Leffingwell Consulting Engineers was founded in 2001 when a client told me “if you go out on your own, I’ll keep you busy”. I didn’t know the first thing about operating a consulting firm, but I had a firm belief that great designs require more than theoretical knowledge. A couple of days later I ordered take out and my fortune cookie read, “You will be unusually successful in business”. I quit my job as a commissioning agent with a national consulting firm. After almost 20 years, I still believe great designs require more than theoretical knowledge.
I began my career in the early days of commissioning, when the engineer verified the installation and operation of the systems they designed. We learned in the field, by actually testing the operation of equipment, the clearances and space required around equipment and whether our sequences of operation really worked or not. Often times they didn’t, but we went back to the office and incorporated what we learned in the field into the next design. We learned by integrating theory with real world field experience.
In 2018, I took a break from consulting and worked at the Center for Disease Control’s Division of Vector Born Diseases (DVBD) research facility in Fort Collins Colorado. For one year, I was the building engineer and oversaw all building operation and maintenance. For that year I was a “horse whisperer” for the building. I tested and adjusted systems, equipment and sensors, modified equipment operation, reprogrammed the building control system and implemented energy saving projects. Those changes stabilized building operations and saved about $200,000 in energy costs, which represents about one month of energy consumption.
Since its founding, LCE has integrated the skills and knowledge of mechanical engineering, commissioning and energy engineering into a Building Performance Service. Traditionally, these disciplines are separate and performed by independent firms, but in the real world they are as interconnected as the building systems themselves. A hands-on real and practical understanding of building systems is why I recognize theoretical and practical limitations and why LCE is known for innovative approaches and techniques.
When you hire LCE, you hire an experienced licensed Professional Engineer who is the engineer on every aspect of your project. You receive a personal approach with direct communication, teamwork and quick responses.
Beyond designing and commissioning, LCE has been an Owner’s
Representative, construction manager, prime consultant, developed scopes of
work, developed construction budgets and schedules, and worked and consulted on
every aspect of the building process. I
know buildings. I know the construction
process. I have been there from a
twinkle in the Owner’s eye to the final testing and checkout. I have been there and done that many times
over. THAT is the power of LCE’s Building
Performance Service: a comprehensive understanding of a building’s operation,
project management and coordination, and the construction process.
I create and provide solutions through innovative design and cost-savings techniques that are as unique as the project and often a first-of-its-kind solution in the industry. LCE only bids on projects that are compatible with my expertise, experience, time and resources.
My Fort Collins office provides accurate and appropriate solutions to many complex and challenging projects throughout Colorado. As a small business, the firm provides personalized service and I, the firm’s founder and principle engineer, Gary Leffingwell, P.E., bring over 25 years of mechanical consulting and design experience to every project. I believe the person with the most experience should be working on your project, not merely providing a name for the statement of qualification or a check at the end of the design process.