How do we Work?

We like to dig in, get dirty, and find the root of your facility problems to solve them once and for all.

Whether it’s a quick fix while we’re on-site doing something else, a persistent problem that’s been nagging you for years, or a pesky intermittent issue you can’t quite pin down, we’ll help you develop achievable long-term solutions.

It’s not always easy to ask the tough questions, squeeze into tight spaces, or spend hours sifting through decades’ worth of facility data to identify the source of your problems. But that’s what we do. And we do it with passion, commitment, and fortitude.

Chinook helps our clients determine which of our interdisciplinary services and technology will provide the greatest value. Our solution may be a single service on one project, or a fully integrated approach for an entire campus or portfolio. Regardless of facility size, we stay present and engaged, transfer our knowledge, and ensure owners are setup for sustainable and maintainable success.

At the heart of our approach is an undying commitment to innovation and technology, using state-of-the-art, client-focused tools and software, including:

Quicx™

Developed by Chinook, Quicx is a cloud-based, cyber-secure platform to manage project delivery, commissioning, record documents, equipment assets, operational technology, and project risk across the entire facility lifecycle. Quicx’s remote and mobile capabilities allow teams in the field to access, capture, and upload facility and asset data in real time, quickly and efficiently.

Modeling & Design Applications

Our engineers use industry-proven software to perform critical system design, load calculations, energy modeling, power studies, lifecycle cost analysis, and so much more. Examples include SpecsIntact to develop standardized facility specifications; Revit and AutoCAD for design and as-built development; Bluebeam to review, mark-up, and update record documents; and Visio to develop network architecture diagrams.

Real-Time Monitoring-Based Building Analytics

Chinook provides a data-driven commissioning process that combines real-time measurement, algorithms, and analytics from a wide variety of building data sources. This process evaluates equipment and system performance to identify and correct operational deficiencies.

Computerized Maintenance Management Systems (CMMS)

A CMMS provides a database of all completed and planned Preventative Maintenance (PM) schedules and activities, as well as unplanned or emergency Corrective Maintenance (CM). A CMMS provides real-time availability to the PM/CM data, spare parts inventory, work history, Operations and Maintenance (O&M) manuals, dashboards, and reporting. It can also be used to manage work orders, and some can even connect to the Building Automation System (BAS) to generate work orders based on alarms or point failures.

Point Cloud Scanning with Augmented Reality (AR)

Utilizing the Trimble 3D laser point cloud scanner with HoloLens Augmented Reality (AR), Chinook scans and measures existing buildings, using the data to create accurate as-built 3D Revit models. This provides owners with the means to manage and archive BIM data for future assets, leading to enhanced drawing organization, improved facility management processes, and reduced construction costs and schedules.

Testing & Data Collection

Chinook maintains an inventory of test equipment to perform comprehensive commissioning, retro-commissioning, and building system analysis. Tools include Data Loggers, BAS Analytics, Balometers, Manometers, Sound Meters, Ultrasonic Flow Meters, Light Meters, and Temperature Sensors, to name a few. Additional capabilities include the application of pitot tube traverses, velgrid, and coil face velocities utilizing Equal Area method, Air Apparatus Reports, and required field calculations.

Network Discovery & Monitoring Tools

Chinook has experience utilizing Wireshark and Nozomi Guardian for network discovery, and Solar Winds and Nessus Manager for network monitoring. These tools are are critical to identify all known and unknown operational technology (OT) assets and communication pathways, create asset inventories, identify system vulnerabilities, and perform baseline threat assessments. Continuous monitoring of OT systems’ security postures also helps mitigate risk and recover from a cyber incident.

Security Incident & Event Management

Through real-time continuous monitoring, Chinook proactively identifies potential cyber threats before they become real cyber incidents, monitors network activity for compliance and anomalies, and sends real-time alerts should an incident occur. This approach helps to identify the source of an incident, develop effective mitigation strategies, and ensure system resilience to recover from an attack.

Vulnerability Scanning

Vulnerability assessments include automated scans and manual checks of control systems to establish the system configuration baseline, identify vulnerabilities, and establish the STIG/SRG baseline for implementation. Chinook applies all and in stages, and strives to remediate and/or mitigate any vulnerabilities found.

Innovation Lab

Located in our office, Chinook’s Innovation Lab provides a secure, isolated network where we design, configure, and test network infrastructure, analytics, controls sequences of operation, cybersecurity controls, and graphics prior to turnover and real world implementation.

We use the results of our testing to develop recommendations for controls system security. The lab provides an environment to prepare these systems for operation before arriving at the client site. It also serves as a unique training and development setting for our staff to gain hands-on experience working with the systems.

Within the lab, we:

 

Ensure control system design can withstand and recover from realistic threats.

Harden systems and conduct scenario-based active penetration testing.

Identify vulnerabilities to reliability and security, and perform baseline assessment.

Implement analytics and continuous monitoring capabilities.

Develop and test appropriate controls sequences and functional performance test procedures.

Ensure control system design can withstand and recover from realistic threats.

Identify vulnerabilities to reliability and security, and perform baseline assessment.

Harden systems and conduct scenario-based active penetration testing.

Implement analytics and continuous monitoring capabilities.

Develop and test appropriate controls sequences and functional performance test procedures.