Congratulations to Ontario Power Generation (OPG), HOK, and the entire project team on OPG's Oshawa Headquarters being recognized as a 2026 Canadian Interiors 'Best of Canada' award winner.

Transforming the former GM Canada headquarters into a vibrant, future-focused workplace is an outstanding achievement. The project demonstrates how thoughtful interior design, adaptive reuse, and multidisciplinary collaboration can create spaces that support culture, sustainability, and long-term performance.

HH Angus is proud to have supported this project as the mechanical and electrical engineer, IMIT and lighting consultant, owner's engineer, plumbing/fire protection/life safety designer, and commissioning authority. Working alongside HOK and the broader design team, our role was to help create the building systems that support the vision for this exceptional workplace. The project was also recognized earlier this year with a 2026 Award of Distinction from the Association of Consulting Engineering Companies – Ontario Chapter, as well as an IES Toronto Section Award of Merit for lighting.

Congratulations again to Ontario Power Generation, HOK, and all the project partners on this well-deserved recognition.

To see all the winners, click here.

To read more about the project, click here:

At HH Angus, research is not an end in itself—it is a way to solve real-world challenges for building owners and operators.

By partnering with academic institutions and industry organizations, we are helping develop new approaches to understanding building performance, optimizing operations, and improving the long-term value of building assets. These initiatives allow us to explore emerging technologies before they become commercially available, while ensuring the work remains grounded in practical applications that benefit our clients.

The result is a collaborative process in which researchers develop innovative tools and methodologies, while HH Angus helps identify practical applications and connects those solutions to client needs.

These initiatives also help us build new capabilities and expertise that can be applied to future projects, creating long-term value for clients.

Partnering with TMU to Optimize Building Performance

One of HH Angus' current research partnerships is with Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), where researchers are exploring new ways to model and optimize building systems using operational data.

The project focuses on creating digital twins—virtual models that replicate the behaviour of real hospital building systems. Using available building data, these digital twins can simulate how systems perform under different operating conditions and test optimization strategies before any changes are made in the field.

The research is focused on central plant systems, particularly chillers and boilers, which are among the largest energy consumers in healthcare facilities. Even small improvements in how these systems operate can have a significant impact on energy consumption and operating costs.

The project is progressing through several stages, beginning with the development of digital twins, followed by testing optimization strategies within those virtual environments. Recommendations are then validated in real facilities, with the long-term goal of creating a scalable platform that can help generate optimization recommendations more efficiently.

Helping Clients Optimize Faster and with Greater Confidence

For building owners, one of the greatest challenges is determining how to improve performance without introducing operational risk.

In healthcare environments, for example, facility operators must prioritize reliability above all else. Critical systems support patient care and must operate continuously, often leaving little room to experiment with new approaches.

Digital twin technology helps address this challenge by allowing proposed changes to be tested virtually before they are implemented in a live environment. Operators can evaluate potential impacts, validate assumptions, and gain confidence in the expected outcomes before making adjustments to building systems.

Another important advantage is the ability to work with incomplete information. Traditional modeling approaches often require detailed data that may not be available in existing facilities. The research being conducted with TMU is exploring ways to model system performance using the data that is already available, helping accelerate the path to optimization.

Ultimately, the goal is to help clients improve building performance more quickly and efficiently while reducing uncertainty.

Building on a Strong Operational Foundation

The research also reinforces an important lesson about optimizing existing facilities: advanced technologies are most effective when built on a strong operational foundation.

Retro commissioning often provides one of the greatest opportunities to improve building performance by identifying gaps between a system's original design intent and its current operation. Over time, facilities evolve, operational requirements change, and systems may no longer perform as intended.

By first ensuring that systems are operating properly, building owners can establish a solid baseline for improvement. Technologies such as digital twins and machine-learning-based optimization can then build on that foundation, helping owners achieve additional gains in efficiency, performance, and reliability.

Supporting Decarbonization and Asset Performance

While energy savings are a key outcome of the research, the benefits extend beyond utility costs.

Reducing energy consumption directly supports decarbonization objectives and can help organizations advance their sustainability goals. Optimized operations can also improve resiliency by enabling facilities to get more value from existing infrastructure while maintaining reliable performance.

The technologies being developed also have potential applications in predictive maintenance. By using operational data to identify performance issues and detect anomalies earlier, building owners can move toward more proactive maintenance strategies that improve reliability and support long-term asset management.

Creating a Feedback Loop for Better Design

The value of this work extends beyond existing facilities.

One of the long-standing challenges in the building industry is understanding how facilities actually perform once they are occupied and operating. Research initiatives such as the TMU partnership create an important feedback loop, providing insights that can inform future designs and improve how building systems are engineered.

By combining academic research, operational data, and practical industry experience, HH Angus is helping create smarter approaches to building performance—approaches that benefit both today's facilities and future buildings.

Looking Ahead

As digital twin technology, advanced analytics, and machine learning continue to evolve, opportunities to improve building performance will continue to expand.

Through partnerships with organizations such as TMU, HH Angus is helping bring these innovations from the research environment into real buildings, where they can deliver measurable value. The result is a stronger ability to help clients reduce energy consumption, improve operational performance, optimize assets, and make more informed decisions about the future of their facilities.

Akira Jones, P.Eng., LEED AP
Director, Digital Services

Canada Building Energy Modellers Networking Event_Header

How can energy models better reflect the uncertainty of the real world?

Join HH Angus’ Francisco Contreras July 7 at the Canada Building Energy Modellers Networking Event as he presents:

“Accounting for Real-World Uncertainty in Whole-Building Energy Modelling”

Energy models play a critical role in informing building design and performance decisions, but real-world conditions rarely behave exactly as predicted. Francisco explores approaches to incorporating uncertainty into whole-building energy modelling to support more resilient, informed decision-making.

Whether you're an experienced energy modeller or new to the field, this is a great opportunity to expand your network and stay current on emerging trends and best practices.

For more event details and to register, click below:
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/canada-building-energy-modellers-networking-event-toronto-july-2026-tickets-1991641216492

Lessons commercial real estate owners are learning about decarbonization retrofits.

On June 16^th, the Toronto Sustainability & Innovation Summit brought together industry leaders to discuss the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of sustainable buildings and infrastructure.

For HH Angus’ Mike Hassaballa, Consulting Lead, Energy Infrastructure, the focus was clearly on the need to move beyond high level Net Zero targets and more toward asset level planning, natural intervention points, life cycle cost thinking, operational readiness, and measurement of results.

The panel discussion on “Confronting the costs, logistics and ROI of deep retrofits as 2040 climate deadlines loom” stood out for its candid approach to a topic many building owners are currently grappling with: how to turn decarbonization commitments into achievable retrofit strategies. The conversation focused on how real estate owners, operators, and consultants are translating emissions reduction targets into practical retrofit strategies.

Here are Mike’s main takeaways:

1|

Decarbonization targets need to become real plans and projects: several speakers emphasized that portfolio level Net Zero commitments only become useful when translated into property-specific plans or projects. This includes credible energy and emissions data, building condition assessments, energy audits, capital plans, and long-term equipment renewal strategies.
One useful point was that these plans should not sit in a file. They need to actively inform capital planning and projects.

2|

Retrofit strategy is increasingly tied to business cases and financial reality: the discussion repeatedly came back to commercial alignment and dollars. Retrofit decisions are being shaped by tenant requirements, leasing considerations, affordability, investor expectations, regulation, capital availability, and local market pressures.
In Toronto, sustainability expectations are relatively strong, but owners are still balancing emissions goals with cost and tenant impact as the green premium is not there yet in this market.

3|

The best retrofit opportunities often align with natural equipment replacement: this is obvious, but the practical theme was the importance of timing. Owners are more likely to justify upgrades when equipment is already at end of life.
The business case becomes easier when the comparison is not the full cost of replacement, but the incremental premium between a standard replacement and a higher performance or lower carbon option.

4|

Traditional ROI is not enough for major decarbonization decisions: several speakers noted that simple payback works well for smaller efficiency measures but does not fully capture the value of deeper retrofits. Life cycle cost, avoided future risk, carbon exposure, refrigerant regulations, tenant expectations, and the cost of inaction all need to be part of the decision.
One example discussed was how delaying equipment upgrades can create much higher costs in future when refrigerant or system requirements change.

5|

Collaboration is critical: a recurring point was that sustainability teams cannot deliver these plans alone. Capital planning teams, construction teams, operations staff, tenants, utilities, municipalities, investors, and consultants all have a role.
One speaker noted that early collaboration with capital and construction teams can be difficult but, over time, those groups can become strong internal champions for sustainability.

6|

Operations and training matter as much as capital projects: the panel also emphasized the day-to-day side of decarbonization. Building operators need the right tools, training, and data to run increasingly complex systems. Examples included fault detection and diagnostics, submetering, alerts, ongoing optimization, and AI-enabled building automation support.
The point was that capital projects get attention, but operational discipline is what makes the savings real.

7|

Measurement and verification protect credibility: another useful takeaway was the importance of confirming whether retrofit capital is actually performing. Speakers discussed using property targets, submetering, and more detailed measurement and verification for larger projects, incentive programs, or projects involving shared savings.
This is important because proving results helps maintain internal confidence and supports future capital approvals.

8|

Light retrofit versus deep retrofit is often a timing question: from the engineering perspective, the question is not always whether a building needs a light or deep retrofit, but when the deeper intervention should happen. In many buildings, electrification may require major mechanical and electrical infrastructure changes, including service upgrades, heating plant replacement, and distribution system changes.
Smaller projects need to be aligned with that future pathway, so they do not create stranded investment.

9|

Retrofit value is showing up in several ways: the panel identified several sources of value, including lower operating costs, improved leasing competitiveness, tenant requirements, investor expectations, and long-term asset positioning.
The value case varies by market and asset class, but higher quality office assets and institutional investors appear to be creating stronger demand for credible retrofit action.

Overall, the discussion reinforced that the market is moving from broad sustainability commitments toward more practical questions: which assets need action, when should capital be deployed, how do we avoid stranded investments, how do we prove performance, and how do we align decarbonization with business value?

Want to continue the conversation on decarbonization retrofits? Contact:

Author | Mike Hassaballa, P.Eng., CEM
Consulting Lead
Energy Infrastructure

Paul Wilcock,
P.Eng.
Manager
Commercial

Tula Mitsakis, P.Eng.
Manager Commercial

Progress in the green building sector doesn't happen in isolation. It's driven by collaboration, innovation, and the sharing of ideas and experiences across our industry.

From June 17 - 19, Montréal will become a hub for conversations about the future of sustainable buildings as industry leaders from across Canada gather for Building Lasting Change, the Canada Green Building Council’s annual conference.

As a CaGBC member and proud sponsor of this year’s event, HH Angus is looking forward to furthering discussions that are helping shape a more sustainable, resilient, and low-carbon built environment.

Chris Piche, Genevieve Rochette, Phil Schuyler and Abdel Ayad are looking forward to connecting with other experts who are as passionate about sustainability as we are, exchanging insights, and continuing the conversations that help create healthier, higher-performing buildings and communities across the country.

Building Lasting Change provides an important opportunity to bring those perspectives together, explore emerging solutions, and accelerate progress toward meeting Canada’s sustainability goals.