The First Facility Management Blog

The International Facility Management Association has combined its 2010 spring events into one conference offering facility professionals a fusion of new ideas, best practices, and leadership and management training. IFMA Facility Fusion will help built environment professionals recharge their careers through instructor-led educational programming; an expo showcasing the latest products and services; cutting-edge facility tours; and other professional development opportunities.

Held April 13-15, 2010, in Philadelphia, Pa., at the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown, Facility Fusion will feature an Energy Forum hosted by a panel of government experts; three industry-leading power speakers; and an opportunity for attendees to meet new IFMA President and CEO Tony Keane, CAE.

Facility Fusion kicks off with an Energy Forum on Tuesday, April 13, featuring a panel of authorities from federal and state government agencies. Representatives from the U.S. State Department, U.S. General Services Administration, Naval Facilities Engineering Command and the City of Philadelphia have been invited to speak. Panelists will discuss energy as it relates to federal buildings as well as carbon capture and new legislation impacting sustainability in the built environment.

“As decisions made in Washington increasingly affect the built environment, it’s critical that we routinely engage those agencies at the forefront of promoting energy efficiency and sustainable practices,” said IFMA Director of Government Relations Jeffrey Johnson. “We’re pleased to have a growing list of government members who can provide perspective on the current administration’s approach to energy policy, how it’s affecting their agency and what effect those priorities may have on the private sector.”

The first day will also feature educational sessions highlighting sustainability case studies, resource conservation best practices and more. Representatives from the City of Orlando, Green Building Services and Texas A&M University’s Health Science Center will present. Conference attendees will get to meet Keane, who will address the audience during lunch on the first day and share his vision for IFMA in 2010 and beyond.

Day two of Facility Fusion, Wednesday, April 14, will begin with a presentation from power speaker William Rodgers Jr., president and CEO of GoodCents and former president and CEO of EMCOR Facilities Services. Rodgers will present “How to Make the Case to the C-Suite,” a presentation in which he teaches facility professionals how to develop clear sustainability initiatives and programs and then sell them to upper management.

The conference’s second day will include educational sessions on strategic portfolio management, environmental responsibility and reducing corporate food service costs. Representatives from Harrah’s Entertainment, SCAN Health Plan and the University of Reading will present. Additionally, day two will offer tours of local Philadelphia facilities including the state-of-the-art ARAMARK Innovation Center in Philadelphia’s Wanamaker Building; the Philadelphia Museum of Art, one of the largest museums in the U.S.; the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, one of the leading pediatric hospitals and research facilities in the world; PECO, the largest electric and natural gas utility in Pennsylvania; and the Keystone Helicopter/Sikorsky Global Helicopters facility.

The Facility Fusion expo will also debut on Wednesday and remain open until the close of the conference on Thursday. The expo will feature dozens of exhibiting companies promoting the latest workplace products and services. Companies including Bentley Prince Street, CORT, GCA Services Group, Munters and ServiceMaster Clean, among others, will be on the expo floor.

The conference will conclude on Thursday, April 15, with presentations from power speakers Jim Mathis and Sheila Brown. Mathis, an author, business consultant and president of The Mathis Group, will present “Reinventing Yourself for the New World of Work: 7 Bold Truths to Becoming a Market Leader.” His presentation will focus on responding to the recession through a market-oriented, consumer-driven business plan. Brown, an associate with Stantec consulting who helped develop Canada’s LEED® credentials, will present “Green Buildings: Trends for 2010.” She will discuss the latest energy, environmental and sustainability issues impacting the built environment and provide tips for making the business case for green building operations.

The final day of Facility Fusion will also include a variety of educational sessions covering topics such as strategic facility planning, ENERGY STAR® utilization and organizational cost savings. Representatives from ARAMARK, Facilities Solutions Group, Pacific Building Care and State Farm Insurance will present.

Those interested in attending Facility Fusion may register here. Members of the media may register for the event at no cost by e-mailing communications@ifma.org.

To learn more about the IFMA Facility Fusion conference and expo, or to learn about the Certified Facility Manager® and Facility Management Professional courses being offered in conjunction with the event, visit www.ifmafacilityfusion.org.

IFMA is the world’s largest and most widely recognized international association for professional facility managers, supporting more than 19,000 members in 60 countries. The association’s members, represented in 125 chapters and 16 councils worldwide, manage more than 37 billion square feet of property and annually purchase more than US$100 billion in products and services. Formed in 1980, IFMA certifies facility managers, conducts research, provides educational programs, recognizes facility management certificate programs and produces World Workplace, the world’s largest facility management conference and exposition. To join and follow IFMA’s social media outlets online, visit the association’s LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter pages. For more information, visit the IFMA press room or www.ifma.org.

The International Facility Management Association has appointed Catherine Pavick to the position of vice president of education. Pavick will now sit on IFMA’s senior strategy team (SST) with IFMA President and CEO David J. Brady; Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer R. Alan Thomas, CAE; Vice President of Administration Linda Beverly, CAE; and Vice President of Communications Donald Young, APR.

IFMA’s SST is responsible for conducting the business of the association and for implementing strategies to achieve the objectives defined in IFMA’s strategy map and balanced scorecard. The IFMA board of directors sets the strategic focus and the SST aligns staff, volunteers and other resources to achieve the desired outcomes.

“I am excited to be given this tremendous leadership opportunity to help advance the facility management profession worldwide,” Pavick said. “This will allow me to play a more active role in achieving IFMA’s strategic initiatives by working with our members to develop new educational programs and services to advance their careers.”

As vice president of education, Pavick will work directly with facility management professionals, IFMA Foundation Accredited Degree Programs, IFMA members and stakeholders, academic institutions, and students. She will be responsible for the global expansion of IFMA’s educational programs, and credential offerings while playing a significant role in the implementation of IFMA’s strategic plan.

“IFMA’s board of directors and senior strategy team continue to define and prioritize the association’s strategic direction,” said IFMA President and CEO David J. Brady. “This appointment underscores the importance that education and credentialing products and services hold in our forward thinking strategies. It is richly deserved.”

Pavick has a strong background in education and association management. She holds a master’s degree in educational administration from Michigan State University and a bachelor’s degree in business management from Waynesburg University in Pennsylvania. Prior to joining IFMA in 2008 as the director of education, Pavick served as executive director of the Michigan Licensed Beverage Association where she established business partnerships with major Fortune 500 companies and worked closely with federal and state legislators and regulatory agencies.

The updated Focus Fixed Lecture Swing-Away Solutions from American Seating include modular power and data capabilities. The Focus line, designed for educational lecture settings and offering flexible configurations, includes acton swing-away; cachet swing-away (shown here); and eko swing-away.

The Focus Fixed Lecture line is engineered to provide comfort and durability in the classroom. These solutions provide a range of aesthetic choices, including contemporary or traditional work surfaces, and three chair models that return to center and height-adjust to maintain level rows. The variety of options offer flexibility for different teaching styles, and accommodate technology for up-to-date classrooms.

Chairs in the Focus cachet swing-away model are available in black, midnight, and ash.

The Focus fixed tables are ideal for lecture halls, computer labs, or small classroom environments. Sled or caster based seating can be used. Table height is ADA compliant.

The contemporary fixed lecture design in the Focus line is aimed at high-tech environments. It is designed with 10 table-top edge options, a metal privacy screen and a modesty panel that is finished with straight or staggered patterns. The aesthetic details range from holes, to raised or dimpled circular impressions.

The traditional fixed lecture design features a wood veneer or laminate modesty panel, 10 table-top wood edge options, a solid wood privacy screen and a wood wrap-around aisle end treatment. Laminated, semi-perforated modesty panels are offered in straight or staggered patterns.

The modular power and data system options offer an easy access, 2 circuit/4 wire electrical system and data routing with port adapter kit. This system interface is housed just below the front edge of the work surface and next to the user. Horizontal and vertical wires are contained below the work surface.

Outgoing students from Sutton Grammar School went to new lengths to pull off a rude, but imaginative joke. The joke, which was unspotted for years, proved to be an amusing exercise in engineering and spelling, but unfortunately, it was for dubious purposes. It was recently discovered by Google Earth.

TransWorldNews reports:

Several students used bricks to spell out the word “C**K” on the school’s roof. The prank went unnoticed for years until it was spotted on Google Earth. The head of the Surrey school, Gordon Ironside, is having the bricks removed.

“It was a light-hearted act. But I’d prefer it wasn’t there - or if it wasn’t rude,” Ironside says.

 

On a personal note, my son graduated from high school this week, and of course, his class couldn’t resist its own parting prank. Apparently, members of the Ocean Township High School Class of 2009 thought it would be amusing to rearrange the library…not the furniture, but the books. Fiction was swapped with non-fiction, and Dewey Decimal organizational systems were tossed aside. Fingers crossed that my offspring took no part in this prank. Innocent until proven guilty, right? Note to facility managers in education: make sure you have CCTV in your libraries! When compared to the Sutton Grammar School, this sounds tame (but it will probably take much more time to undo).

This Friday Funny was provided by Mike Christian.

National Office Furniture of Jasper, IN has announced its $10,000 Gift of Inspiration for Education Environments. With the current economy presenting challenges throughout the education industry, National would like to do its part in assisting learning organizations with an opportunity to win a $10,000 Gift of Inspiration. This donation can support scholarship funds, endowments, learning materials, and other educational and developmental programs.

“At National, we believe in building stronger communities. We know all those involved in educating future generations put forth extraordinary efforts every day to create impactful learning experiences. This gift is intended to support those efforts and further enrich the lives of many,” says Don Van Winkle, vice president, general manager at National Office Furniture.

Any educational, learning or developmental institution can enter now through August 31st, 2009. Facility managers should register their organization at www.NationalOfficeFurniture.com/Education and they will be automatically entered to win the $10,000 Gift of Inspiration. Winner will be chosen in a random drawing that will take place in September. No purchase is necessary.

BICSI, the association supporting the information transport systems (ITS) industry, has announced the approval and publication of its ANSI/BICSI-001-2009. Information Transport Systems Design Standard for K-12 Educational Institutions. This is the first BICSI-exclusive standard that BICSI has produced as an ANSI-accredited standards development organization.

“The release of this standard is the first significant stride in recognizing one of the major goals set forth in the BICSI Strategic Plan—to be the trusted source of global standards and best practices,” said BICSI President Edward J. Donelan, RCDD, NTS, TLT. “At the core of this achievement is a tribute to the ITS industry experts who volunteered their time and resources to advance the knowledge and success of our members, their customers and the ITS industry.”

The standard is intended to enable K-12 ITS design in the building development process by contributing to architectural considerations and providing information that cuts across multidisciplinary design efforts. Adequate planning during building construction or renovation is significantly less expensive and less disruptive than after the facility is operational. K-12 educational institutions can benefit from an ITS infrastructure design that is planned in advance to support growth and changes that will be required to enhance the educational delivery system. This standard specifies minimum requirements and guidelines for the design of ITS infrastructure for K-12 educational institutions.

“There are currently no other standards like this one,” said Robert Faber, Chair of the BICSI Standards Committee. “It deals with safety in an educational environment; most importantly—the safety of children. Therefore, the standard goes beyond normal standards to assure safety including the use of specialized types of cabling.”

Work on this standard began in 2004 when TJ Roe, BICSI Standards Committee Chair at the time, appointed Terry Hochbein, RCDD, NTS, OSP, as the Chair of the K-12 Subcommittee. The mission of this subcommittee was to gather a number of industry experts to write the industry’s first ITS design standard for K-12 educational institutions. These industry experts have backgrounds as K-12 educational technology directors, ITS designers, technology equipment manufacturers, architects, engineers, and consultants. Hochbein selected John Kacperski, RCDD, OSP, to serve as the subcommittee secretary and Todd Taylor, RCDD, NTS, OSP, to serve as the document editor.

“As the director of technology design for a national architectural/engineering firm that specializes in K-12 education it was apparent to me that the TIA 568 Commercial Building Telecommunications Cabling Standard was focused on office buildings and did not address the diverse types of spaces found in K-12 educational facilities,” said Hochbein. “As a member of the BICSI Standards Committee in 2004, I proposed that we develop a telecommunications cabling design standard for K-12 education that specifically addresses their unique type of spaces.”

Worldwide, 776 million people are illiterate. To address this crisis by providing access to a quality education for all children, there is an urgent need to upgrade the crumbling infrastructure of tens of millions of existing classrooms, and build ten million new classrooms. Meeting this challenge represents the largest building project the world has ever undertaken.

In response, Orient Global, Architecture for Humanity, and a consortium of partners have launched the “2009 Open Architecture Challenge: Classroom”–a large-scale initiative to improve the design of classrooms around the world.

The Challenge invites the global design and construction community to collaborate with primary and secondary school teachers and students to create safer, healthier, and smarter learning environments. Teams can partner with a school of their choice or design a classroom for one of the Challenge’s school-building partners.

“Orient Global believes that education is the first step on the bridge to prosperity, yet it is inaccessible to many and is of poor quality for tens of millions,” said Richard F. Chandler, Chairman of Orient Global. “The 2009 Open Architecture Challenge is an exciting opportunity to better understand and serve the needs of schoolchildren worldwide, enhancing learning environments and delivering the knowledge and skills necessary to cross the bridge to a brighter future.”

“What sets this competition apart from others is that we are calling upon the design community to collaborate directly with schools to improve their own classrooms,” said Cameron Sinclair, executive director and co-founder, Architecture for Humanity. “By creating hundreds of locally appropriate and tangible solutions, we create a portfolio of designs for partners such as Orient Global and others to begin to scale globally.”

The winning school will receive up to $50,000 to build or improve its classrooms, and its design team will receive a $5,000 grant to help make it happen. The design competition will be judged by an international, interdisciplinary panel of experts in the fields of both education and architecture (including students themselves). The resulting entries will be available and accessible to all on the Open Architecture Network.

The challenge offers a companion design curriculum geared for primary and secondary age students hosted by online partner Curriki, as well as a series of video conferences between primary and secondary students and notable design professionals from around the world hosted by partner Global Nomads Group. These conversations will be shared on the Web during the submission period. By inviting design professionals to partner with schools, the challenge aims to inspire students around the world to become visionary architects and engineers of the future.

More About The Challenge

Launched on January 29, 2009, the 2009 Open Architecture Challenge: Classroom is now open for registration until May 1, 2009. Entries are due June 1, 2009.

The Challenge is open to design professionals and non-professionals in partnership with primary and secondary school teachers and students. Entry fee is $25 per entry (fee waiver for entrants from developing nations).

The jury is made up of leaders in education and architecture (including students) to be hosted online and at the 2009 Aspen Ideas Festival.

School Award: The winning entry will receive up to $50,000 to build or improve classrooms for their school.

Design Award: The winning design team will receive a grant of up to $5,000 to help their school build or improve classrooms.

Partners and Sponsors

Principal Partner: Orient Global

Sponsors: AMD 50×15 Initiative, Bezos Family Foundation, Google SketchUp, Graham Foundation, Irvin Stern Family Foundation, The National Endowment for the Arts

Education Partners: Curriki, Global Nomads Group

School Building Partners: Orient Global, Building Tomorrow, Blazer Industries, The Modular Building Institute

Challenge Partners: The Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS), Do Something, Dwell Magazine, Global Green USA, The Aspen Institute, U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), The Council of Educational Facility Planners (CEFPI)

Sustainable FM: A Practitioners Guide to Greening your Facility
1.5 CEUs | 15 CFM Maintenance Points

Sustainability in the workplace is no longer an optional trend—it is becoming a mandatory practice for facility managers worldwide. Many global, financial and environmental factors are contributing to the ultimate need for a complete shift to sustainability in the FM industry.

The new course, “Sustainable FM: A Practitioner’s Guide to Greening Your Facility,” is now the most in-demand session offered by IFMA’s education department. This valuable program will assist facility managers lead sustainability efforts and take practical actions to justify programs.

Day 1

• Introduction and self assessment
• History/legislation/benefits
• Sustainability assessment of organization and facility management department
• Metrics, reporting and green claims
• Greening your facility management operations
• Greening your physical activities

Day 2

• Greening your physical activities (continued)
• Engaging upper management
• Leading sustainable change
• Analyzing the sustainability team
• Choosing your entry point
• Creating the action plan
• Post-course self assessment

Course Schedule:
March 30-31, 2009 Vancouver, B.C., Canada
https://www.ifma.org/secure/home/seminars/2009_MAR_PRECON.cfm

May 14-15, 2009 Charlotte, N.C., USA
http://www.ifma.org/learning/events/spring09_sym.cfm

Speaker: Kit Tuveson, CFM, IFMA Fellow
Kit Tuveson is president of Tuveson & Associates LLC, a facility management consultancy company. His 36-year Hewlett-Packard career included responsible positions in process engineering, manufacturing line management, facility management and environmental health and safety. Tuveson has managed facility teams, global program managers, cross functional teams and has served as global director facility operations and also global director of environmental health and safety.

He is a graduate of Stanford University with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and a master’s degree in industrial engineering. He served IFMA as board chairman (1997-1998). Tuveson has developed a new California State University Sacramento Certificate Program on Greening Your Business and Sustainable FM.

Tight budgets, rising energy costs, and efficiency upgrades are predicted to be top concerns among facility managers in 2009 and will be the primary topics of discussion at the 2009 Greater Cincinnati Energy Summit. The event will be held at the Banker’s Club in Cincinnati, OH, on Tuesday, January 27, 2009 from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm.

“Northern Kentucky Electric Service is committed to helping facility managers reduce the cost of their annual energy expenditures without sacrificing productivity,” Northern Kentucky Electric Service president Mike Wissman said. “We created the 2009 Greater Cincinnati Energy Summit to help provide facility managers with the resources and know-how to save money and improve energy efficiency within their companies.”

Speakers for the event include:
Rob Jung, Energy Consultant for Duke Energy’s Incentive Program
Mike Glotfelter, Sales Manager for Northern Kentucky Electric Service
Matt Leesman, Principal of Leesman Lighting
Marvin Homan, Partner of Kentner Sellers Llp.

I will also be on the program, discussing facility management trends regarding “green fatigue,” the importance of Lifecycle Cost Analysis, and LEED.

The event, which will be presented by Northern Kentucky Electric Service, will address incentives and discounts available through area energy providers, efficient lighting upgrades and available rebates, and the cost effectiveness of making the switch to a more energy efficient facility.

“TX-CHPS is a very unique K-12 high-performance design criteria in the fact that it was developed by Texans for Texas schools,” said Rick Blan, AIA, a principal at PBK Architects, who served on the Texas CHPS Advisory Committee. “This was truly a Texas effort to provide school districts with design and cost options when it comes to building high performance, sustainable schools”.

TX-CHPS applies not only to the design and construction of new schools, but also to major modernizations and additions to existing school campuses.  Schools that pursue TX-CHPS will be supported by the CHPS organization throughout the design, construction and operation process.

The addition of TX-CHPS to the green building market in Texas also provides a Texas-tailored option to policymakers at the district and state level.  “We are hopeful that the CHPS-Texas program will show our state legislators and leaders there are cost effective programs available to Texas for implementing high performance and environmental sustainable strategies,” said Roy J. Sprague, AIA, REFP, assistant superintendent of facilities and construction for Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, the third largest school district in the state.

TX-CHPS will help to ensure that Texas schools have access to appropriate tools and resources to build facilities that can improve student and staff health, improve student performance, increase a sense of community, reduce environmental impact, and reduce operating expenses. Texas joins a collaborative of 10 other states that have adaptations of the CHPS Criteria, including California, Washington, New York, Massachusetts and many northeastern states.

The Texas CHPS Criteria can be downloaded and commented on by visiting: http://www.chps.net/review/2009Edition/texas. This is the first public review period for TX-CHPS. Comments are due by November 21, 2008.  Texas schools will be able to begin using TX-CHPS in 2009.

CHPS is a 501c(3) non-profit headquartered in San Francisco, CA.