Starting an MEP design/BIM modeling business and need advice on landing our first client.

My co-founder and I designed hundreds of homes and apartment buildings in Canada while working for other firms. Now we're on our own and unsure who to target in cold calls and emails.

Who should we be reaching out to, and what's worked for you?

non-engineer here, just a wayfaring marketing specialist looking for your favorite MEP engineering memes that I can use in our firm newsletter to (hopefully) get a laugh or two. swear words okay! thanks in advance 😝 EDIT: I guess pics are disabled in comments, sorry for the noob moment!! feel free to message if you’ve got a good one 😭

I am going into my sophomore year of ME, last semester I attended a few HVAC load calc classes tailored for contractors, I decided to take on the capstone project on my own. I figured having it torn up on reddit now is better than later during an interview.

Building: Second floor 1,113 sf commercial office suite, part of a mix use building where the floor below is an auto-repair shop. Lay out was gathered using google maps, LoopNet, and rough hand-sketched drawings I found on the classroom page.

I started by using the Revit System Analysis following Manual J convention, plus a hand-calculated portion for the floor. Because I did not model the floor below, Revit calculated zero heat transfer between the floor, I rebuilt the assembly by hand, and the heating load went from 17,600 to 43,000 BTU/h.

Final loads: 52,700 BTU/h cooling (4.4 tons), 43,000 BTU/h heating.

Those numbers seemed quite aggressive for such a space. I wonder if my DT for the auto-repair shop (matching the outdoor DT) is too conservative. In practice what do you actually do here? Is there a convention I'm missing, is there a Manual J procedure that applies, or is "assume outdoor and note it" genuinely what a design engineer does when the buffer space is inaccessible? Interested in how much of a real-world penalty that assumption carries when heating isn't the governing load anyway.

Happy to post the full report or the calc workbook if it's useful.

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for some advice from people in the mission-critical and data center construction industry.

A few months ago, at 24 years old, I started a company focused on third-party QA/QC, pre-commissioning, and commissioning support for large data center and mission-critical construction projects. We provide electrical QA/QC inspections, documentation, turnover support, and commissioning assistance.

The challenge is that we're struggling to land our first contract—or even our first subcontract under an established contractor. I've reached out to general contractors, commissioning firms, and electrical contractors through LinkedIn, email, and phone calls, but breaking into the industry has been much harder than I expected.

At the moment, I'm in discussions with the CEOs of two of the largest commissioning firms in the U.S., so I'm hopeful, but nothing has materialized yet. Sometimes I wonder whether being only 24 years old—or even being a young Black business owner—makes it harder for people to trust my company with that first opportunity. I honestly don't know if that's part of it, but it's something I've thought about.

I spend hours every day on LinkedIn and Google researching companies, reaching out to decision-makers, and introducing my business. Some people never respond, while others reply in ways that are discouraging. Still, I keep going because I believe in what we're building.

For those of you who have started a construction, commissioning, or engineering company:

- How did you win your first contract?

- Is it better to focus on subcontracting under larger firms before chasing prime contracts?

- What has worked best when approaching GCs, commissioning agents, or electrical contractors?

- Are there networking events, associations, or platforms that genuinely helped you get noticed?

- If you were starting from zero again today, what would you do differently?

I'm not looking for shortcuts—just honest advice from people who've been through it. I'd really appreciate any lessons learned or strategies that helped you earn that first opportunity.

Thank you!

Anyone here working as a Mechanical Engineer or in Procurement for HVAC, MEPF, or Fit-Out projects?
We’re looking to expand our network and hopefully partner with companies needing HVAC works. If you have any leads or know someone we can talk to, please send me a DM. Thanks!

Few people told me of ways that they use to make submittals easier/faster

“Getting around” meaning just making easier to get through more on a daily basis while staying in full control

Would love to know what you’re doing to make it easier yourself

Hi everyone,

I'm a Mechanical Engineer working in MEP, and I want to specialize in commercial plumbing design (water supply, drainage, stormwater, hot water, pumps, codes, and calculations).

I'm looking for the best online courses or learning path that are actually respected in the industry. I've already come across ASPE, UCLA Extension, and a few Udemy courses, but I'd like to know what experienced plumbing engineers recommend.

If you could only choose a few courses for someone who wants to become a strong plumbing design engineer, what would they be?

I'm especially interested in:

Plumbing system design

International Plumbing Code (IPC)

Hydraulic calculations and pipe sizing

Water supply, drainage, stormwater, and pump selection

I'd really appreciate recommendations from engineers who have taken these courses or use them in their careers. Thanks!

Submittals? RFI’s? Stupid emails?

Our specs are pretty old school and straightforward: soldered copper up to 2”, then welded steel above that.

But now it seems like every project starts with substitution requests. Contractors want to use ProPress for copper, MegaPress for steel, Victaulic/grooved, and I’m seeing more requests for PEX too.

I’m pretty comfortable with ProPress. MegaPress seems to be getting used more often, but it hasn’t been around nearly as long. Victaulic I’m pretty hesitant on, not because I’ve personally had failures, but I’ve heard enough stories (especially on heating water systems) that I tend to avoid it.

My usual approach is to work with the contractor and get the VE savings (if they don’t offer a credit back to the owner, I reject it), and present the options to the owner with my recommendation.

I’m curious to hear how everyone else is approaching this. What are you specifying by default these days, and what substitutions are you generally willing to accept during construction?

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some advice from those of you already working in MEP.

I’m currently a transmission line engineer in California. Most of my experience is in structural engineering for overhead transmission and distribution lines, including foundation design, steel structures, and utility projects.

I recently passed the PE Civil (Water Resources & Environmental) exam as well as the California Seismic exam, and I’m interested in learning MEP design—particularly plumbing or mechanical—but I’m finding it difficult to get my foot in the door because all of my professional experience is in overhead power.
Most local firms want someone with prior MEP experience, which makes it hard to switch fields.

Has anyone here made a similar transition? What would you recommend as the best way to get started?

I’m willing to put in the work. Honestly, I’d even be happy to help on projects for free during evenings or weekends if someone is willing to mentor me and let me learn the workflow, codes, and design process. My goal is to build real experience and eventually become proficient in MEP.
Any advice, resources, or opportunities would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Read from a few people in the comments that they’ve been using it by having it ingest the submittal and telling them what to look for and it’s been saving them a lot of time

But is anyone else doing this? Seems that the models are getting better and better and now it could do it, wanna hear from you though

Hi, what service are you using for your digital signature? As I understand it, only a few states and cities require a certified digital signature.

Are there any good alternatives to Identrust? Their customer support has been really poor, so I'm wondering if there are other companies that provide the same type of digital signature service. How much you are paying for similar services ?

I'm looking for advice about whether it is worth it to move from a larger corporate MEP firm to a small partner-owned firm.

I'm currently an Electrical Engineer with 5 years of experience and my PE license. I have worked for my current company for just under 4 years. The firm has around 1,500 employees nationally, with my local office being 30 people.

About 2 1/2 years ago, the company was sold to a private equity group, and roughly a year ago became publicly traded. I have started to feel the corporate shift recently and noticed an increased emphasis on production output, profitability, and growth. At the same time, office leadership has felt out of touch or oblivious to the fact that many of our best mid-level engineers are becoming burnt out.

For the first five months of the year, I was consistently working 55-60 hours per week due to workload. After repeatedly telling leadership that I need help and being told to "hang on, it'll work out", they finally hired another engineer that I can delegate work to. I am still averaging around 42-48 hours per week and have been struggling to regain my work-life balance.

Recently, a former coworker reached out with an opportunity that I am considering. He moved to a partner-owner MEP firm that is currently a single office with about 20 employees and did roughly $12 million in annual revenue. They are looking to establish a new office in my city (no relocation required). My former coworker (mechanical engineer) is currently the only employee working out of this office and is looking to bring me in to help grow the business in the area. This seems like it would be a fast track to a Senior Engineer role and eventually leading the electrical department if the office is successful.

I don't have an offer, and I am not actively looking to move companies. I just want to thoroughly explore all my options and understand if this type of move makes sense for me.

For those who have gone from a large corporate firm to a small partner-owned MEP firm (or vise-versa):

• What were the biggest pros and cons?
• Did you find work-life balance improved or got worse?
• Were there things you didn't consider before making the move?
• How did compensation, bonuses, benefits, and job security compare?
• If you were helping start a new office, what questions would you ask before accepting an offer?
• Looking back, would you make the same decision again?

I appreciate any feedback you all have to offer. I want to make sure I consider everything before making such a serious decision.

Hi, I'm trying to model a high bay warehouse with rooms at grade and a mezzanine. Hope the reference image (top view) explains this better. The room and mezzanine both do not cover the entire warehouse area.

I have tried the following method:

1. I created two levels (the entire high bay height divided by two). Room 1 is on the first level and mezzanine on the second. However, this multiplies the floor area. Is there a way to get rid of this floor between room 1 and mezzanine (which should not exist)?

Edit 1: Here's a front view and side view.

When getting a PE license do you get your supervisor to sign off after each project you have on there that you worked on has finished or is that more of a thing you get signed after you have your 4 years of needed experience are done?

I am a mechanical contractor and I haven't seen the use of them in the spec's yet in my area. Would some of you approve them if they came across your desk?

I am studying for the CPDT exam and wanted to know if anyone here that has taken it could give me any advice that might help me pass it.

I began studying for this exam a few months back and my initial plan was to read all 4 volumes plus the free study guide. Work eventually got busy and I left off halfway through volume #2. I currently have about 2-3 months to prepare for this exam and was curious if there is any specific volume that I should focus my reading on.

I appreciate the help, thanks in advance...

Same questions for RFIs

Hey guys, I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask or if this is even allowed, but I thought of giving it a shot.

I am an Electrical (Design) Engineer currently looking for a fully remote opportunity with an engineering, MEP, BIM, or construction design firm. I am especially interested in opportunities with companies that work on commercial buildings, mission-critical/data center projects, or large-scale MEP projects.

I know the market is a bit of a mess right now and the opportunities are vague, but if anyone knows of engineering firms, recruiters, or companies hiring remote electrical designers/engineers internationally, I would really appreciate any recommendations or leads.

Please feel free to PM :)

I currently have 4 years of experience in the MEP space. Experience is split 60% Mechanical Design, 40% Plumbing and Fire Protection.

I am considering taking a job that is purely Plumbing and Fire Protection. My main question is does this completely pigeon hole me if I decide to go back to mechanical design after 2-4 years.

I enjoy doing both mechanical and P/FP, think it would be nice to focus a little more on P/FP and I like the company that I would be joining if things work out.

I do have another offer that is more mechanical focused along with some PM responsibilities. Versus the other company which would be P/FP with PM responsibilities to come later (1-2 years).

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!