The First Facility Management Blog

Standalone version of APCO's HealthView

HealthView from APCO Signs is a modular system for dispensing standard infection control products such as gels, wipes, tissues, and masks, and for displaying health related information. The HealthView dispenser encourages the use of protective products by providing a convenient, central location with one-hand, quick-pull dispensing.

The Healthview dispenser is suitable for hospitals and medical clinics, patient rooms, office buildings, convention centers, hotel lobbies, retail environments, airports and train stations, food stores, and anywhere else infection control products and information are useful.

Available in a range of configurations for both wall and standalone mounting, HealthView is tamper resistant, yet easy to refill for facility staff. Facility managers can choose custom configurations so that products of their choice can be dispensed.

HealthView helps facilities comply with OSHA guidelines in schools, medical facilities, offices, restaurants, and virtually any public place where reducing the risk of cross contamination is of principal concern.

Wall mounted HealthView unit

Other Features & Benefits

• Dispenser contents and configurations are customizable to suit client’s specific needs. (HealthView dispenser modules are constructed of pre-engineered, modular components and designed to house certain brands and sizes of popular hygiene control products. Module contents are thus customizable within certain parameters.)
• Faceplate (Series HPS) and Top Plate (Series HPC) are tamper resistant, ensuring security of dispenser contents.
• Contents are easy to change and refill.
• Standard HealthView Series HPS is aesthetically compatible with APCO’s MyDay Display System.
• Curved HealthView Series HPC is aesthetically compatible with APCO’s Arcadia Sign System.
• Range of mounting and decorative options provide solutions for virtually any budget.

The Planon Group, a global provider of enterprise real estate and facilities software, recently unveiled Planon Green Intelligence for Facilities, a solution that gives facility management executives the tools to measure, monitor, and act upon collected property and asset data to achieve both cost savings and corporate sustainability goals.

Available as part of the company’s core suite, Planon Green Intelligence, the energy management component of Green Workplace Economics, offers facility executives a practical way to jumpstart environmental sustainability programs by transforming aggregated asset level to property level data into actionable information.

Planon can then generate corrective work orders to quickly diagnose and correct overconsuming facilities assets. Planon Talk, Planon’s integration application, also ensures full connectivity with existing building technology and energy measurement facilities, giving organizations a fully integrated solution.

With Green Intelligence, facility executives gain a global view of their real estate portfolio and assets and gain the ability to automatically issue corrective or reactive action within one seamless solution. With Green IT for Facilities, organizations can:

• Cut costs through reduction of energy consumption
• Extend the efficiency and lifespan of facilities assets through planned maintenance
• Reduce carbon footprint
• Manage energy supply and costs
• Comply with organizational and federal environmental mandates
• Track LEED certification status across an entire real estate portfolio

Earlier this month, Planon was named the recipient of Frost & Sullivan’s 2010 Product Leadership of the Year Award for the Real Estate and Facilities Management software market. The award recognizes Planon’s portfolio of real estate and facility management software solutions for its broad array of features and functionality, high quality, innovation, market acceptance, and for providing its customers with valued enhancements. Planon announced the latest version (2010.A) of its software last week.

The Bilco Company has introduced an enhanced performance roof hatch that meets LEED standards for recycled content and is nearly 50% more energy efficient than standard roof hatches. The new thermally enhanced hatch is designed with a fully insulated cover and curb, and features a 2″ ozone-friendly polyisocyanurate thermal insulation board with an R-value of 12. The EPDM finger-type gasket ensures a positive seal between the cover and curb to reduce air permeability and ensure energy performance. The hatch also has a high solar reflective index.

Bilco’s thermally enhanced hatch is fabricated from corrosion-resistant aluminum milled primarily from recycled content. It is equipped with a heavy duty slam latch that securely locks the cover in the closed position, and features interior and exterior hasps for additional security.

Fully enclosed compression springs counterbalance the cover for controlled operation regardless of its size or weight, and minimize the effort required to open and close the hatch. For added security, a rugged hold-open arm automatically locks the cover in the open position, and the grip handle allows for users to release and close the hatch with one hand.

As with all Bilco’s roof hatches, the insulated curb is equipped with cap flashing and the Bil-Clip® flashing system for ease of installation on single-ply roofs.

Stablebase USA offers a line of ladder stabilizer products designed to be compact, easy to use, and adaptable to various site conditions. These patented products include an Extension Ladder Stabilizer, a Step Ladder Stabilizer (shown here), and a Staging Stabilizer.

The Extension Ladder Stabilizer increases a ladder’s base from 17” to 60”, which significantly reduces the ladder’s tendency to slip or tip. It weighs 11 pounds.

Meanwhile the Step Ladder Stabilizer is adaptable to all step ladders over 6′ in height. A mounting kit is required and available for wooden ladders upon request. When ladder is used close to a wall or platform, the pivoting head of the legs can be adjusted in a variety of angles and lengths to maximize stability, regardless of ground types, and levels. It weighs 15 pounds.

With a focus on enhancing safety, energy efficiency and convenience, Larco, a division of ATEK Products, LLC and a supplier of commercial safety products, expanded its door access control product line with the addition of the Blue Diamond Backlit Wall Switch. Suitable for automatic indoor and outdoor entryway applications, the switch provides subtle blue backlighting, allowing for easy visibility in poorly lit entryways and nighttime environments.

Incorporating energy efficient Monolithic Constant-Current Regulator, light guiding, and LED technology, the backlit switch is easy to install and durable. It is also designed and manufactured to US and CE certification standards and is compatible with electronics in all automatic doors.

Available in a 4.5″ square version, Larco will introduce two round versions (4.5″ and 6″), as well as a 6″ square version in the coming months. Customizable to meet décor or branding requirements, the new wall switch is available in a stainless steel or brass finish as well as a variety of logos and face decals.

The new roll-formed downspouts from MBCI are designed to offer advantages over traditional press-broken rectangular downspouts. Measuring 4″x5″, the roll-formed downspout provides nearly 43% more area than a 3½”x4″ downspout—while still working with MBCI’s existing gutter profiles. This larger area can help to reduce the number of downspouts required on a building, which generates additional savings in both material and installation labor.

The roll-formed downspouts also facilitate ease of assembly on tall facilities. This is because one end of it is swaged, which mitigates the need to notch one end of the downspout to connect it to the next downspout. This swage feature is advantageous on facilities with eave overhangs where the downspouts must return to the wall requiring the use of at least two elbows. (Click on image to view detail.)

These downspouts are available in 26-gauge in all of MBCI’s standard colors. They are manufactured in lengths of 10′-6″ and 14′-6″ with custom lengths up to 20′-6″. Separate kick-outs and elbows are available.

APC by Schneider Electric recently announced two new series of APC Smart-UPS® models designed for use in server rooms and network closets. Based on nearly 20 years of design experience, these new uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) systems offer time saving, user friendly features:

• An LCD interface with diagnostic capabilities
• Advanced energy management that delivers clear and timely energy consumption metrics
• A “green” mode that can help managers achieve efficiencies of more than 97%

Built on the same standards as the award-winning Smart-UPS family, the new models include an intuitive, customizable LCD interface to provide local and remote configuration capabilities, accurate power status information, diagnostics, tests and activity logs. Information is clear and concise and displays a breadth of information, from product serial number to APC support information in a multitude of languages.

An intuitive, customizable LCD interface displays a breadth of information.

Additionally, APC Smart-UPS are the only units to offer advanced energy management to notify users of a recommended battery replacement date. This technology adjusts a battery’s lifetime based on environmental conditions to provide advanced notification.

In conjunction with the new interface, the Smart-UPS models offer increased capabilities for users to monitor and control their energy usage. Each model includes a “green” mode that automatically bypasses unused components, allowing for reduced energy consumption without sacrificing protection or system operation. Further, the units have built in energy and efficiency meters to help monitor power usage. New switched outlet groups provide additional control to allow for non-critical load shedding, sequenced start-up/shutdown, and the ability to reboot single or multiple devices independent of the UPS.

The new APC SmartUPS models include a three year physical warranty and a two year battery warranty with extended warranty options.

Witt Industries, a manufacturer of a full range of metal waste and recycling receptacles for indoor and outdoor environments, has introduced the Oakley Carousel Can. The cans are designed with ergonomics, functionality, and aesthetics in mind and are suitable for use in both indoor and outdoor environments, including for municipalities, parks, universities, office complexes, and apartment buildings.

The Oakley Carousel Can from Witt Industries

The receptacle features a sliding door for easy servicing, even in tight quarters. Sliding the door into the container safeguards against accidents during servicing, and it protects passersby as well as facilities personnel servicing the receptacles.

Lid options available include a flat top, a dome top, a rain cap, or an ash top, which allow flexibility and protect against the elements. A 36-gallon black plastic liner, a lid attachment kit, and an anchor kit are supplied with each unit to ensure a long service life.  Constructed of durable, heavy gauge steel, these containers are powder coated in black, brown, or green, and include built-in leveling feet. An optional lock, installed on-site, prevents unsolicited openings.

The CM25 ceiling-mounted air conditioner from MovinCool is a compact, self contained unit that can provide 25,000 Btu/h of cooling. Designed to protect server rooms and other spaces that house heat sensitive equipment against costly damage. It offers a high sensible cooling capacity, plus a 14 SEER  rating, made possible by an energy saving, variable speed inverter compressor and inverter fan motors.

The CM25 from MovinCool

Additional environmentally-friendly features include R-410A refrigerant and RoHS compliance. The CM25 comes standard with a wall-mounted controller that offers advanced communications, monitoring, and self-diagnosis capabilities.

Measuring 20″ tall, the CM25 fits in tight spaces. A built-in mounting bracket, flanges and vibration isolators allows for ease of installation above a drop ceiling, using  standard, off the shelf hardware. Its self contained design also eliminates the need for refrigerant connections, further reducing installation costs.

The 4100 Knox-Vault from Knox Company is the latest addition to the company’s family of Rapid Entry System products. Able to hold up to 24 keys, this vault is designed for applications where the Knox 3200 Series is too small and the 4400 Series is too large.

4100 Knox-Vault from Knox Company

The Knox Company’s Rapid Entry System is a secure emergency access program developed for facility managers and fire departments. When a fire breaks out or there is a medical emergency, Knox products allow immediate entry into buildings and property without forced entry damage or delay. Facility managers store entrance keys, access cards, and floor plans in the vault, mounted near building entrances. Each vault purchased by a facility manager is keyed to a single master key controlled by their fire department.

The 4100 Knox-Vault is available in both single and dual lock configurations, as well as recess and surface mounted models. The UL1037 listed vault is available with an optional holder for a FDC Keywrench and access cards, which allows departments to keep a Knox keywrench on site. (Facility managers should always check with their local fire department for proper installation location of Knox products.)