By Paladin, Inc
At Paladin, we’ve watched building commissioning (Cx) grow from a niche specialty into one of construction’s most vital quality assurance disciplines. Our commissioning teams help ensure buildings perform as designed while meeting today’s demanding standards for efficiency, sustainability and occupant comfort. For students looking for a unique and rewarding career path, we believe commissioning offers an exciting blend of technical challenge, hands-on experience, and real-world impact.
Davis Reeves
We recently sat down with two of our team members – David Stapleton and Davis Reeves – who shared their stories, giving us a perfect window into what makes commissioning such a rewarding field. Their different paths to Paladin highlight something we’ve always known: there’s more than one way to start a career in commissioning.
David Stapleton
David joined our team right after earning his mechanical engineering degree, excited about seeing engineering principles in action. As he tells it, “I’d seen these things in textbooks and I’d seen them on a laptop in my internship, but I’d not had the chance to test them or view them physically… That was the draw.”
Davis took a different route, starting in building maintenance and earning his plumber’s license before joining Paladin as a commissioning field technician. His hands-on experience proved invaluable: “Having worked at maintaining buildings, especially older buildings, I can see very quickly what are going to be maintenance issues in the future.”
Our commissioning professionals spend their days both in the field and office. On any given day, you might find us:
- Reviewing engineering drawings before construction starts
- On construction sites making sure equipment is installed properly
- Testing HVAC, plumbing, electrical, building enclosure and a variety of other building systems
- Documenting what we find and making recommendations
- Working alongside contractors, engineers and building owners
As David explains, “We will have more than one project at a time… getting out in the field and making sure things are installed properly… performing reviews of drawing sets… and actually testing the equipment once everything’s installed.”
These are some qualities that help individuals succeed in the commissioning field:
- Technical Know-how: Whether you learned it in school or on the job, understanding mechanical systems is key.
- Sharp Eye for Detail: As David notes, being “detail oriented and organized” is essential because “a small detail such as how two pipes are joined together can indicate a future failure point. Or in design review, checking the orientation of equipment and verifying proper maintenance access can save issues from coming up during installation.”
- People Skills: We’ve found success requires more than technical knowledge. Our team excels at communicating issues, including the occasional bad news “in a way that people can be receptive.”
- Detective Mindset: We often work like investigators, spotting and solving issues before they become problems.
While we’re embracing new technologies, including AI, our work will always need human touch. As Davis suggests, AI might soon help us “find discrepancies between design and installation,” but there’s no replacement for boots on the ground.
Think you might find your purpose in the Cx field? Ask yourself:
- Do you prefer getting your hands dirty to sitting at a desk all day?
- Are you curious about how complex systems work together?
- Do you enjoy solving problems with others?
- Can you explain technical stuff clearly to different audiences?
For those interested in joining the field, Davis recommends either “an engineering program… or something at a community college level, like an advanced manufacturing program where you’re really going to get a better understanding of the equipment and processes.”
We love what we do, and it shows. As Davis puts it, “If you want to be in construction, you want to do something where you actually get to track a project from beginning to end and see your work pay off… It’s a job that gives you freedom so that you’re not sitting at a desk every day.”
Over the years, we’ve seen the industry’s view of commissioning evolve dramatically. Davis notes that contractors who once viewed commissioning professionals as obstacles now actively seek our input, recognizing that addressing issues early “becomes a real benefit.”
Best of all, commissioning experience opens doors. David’s transition to design engineering was enhanced by his commissioning background, giving him practical insight into “how things are actually being assembled and put together in the field.”
At Paladin, we’re proud of the work we do and the team we’ve built. If you’re looking for a career that combines technical challenge with practical impact, we’d encourage you to consider commissioning. Whether you’re an engineering student or coming from the trades, there may very well be a place for you in this growing field. The work is challenging, the days are varied, and at the end of each project, you can take pride in knowing you helped create a building that performs as designed for its owners, occupants and maintenance team. That’s a pretty great thing.
