The First Facility Management Blog

Studies have found that the majority of people who work at a computer experience some eye or vision problems; the level of discomfort appears to increase with the amount of computer use. Smaller, portable work and recreational gadgets such as PDAs, laptops, and cell phones may also contribute to the visual fatigue and discomfort experienced by millions.

“The unique characteristics and high visual demands of computer work and play make many individuals susceptible to the development of eye and vision-related problems,” according to Dr. Jeffrey Anshel, a practicing optometrist and author of Visual Ergonomics in the Workplace. Eye stress and strain may be caused by a combination of individual visual problems, improper viewing habits, and poor environmental conditions, such as glare, improper work station set up, dirty screens, poor lighting and viewing angles.

• Less than one in four regular computer users suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome, while more than eight in 10 suffer visual disturbances or discomfort.
• 57% of women workers use a computer in their jobs, compared with only 44 percent of men. At home, 70 percent of women use a computer, compared with 72 percent of men.
• Nearly 54 million children work at a computer each day either at home or in school.
• In a study of more than 2,000 current and former contact lens wearers, 41% cited time spent in front of a computer as the most frequent trigger of eye discomfort.

The good news is that many potential eye and/or vision problems can be reduced or eliminated by appropriate adjustment and placement of computer monitors, lighting control, good preventive vision care habits, and regular professional eye care. Take the “Eye Q’s & Views” Quiz to see if there is anything you can do to help prevent or reduce the development of vision-related problems, and make sure to talk to your eye care professional.

1. When working at your computer, do you work for long periods of time with few interruptions or do you take breaks?
___ I tend to work for long periods of time
___ I take frequent breaks
A: Our eyes were not made to see at a close distance for hours at a time without a break. Continuous, uninterrupted activity at a computer work station can make it difficult for your eyes to focus over time. This can lead to unconscious squinting, in order to maintain visual clarity, and can put a strain on the eye muscles. Staring at a computer screen also can cut in half the number of times you blink each minute. Fewer blinks per minute can lead to sensations of dryness, irritation, and tearing.
A preventive approach to reducing visual stress includes occasionally looking away from the screen of your computer. Remember the 20/20/20 rule. Take a 20-second break every 20 minutes. Focus your eyes on points at least 20 feet from your monitor.
For people who wear contact lenses while working on the computer, long non-blinking phases may cause the surface of their lenses to dry out, which can lead to discomfort and a loss of visual clarity.

2. When working on a computer, have you ever experienced any of the following symptoms — headaches, eyestrain, blurred vision, dry or irritated eyes, double vision, color distortion, sensitivity to light?
___YES
___NO
A: The American Optometric Association highly suggests yearly eye exams to ensure ocular health. For individuals whose jobs may require extensive time in front of a monitor, talk to your eye care professional (ECP) about a comprehensive eye examination soon after beginning computer work and periodically thereafter. If, at any time, you experience any of these symptoms or other eye/vision problems or discomfort, talk to your ECP. Uncorrected or under-corrected vision problems may affect your visual performance and eye health.

3. Is your monitor sitting directly on a desk or on some type of stand?
___On desk
___On stand
A: Ideal monitor placement is dependent on several factors including an individual’s physical make-up and visual capabilities, work tasks, and other workstation design elements. For maximum eye comfort the center of the computer screen should be 5-9″ below your eye level. You should be looking just over the top of the monitor in your straight-ahead gaze.

4. From your chair, can you touch the screen of your monitor?
___Yes
___No
A: If you can touch the screen when you sit back in your chair the monitor is too close. A good rule of thumb is to use the “Three Times Rule.” With your monitor on and showing a typical work or game you use everyday, move back from the screen until it just starts to become blurred and stop. Measure this distance and divide by three. Your monitor should be placed at that distance. This would be an ideal working distance.

5. Is your screen background white/light colored or black/dark colored?
___White/light colored background
___Black/dark colored background
A: Often times visual clarity is affected by the imbalance between the screen background and the surrounding lighting. If your screen background is black or dark, dim the lights down to about one-third of what you would consider normal for an office. If dimming the lights is not possible then try turning them off and using a low wattage desk lamp positioned so the light does not directly enter the eyes or illuminate the computer screen. If white or light background screen then use brighter room lighting. If overhead lighting is too bright and you can not adjust it, then wear a visor to shield your eyes. The key is to make sure the brightness is balanced between the display and the surrounding illumination.

6. When working at a computer, are you facing a window, to the side of a window, or is the window directly behind you?
___Facing window
___To side of window
___Window behind
A: The glare coming in from windows can cause considerable eyestrain for computer users. No matter where your computer is relative to a window, adjustable shades, curtains or blinds should be used to effectively control light levels throughout the day.
While working at a computer, avoid facing an un-shaded window since the difference in brightness between the screen and the area behind it may be cause eye stress and discomfort. If an un-shaded window is in back of you, you may see annoying shadows on your computer screen. If your computer is parallel to a window and you’re experiencing glare, consider using an anti-glare screen to reduce reflections. A good quality glass circular-polarized screen may help.

7. When you are working with a paper document while on your computer, do you place it flat on your desk, in a document holder to the side of the computer, or do you use a hanging document holder?
___In a document holder to the side
___Flat on your desk
___Hanging Document holder
A: In general, whatever is viewed most often during daily work should be placed right in front of you. This applies to your display screen, as well as paper documents you are working with while on the computer. Many people tend to situate their work so that they are constantly looking off to one side or flat on the table next to the screen. This requires frequent eye, head, and/or torso movements to look back and forth from the documents to the screen. A good solution is to use a spring load document holder attached to your monitor that can hold the document adjacent to the computer screen. An alternative set-up is to locate the document (in a holder) so that it is between the monitor and the keyboard. This arrangement allows the eyes to focus and converge in their normal plane of motion (i.e., down and in).

According to a recent news item from the BBC, research printed in the Occupational and Environmental Medicine journal has found that symptoms associated with Sick Building Syndrome are caused by stress on the job–not physical surroundings or facility-related issues. The article states, “The study found high job demands and low levels of support were linked with high symptom rates, especially for those with little decision-making power.”

Responses to the study were collected from 4,000 civil servants from 44 buildings in and around London. Participants in the study were asked about their physical environment and the psychological pressures associated with their jobs. While hot, dry air was linked to increased symptoms, stress was seen as the most important contributor.

“Our findings suggest that, in this sample of office based workers, physical attributes of buildings have a small influence on symptoms.”

Co-author Dr Mai Stafford of the Epidemiology and Public Health department of University College London, said: “We are not making claims that buildings don’t matter for anybody.

“But for the general workforce job stress and job demands seem to have a bigger impact.

“There certainly could be buildings which do have physical properties that are very bad,” she added.

The researchers acknowledged that the quality of the Whitehall buildings they looked into could have been too good to have an adverse effect on health.

But they concluded: “When sick building syndrome symptoms come to light, managers should consider causes beyond the physical design and operation of the workplace.”

Self-improvement professionals—from weight-loss experts to exercise gurus to motivational speakers—will tell you that attitude is everything. To make any type of positive change in your life, the change must first begin in your own mind.

Unfortunately, an unsafe attitude toward workplace practices can have just as much influence on a person’s behavior as a positive attitude—except for the worse. A potentially dangerous disregard for safety could lead to a serious workplace accident.

Below are six phrases, each reflecting an unsafe attitude that could lead to workplace woes. “Whenever you hear one of these phrases or something similar on the job, you should pay close attention to the situation at hand,” said Benjamin Mangan, president and founder of MANCOMM and American Safety Training, Inc. These two companies work together to develop and provide Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) compliance products and safety training. “You may be able to stop an accident before it has happened.”

1. “We don’t have time.”
investing time in safety training ultimately saves far more time than it loses for companies. Work time is lost whenever an injury or illness occurs, and that employee’s expertise is removed from the workplace. If an employee dies because of a workplace accident or illness, surely that is the most tragic loss of all. There’s always time to train to work safely.

2. “I know a shortcut.”
People sometimes take shortcuts on the job because they are banking on the fact that nothing bad will happen. But these shortcuts can lead to complex problems. “Shortcuts can often lead to disaster,” said Mangan. “For example, a worker may decide to use too short a ladder to reach the roof of a building because he doesn’t want to find and transport a longer one. A ladder should extend three feet beyond the top of a building, so the worker can step off the ladder onto the roof. If the worker uses one that’s too short and has to climb up onto the roof, he could experience a nasty fall. On the 2005 list of OSHA’s 10 most commonly violated regulations, ‘Ladders’ was entry No. 10, so one’s choice in ladders can be a crucial decision.”

3. “I think this is the right way to do it…”
“In our safety training classes,” Mangan said, “we encourage safety professionals from a wide variety of industries to look up regulations whenever they are in doubt about a safety matter. Guessing or believing hearsay is always unwise.”

To encourage safety professionals to look up information, MANCOMM developed a graphical, colorful approach called RegLogic®, which they use in the books of government regulations they publish. Usually, regulations from the government printing office are published in black-and-white text blocks, and it can take hours to weeks to find needed information. With books enhanced with RegLogic®, the fact-finding time is cut considerably.

4. “Regulations don’t change that often.”
In truth, government regulations change on a fairly regular basis. “Today’s world is constantly changing, and each day brings new advances in technology. These changes are reflected in the regulations,” said Mangan. “That’s why we print revised editions and offer update services for our regulation books.” Regulations should be considered as works constantly in progress, and it is up to employers to stay updated on the rules that affect their companies.

5. “We’ll fix it later.”
No employee should be allowed to work with damaged equipment, whether it is a ladder, a forklift, or even a hammer. A broken part can fly off and injure someone—and in the case of a vehicle, the machine may malfunction or even tip over. Defective items need to be taken out of commission immediately.

6. “It’s not in the budget.”
Some people may think regular safety training is an expense that can be delayed or avoided altogether. But if an employee is injured or killed in an accident, the resulting medical expenses and possible OSHA fines would add up to an expense far greater than the cost of training. Safety instruction is always a worthwhile investment.

Ultimately, safety training leads to greater safety awareness and fewer work-related illnesses and accidents, which in turn means lower insurance costs and medical expenditures, as well as happier employees. Also, a decrease in accident-related downtime results in an increase in productivity.

“Some regulations may seem inconvenient or difficult to follow,” Mangan said, “but many were created because at some point, a worker experienced an injury that could have been prevented. As a result, a solution to the problem was born. When you observe the regulations, you can avoid major problems and expenses and enjoy a safer workplace.

GRAINGER, sponsor of TFM’s 2006 Facility Executive of the Year Award, recently announced the addition of more than 39,000 products to its new catalog (launching April 3, 2006). The expansion brings the number of products offered through its catalog from 82,000 to more than 115,000.

Make sure to check out Grainger’s offerings at The TFM Show, April 10-12, at the Navy Pier in Chicago.

The expanded offering consists of some 30,000 different fasteners such as screws, bolts, and nuts, and an additional 10,000 products spread across diverse product categories including electrical, cleaning, material handling, plumbing and ventilation. To celebrate the announcement the company commissioned a large fastener sculpture by well-known Chicago sculptor Erik Blome. The sculpture stands 7 feet tall, weighs approximately 500 pounds, and is comprised of thousands of fasteners and related products.

“Our customers count on us to be a one-stop shop for a broad selection of maintenance repair and operating supplies, enabling them to manage their facilities efficiently,” said Michael Pulick, Grainger’s vice president of product management. “We had a clear opportunity to bolster our offering, especially in fasteners. Today we are excited to announce that we are
poised to handle even more of our customers’ unplanned MRO needs.”

In addition to the new larger catalog with more products and information, the company will stock more than 4,000 fasteners
locally in most of its 400 U.S. branches with the balance available for shipping from distribution centers. Product selection tools will assist customers in narrowing their selection to the right product based on factors such as grade, size, and material. Advanced cross-referencing tools, a new dedicated fastener catalog and employee product training will also help customers save time in sourcing the right product for their applications.

Edge Designs is an all female company that designs interior office space. The firm had a recent opportunity to do an office project in NYC. The client allowed the women of this company a free hand in all design aspects.

For TFM’s related coverage, see “Exchanging Wacky Washrooms” from the archives.

Most public rest rooms are not the scene of chit chat or laughter; they’re places where people do what they have to and then leave. But with the addition of this mural on the wall, one men’s rest room is now a place of discussion, laughter, and smiles.

Eric Hsiao, an engineer with Tornado Industries, a cleaning equipment company in Chicago, IL, addresses some traditional carpet cleaning procedures that may need to be revisited.

For TFM’s coverage of carpet care in the March 2006, see “Carpet 101″ in the current issue.

Hsiao writes:
For decades, carpets have been cleaned using 175/250-rpm floor machines with a bonnet attached. However, just because something is a common practice does not mean it is the most effective cleaning method, or even the best for the carpet.

In fact, many experts believe this form of carpet care is precisely the method that should not be used when performing interim carpet cleaning.

“The reason is that 175/250-rpm buffers are designed for heavy duty scrubbing and stripping of hard surface floors,” says John Garger, of Tandus, manufacturers of carpet and other floor covering materials in Dalton, GA. “The spinning rotary action generates friction and heat build up, which is not beneficial to any carpeted or soft surface floor.”

In fact, Garger adds that on some carpets, it can untwist the face yarns, and laboratory evaluations indicate that permanent yarn distortion and abrasion can occur very shortly after use of a rotary buffer, regardless of the attachments, shampoo brush, or yarn bonnet attached to the interlock.

If bonnet cleaning is to be performed, a more preferable equipment of choice would be to use a cylindrical brush machine, which is not as abrasive to carpets, will not torque in the wrong direction, but will still clean deeply and aggressively.

New Carpet Extraction Methods
Similarly, certain carpet extraction procedures have been used for many years, but new research and technologies indicate they may not be the most effective.
For the sake of productivity, it has been common practice to add cleaning chemical/solution to the water in the solution tank of a self-contained extractor. This solution was then injected into the carpet fibers at a sizable pressure and then simultaneously vacuumed up, leaving an apparently clean carpet—or so it was thought.

The reality of this method is that chemical residue from the solution adheres to the carpet fibers. This substance allows dirt to “stick” to the lower portion of the fibers, and the carpet can end up looking in worse shape than it was before the extraction. In essence, the cure is worse than the illness.

What can be done to prevent this problem? In order to get carpet clean, a chemical is still recommended, however, it should be applied during a pre-spray. The extractor should then be run with only water in the solution tank; this will remove the soapy residue from the carpet fibers, which not only cleans the carpet, but also helps it stay clean.

According to analysis by Frost & Sullivan, North American Integrated Facility Management Services Market, environmental concerns among end-users and implementation of new government policies—such as the Energy Conservation Policy in 2005—is making some opportunities open in the Integrated Facility Management (I-FM) services market in North America. The opportunities are included in various end-user segments such as healthcare, education, government buildings where services in building O&M, janitorial services, IT, and telecom have the potential to be outsourced.

For TFM’s coverage of this topic, see “The Controversial Conversation” in the archives.

The Frost & Sullivan analysis reveals that the total North American I-FM services market earned revenue of $25.37 billion in 2005, and it estimates this market will reach $44.54 billion in 2012.

“The IT and telecom service sector is expected to grow at the fastest pace as compared to others owing to the increased market demand and clients’ adaptability of advance technology to serve their customers,” says Frost & Sullivan research analyst Sapan Agarwal.

Increasing trends in mergers and acquisitions, and alliances between various I-FM services companies with IT and telecom companies, such as the alliance between Johnson Controls and IBM, has worked successfully to be one of the world’s largest companies.

A high level of delayed maintenance is occurring within most large-scale client companies. There are various reasons causing the delay such as a lack of infrastructure and less interest driving facility managers to take initiatives due to improper communication between service vendors and facility managers.

“An integrated facilities management solution directly affects a client company’s ability to achieve its business objectives and helps concentration in its core competencies,“ notes Agarwal.

The challenge is negotiating an equitable contract whereby deferred maintenance issues are addressed in the beginning and then proper proactive and predictive maintenance systems are implemented throughout the term of the I-FM agreement.

Facility managers can request a brochure containing the latest analysis by sending an e-mail to trisha.bradley@frost.com. Requests should include: Name, company name, title, telephone number, e-mail address, city, state, and country.

The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International recently added six new policy positions to its advocacy agenda. Five of the six new policies are related to American National Standards put forth by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The other policy position passed deals with smart growth.

“As one of the 200 developers of standards in the U.S., our membership has a vested interest in ANSI’s process for adopting new standards,” said BOMA International Chairman and Chief Elected Officer David W. Hewett, RPA, CPM, CCIM, FMA, CFM, principal for Trammell Crow Company, Auburn Hills, MI. “All were developed with the intent of improving ANSI’s mission of enhancing the global competitiveness of U.S. business by facilitating voluntary consensus standards and conformity assessment systems, and safeguarding their integrity. We’re confident that by advocating for these new positions, we can help improve the process for all.”

Following are highlights of the five new positions relating to ANSI:
1. Policy on Appeals on Standards: BOMA International will provide a process by which a stakeholder in a standard may make an appeal on a standard developed by BOMA International. BOMA has established this appeals process in order to demonstrate its commitment to due process in standards development, to offer an avenue by which a stakeholder may appeal a standard, and to receive comments on its standards that will serve as aids in the future revision of standards.
2. Policy on Interpretation of Standards: In order to provide additional background and explanations for the Standard Method for Measuring Floor Area in Office Buildings and the Standard Method for Measuring Floor Area in Industrial Buildings, BOMA International will maintain information on its Web site on the most commonly asked questions about the floor measurements standards. In addition to providing an interpretation, these inquiries help provide the basis for consideration of revision to the standard at the appropriate time.
3. Policy on the Metric System: BOMA International supports the use of the metric system and endeavors to include metric units in all BOMA publications.
4. Policy on Patents Used to Employ BOMA Developed Standards: BOMA International embraces the policy on use of patented inventions that may be required to adhere to American National Standards that has been developed and approved by ANSI.
5. Policy on Record Retention: The American National Standards process ensures that there is an opportunity for all those who are interested in and affected by a standard to participate in its development. Due process is key to ensuring that American National Standards are developed in an environment that is equitable, accessible and responsive to the requirements of various stakeholders. BOMA International recognizes that as a part of that due process the careful retention of documents is necessary and has put into place several procedures to ensure adequate record retention.

The sixth new policy adopted by BOMA’s Board of Governors relates to smart growth, with BOMA’s position stating: BOMA International believes that growth, conducted in an unplanned or excessive fashion, only undermines the economies and quality of life of existing urban and suburban centers. To promote the viability of both existing and proposed communities, future development must occur in a structured fashion so that it does not harm the tax base, overburden infrastructure, overwhelm the environment, or imperil current municipal areas.

BOMA will call upon Congress and federal agencies that examine the issue of smart growth to address development and growth at the local level; fully fund national programs to support infrastructure; support national programs to reclaim properties for use, such as “brownfields” initiatives and Superfund reform; and always honor private property rights.

“After years of ‘sprawl,’ many regions are witnessing the unintended consequences of unplanned and unchecked growth, with undeveloped ‘greenfields’ being consumed at voracious rates, roadways being overburdened and demands for newer infrastructure continuing to mount,” added Hewett. “Development policies that promote the quality of life and the quality of community have long enjoyed our support and active participation, and by adopting an official stance on this issue, we hope to continue that support even more effectively.”

Education shouldn’t stop once facility managers get the job of their dreams. No matter what position they’re in, from intern to president, education should improve and enrich one’s experience on the job. In fact, continuing education on the job can help an organization reach peak performance levels by encouraging creativity and productivity.

Too often, managers concern themselves with hiring people who have a good education, without looking at other characteristics, such as logical thinking or flexibility. Then, once they are hired, employees forget about the importance of continuing the learning process.

According to consultant and author Winston Scott, part of the responsibility belongs to the employer to provide opportunities for education. In his article, “The ABCs of Education in Business,” Winston gives tips on harnessing the power of learning to improve business skills at every level. In it, he shows how to:

• Consider not just the education of each hire, but other attributes such as logical thinking and problem-solving skills;
• Create a hiring process that measure other skills in an essay format or cognitive tests
• Offer on-the-job training to improve efficiency and proficiency
• Ask the right questions to help employees advance in weaker areas and learn more about new skill sets

The role of education goes far beyond just opening the right doors. If facility managers continue to learn on the job, their company will benefit from the confidence they build from their experiences.

What is the relationship between the ozone hole and global warming?

What the heck is zooxanthellae?

To find out the answers to these questions, take the Environmental Defense’s 10 question quiz.

According to the people from Environmental Defense, this is a pivotal year for global warming action. Anyone who appreciates the dangers of global warming and is committed to taking action has a special role to play in the coming months. Public education is essential in mobilizing demand for change.

Are you ready? This quiz is both fun and educational, and participants will get their results immediately.

Here’s the first question: Why care about global warming?