Memorandum

To: Professor Malesh

From: Donald DeKeyser, Alyssa Mascia, Monday Xiong, Jay Davis
Date: 1 April 2016
Subject: Project Plan
Introduction
Our plan is to create a proposal for Guardian Environmental Services (GES) that would suggest a
solution to an issue that one of their clients, Akebono Brakes Company, has contracted them to
solve. Akebono is interested in replacing the HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning)
systems in two of the buildings within their Farmington facility.
GES is an HVAC company based out of Lavonia. With their experience and guidance, we will
propose which solution Akebono should choose from their available options. The options being,
continue to repair their current systems or chose from multiple new systems varying in cost and
quality.
We intend to develop this solution by analyzing the annual repair costs and projecting them over
the next five to ten years. This will then be compared to the price of new systems and any
improvements that come with them, such as increased efficiency resulting in lower power bills.
Audience
Our target audience is the staff members of GES working the Akebono contract and the
managers of the Akebono facility. Secondary audiences include members of Akebonos financial
and legal departments as well as any employees with a background in HVAC that may be asked
for input.
Purpose
Richard DeKeyser, our liaison from Guardian Environmental services, suggested that we write a
proposal for one of his clients, Akebono Brake Company, who is currently examining the
possibility of replacing their HVAC system.
The HVAC system at Akebono's main office building is old and has needed expensive repairs in
the last two years amounting to over $30,000. Akebono has contracted GES to quote them a price
for installing new equipment and an estimate of how much they would pay over the next five to
ten years if they continued to pay for repairs.
Primary Research
Interview
We will conduct an interview with Richard DeKeyser. An interview will allow us to gather
information that will be necessary to make informed decisions as well as allow Mr. DeKeyser to
give us advice informed by his many years of experience in the HVAC industry. We may also

conduct interviews with engineers at Akebono, or we may just ask Mr. DeKeyser to speak with
them in our stead, depending on what GES prefers.
Questionnaire/Survey
A survey distributed to the Akebono employees that work in the two building in question would
be useful to determine what issues the malfunctioning equipment has caused. This would allow
us to factor the employee populations concerns into our proposal. If we do decide to pursue this
course of action, we will get approval from GES and Akebono first.
Secondary Research
Documents provided by Mr. DeKeyser
Mr. DeKeyser has already provided us with multiple documents from Akebono with information
about their facilities.
An aerial image of the Akebono facility taken in April of 2015.
An assessment provided by Daikin (manufacture of current equipment) of the benefits of
updating to their current equipment, based on lower power costs.
An article from the ASHRAE journal (American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and
Air Conditioning Engineers) with information about the average service life of HVAC
equipment.
An ASHRAE page with information about the median life spans for specific pieces of
equipment.
Web Sources
Consumerenergy.org: The resource provides general information about HVAC. It goes into
details about how central air conditioning works and the different kind of systems there are. It
also explains rates of unit efficiency and that HVAC systems are rated by Seasonal Energy
Efficiency Ratio (SEER). These details will help us understand the quality our customer budget
can afford.
Sba.gov: This article, created by the small business association, explains how to manage HVAC
systems by reducing the cost, making sure the equipment is being used as efficiently as possible.
It outlined what types of systems are better for large and small buildings as well as the need for
proactive maintenance. This article will help us make informed decisions about what solutions to
recommend.
Timetable
March 28 April 1
April 4-8
April 11-15
April 18-21
April 22

Work/turn in project plan

Turn I a progress report
Peer review
Finishing touches on project
Report due

Technology use
The main report will be created in a Google doc. This will allow multiple group members to
simultaneously add to and edit the document. The use of cloud storage will also prevent the
document from being lost or becoming unrecoverable due to computer malfunctions.
Team Member Duties
Leader/editor: Donald DeKeyser
Qualifications: Direct connection to GES (Richard DeKeyser) and somewhat familiar with the
HVAC business
Graphics/Charts: Monday Xiong
Qualifications: Volunteered for the position and is interested in graphic design
Researchers: Alyssa Mascia and Jay Davis
Qualifications: Intelligent and capable students
Team Member accountability
Our team has agreed we will all do our best to meet the deadline that we have set for ourselves
and those that have been set for us. If a group member fails to meet a deadline without a valid
excuse (emergencies/unpredictable circumstances) they will be a warning and the team will work
with them to determine of any accommodations need to be made. If a group member consistently
fails to meet deadline or fails to contribute at all, their name will be removed from the project.
The group member in question and Professor Malesh will be informed of this as soon as possible
after the decision is made.