By Stacey Freed
Lalit Agarwal relates to the “No two days are alike” sentiment that most facilities professionals are familiar with. It makes reporting to work each day engaging and a new challenge. “If my job were without challenges, it would get boring, and my daily engagement would suffer.” During his two-plus decades of experience in facilities, Agarwal […]
By Dean Hansen, P.E., MBA, CEFP
Innovative Approach to “Expand” Facilities Departments The Facilities Management (FM) department at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) launched a comprehensive program in the fall of 2021 to address campus infrastructure needs and energy efficiency. The university needed to replace aged-out equipment and reduce utility expenses. The innovation of this initiative was the approach of […]
By Reginald Adams and Nina Farrell
With the new academic year underway, college and university administrators face new challenges each day in their quest to ensure the health and safety of students, faculty, and staff on campus. These challenges range from managing the logistics of virtual learning environments and managing community relations to enrollment challenges. The pressures are mounting—and so is […]
By Thomas Mulvihill
An increasing number of public and private universities are committing to meet aggressive decarbonization goals—often net zero carbon emissions before 2050. While these pledges are bold and commendable, achieving these targets through status-quo campus energy operations are often difficult for many universities. These targets are set in the wake of the increasing unreliability of government […]
By Kevin L. Dilliard, DLS
Does the campus architecture and landscape—or the campus outdoor built environment—impact student retention? If so, what role do thoughtful landscapes at colleges and universities play? Due to the changing demographic and evolving student base, a purposeful landscape design is essential to the success of a higher education campus by helping to reduce student stress. Communal […]
By Michael S. Ellegood, PE
For decades, government agencies have worked to make government work more like business—reduce costs (particularly initial capital costs), streamline procurement, and reduce the risk of capital project cost overruns—all to deliver projects faster and cheaper with reduced risk. This quest to deliver projects faster, better, and cheaper have led some public agencies into a long […]
By Mallica Reynolds
Invocation We all know the tradesman’s golden rule “measure twice, cut once.” Carpenters, electricians, plumbers, HVAC techs, etc., all swear by this rule and use it daily. However, have you stopped to consider if there is a golden rule for leaders in Facilities Management (FM)? Can we benefit from “measuring twice” and “cutting once,” concerning […]
By Lindsay Wagner
Facilities managers are critical in ensuring the safety, functionality, and compliance of campus buildings, grounds, and infrastructure. As campuses grow larger and codes and regulations become more complex, maintaining code compliance across various facilities of various ages can be daunting. This is where Artificial Intelligence (AI) comes into play, offering innovative solutions to enhance code […]
By Lindsay Wagner
Employee turnover is an inevitable reality in any facilities organization. Whether driven by personal decisions, better opportunities elsewhere, or internal dissatisfaction, the departure of key employees can significantly disrupt operations, morale, and even customer relationships. While employee turnover is a given, facilities organizations can manage the associated risks by proactively implementing strategies that reduce turnover […]
By James Gallagher
Many facilities management departments at educational institutions are also responsible for planning, managing, and overseeing construction projects. Unfortunately, where construction happens, it can sometimes lead to construction disputes, as projects cost more than anticipated, take longer than planned, make unanticipated changes, experience miscommunication and/or other issues. When dispute resolution cannot be resolved through negotiation, it […]
By Kyle Grimm
Artificial intelligence (AI) has helped create a new control system generation that automatically responds to weather, building occupancy, and many other conditions. These intuitive systems can help organizations meet their sustainability goals and reduce the need for ongoing maintenance. Intelligent systems can also help facilities staff work more proactively and minimize energy use without sacrificing […]
By Sam Ledford
Imagine you have spent months preparing an event for your team. The room is set, the prizes are on display, the cake is cut, and, when party time rolls around, only 40 percent of your team attends. Clearly, there must have been a breakdown in communication, but what could have been done to bridge the […]
