Typical Projects

Staff members at Achieve Engineering have completed numerous HVAC projects across many industries, and geographical regions. Client requirements are documented and met with the designs put forward. Designs range from highly complex for the Pharmaceutical industry, to the more "standard" designs where warranted. Systems are designed to meet the needs and expectations of the client and their requirements. Industries served by Achieve Engineering staff include:

• Pharmaceutical manufacturing to cGMP and FDA standards
• Northern climate designs, including North of the Arctic Circle
• Projects have been successfully completed for educational, commercial, industrial, recreational and institutional occupancies

Achieve Engineering has extensive experience in the design, operation and maintenance of simple and complex mechanical systems, and associated control systems across many different types of occupancies. Given this vast experience, our staff members are well equipped to take on the Forensic Engineering investigations.

Our staff have the ability to identify the root cause of the potential problem. Where possible, data is gathered and presented to substantiate the root cause identification. At this point, it becomes a partnership with our clients to identify potential liability and impact of the failure.

Typical projects have included complex primary, secondary pumping systems with redundancy and associated controls.

Achieve has extensive experience with implementing and retrofitting Variable Frequency Drives on pumping systems, to improve system control and reduce operating costs. Pumping systems have been designed for:

• Chilled water systems with up to five centrifugal chillers
• Heating systems, hot water and glycol
• Refrigeration systems
• Heat recovery systems
• High pressure liquids systems
• Hazardous chemicals unloading, transfer and storage tanks

Achieve Engineering have been involved with and designed boiler systems for many different clients. Experience has been gained with multiple fuels, redundant fuel systems, natural gas, and oil fired burners. Achieve's engineers have experience with boiler applications including:

• High-pressure and low-pressure steam systems
• Steam systems for the pharmaceutical industry
• Interfacing with multiple boilers all connected to the same heating system
• High pressure/high temperature heat transfer fluids
• Low-pressure hot water boilers using water or glycol heat transfer fluids

Achieve Engineering work with chilled water systems from a design and retrofit perspective. Achieve's experience has been with chillers of many configurations; including centrifugal, screw units, and unitary compressors. Chillers are a long life item, with potential economic impact to the organization from an operating cost and environmental compliance perspective.

Achieve Engineering consider installation costs, operating costs and potential long term risks. Of primary concern is refrigerant selection, long term availability of particular refrigerants, and refrigerant selection versus operating efficiency.

Achieve uses computer models to evaluate the alternate chiller configurations for the particular installation.

Achieve Engineering pay attention to systems "as simple as" plumbing. Our engineers realize that plumbing deficiencies, although not life threatening, are embarrassing and annoying to Owners. Plumbing systems are designed in accordance with the National Plumbing code.

Achieve's Senior Mechanical engineer has personal experience working with plumbers, installing pipe and fixtures, which includes digging trenches the "old fashioned way." This firsthand experience provides invaluable insight that gets passed on to our clients.

Achieve Engineering believes that sometimes you have to hire a specialist. Our staff members are not Fire Protection Engineers; however we have strategic partnerships with these specialists. The Achieve Engineering team can deliver design/build specifications for fire protection systems, or full designs of specialty systems depending on your requirements.

Achieve Engineering staff have worked with dust collection systems for multiple industries, and many different types of particulate. For each of the installations, consideration is given to many things including the type of collector best suited to the dust, potential hazards of the dust/fumes that are being collected, worker exposure and transport properties, intermittent operation, etc. Examples include:

• Metal working
• Pharmaceutical installations
• Grain and flour milling industry
• Mining industry
• Chemical dispensing and handling

As with any investigation, the ultimate goal is to pin-point the root cause of the problem and fixes it so that it does not return. Achieve Engineering uses many different approaches to complete these projects, from the very simple to highly technical. Using our 24 years of engineering experience, the entire installation is reviewed relative to the symptoms. Our team of experts, and specialists when required, systematically narrow the search criteria to pin-point the root cause. Data is gathered along the way to conclusively demonstrate our findings, where appropriate. Remediation procedures are implemented to suit the root cause and our client's requirements.

Engineers at Achieve have over five years direct refrigeration experience. Typical projects have included:

• Food processing plants including flash freezing applications
• Grocery stores, new and retrofits
• Ice arenas
• Restaurants

With current energy costs, heat recovery is always an option. Achieve Engineering have experience in recovering heat through air and water cooled systems, either single compressors or parallel compressor installations.

For all the systems mentioned above, consideration is always given to safety first, then the "total cost of Ownership (TCO)."

Total Cost of Ownership = Initial Capital Cost + Maintenance Costs + Operating Costs

For all designs, options are available that will impact capital costs and operating cost. One of the roles of the Mechanical Engineer is to balance the capital and operating cost to the client's needs.

With almost every mechanical system installed in a building today, there are opportunities to capture some of the waste heat prior to discharging the effluent. Sources of energy typically discharged a building include waste water, exhaust/contaminated air, process streams and other mechanical systems.

Our engineering staff have extensive experience with energy conservation and heat recovery. One recent example is where a heat reclaim system was designed to capture heat off a process waste stream and use it for building heat. The client saved over $1.2 million annually with this new system, and had much better control over the impacted systems.

Achieve defines Maintenance Engineering as "providing the service personnel the necessary tools to keep equipment operational." Where the necessary tools can include items such as:

• Specialized training or equipment
• Spare parts and parts inventory systems
• Technical support when required to minimize the impact of a failure and equipment downtime
• Standard operating procedures
• Develop preventative maintenance tasks and schedules

The President of Achieve Engineering held the position of Director of Engineering for Biovail Pharmaceuticals at its flagship manufacturing facility in Manitoba Canada for over four years. During this time, extensive experience was gained in maintenance of Manufacturing Equipment and Building Utilities. In the Pharmaceutical industry, a single equipment malfunction can cost in excess of $1 million due to possible adulterated product.

We realize that the above model is not applicable to 99.9% of our clients. Achieve can provide Maintenance Engineering services to the level suitable for the project. For each project, considerations are given to the Consequences of a failure. A good example would be a boiler failure in a Northern climate for several days, causing the building to freeze up, subsequent broken water lines and considerable water damage. Achieve believes that a pro-active approach can minimize the impact of a failure. Unfortunately, mechanical and electrical equipment can and will break down.

Our Engineers have extensive experience managing projects and schedules. Our philosophy is to spend the time up front of the project to budget, plan and define the scope to a level where a successful schedule can be prepared. Where a Successful Schedule is that we meet the deadlines given the resources and budgets limitations imposed.

Time is money, and money is time. Our clients expect that our projects and schedules are accurate to the level required. It can be just as harmful to be too far ahead of a schedule, as too far behind. It all ends up impacting from a financial perspective.

Potential difficulties and risks are identified at the onset of the project/schedule and brought to the attention of our clients. The risks are evaluated one at a time, and risk mitigation strategies are incorporated as appropriate.

With any mechanical system, you need something to tell it what to do and how to do it. This is the responsibility of the control systems. Our engineers have expertise with the design and trouble-shooting of computerized controls systems, pneumatic controls, distributed controls and mechanical controls systems.

Once the systems are installed, they must be commissioned. Commissioning is proving that the systems do what they're supposed to do when they're supposed to do it. Although this step gets lost in the majority of installations, it can be one of the most important. A commissioning procedure can save owner's considerable amounts of money over the long term, and all parties are happy because the mechanical systems perform the way they were intended to.