Attachment 10 Project 1 Design Narrative_For_Reference.pdf

Design Narrative Project I: Replacement of Outdoor Panel and Building Feeders (100% Design)

Project: USDA-ARS Kimberly, ID Electrical Upgrades Project Date: Nov 17, 2023

121555.00 – Merrick & Company 1 Project I (100% Design)

USDA-ARS NORTHWEST IRRIGATION &

SOILS RESEARCH LAB

3793 NORTH 3600 EAST

KIMBERLY, ID 83341-5076

(100% Design) PROJECT I: Replacement of Outdoor Panel and Building Feeders

121555.00

Submitted to:

USDA ARS

Submitted by:

Merrick & Company

5970 Greenwood Plaza Blvd.

Greenwood Village, CO 80111 www.merrick.com

MERRICK & COMPANY

http://www.merrick.com/

(100% Design)

Project: USDA-ARS Kimberly, ID

121555.00 – Merrick & Company 2 Project I (100% Design)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1.1 Team Contact List

1.2 Project Goals

1.3 Codes & Standards

2.0 TECHNICAL APPROACH – DETERMINING FACTORS

2.1 Assessing the existing site peak load for the consideration of future expansion

2.2 Maintaining the existing transformer owned by Idaho Power

2.3 Assess magnetic breaker vs. electronic trip breaker

2.4 Metering system Analysis and the new outdoor rated electrical panel board

2.5 Decision of maintaining the existing transformer/ panelboard cabinet framing

2.6 Assessment for overground vs. underground cable connections between the existing and the new system

2.7 Analyzing the future expansion projects as part of the sizing calculation

2.8 Approaching to custom made panel companies vs. Considering a custom-made pad

3.0 PROPOSED ELECTRICAL UPGRADES AND RECOMMENDATIONS

3.1 Challenges

3.2 Analysis of alternatives

3.3 Strategies for minimizing shut down time

(100% Design)

Project: USDA-ARS Kimberly, ID

121555.00 – Merrick & Company 3 Project I (100% Design)

ACRONYMS

ABA Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 AC / A/C Air Conditioning ACM Asbestos-Containing Materials ACT Acoustic Ceiling Tile ADA Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 AHU Air Handling Unit APHIS Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services ARS Agricultural Research Service ASHRAE American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-conditioning Engineers ATS Automatic Transfer Switch AW Acid Waste BAS Building Automation System BMBL Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories BMP Best Management Practice BSC Biological Safety Cabinet BSL-2 Biosafety Level 2 CIAC Carrier InterAmerica Corporation CMU Concrete Masonry Unit CO2 Carbon Dioxide DDC Direct Digital Control DI Deionized DRM Design Requirements Manual EDS Effluent Decontamination System EF Exhaust Fan FC Footcandle FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency FF&E Furniture, Fixtures, and Equipment GSF Gross Square Foot/Feet HEPA High-efficiency Particulate Air HVAC Heating, Ventilation, and Air conditioning LA Laboratory Air LCP/LBP Lead-containing Paint / Lead-based Paint LED Light-emitting Diode LEED Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design LV Laboratory Vacuum MCC Motor Control Center MEP Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing MMA Methyl Methacrylate MPS Medium Pressure Stream MVA Mercury Vapor Analysis

(100% Design)

Project: USDA-ARS Kimberly, ID

121555.00 – Merrick & Company 4 Project I (100% Design)

NECP-EPA National Energy Conservation Policy Act with Energy Policy Act Amendment NFPA National Fire Protection Association NIH National Institutes of Health NSF Net Square Foot/Feet O&M Operations & Maintenance ODP/GWP Ozone Depleting Potential/Global Warming Potential PAC Packaged Air Conditioning PCB Polychlorinated Biphenyls PPE Personal Protective Equipment PTFE Polytetrafluoroethylene PWL Paint with Lead RTU Rooftop Unit ROM Rough-Order of Magnitude SOW Scope of Work TAB Testing, Adjusting, and Balancing US EPA US Environmental Protection Agency US HUD US Department of Housing and Development USDA US Department of Agriculture VCT Vinyl Composite Tile VHP Vaporized Hydrogen Peroxide

(100% Design)

Project: USDA-ARS Kimberly, ID

121555.00 – Merrick & Company 5 Project I (100% Design)

1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Merrick was commissioned by USDA to provide A/E design services for upgrading selected components of the existing electrical system of the site. The major elements of the scope of work include:

A. The utility Transformer and panelboard near the Annex building are located in one enclosure.

The frame is original; however, the transformer components has been renovated and still supported by Idaho Power.

B. The outdoor panelboard section of the enclosure is at the end of life and shall be replaced.

C. The wiring from the utility Transformer secondary to the panelboard and the wiring from the panelboard to each of the five buildings is nearly 60 years old and is considered at the end of service life.

1.1 Team Contact List

The following list contains the Merrick personnel involved in this report:

Table 2.1 – Design Team Members Merrick & Company

Project Manager Benjamin Santana, AIA, NCARB Structural Engineer John D. Coulter, P.E.

Electrical Engineer Sam Rastkar, P.E.

1.2 Project Goals

USDA has ongoing operations and the existing electrical infrastructure is outdated. The existing condition could potentially pose a significant downtime risk should a component of the major electrical system fails.

A second assessment (as part of project 2) will cover if the interior electrical infrastructure is sized properly for the future expnasion plans. During the electrical infrastructure upgrade, the following conditions are met:

1. Limit the site down time to 48 hours.

2. These disruptions to individual building shut down shall be scheduled with USDA in order to relocate critical loads to the energized buildings.

3. Coordinate with Idaho Power to de-energize and re-energize the site during the construction.

1.3 Codes & Standards

All new renovation work must meet requirements of ARS-242.1, which outlines the minimal codes and standards. A full code analysis and summary for the existing facility and the proposed renovation scope is included with this report.

• International Building Code (IBC) 2018, with amendments

• International Existing Building Code (IEBC) 2018, with amendments

• International Fire Code (IFC) 2018, with amendments

• NFPA 70 – National Electrical Code 2017

• ACI 318 – Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete 2014, with amendments

(100% Design)

Project: USDA-ARS Kimberly, ID

121555.00 – Merrick & Company 6 Project I (100% Design)

The USDA requires that new renovation and/or construction meet local codes, as well as the following.

• USDA-ARS 242.1 – Facilities Design Standards

• USDA Sustainable Buildings Implementation Plan, 2011

• NFPA Codes for Fire, Fire Alarm, and Fire Sprinkler requirements, in lieu of other codes

• Industry Standards as required by ARS-242.1

(100% Design)

Project: USDA-ARS Kimberly, ID

121555.00 – Merrick & Company 7 Project I (100% Design)

2.0 TECHNICAL APPROACH – DETERMINING FACTORS

Merrick has consulted with Idaho Power, electrical vendors, and custom fabricators to develop a design that poses minimizes down time while maintaining the reliability of the electrical system. To achieve that goal, a multi-phase approach is implemented. The accompanying electrical drawings reflect that strategy.

2.1 Assessing the existing site peak load for the consideration of future expansion

Existing site load peak numbers in the summer and winter time was requested from the utility company which show the existing transformer is only utilized at 40% capacity (at 300KVA), therefore the existing infrastructure has enough capacity for the future expansion and upcoming building projects.

2.2 Maintaining the existing transformer owned by Idaho Power

The utility company and the owner were involved with coordination discussions to ensure the utility company can provide prompts replacement service for the existing transformers. It appears that the existing transformers have been replaced by the utility company in the past and there are still not at the end of life. Therefore, the transformers, associated revenue meter and the existing enclosures will remain.

2.3 Assess magnetic breaker vs. electronic trip breaker

The pros and cons of the new electrical trip system was shared with owner and the direction was to consider the electronic trip units for all building feeders.

2.4 Metering system Analysis and the new outdoor rated electrical panel board

The new metering on the stainless steel outdoor rated panel will have the functionality to report to the building automation system to meet future load monitoring requirement as part of the ARS standard.

Individual breakers for each feeder with have built-in metering system and all internally connected to the main meter to monitor individual building metering/fault activities in the future.

2.5 Decision of maintaining the existing transformer/ panelboard cabinet framing

The existing frame of the transformer/ panelboard cabinet framing shall remain in place to access to the underground ducting system with no additional civil work to reduce the downtime for the site.

The breaker section of the cabinet will be decommissioned and internal components to be removed.

The frame structure will be utilized as the wireway space to connect between the new standalone breaker panel and the existing underground ducting.

2.6 Assessment for overground vs. underground cable connections between the existing and the new system

The connection between the existing cabinet and the new panel is decided to be through surface mount wireways to stay clear from any civil work and potential conflict with live underground services that might have an impact on the duration of the down time.

(100% Design)

Project: USDA-ARS Kimberly, ID

121555.00 – Merrick & Company 8 Project I (100% Design)

2.7 Analyzing the future expansion projects as part of the sizing calculation

Future expansion project is considered as part of the study to replace the feeders per building. Some of the feeders shall be upsized (As part of the project 2) to accommodate the future loads. All the ducting sizes are large enough to accommodate larger cables.

2.8 Approaching to custom made panel companies vs. Considering a custom-made pad

Consulting team has approached two custom made panel fabricators and because of the single quantity of the required custom-made panel the wait time might be extremely long. A safer approach was to consider a custom-made pad that can be designed by the structure team allocated to the project.

(100% Design)

Project: USDA-ARS Kimberly, ID

121555.00 – Merrick & Company 9 Project I (100% Design)

3.0 PROPOSED ELECTRICAL UPGRADES AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The project will be executed by installing a new stand-alone breaker panel located next to the existing transformer/panelboard cabinet. All the connections shall be surface mount connection. The existing panel board space inside the cabinet will be utilized as a wire through space for connection between the underground ducting system and the new breaker panel.

3.1 Challenges

• The risk of digging the ground if buried cable system is considered for potential conflict with underground services.

• Collapse of the old underground ducting system if the old cables are pulled out.

• Temporary splicing of the old cable if the lengths are not long enough to reach the new breaker panel location.

• Challenges to get a custom-made breaker panel because of the IP65 rating. Specially made pad shall be constructed.

• Facility shut down periods that shall be less than 48 hours based in the USDA direction.

• Interactions with Idaho Power.

• High level estimation for the future load growth.

• Old as-built drawing set that might not reflect the latest infrastructure.

3.2 Analysis of alternatives

• Approached the utility company to ensure the existing transformers can be serviced by the utility company and still can remain in service.

• Approached different custom-made panel companies to assess the options.

• Discussed with civil and structure engineers to consider a custom-made pad instead of custom-made breaker panel.

• Assessed different breaker options with USDA for the final selection.

3.3 Strategies for minimizing shut down time

• Utilization of existing underground conduits.

• Implement the new installation with over the ground wireway system rather than underground and risk of conflict with the existing live services.

• Splice the existing feeders to energize the whole site and create a minimized whole site shut down.

• As the next step de-energize the buildings on a scheduled basis one by one to move the critical loads from the de-energized buildings to energized ones in phasing approach.