The Vancouver Olympics and Paralympics Organizing Committee (VANOC) who organized and staged the 2010 Winter Olympic Games required 200,000 sq ft of office space to house up to 1,200 employees and host partners. VANOC selected an existing building on the outskirts of the City of Vancouver for this purpose. The office space and the existing building mechanical and lighting systems had to be retrofitted to suit the special needs of the Olympic organizers, who chose Western Mechanical Services to provide commissioning services for the updated building systems.
Western Mechanical Services worked closely with VANOC to ensure and verify that their special requirements from the systems were achieved. Some of the measures adopted to obtain LEED certification included ensuring proper air quality during construction, special zone controls for heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems and proximity lighting were implemented and verified during the commissioning process. One feature used to reduce energy costs was to automatically shut down some of the lighting in rooms when they were not occupied. The building system renovations had to be completed within a tight time frame which created special challenges for all those involved, including the commissioning team.
After the 2010 Olympic Games were completed, the Vancouver Police Department (VPD) moved into the facility.