MEP consulting engineers focus on the building systems
An MEP consulting engineer is an engineering professional with specific skills in mechanical, electrical, and plumbing building systems. MEP engineers work closely with architects, contractors, and building owners throughout the entire process of a building renovation or construction project.
If you’re just embarking on or thinking about a big building renovation, restoration, or construction project you may start to notice there are a lot of individual teams involved on projects. Your design and architecture team, your general contractors, or maybe even someone on your board or team who has experience with construction projects might recommend bringing in an MEP consulting engineer.
MEP engineers are usually brought in early to work on a project from pre-design through post-construction, and may join a project at just about any time in the process.
If we had to make a 5-point list of what MEP engineers do, it would include:
- Creating a safe building environment for human use that is sustainable, energy efficient, and resilient
- Analyzing, evaluating, and documenting individual building systems and how they interact
- Ensuring that a building project maximizes performance, minimizes cost, and provides long-term value
- Maintaining a focus on the mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineering
- Identifying ways to create customized solutions for each building project
MEP engineers make buildings comfortable, functional and improve energy efficiency
MEP engineers use several techniques to make buildings comfortable, functional and energy-efficient. We go a little further at R.E. Dimond and Associates than some MEP engineering firms by including network engineering, fire suppression, and energy services that give a building “smarts”. But almost every MEP engineer is focused on ways to:
- Improve energy efficiency (“We can use a water source heat pump to reduce heating and cooling costs…“)
- Reduce clashes and collisions (“If we put this pipe here, it’ll block access to this electrical panel, so let’s do this instead…”)
- Design HVAC frameworks (“You can place these HVAC units here to reduce noise…“)
- Use renewable energy sources (“Using a solar photovoltaic system will cut your energy consumption by a third…“)
We go a little further than the average MEP engineering firm by focusing on ways to:
- Improve performance for people and systems (“These sensors will automatically shut off the water in these conditions…”)
- Adapt security systems to commercial buildings (“Alarm systems function best when placed here…”)
- Identify unique custom solutions for an individual building project (“You need these high-performance cooling systems for each of your data centers…”)
Frequently asked questions about MEP consulting engineers
What are the most common MEP engineering services?
The most common uses for MEP engineering consultants is right in the word: mechanical, electrical, and plumbing. These are cornerstones of a successful building project. Our most common projects feature heating and cooling systems, restructuring or building plumbing systems, and drafting energy-efficient designs.
How are MEP consulting engineers different from an architect or contractors?
Your architect designs the building, and your general contractor lays the foundation and handles much of the frame and construction. MEP consulting engineers handle the individual technical disciplines related to mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineering.
In an overly simple way: your architect will plan and render the layout and space of your building, your contractor will construct the room, and we’ll design the HVAC system, or the networking, or the plumbing, or any number of other specialized systems.
What about MEP design and consulting in existing buildings?
Most of our work is in existing building systems. Historic preservation and restoration projects are among our most common, but we’re working just as often in an existing facility like office buildings, schools, and industrial sites to replace 30-year-old boilers, improving the performance of lighting design in a dormitory, or tackling other complex problems.
Can MEP engineers help reduce costs and risks?
MEP consulting engineers are extremely cost-effective on virtually every construction or renovation project. You will almost certainly save money in the long term with a good MEP consulting firm.
Most of our clients would tell you the combined energy conservation, reduced maintenance costs, and long service life from using the right systems or equipment, plus our experience in spotting collisions during new construction makes a huge difference in their ongoing operational costs. Between this and other critical insights, many of our clients come out ahead with a big return on their engineering investment.
What should I expect MEP engineers to do?
You should expect the best MEP consulting engineers to be responsive to your needs, find ways to maximize efficiencies and reduce operating costs, draft understandable and useful MEP designs for your contractors and design team, and document all of this for code compliance and future maintenance.
What if I only need, say, electrical engineers and not mechanical or plumbing?
That’s okay! At least with R.E. Dimond and Associates, we’re happy to offer consulting services in whatever ways a project demands. Sometimes that’s installing a new solar photovoltaic system on nearby land, which involves our electrical engineers. If it’s roof-mounted, we might bring in our mechanical engineers since existing systems, like air conditioning units, may be in place.
The benefit of hiring MEP consultants is getting the right expertise at the right time, no matter what your building design may call for.
How do I choose an MEP design or engineering firm?
There are several questions you should ask your team before hiring them for your next project. We’ve compiled several questions to ask MEP consultants that might help in your decision-making.
Is there a difference between consulting “MEP engineering firms” and “MEP design firms”?
Not really. It’s mostly just whatever a firm decides they like to go by.
Some may make a distinction, where their MEP engineering services are focused on the design and installation of systems, whereas MEP design may just be planning and design that is later handed off to some other group for installation.
At R.E. Dimond and Associates, we take care of every necessary step, from design to consulting on installation and even post-installation support.
Are there considerations between commercial construction and residential or industrial projects?
Different engineering companies have different specialties. We focus almost exclusively on commercial and industrial projects of varying sizes, and on substantial residential projects, like mixed-use apartment buildings or dormitories.
How do I get started with an MEP engineering firm?
You can contact us and speak directly to an engineer. We’ll ask about your project, size, scope, timeline, and any special considerations like historic preservation or known issues. Then we can help you make an informed decision about the next steps.