Commercial HVAC New Construction & Design-Build
Commercial HVAC New Construction & Design-Build
Most mechanical contractors install a building and walk away. Postma designs, installs and then maintains commercial HVAC systems for new construction across Chatham-Kent, Sarnia-Lambton and Windsor-Essex — working directly with general contractors, developers and owners from budget pricing at concept through to commissioning and warranty.
We are also a commercial service contractor, which means we maintain the buildings we build. Our technicians will be back in your mechanical room for years after handover, so the system gets installed with service access, part availability and long-term operating cost in mind.
How We Engage on New Construction Projects
Design-BuildWe carry both the design and the installation on one contract. You give us the building, the occupancy type and the budget, and we take responsibility for the mechanical system that comes out the other end. Fastest route from concept to construction, and the fewest hands for a problem to fall between. |
Design-AssistThe consulting engineer stays the designer of record and we join early to price it, pressure-test constructability and flag long-lead equipment before the drawings lock. Useful when the design is complex but the schedule cannot absorb a redesign at tender. |
Plan-and-Spec TenderDrawings and specifications are already issued and we bid the mechanical package as tendered. We are prequalified for institutional and municipal tenders and can supply licensing, WSIB clearance and insurance certificates with the bid. |
What Our Mechanical Scope Covers
| Project Stage | What We Handle |
|---|---|
| Preconstruction | Budget pricing at concept, value engineering options with the cost difference attached, and early identification of long-lead equipment so it is ordered before it drives the schedule. |
| Design & submittals | Heating and cooling load calculations, equipment selection and sizing, ductwork and piping layouts, shop drawings, coordination drawings with the other trades, and submittal packages for consultant review. |
| Fabrication & installation | Sheet metal fabrication, underground and rough-in, hydronic and refrigerant piping, gas piping, equipment setting including crane and rigging, curbs and roof penetrations, and final trim. |
| Startup & commissioning | Equipment startup, air and water balancing, controls programming and point verification, combustion analysis, and coordination with third-party commissioning agents where the spec calls for one. |
| Closeout & handover | As-built drawings, O&M manuals, balancing reports, warranty registration, owner and operator training, and a maintenance proposal for the building we just finished if you want one. |
One contract across three trades. We also provide commercial plumbing and commercial electrical work in-house, so mechanical and electrical scope can sit on a single contract with one schedule, one set of coordination drawings and one point of accountability throughout the new construction project.
New-Build Decisions We Help Owners Get Right
The mechanical decisions that cost the most money are made before anything is installed. These are the ones we spend the most time on with owners.
| Decision | What Actually Drives It |
|---|---|
| Sizing the system | Oversized equipment short-cycles, dehumidifies poorly and wears out early. It is also the most common way a new building ends up with comfort complaints on day one. We size from a load calculation, not from square footage rules of thumb. |
| Equipment tier | Base-model rooftop units carry a lower capital cost and a shorter service life. We show the operating cost and expected replacement year on both options so the decision is made against a total cost, not just the tender number. |
| Controls scope | Controls are usually the first thing value-engineered out and the first thing owners wish they had kept. Scheduling and setback alone change operating cost materially on a building that is empty two-thirds of the week. We are proud to offer building automation control systems in-house and are a Reliable Controls authorized dealer, which is typically much more affordable than other BAS controls options |
| Redundancy | Different types of buildings, based on their use cases, tolerate very different amounts of downtime. Redundancy is cheap to design in and expensive to retrofit, so it belongs in the conversation early. We can provide clear guidance on redunandcy options, the added costs of adding in these back-up solutions, and let you decide the approach you’d like to take based on full information. |
| Future expansion | If there is a phase two planned as part of the project, sizing things like gas lines and the mechanical room to be compatible with an expansion costs a fraction of the cost compared to scoping a project for only phase I and having to come back later and redesign around the existing structure. We ask what the building is expected to become to ensure not only is Phase I done properly, but the owner is also set up for success should they move forward on phase II. |
Commercial New Construction FAQ
Do you work directly for general contractors?
Yes. A large share of our new construction work is mechanical scope under a general contractor on CCDC-form contracts. We also work directly for developers and owners on design-build, and we bid plan-and-spec tenders for institutional and municipal projects. We are proud to be the largest commercial HVAC new construction company within Chatham-Kent and have 35+ years of experience working to build projects that meet budget, meet timelines, and meet performance expectations.
Are you licensed and insured for commercial construction sites in Ontario?
Yes — we are a TSSA-registered contractor, ECRA/ESA licensed electrical contractor, licensed plumbing contractor, have G1/G2 gas technicians on staff, our WSIB is in good standing and we hold full liability coverage. Certificates are available on request for prequalification packages.
Do you perform the work in-house or subcontract it?
We self-perform all of of the key mechanical tasks. With 80+ licensed technicians across HVAC, plumbing and electrical, the crews on your site are our employees, which is what lets us hold a schedule when a trade partner would be juggling three other jobs. We also have strong relationships with various subcontractors to help reduce the scope of work for the owner / general contractor, where there is overlap with our services (i.e. insulation).
Can you take HVAC, plumbing and electrical scopes on the same contract?
Yes, and it is usually the reason contractors call us. One contract, one schedule, one set of coordination drawings and one point of accountability at closeout, instead of managing the interface between three separate subcontractors.
What does your closeout package include?
As-built drawings, O&M manuals, air and water balancing reports, equipment warranty registration, and owner and operator training on the installed systems. If the specification calls for third-party commissioning, we coordinate with the commissioning agent through startup and verification.
Who handles warranty service after the building is turned over?
We do. Our own commercial service department carries the warranty on what we install, so warranty calls go to the company that built the system rather than to a service contractor seeing the building for the first time. We can vouch for the installation work completed and have all information on the initial equipment to help ensure the warranty coverage remains valid with the manufacturer.
How early should we bring you in on a project?
As early as you have a building type, a rough square footage and a budget. Preconstruction pricing and long-lead equipment identification are worth the most at concept stage. By tender close, most of the decisions that affect mechanical cost are already determined, which limits our ability to help find cost-savings and performance-enhancing opportunities for the building.
Do you work on tenant fit-outs and renovations in occupied buildings?
Yes. Fit-outs, retrofits and phased work in occupied space are routine, including off-hours and weekend scheduling where the building has to stay operational through construction.
Have a project to price? Call 519-354-9491 or request a commercial assessment through email. See all commercial HVAC services, or our preventative HVAC maintenance offerings for the building once it is built and running.
Have a commercial project to price? Call 519-354-9491 or request a quote — we offer design-build, design-assist and tendered mechanical packages, with plumbing and electrical also available on the same contract.