(s) recommended for
implementation, including impact on professional fees, project and construction cost, schedule
and value.
12 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
5. Functional Uses
5.1. Occupancy requirements and schedules
Mechanical systems shall function seamlessly to deliver the performance levels needed to
maintain space comfort in excess of the requirements set forth in ASHRAE Standard 55-2017. A
goal is to have the HVAC system deliver Outside Air at a value of at least 1.3 times the
requirements of Std. 62.1 OA to regularly occupied areas and use Demand Controlled
Ventilation (DCV) for high occupancy spaces, such as conference and meeting rooms and
training center, set at carbon dioxide limit of 400 ppm over ambient, providing a reduction in
outside air delivery to these spaces during low or non-occupancy periods. Humidity levels in the
space must always be maintained less than 60% relative humidity during occupied hours and
should never be allowed to reach a level over 65% RH or at a level that would allow condensate
to form on HVAC equipment or other building elements.
Lighting controls shall be simple and intuitive. All areas should use vacancy sensors which
require staff to engage with the lighting system to turn-on lights. Staff can also turn off lights or
lights will turn off automatically when spaces are not occupied. HVAC occupancy can be
triggered by occupancy or “time-of-day” controls with temporary user overrides. Occupants
should be able to adjust temperatures within the comfort range.
The building security system shall be seamless with occupants requiring only a single access
card to enter all gates and doors through which they have permission to travel. The use of
BACnet native BAS system shall provide a turnkey solution to machine-to-machine
communications and shall be capable of remote access/alarm notification.
13 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
walls, desks, etc.) without adding or tearing down existing systems to accommodate the
occupant’s needs.
The design of the electrical system for the building shall divide into separate panels lighting,
plug, HVAC, and process and provide sub-metering of utilities serving mechanical equipment,
plug loads and the lighting system by functional area and floor. Monitoring shall also be
compatible with the building automation system (BAS) to allow remote monitoring and data
storage. This integration shall allow use of a web monitoring service to monitor key building
systems, energy usage, preventative maintenance, schedule, and distribute necessary aspects of
this information to staff, outside service providers, and (technical committee) TC members.
Metering shall be provided as follows at a minimum of a 15-minute interval:
Mandatory
a. HVAC energy
b. Lighting energy
c. Plug Loads energy
d. Whole Building energy
e. Photovoltaics energy
f. Domestic Hot Water energy
Desirable
g. Domestic Water usage
h. Cooling Tower water usage
i. Irrigation Water usage
j. Domestic Hot Water usage
Note: If an integrated space heating and domestic hot water system is used, these loads do not
need to be disaggregated into separate heating and DHW end use categories.
14 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
6. Occupancy Requirements
6.1. Occupancy requirements and schedules
The facility is normally occupied from 7:30 am to 5:30 pm Monday-Friday. Intermittent
occupancy of the building by volunteers working on weekends usually averages one weekend
per month for two days (16 hours). Design of HVAC systems and controls will allow for manual
override for periodic late-night occupancy.
The HVAC system will bring the occupied space to within occupied set point temperature range
from 7:30 am to 5:30 pm Monday-Friday during non-holiday periods. The meeting spaces are
intermittently occupied approximately one weekend a month. Occupancy of the building
includes 124 employees assigned to functional areas divided into five departments and one
executive branch. Requirements for each department and executive branch can be found in the
owner’s directives section of this OPR.
6.2. Indoor environment requirements
Creation of good indoor environmental quality requires the coordination of many design
parameters and construction activities, including acoustical quality, ventilation rates, materials
used to construct the facility, installation sequence, location of makeup air intakes, external and
internal pollutant generation, humidity, temperature, and other parameters that may affect
occupant comfort.
The following are the known activities that generate pollutants in or near the facility that impact
the health, hygiene, and indoor environment of occupants:
Specifically:
15 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
● Outside Air Intakes shall be located at a minimum as defined in ASHRAE Std. 62.1
and with sufficient separation so that recirculation of pollutants emitted from toilet
exhausts, kitchen hoods, flue gas, and any other harmful or noxious emission are not
mixed with outside air entering the HVAC system.
16 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
8. Performance Criteria
8.1. General
8.1.1. Quality requirements for materials and construction
In order to achieve the objectives for low maintenance and operating costs, ASHRAE has
determined that the building exterior should minimize and resist long term degradation from
nature. Construction materials selected for the project should be based on long term
serviceability, environmental and sustainability goals
8.1.2. System integration requirements, especially across disciplines
The design and construction teams are encouraged to function through the Integrated Design
Process. The outcome can be increased in value through optimization, something the traditional
project delivery approach cannot provide. Integrative design is distinguished from conventional
design by establishing a highly collaborative multidisciplinary team at the project’s inception and
empowering this team to understand and develop all aspects of the building towards
accomplishing the common project goals
8.1.3.Acoustical requirements
Soundproofing and acoustical treatment should be implemented in the design and construction of
all private offices to prevent sound transmission to adjacent corridors, offices, and other space.
Spaces shall be planned, configured and designed for compliance with the requirements of GSA-
P100, as detailed in the document GSA Sound Matters (Dec. 2011).
8.1.4. Vibration requirements
Prevent occupants adjacent to HVAC equipment and corridors from sensing vibrations from
structural deflection as a result of occupant traffic, and equipment operation. Vibration isolation
for all rotating equipment shall be selected for 95% vibration elimination.
8.1.5. Seismic requirements
Comply with local code requirements.
8.1.6. Accessibility requirements
The building shall be evaluated as to the implications of meeting all Federal, State and Local
ADA requirements. An ADA Assessment Report by Nova, Dated October 31, 2018 on the
existing building is available for information. The design team shall review the report and
provides recommendations on items to be upgraded as appropriate to the budget and needs of the
client.
Systems requiring routine maintenance, such as HVAC, shall be designed to provide adequate
access and clearance for all maintenance tasks (i.e.: AHU filter access, sufficient space to pull
coils, light bulbs, etc.)
8.1.7. Security requirements
Security system shall be capable of being tailored to allow individual users unique access
profiles. Security and surveillance provisions at all building entrances and exits will allow
approved visitors and employees access to building 24/7. CCTV monitoring system will be
provided at the main entrance into the main lobby, at the east entrance to the training center and
17 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
around the building’s exterior. The security system shall keep an access log which records
profiles of people entering the building, the time of entrance and exit.
8.1.8. Aesthetics requirements
Private and open offices shall maintain the same interior design attributes as the rest of the
building. A goal has been established of maintaining a uniform look throughout the interior of
the building. Façade lighting shall follow How-To tips contained in Sections EL-18 to EL-24 in
the Energy Advanced Energy Design Guide for Zero Energy Offices.
8.1.9. Constructability requirements
The Construction Manager shall conduct a constructability review of the design at the
completion of Design Development and 90% completion point of the Construction Documents to
assure the design can be constructed for the owner’s budget and within the required timeframe.
Participants at these reviews should include the design team and project manager.
8.1.10. Communication requirements
The building shall be served by a modern phone system and computer network, which could be
VOIP. This system is part of the plug loads of the building and must be accounted for in the
energy model. All offices, workstations, and conference rooms shall have the capability for a
least two (2) telecommunications ports (network and telephone). Conference rooms, corridors,
and public spaces shall be configured to accommodate the installation of wireless access points
to support both staff and volunteers access to the network and the Internet.
Access to a wireless network shall be possible within all spaces in the building excluding areas
known to be problematic to RF communications. Wireless networks shall be maintained to
allow secure network access separate from public internet access. The Learning Center
occupants shall have wireless network access separate from the network used by ASHRAE staff.
Additional information is required from ASHRAE and will be added upon receipt of input.
The building shall be equipped with a public address (PA) system.
The use of BACnet native BAS system shall provide a turnkey solution to machine-to- machine
communications and shall be capable of remote access/alarm notification.
Note that all these items should be configured to have low-power modes or off modes when the
building is not occupied.
8.2. Economic
8.2.1. Benchmarking goals
The Design and Construction team shall study and advise ASHRAE throughout the Design
Process on the best possible benchmarking of the design against available popular certification
programs and provide recommendations on the program(s) recommended for implementation,
including impact on professional fees, project and construction cost, schedule and value.
8.2.2. Energy efficiency goals
The facility will be designed to comply with the energy efficiency requirements prescribed in
section 4, paragraph 4.3 Energy Efficiency and Sustainability Goals.
18 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
19 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
20 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
21 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
22 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
23 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
24 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
25 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
walk through the key steps to troubleshoot a problem and resolve it.
Training will be witnessed and documented by the commissioning
authority; the contractors will develop and execute the training program.
All persons performing tasks related to building operations and
maintenance shall receive at least 24 hours of training related to building
systems. Staff training shall be videotaped and electronic files provided
to ASHRAE for future use in staff training.
8.5. Operations
8.5.1. Training requirements for Owner’s personnel
Provide to Owner after all equipment is in operation and at an agreeable
time, instructions for the purpose of training Owner's personnel in all phases
of operation and maintenance of equipment and systems.
Training sessions when given to the owner’s personnel shall be videotaped
for future owner reference. Turn one copy over to the owner upon
completion.
8.5.2. Warranty requirements
General equipment and assembly warranty periods provided by
manufacturers for building materials and systems are for a period of one
year after substantial completion. However, some specific systems have
longer warranty periods. Substantial completion is defined according to
Section 9.8 of AIA document A201-1997. A representative list of assembly
and equipment typically featuring a longer than one-year manufacturer’s
warranty is listed below:
● Roofing: 20 years for Leakage and Weather
● Windows: 10 years for trim and glass
● Sealants: 2 years
● HVAC Compressors: 5 years parts and labor
● Water Heaters: 5 years
● Elevator: 5 years
8.5.3. Operations and Maintenance requirements will be established by the
current ASHRAE Headquarters staff that will monitor the building systems
and determine what corrective action is required. ASHRAE Technical
Committee 7.3 will be encouraged to participate in establishing operation
and maintenance guidelines that will form the requirements and provide
best management practices for establishing preventative maintenance
strategies. The current staff will monitor the preventative maintenance and
repairs will be performed by outside contractors.
● To ensure that maintenance can be easily performed, and the facility’s
business will not be compromised because of deconstruction due to
maintenance, the maintenance criteria shall be adhered as follows:
26 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
27 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
28 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
29 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
9. Commissioning
Commissioning shall be performed and completed in accordance with ASHRAE
Guideline 0 - 2013 The Commissioning Process and Guideline 1.1-2007 HVAC & R
Technical Requirements for the Commissioning Process by an Independent
Commissioning Authority hired on behalf of ASHRAE directly by the PM.
The Commissioning Authority (CxA) will assist ASHRAE with fine tuning the Owner’s
Project Requirements by helping clarify ASHRAE’s objectives and criteria including:
goals and functional requirements, expectations of how the building will be used and
operated, sustainability/LEED goals, measurable performance criteria, budgets,
schedules, success criteria, and supporting information. The Owner’s Project
Requirements (OPR) forms the basis from which all design, construction, acceptance, and
operational performance evaluations are made.
9.1. Design Phase
Design phase commissioning will review the mechanical and electrical system designs
for compliance with the OPR. The commissioning authority will provide:
● Design phase commissioning report
● Commissioning plan
● Commissioning specifications to the designers incorporating commissioning and
operator training requirements into the project
● Specific design and construction checklists to be used by the design and
construction team during the delivery of the project
● Specific functional testing procedures for testing commissioned systems to verify
system performance and functionality in accordance with contract documents.
9.2. General
Review of the drawings and specifications will concentrate on verifying that the
designers have met the owner’s project requirements as defined in this document.
9.3. Mechanical Design Phase Commissioning
The review of the mechanical drawings and specifications will concentrate on design,
efficiency, humidity and odor control, safety, and the ability to provide occupant comfort.
The commissioning team will assess the ability of the HVAC system to control airflow
(and thus pollutants) throughout the building. Evaluations shall be made on equipment
sizing and selection, placement of fresh air inlets, filtration, adequacy of the make-up air
system to pressurize the building envelopes and their interstitial spaces, balance between
make-up air and building exhaust—both internally and externally, environmental and
energy management controls, equipment layout, and start-up procedures.
30 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
31 of 32
Owner’s Project Requirements—ASHRAE HEADQUARTERS
---END of OPR---
32 of 32