1

ab ou t ka r p in s k i EN G I N EER I N G

In 1983, two engineers founded an MEP engineering firm to provide better client service to the handful of firms they worked with.

Today, Karpinski Engineering has a staff of more than 135 and five regional offices, and we have served hundreds of clients on thousands of projects.

As the firm has grown, we’ve held onto our core values: excellent engineering and excellent client service.

We have built on our core MEP services to include additional engineering disciplines – civil, fire protection, and technology – and an array of specialty services – such as energy, commissioning, lighting design, and construction administration. Our work touches both the building and infrastructure levels.

We are leaders in sustainability: The first Professional Engineer to become a LEED-Accredited Professional in the State of Ohio was one of Karpinski Engineering’s principals. Two of our staff members are Certified Energy Managers. We have contributed to more than 70 LEED-certified projects (21 of them LEED-Gold). We have also provided geothermal solutions for 40+ projects.

We are leaders in Building Information Modeling (BIM): Our team has produced more than 200 projects in Revit. We’ve developed the kBIMTM Template and Library (made available via ashrae.com) to help provide large-firm capabilities to smaller firms.

Our firm is led by our principals – owners who are also engineers, who have invested themselves in the growth and success of the firm. Karpinski Engineering is incorporated in the State of Ohio and is authorized to provide engineering services in the State of Ohio.

Mechanical

Electrical

Plumbing

Technology

Civil

Fire Protection

Commissioning

Lighting

Building Performance &

Sustainability

K a r p i n s k i E N G I N E E R I N G

Karpinski Engineering offers core engineering services referred to as MEP (Mechnical, Electrical,

Plumbing). The largest consumer of energy in the United States is buildings. One of Karpinski

Engineering’s specialty services is energy.

Leaders in sustainability, Karpinski Engineering has contributed to many LEED (Leadership in

Energy and Environmental Design) projects. LEED is a rating system devised by the United States

Green Building Council (USGBC) to evaluate the environmental performance of a building and

encourage market transformation towards sustainable design.

Lighting Terms:

Kelvin – The color temperature of a specific light or bulb

Argon – An inert gas used in incandescent and fluorescent lamps. Argon retards the evaporation

of the filament and, thereby, lengthens the average rated life of the lamp.

Watts – The power consumed by the light

Ballast – An electrical device used with fluorescent and HID (high-intensity discharge) lamps to

supply sufficient voltage to start and operate the lamp but then limit the current during

operation.

Lumens – The light intensity from a fixture

Kilowatt Hours – The amount of energy consumed over a period of time

Karpinski Engineering designs Automatic Temperature Controls. A relative humidity of 100%

indicates the dew point is equal to the current temperature and that the air is maximally

saturated with water. When the moisture content remains constant and temperature increases,

relative humidity decreases. When air reaches the dew-point temperature at a particular

pressure, the water vapor in the air is in equilibrium with liquid water, meaning water vapor is

condensing at the same rate at which liquid water is evaporating. Below the dew point, liquid

water will begin to condense on solid surfaces (such as blades of grass) or around solid particles

in the atmosphere (such as dust or salt), forming clouds or fog.

Dew point is frequently cited as a more accurate way of measuring the humidity and comfort of

the air, since it is an absolute measurement (unlike relative humidity). Most people feel most

comfortable at a dew-point temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit or lower. At a higher dew

point of, for example, 70 most people feel hot or “sticky” because the amount of water vapor in

the air slows the evaporation of perspiration and keeps the body from cooling. When water on

our body evaporates, it makes the surface of our skin colder. That’s why you feel colder when

you get out of a pool!

Solar thermal heaters are used for heating domestic hot water and for heating building hot

water.

Volume flow is usually measured in CFM (Cubic Feet per Minute). In the case of a blower or fan,

it indicates how much air it can move per minute.

BTU (British Thermal Unit) is the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one pound

of water (at or near 39.2 degrees Fahrenheit) by one degree. In practical terms, the amount of

heat generated by one lighted match stick. Despite its name, this non-metric unit is used more

often in the U.S., Canada, and Caribbean than in Britain, or the rest of the world where calorie is

preferred.

Types of heat transfer:

Radiation – the emission of energy as electromagnetic waves

Convection – the movement caused within a fluid by the tendency of hotter and therefore less

dense material to rise, and colder, denser material to sink under the influence of gravity, which

consequently results in transfer of heat.

Conduction – the process by which heat or electricity is directly transmitted through a substance

when there is a difference of temperature or of electrical potential between adjoining regions,

without movement of the material.

HOMEWORK

Karpinski Engineering February 10, 2018

***This homework is due at the next session, March 10, 2018

www.clevelandwater.com/ClevelandSTEP

Name __________________ __Grade Date __________ You must write in COMPLETE SENTENCES.

1. What type of Engineering does Karpinski Engineering do?

2. What is the largest consumer of energy in the United States?

3. What is LEED?

4. Connect the Lighting term with the correct description:

○ Kilowatt-Hours ○ The Power consumed by the light

○ Watts ○ The amount of energy consumed over a period of time

○ Kelvin ○ The Color Temperature of a specific light or bulb

○ The light intensity from a fixture

5. What is the technical term for when water collects on the grass in the morning? Why does this happen?

6. Why do you feel colder when you get out of a pool?

7. Circle the Three types of heat transfer:

○ Radiation ○ Freezing

○ Conduction ○ Absorption

○ Convection ○ Evaporation

8. What are solar thermal heaters used for?

9. What does CFM stand for?

10. What does BTU stand for?

Program Sponsors:

Cleveland Water, 1201 Lakeside Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44114

Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, 3900 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44115