Natasha Mendivel

Honolulu International Airport Emergency Powerplant

Honolulu, Hawaii

  • • 4-25MW Emergency Generators

    • Custom Field-Erected Fuel Tanks

    • Generator Engine Exhaust System

    • Distributed Power Generation

  • • Automated electric power

    • Monitoring, and distribution system allows for remote dispatch by HECO

    • Multi-story building design developed to fit within the available footprint

    • Direct connection to the HECO substation allows for switching of power to feed the airport’s circuits in the event of a power outage

    • Sound attenuation silencers incorporated into the design to meet city and state noise limits.

    • Fuel system designed to use environmentally-friendly biodiesel fuel

Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) and the Department of Transportation Airports Division (DOTA) each faced engineering challenges. HECO needed a solution to strengthen their electrical grid during peak demand periods, while DOTA aimed to construct a consolidated facility to provide emergency power to the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport.

As the prime consultant, InSynergy Engineering, Inc. developed engineering concept sketches for potential sites and evaluated their feasibility. Ultimately, a site near HECO’s existing electrical substation serving the airport was chosen for the construction of a multi-story emergency power generation facility. Our team provided mechanical, electrical, and fire protection design, as well as project management. This facility can supply up to 80% of the airport’s electrical demand during emergencies. In non-emergency periods, it supplements HECO’s electrical grids by providing up to 8MW of power with a single click from a remote dispatch location.

The building features four 2.5MW prime power-rated emergency generators, an intake and discharge air system, and an engine exhaust system meeting strict EPA emissions standards. Additionally, the fuel storage and delivery system includes two custom-built steel tanks capable of keeping the airport operational for at least 96 hours. Notably, the entire fuel system is designed to support biodiesel fuel. Furthermore, a sophisticated generator master control system automatically monitors power demands from over 10 electrical vaults throughout the airport, supplying emergency power based on priority demands identified by DOTA.

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PUI COCO Dry & Cold Storage Facility

Barrigada, Guam

  • • 66,000 SF dry and cold storage warehouse for commercial and military customers

    • Largest commercial cold storage and climate-controlled facility in Micronesia

  • • Cascade Multi-stage Compressor Rack Refrigeration Systems and Evaporators, and outdoor Condenser Units

    • Glycol Subfloor Heating system

    • Attic dehumidification system and ventilation system

    • High efficiency VRF HVAC system

    • 100% redundant standby power system

    • High efficiency high bay LED lighting fixtures

    • Diesel Engine Vertical Turbine Fire pump

Completed in 2021, this new dry and cold storage facility located in the village of Barrigada, Guam was constructed in support of the increased demand for frozen, chilled and climate-controlled warehousing and distribution services for commercial and military customers. The storage facility includes 16,000 SF of freezer, 11,000 SF of chiller, 22,000 SF of dehumidified dry storage, and 8,500 SF of support shipping areas.

InSynergy Engineering, Inc. provided the mechanical, plumbing, electrical, telecommunications, and fire protection design work. The systems are environmentally friendly, high performance, and energy efficient. The mechanical system consists of a high efficiency variable refrigerant flow (VRF) system and dedicated outside air system providing the ventilation required for office spaces, two cascade multi-stage compressor rack refrigeration systems, evaporators, and outdoor condenser units. The freezer space also included a glycol subfloor heating system to prevent frost buildup in the building slab and floor. The dedicated outside air system provides treated outdoor air pressurizing the shipping and distribution space. The attic above the warehouse spaces houses the mechanical exhaust for refrigerant leaks and dehumidification system to prevent condensation. The plumbing system consists of a duplex booster pump system, high efficiency hot water heating system, and low flow plumbing fixtures. The electrical system was designed for resiliency and reliability in consideration of Guam Power Authority’s vulnerability to typhoons and lack of capacity. The 480V and 208/120V electrical distribution system, includes redundant on-site standby power generators, which provides standby power to the facility and reefer containers at loading dock, as well as interior and exterior lighting. The lighting fixtures are high performance LED fixtures. The telecommunications system consists of interior data and voice distribution systems and access control systems at the exterior doors and the motorized gate entrances. Parking lot lightings utilize photovoltaic powered pole lights with batteries for energy efficiency and sustainability. The fire protection systems consist of a fire alarm system and an addressable fire sprinkler system. The warehouse spaces are protected with Early Suppression Fast Response (ESFR) pendent sprinkler heads. The freezer and chiller spaces utilize dry pendent sprinkler heads to simplify the sprinkler systems instead of dry pipe sprinkler systems. All other spaces including office, attic, and fire pump room are protected with quick response standard spray sprinkler heads. A 2,000 gpm, 128 psi diesel engine vertical turbine fire pump supported by a 250,000 gallon underground concrete fire water storage tank serves the fire sprinkler system in the storage facility and private fire hydrants throughout the facility.

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Servpac Mililani Tech Park Data Center

Mililani, Hawaii

  • • 5,000 Square Foot Data Center

    • Uptime Institute - Tier 4 Certification

  • • Energy Efficient VRF System

    • Efficient N+1 Air Conditioning capability

    • Pre-Action Fire Suppression System

    • Fault Tolerant Utility Infrastructure

    • 1st Uptime Institute Certified Tier 4 facility in Hawaii

    • 500 kW Supported IT Load

    • N+1 Emergency Generator

    • 1st and only Uptime Institute Certified Tier 4 facility in Hawaii

The Servpac Mililani Tech Park (MTP) Data Center was constructed to meet Hawai'i’s growing demand for IT capacity and network reliability. Completed in 2022, the Servpac MTP site became Hawaii’s first and only Tier 4 data center, ensuring a 99.995% uptime rate annually. Tier 4 data center is the highest certification in the Uptime Institute’s system of classifying data center performance, providing enterprise-level service for mission-critical infrastructure. In 2024, an expansion increased its supported IT capacity to approximately 500 kW.

InSynergy Engineering, Inc. was tasked with designing the mechanical, electrical, and fire protection systems to meet fault-tolerant criteria defined by the Uptime Institute, ensuring uninterrupted IT operations even in the event of equipment failure. Throughout the design process, close collaboration with the Uptime Institute was done to meet these rigorous standards.

The building’s mechanical system includes 288 tons of Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) equipment, a fully enclosed hot aisle configuration for maximum energy efficiency, and a pre-action fire system to minimize damage in case of fire. The electrical system features energy-efficient LED lighting and a certified Tier 4 distribution system. The redundant electrical infrastructure is comprised of distribution panels, generators, UPS units, auto and static transfer switches, and ducts.

Upon completion of construction, Tier 4 certification was obtained from the Uptime Institute after a rigorous inspection and testing process of the mechanical and electrical infrastructure.

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Kona Village Resort

Kauai - Kona, Hawaii

  • • 81.4 Acre 150 Key Resort

    • 2 Fine Dining Restaurants

    • General Store & Food/Bar Venues

    • Stage and Luau Area

    • Fitness Center and Spa

    • Cultural Center and Museum

  • • High Efficiency Chiller Plant with 3.5 miles of underground piping

    • Fiber connected Fire Alarm System with voice to each hale

    • Resort owned electrical distribution from main service to each building

    • Resort-wide propane system for water heating, cooking, and tiki torches

    • Recycled R1 and RO well water for cooling towers & irrigation

    • Certified LEED v.4 Gold

Situated on the shores of Kahuwai Bay in Kailua-Kona on the Big Island of Hawai'i, Kona Village originally opened its doors in 1965. It sits on the site of an ancient Hawaiian fishing village, Ka'ūpūlehu, which was vacated after the 1801 Hualalai lava flow. Lava covered much of the area, but spared the anchialine ponds which remains a registered natural preserve. Kona Village is known for its unique Polynesian thatched “hales”. The iconic resort was heavily damaged by the 2011 Japan Tsunami.

InSynergy Engineering, Inc. provided the mechanical, electrical and fire protection design work for the complete reconstruction of the original Kona Village into a new 81.4 acre, five-diamond resort. The project included 150 resort units, consisting mainly of single-unit hales, several two-unit lock-off hales, four family suites, and two presidential suites. Six of the original Kona Village hales were also retained and completely renovated. The resort amenities include two fine dining restaurants along with other food and bar venues, a spa, fitness center, children’s center, cultural/education centers, and two large water feature pools. The resort also includes a stage and luau for both resort and non-resort guests.

Exterior work included coordinating the domestic water, pressurized sewer, fire protection, well water, R1 and RO water, chilled water, and propane distribution along the roadways from a new central chilled water plant and other generation facilities to the end use points. Electrical support included assisting in sizing of the electrical power distribution loads, step-down transformers and switchgear at each service building to each hale, suite, and common area building, and coordinating the IT services requirements and exterior IT distribution. Other exterior work included site, roadway, and pathway lighting, R1 recycled and RO well water for irrigation and water features; propane for the tiki torches and fire pits, and supporting electrical interconnections for a third-party Power Purchase Agreement net-zero PV system. InSynergy Engineering, Inc. also prepared a mechanical and electrical engineering infrastructure feasibility/sustainability study for the original site development masterplan and implemented and documented the sustainability features to achieve certified LEED v.4 Gold for the Moana restaurant, Spa, and Employee Village.

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Sky Ala Moana

Honolulu, Hawaii

  • • Towers contain both Residential and Condotel units

    • Designed within Marriot standards

  • • High Efficiency Air Cooled Chiller Plant for Hotel Rooms

    • Direct Expansion Multi-Split Systems for Residential Rooms

    • Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

Sky Ala Moana and Renaissance Honolulu Hotel and Spa is a mixed-use development located in the heart of Honolulu, Hawai'i. It offers stunning views of the city skyline and ocean, with a focus on modern urban living and convenience. The site consists of two 43-story towers, connected by a shared podium. The project features contemporary architecture, spacious living, high-end amenities including a large deck, swimming pool, fitness center, and spa. Its prime location near Ala Moana Center, one of Hawai'i’s largest shopping destinations and the largest outdoor shopping mall in the world, adds to its appeal as a vibrant urban oasis.

InSynergy Engineering, Inc. provided mechanical, electrical, and fire protection design work for the project. The Sky Ala Moana West Tower is a condo tower containing 390 residential units, The Ala Moana Sky East Tower is a hotel-condo tower containing 84 residential units and 300 hotel rooms. The podium connecting the two towers offers an acre of amenity space for the residents and guests. The ground floor is home to a range of tenant spaces from boutique shops to full service restaurants. The Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing and Fire Protection design is tailored specifically to the needs of each tower. The Sky Ala Moana East Tower is equipped with a central air-cooled chiller plant to provide efficient, high-class systems, for the hotel rooms, minimizing operational costs while adhering to the project budget. Each residence in the Sky West Tower is outfitted with a direct expansion multisplit system, ensuring that each residential unit has its own local, controllable system. LED lighting has been installed throughout the properties, accompanied by automatic lighting controls, which responds to activity, daylight, and specific time schedules. Additionally, level 2—electric vehicle charging stations with smart charging capabilities, which can adjust to charging demand and behavior, were installed within the parking structure.

The fire protection system for the project includes a wet pipe sprinkler system, ensuring complete coverage with sprinkler heads installed in all residential and hotel rooms. The entire site, encompassing both towers, is safeguarded by a centralized electric fire pump, supported by a 1.25 mW diesel emergency generator, providing reliable backup power to ensure uninterrupted safety in the event of an emergency.

Maunakea Marketplace Affordable Rentals

  • • 25,000 Square Foot Area

    • Gathering Place

    • Fitness/Yoga Area

    • Security Gate and Elevator

    • Designed & Constructed in Partnership with Former Governor Abercrombie & Department of Community Services

  • • ENERGY STAR appliances

    • Water saving fixtures

    • Dedicated outside air unit with hot gas reheat

Honolulu, Hawaii

Maunakea Marketplace Affordable Rental was a 2020 renovation project located in Honolulu’s Chinatown. This project converted 25,000 square feet of storage and retail spaces to new residential apartments. The project is located on the second floor of Maunakea Marketplace above a retail center with an open marketplace and food court.

InSynergy Engineering, Inc. provided mechanical, electrical, and fire protection design work for the renovation of Maunakea Marketplace Affordable Rental. The apartment space consists of thirty-eight affordable rental units ranging from studios to two-bedrooms. There are also office spaces and common areas such as a gathering place, fitness area, and laundry room. Security gates and an elevator were added to isolate the second floor living space from the first floor retail area.

Each living unit has its own direct-expansion fan coil unit, bathroom exhaust fan, and electric water heater. The common spaces and office spaces were provided with its own cooling and exhaust systems as well. A dedicated outside air unit and air cooled condensing units were located on the roof of the building. Electrical work included lighting and providing power to the spaces. Fire sprinkler and fire alarm systems were included as part of fire protection design work.

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Base Administrative Building

Camp Blaz Marine Corps Base, Guam

  • • Camp Blaz HQ Building

    • 69,000 Square Feet

    • Storm Shelter

  • • High Efficiency Air-Cooled Chiller Plant

    • Dedicated emergency cooling loop

    • Emergency Operations Center (EOC)

    • Classified and unclassified telecommunication infrastructure with diverse paths for data, power, and cooling.

    • Certified HPSB Guiding Principles Compliant Design

J-011 is a three-story administration building set as the base command headquarters and telecommunications center of the Pacific at the new Camp Blaz, Marine Corps Base, Guam. The base administrative building is a three-story structure for base administrative functions, Emergency Operations Center (EOC), Range Control Facility, Fire Desk Operations, and Electrical/Comm Maintenance Shop.

The Legal Services Facility is a one-story structure supporting legal services, a courtroom, and the judge’s quarters. The Postal Services Center is a one-story structure providing postal services to base personnel. The facility will support an estimated 220 military and civilian personnel. With an estimated construction completion date of Fall 2024, the second floor houses the EOC, which doubles as an emergency storm shelter.

InSynergy Engineering, Inc. was tasked with providing the mechanical, plumbing, and telecommunications design for the facility. For energy efficiency, system reliability, and longevity due to Guam’s tropical climate, the mechanical system was designed around an air-cooled chilled water system.

The J-011 building will house over sixty unclassified, classified, and commercial equipment cabinets to support all telecommunication functions throughout the structures. Telecommunication systems include backbone and cabling systems for unclassified and classified voice and data, radio frequency transmission, cable television, audio-visual, video teleconference, grounding system, intercom system, industrial control system, and electronic security systems, including an automated access control system, intrusion detection system, and closed-circuit television.

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Family Housing

U.S. Army Garrison, Kwajalein Atoll

  • • 5.2 Acres Army Family Housing Site

    • Laundry Room

    • Covered Lanai

  • • Hardened MEP Equipment

    • Corrosion resistant design

    • Certified LEED v.4 Silver

    • ENERGY STAR appliances and fixtures

Located on U.S. Army Garrison-Kwajalein Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the atoll is part of the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site, formerly known as Kwajalein Missile Range. Kwajalein Atoll hosts the Space Fence radar, which tracks satellites and orbital debris. The test site is also used for ballistic missile and missile-interceptor testing, and for space operations support. The existing forty abandoned housing units in seven buildings at the Army Family Housing site were demolished and twenty-four single-family dome-shaped housing units were constructed on the site. Each housing unit consisted of a master bedroom with its own bathroom, two or three additional bedrooms with a shared bathroom, laundry room, living room and kitchen, utility closet, covered lanai, and a storage area. Due to the corrosive environment in Kwajalein, fiberglass was selected as the material for the housing units.

InSynergy Engineering, Inc. provided the mechanical, electrical, and fire protection design work for the new twenty-four single-family housing units on site. The housing site consisted of twenty-one standard three-bedroom units, two mobility-accessible three-bedroom units, one standard four bedroom unit, and one mobility-accessible four-bedroom unit. The site included traditional concrete block structures for utility distribution including an area distribution node and four transformer vaults. On-site air-cooled condensing units serving the housing units are enclosed with concrete block walls.

Interior electrical work included providing power, lighting, and telecommunication to support the new housing units. Due to the method of construction of the fiberglass dome panels, conduits had to be ran within the seam covers to be concealed. False joint covers were also provided to mount the ceiling fan/light combo fixture, as the drop ceiling is only provided in the center of the dome structure. Exterior electrical work included sizing the unit substations in each transformer vault serving the housing units and providing exterior pole lights around the site.

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American Medical Center

Mangilao, Guam

  • • 16,000 SF Medical Clinic

    • Procedure Room

    • Laboratory

    • Pharmacy

  • • 63 kW roof mounted photovoltaics system funded by USDA Rural grant

    • Photovoltaic pole lights at parking lights

    • High efficiency VRF AC system, low flow plumbing fixtures, and lighting system

    • Standby Power System

American Medical Center opened their second family clinic in 2015 in the village of Mangilao, Guam. The clinic provides essential healthcare services to the residents on the east side of Guam. It also serves as an emergency care facility for patients waiting for emergency medical response transiting from the Guam Memorial Hospital located on the west side of Guam. The clinic has greatly improved the healthcare service quality and availability for the east side communities on the island of Guam.

InSynergy Engineering, Inc. provided the mechanical, plumbing, electrical, and telecommunication design work for the new clinic. The systems were designed to meet healthcare facility standards while being environmentally friendly with reliable, high performance, energy efficient systems.

The mechanical system consists of a high efficiency variable refrigerant flow air conditioning (VRF AC) system with a separate dedicated outside air system. These systems provide ventilation required for healthcare facilities and independent comfort controls for each zone of the clinic. The plumbing system consists of potable water storage, booster pump system, ultraviolet disinfection system, high efficiency hot water heating system, and low flow plumbing fixtures.

The electrical system includes a 480V electrical distribution system with roof-mounted photovoltaic system, and on-site standby power generator. The interior and exterior lighting systems are comprised of high performance fluorescent and LED fixtures. Parking lot lighting utilizes photovoltaic powered pole lights with batteries which were provided cost free to the client from a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development Programs. To further the sustainability, a 63 kW grid-tide roof-mounted photovoltaic system generates on-site renewable energy for the clinic and supplies surplus power back to the utility company.

The telecommunications system consists of interior data and a voice distribution system supporting the IT systems for the various departments and patient health care services.

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