When it comes to testing for failure scenarios, most commissioning agents and local inspection authorities only require critical systems and life safety systems to operate successfully once. But the fact that something passed one test does not mean it will pass every time. MSC’s policy is to test each failure scenario three times to ensure that systems are working properly during commissioning, retro-commissioning, and required scheduled testing.
Much preparation goes into making systems operate according to design intent. Pressure testing, voltage testing, sequence testing, and loop check are just some of the requirements of the commissioning process. We at MSC have found that many a system has passed initial testing only to fail on the second try due to anything from an unsettled alarm to low fuel, mechanical failure, parts failure, or human error. Where other commissioning contractors would only have required systems to pass testing once, MSC goes the extra mile to identify issues that are not uncovered on the first pass by running failure scenarios three times, and we recommend that these tests be run biannually or quarterly, depending on the system to prove compliance with standard operating procedures.
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