FRIDAY FUNNY: Culture Differences Extend Even To Toilets

While perhaps more in the realm of weird than funny, a story out of Beijing recently illustrated how cultural differences can apply to most anything and everything. A Reuters report in March reported on the fact that Olympic organizers in the host city have had to refit toilets at several Olympic venues. This was in response to foreign athletes' complaints about having to squat, rather than being able to sit, on the toilets.

Shown here is the National Aquatics Center (nicknamed Water Cube) in Beijing, which is one of the venues where toilets were an issue.

To read the rest of the story by Liu Zhen, click here...

Johnson Controls 1895 Energy Control System Named ASME Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark

At an event celebrating more than a century of ingenuity and innovation, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) announced its designation of the Johnson Controls, Inc. automatic temperature control system as a historic mechanical engineering landmark. The invention of the first reliable and economical multi-zone temperature control system in 1895 by Johnson Controls founder Warren S. Johnson led to massive growth at the company and helped launch the modern building controls industry. S. Allan Johnson, great- grandson of the inventor, attended the event, along with more than 200 Johnson Controls employees, retirees and customers.

“ASME is pleased to honor an invention that changed the world in the late 1800s and which still helps companies and organizations keep their buildings comfortable and energy-efficient more than 100 years later,” said J. Lawrence Lee, Ph.D., P.E., chair of the ASME History & Heritage Committee.

Johnson Controls has grown to become the largest public corporation headquartered in Wisconsin. The company continues to globally lead the building controls and HVAC equipment industry, though it long ago diversified into the automotive industry through its automotive experience (seats and interior systems) and power solutions (automotive batteries) divisions.

"Milwaukee is proud to be the home of Johnson Controls, a global leader in the field of environmental technology for over 100 years," said Richard “Rocky” Marcoux, commissioner of the City of Milwaukee Department of City Development, speaking for Mayor Tom Barrett. "Johnson Controls provided some of the first 'green collar' jobs by helping businesses and homes save energy, which contributes to a cleaner environment. I fully expect Johnson Controls will continue to bring its ingenuity and innovation to environments around the world for future generations," he noted.

“The technology of the 1890s has come a long way since they had to bang on the pipes to alert custodial staff that it was too hot or too cold. Professor Johnson’s invention has evolved into the modern controls industry, including refrigeration, fire and security systems for commercial, industrial, and residential buildings,” said C. David Myers, president, building efficiency, Johnson Controls. “Our employees worldwide share my pride in accepting this honor.”

The event featured the unveiling of a bronze landmark plaque that is being mounted on the Johnson Controls building efficiency headquarters, the Brengel Technology Center at 507 E. Michigan St., Milwaukee. The facility, one of the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®)-certified in the world, now also includes a showcase of actual components from an 1895-era Johnson Controls system.

The ASME historic landmark designation is the eighth in Wisconsin and one of about 250 landmarks recognized worldwide. Other ASME Wisconsin landmarks include Milwaukee’s East Wells Street Power Plant (1918) next to the Milwaukee Repertory Theater; the Port Washington Power Plant (1935), the world's most thermally efficient steam plant for many years; the Appleton Vulcan Street Power Plant (1882), the first Edison hydroelectric central station; and the Evinrude Outboard Motor (1909), also developed in Milwaukee.

TFM Conducting Survey On Life Cycle Costs

With facilities budgets in many organizations tighter than ever, facility managers are under increasing pressure to maximize their investments. Initial cost remains a practical consideration, but the costs over the entire expected life of the asset are also part of the picture. Expenditures for operations, maintenance, and disposal are relevant, as well as expected service life and (increasingly) environmental impact.

Reducing life cycle costs requires knowledge of a number of factors, along with time to calculate the data. Through this survey, which is online now, TFM would like to hear from facility managers about how they use (or don't use) life cycle cost analysis in their purchasing decisions. We will include the results in the July 2008 issue.

To take the survey, please go to this link.

Thank you!

Experts Highlight Security Trends for Hospitals, Offices & Schools at Symposium

“About 10 percent or more of U.S. healthcare workers are assaulted each year,” said Tony W. York, CPP, CHPA, president, International Association for Healthcare Security & Safety (IAHSS) to security professionals attending the “Serious About Security—2008 Symposium” at the Intercontinental Hotel Conference Center—Cleveland Clinic Campus, Cleveland.

Sponsored by turnkey access control provider, Matrix Systems of Dayton, OH, the recent symposium also featured security expert presentations from Texas A & M University (TAMU), College Station, TX; medical imaging manufacturer, Carestream Health of Rochester, NY; and Security Risk Management Consultants of Columbus, OH. The symposium also featured a tour of the access control and security system command center controlling/monitoring the 1.5-square-mile Cleveland Clinic’s campus, home to the largest heart hospital in the US.

York, who is also senior vice president-security at Hospital Shared Services, bases his assaults estimate on a recent meeting with officials from the National Health Services (NHS), the United Kingdom’s publicly-funded healthcare system. “We don’t have a national incident reporting system here, but the NHS reports 55,000 assaults on UK healthcare workers last year and they suspect at least another 55,000 incidents weren’t reported,” said York during his “Security Design Considerations for the Healthcare Market” presentation. “That’s 110,000 assaults in a healthcare system with only 1.3 million employees.”

The “drying up” of US behavioral healthcare funding, which is illustrated by Denver’s recent closings of five primary mental healthcare facilities, according to York, is another reason for increased assaults on healthcare workers nationwide. With the decrease of behavioral care services, mental patients are flooding emergency departments and assaults are escalating.

York also cited another shocking emergency department statistic that must be addressed with security and access control. A four-year study conducted by the Henry Ford Medical Center in Detroit, reported that four percent of persons arriving at the emergency department carry weapons.

As an advocate of separating the walk-in/reception area from triage, treatment areas, and patient quiet/safe rooms, York urged the healthcare security people in attendance to design and retrofit emergency rooms with access control designs that protect hospital employees, but don’t inhibit the swiftness of ingress that care specialists need in emergencies.

Industrial Security on a Global Basis
Another speaker, Thomas J. Rohr, CPP, director of Worldwide Corporate Security, at Carestream Health, a recent $2.5 billion medical imaging equipment manufacturer sell-off from Kodak, urged security professionals to continue searching for new ways to challenge their existing access control systems. Rohr, who presented “Worldwide Corporate Security for Your Company,” encourages his building managers at facilities in seven countries to demand new and challenging applications for Carestream’s global security operation. “If your security needs aren’t increasing everyday, there’s something wrong,” said Rohr, “because there’s always something new, something better, or something more you can do with your existing system to increase security and usability.”

Rohr’s four-person staff solves most challenges with in-house security personnel or with assistance from Matrix Systems’ customer service. “Tell me you want contractors timed into the system and reported to the human resources systems,” said Rohr reading a list of past requests from facility managers that his department successfully implemented. “Tell me you want cashless vending services via ID badges. Tell me you want a touch-less access control system for vehicles entering the facility’s garage, because between our staff and Matrix customer service, we can find a way to make it happen.”

Cleveland Clinic’s New State-of-the-Art Security Command Center
Some attendees were also treated to a profile and tour of the Cleveland Clinic’s new state-of-the-art security command center, which was designed by presenter and guide, Martin Epstein, manager, Technical Operations-Protective Services, at the Cleveland Clinic. As a proponent of security managers taking a lead role in new construction projects Epstein, a 30-year veteran of Cleveland Clinic, said, “You have to get involved in every construction project, because only you (security professionals) know where to position access control card readers to create the traffic patterns that will enhance your facility’s security objective."

The 3,000-square-foot command center features eight workstations in full view of a 32 monitor video wall allowing Epstein, his supervisors, and security watch employees 24/7 views of Cleveland Clinic’s strategic areas. The center has several banks of digital video recorders and its own dedicated uninterrupted power supply (UPS) and generator.

Cleveland Clinic’s adjacent emergency management command center room accommodates 12 people with their own seating, telephone, internet and power connections, plus three plasma monitors, room cameras, and feeds to Cleveland Clinic’s administration offices. The room also has electronics for Ohio’s new Multi-Agency Radio Communications System (MARCS), an 800-megahertz, voice and data network for the Ohio highway patrol and other health, safety, and emergency agencies.

Cleveland Clinic’s Matrix Systems access control system is playing a major part in the hospital’s expansion. By 2009 the hospital will have expanded to 2,500 magnetic locks for entries, 1,700 ID card readers, 600 CCTV cameras with DVR capabilities, and 6,000 alarm points that monitor panic and intrusion alarms to incubators, laboratories, freezers, and many other critical areas that all culminate at Matrix’s Frontier software workstations.

Security During University Alerts
In light of recent mass shootings on university campuses, Walt Magnussen, TAMU’s director of University Telecommunications and associate director of the school’s Internet2 Technology Evaluation Center (ITEC), said more parents of prospective students are investigating the security of college campuses before enrolling. TAMU’s response has been a cutting-edge emergency management update that features text messaging. “They (students) invented it, use it, and have told us (older generation) that’s how they want to be communicated with,” said Magnussen.

Consequently, 32,000 of 47,000 TAMU students have signed up for text messaging alerts in the event of a campus emergency. Since emergency tests have demonstrated that networks can’t handle 32,000 simultaneous cell phone text messages, TAMU is devising methods of staggering the transmission.

TAMU is also using reverse 911 technology where cell phones within an 800-yard perimeter of an incident are contacted first. The Emergency Alert System (EAS) will also be used for radio and TV alerts. Computer screen pop-up messages, voice over internet protocol (VoIP) blasts, and other technologies are being considered and implemented.

Holistic Approaches to Security Management
Security experts in attendance were also instructed on “Implementing a Holistic Security Program Management Model: Planning for Your Organization’s Future,” presented by Elliot A. Boxerbaum, CPP, CSC, president of Security Risk Management Consultants, Inc.

A 25-year law enforcement veteran, Boxerbaum urged the audience of security professionals to establish a five to seven year security capital improvement plans with their CEO’s. “If you can sell your CEO and board of directors on your seven year vision for security and get them to sign off on it, you can always count on upgrading your system every year,” said Boxerbaum. “However if your department is locked into the annual budget cycle where you’re begging for money to make some unsuspected improvement every year, you’ll have a lot of extra work ahead of you.”

WEB EXCLUSIVE: High Performance Buildings For Summer

Today's Web Exclusive comes from John Conover, president of Trane Americas.

The summer months are a critical time to make sure your building is operating as efficiently as possible. This is especially true as energy costs continue to climb and considering that air conditioning systems in commercial buildings during hot weather are the highest contributors to peak electrical loads. These factors put pressure on facility managers to control energy use – or pay the price.

Working in high temperatures affects people in both commercial and industrial surroundings. In addition to high energy use as outside temperatures increase, buildings with inadequate air quality become unbearably hot and stuffy. This problem is compounded if sunlight penetrates into the building, causing a greenhouse-like effect, resulting in increased comfort complaints and loss of productivity. The real challenge for facility managers is to achieve a comfortable environment, while controlling energy costs.

Combating these issues requires a proactive approach that involves common sense preparation and smart building energy management. Following are some tips that can help make your building more energy efficient, environmentally responsible, and economically smart.

Intelligent Control
It’s not surprising that most energy use in a commercial building comes from keeping the space comfortable when it’s in use. That includes cooling warm rooms, warming cool rooms, and removing humidity.

For maximum efficiency, avoid cooling entire buildings or floors during off hours, and use energy efficient lighting and sensors wherever possible. Never over cool an entire building to correct an isolated problem. If, for example, an office space heats up due to south facing exposure, treat the windows in that area instead of adjusting the air temperature.

One way to reduce energy costs is to install a system that blocks fresh air requirements when the building is not in use. Computerized systems also are available that can dictate when and where fresh air, light, heat, and air conditioning infiltrate various parts of the building. A simple programmable thermostat that controls when the heating comes on and off can save up to 25% on energy costs.

Plant Wisely
Make landscaping part of your energy efficiency strategy. In addition to making your building look more attractive, properly placed vegetation will help reduce your energy costs. Deciduous trees, for example, provide natural barriers to summer sun while allowing winter sunlight to warm the building. In addition, plants and shrubs provide important windbreaks, not to mention environmental benefits.

Buildings surrounded with grass tend to be about 10˚ cooler in the summer than buildings flanked by asphalt or concrete. That’s because large areas of asphalt and concrete bounce solar radiation back to the building in the summer, which means air conditioning systems must work harder.

Think Alternative
More commercially viable alternative energy sources are available than ever. These include hydropower and solar harnessing systems. For example, consider photovoltaics (PV) for areas with low cloud cover and low obstruction. To reduce the likelihood of brownouts, use grid-tied photovoltaics to offset the electrical demand of high cooling loads, which often occur during the high-demand summer months.

The rising cost of fossil fuels, in concert with continuing technological advancement, makes PV an increasingly more cost-effective option. Though the payback period for investing in PV is long compared to other renewable strategies, it requires no fuel source and generates power as long as the sun shines.

Maintain Proactively
Energy consumption and conservation tie heavily to operation and maintenance practices. HVAC equipment must be well maintained for the complex array of chillers, boilers, air handlers, controls, and other hardware and software to assure they function at peak performance.

Here are some preventive maintenance techniques to save energy and improve the long-term, maximum performance of HVAC systems:

• Inspect pumps and cooling towers;
• Test motors when the system is running at its maximum to avoid unnecessary overloading;
• Ensure contactors are secure within tolerance starters and motor controllers are operating;
• Keep a close eye on refrigeration leakage;
• Make sure condenser and evaporator coils stay clean; and
  
• Check that drain pans are properly sloped for correct drainage and metal pans are not rusted.

Proper air filtration also plays an important role in protecting the rest of the HVAC system and in maintaining efficient operation. Air filters, whatever their design or efficiency rating, require regular maintenance – cleaning for some and replacement for most.

As a filter loads up with particles, it becomes more efficient at particle removal but increases the pressure drop through the system, therefore reducing airflow. Filters should be selected for their ability to protect the HVAC system components and general indoor air quality.

Improve Load Profile
Facility managers are very familiar with the demand charges utilities impose, which cut sharply into a building’s utility budget. To avoid these power demand peaks, it’s important to monitor power usage carefully through your building automation system to target possibilities for load shedding or load shifting.

For example, a building might use less than two megawatts throughout the day, but during peak times energy use might spike to three or four megawatts. Close monitoring also helps you determine if your cooling equipment lacks efficiency, allowing you to plan for replacements or updates during the winter.

To deal with this problem, change the schedule of building use and maintenance. Where possible, reschedule tasks to be done during periods of low energy demand. This raises valleys but lowers peaks in usage, thus lowering demand charges.


Make Safety A Priority
As you prepare to conduct unscheduled repairs, renovation work, or routine building systems maintenance, make sure safety is front of mind. It’s a matter of workers’ health, productivity, morale and money. Every cooling season, accident rates rise among facility staff and contractors, as is evident in reports by OSHA and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is due to heavy workloads and the rush to respond to unscheduled maintenance.

Safety failures inflict personal suffering, and in the worst case, can lead to serious injury or illness that leaves a worker out of commission for an extended period of time. They also cost your organization in lost work time, delayed projects, and higher project and insurance costs. This could mean less profitability on projects, and increased risk.

Here are a few tips on how to be safe this summer:

• Create a culture of safety. Make sure your facility has an effective Environmental, Safety & Health (ESH) program in place that it is understood and followed by all staff members.
• Conduct safety training monthly. All staff members, new and experienced, need safety training. The more training hours staff members undergo, the less likely they will be involved in a safety incident.
• Make project planning routine. Even under the pressure of a cooling emergency, take time to plan ahead. Some steps to take before starting equipment repair or replacement include assigning tasks to the most qualified personnel, ensuring you have the right tools and personal safety equipment, and determining how many people are needed to move heavy equipment.
• Watch your back. Some of the most common injuries to service technicians and maintenance personnel involve muscle, joint, or disc injuries to the back. To avoid these accidents, it is critical to understand correct positioning when lifting or moving heavy equipment.
• Choose a service provider with a strong safety record. Check the provider’s past performance, such as past incident records and references from past clients. The provider’s safety performance should be in line with your safety goals.

Have A Backup Plan
Even if you take all preventive measures, the possibility of a cooling system breakdown always exists. Buildings with critical cooling demands require a cooling contingency plan, which should include backup solutions for quick installation of temporary equipment to ensure operations continue until the situation is resolved.

Consult with a building specialist to guide you in plan development and outline the necessary components.

If you take the right measures before and during the cooling season, you will rest assured that your facility will stay high-performing and energy efficient through the summer.

Conover is responsible for growing sales and distribution of Trane’s commercial heating, ventilation and air conditioning products, systems, services and solutions. Conover has served in a variety of roles in his 25-plus years with Trane, gaining innovative insights into the sales process, and ways to gain and retain customers. Conover also has played an integral role in introducing and developing account management into the organization.

Solar System Crowns Sacramento County Health And Human Services Building

Demonstrating leadership and a commitment to sustainability and the environment, officials in Sacramento County, CA have announced the successful commissioning of its 100-kW solar array atop the county’s Health and Human Services building. The solar energy system, which greatly offsets the electricity used by the facility, is the largest such system on any public building in Sacramento County.

The solar array is part of a larger, comprehensive energy efficiency retrofit program delivered by Siemens that is projected to produce a broad range of energy and operational savings across county facilities. “We are extremely excited to be switching on a new era of sustainability for our facilities,” says Sacramento County Director of Facility Planning, Architecture, and Real Estate, Carl Mosher. “I can’t think of a more appropriate site for our first solar system. Our goal is to serve the community and to do it in a fiscally and environmentally friendly way. The best evidence that we are doing that is right now we are making clean, electricity from the sun on the roof of the Health and Human Services building.”

At 100 kW, the output of the photovoltaic panels is enough to offset about 50% of the building’s power needs. “If sustainability is to deliver on its promises and return net positive benefits to everyone living in Sacramento County, it must be approached holistically, that is, from both sides of the meter,” says Siemens Building Technologies’ district manager Chris Lofaso. “Emissions-free power generation coupled with demand side reduction is the holistic, higher impact solution. With the efficiency improvements we’ve made to the building’s HVAC equipment and lighting, the solar system is able to make a real and lasting contribution.”

The performance of the solar energy system and the energy efficiency upgrades and retrofits help save the county and taxpayers money on their energy bills every month, and it also qualifies for more than $300,000 in rebates from the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) as part of a rebate program designed to incentivize consumers and state and local agencies to invest in energy saving technologies. According to Siemens, the energy savings from the entire efficiency project will yield nearly $470,000 in SMUD rebate incentives.

Averaging about 265 days either clear or partly cloudy, Sacramento is an ideal location for a solar power generating system. According to Daniel L.Mendonsa, LEED AP® and Energy Program Manager for Sacramento County, “Powering the Health and Human services building with solar-generated electricity reduces the facility’s carbon footprint by about 100 metric tons. Counting all the efficiencies across the project, we expect to see an impressive total reduction of 800 metric tons.” According to SMUD, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by that much is equivalent to removing 22 cars off the road or planting 14 acres of trees every year.


With the energy efficiencies created by the installation of new building automation, HVAC equipment, lighting, and controls at the Health and Human Services, Parks and Recreation and Main Water Quality buildings, Siemens and the county expect to realize some $360,000 in operational, maintenance, and energy savings; enough to assure a simple payback of less than 10 years.

ASHRAE Publishes Nation’s First Airplane Cabin Air Quality Standard

Proper air quality is essential for general health and well-being in indoor spaces. Recognizing this, most people will take steps to address air quality in their homes and workplaces, but what about when on board an airplane when passengers have no control in a very high-density environment?

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) addresses air cabin air quality in its new Standard 161-2007, Air Quality Within Commercial Aircraft. The standard, which covers issues such as temperature, cabin pressure, air contaminants, and ventilation rates, can be voluntarily adopted by individual airlines or the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), or advocated for by airline passenger and employee groups.

“Compliance with this standard will go a long ways toward ensuring good air quality for passengers and crews,” says Byron Jones, chair of the committee that wrote the standard. “Aircraft passengers and crew make up a wide cross section of the general population, ranging from the very young to the very old, from the healthy to infirm. And unlike many other indoor environments, occupants do not have the ability to remove themselves from the environment, which is at a lower pressure and relative humidity than that found in many other environments. Standard 161 will help create a healthier, more enjoyable ride for the great variety of passengers on board.”

The standard also addresses chemical, physical, and biological contaminants that could affect air quality as well. Methods of testing are provided for ensuring compliance with the standard’s requirements.

Standard 161 applies to commercial passenger air-carrier aircraft carrying 20 or more passengers. It is intended to apply to all phases of flight operations and to ground operations when the aircraft is occupied by passengers or crew members.

WEIRD WEDNESDAY: Shrink Wrap Your Building

Shrink wrap is nothing new. In addition to its product packaging applications, the technique is gaining popularity as a method of securing everything from luggage to shipping pallets. But shrink wrapping construction projects? Now that's an interesting concept. But it's a pretty practical idea, when you think about it.

Dr. Shrink, a company out of Manistee, MI, is pioneering this approach based on the practical idea that most construction and remodeling jobs are not completed within a single day. The company's UV-protected BioShrink shrink wrap has additives that resist mold, mildew, algae, and bacteria, including E. Coli.

If building materials are left out for weeks or months without any protection, they can end up covered in mold or mildew. By attaching BioShrink to walls, the shrink wrap can be used to cover an entire room or area during construction.

To protect materials that will be left outside, BioShrink can be heat-shrunk like regular shrink wrap for a tight-fitting cover. It will provide full antimicrobial protection during storage or transportation.

The tan shrink wrap is suitable modular and pre-fabricated buildings. It comes in widths up to 20'.

Honeywell Delivers “Ice Cold” Energy Savings

Honeywell recently announced a $4.25 million permanent load shifting program with Southern California Edison (SCE) that will reduce the utility bills of commercial customers and decrease electricity consumption during peak day-time hours.

The Night Shift program is expected to deliver 2.5 megawatts of peak power relief between noon and 6 p.m.—when energy use and utility rates are highest. This is enough capacity to cover the electricity needs of more than 600 homes.

Honeywell will manage the program for SCE, retrofitting approximately 300 rooftop air conditioners with Ice Bear hybrid air conditioning units from Ice Energy. The Ice Bear system freezes water in a storage tank at night when electricity costs are low. When the air conditioner is on in the day, the stored ice cools the refrigerant instead of a condensing unit, which consumes the most energy in an air conditioner. As a result, the modules cut peak cooling demand by up to 95 percent.

The program also will reduce power generation emissions associated with cooling by about 20% or more, because generating sources used during peak periods have a higher emissions rate than those used to serve base load energy needs at night.

“The Night Shift program enables our commercial customers to maximize cost savings through innovative green technology,” said LisaCagnolatti, SCE vice president, Business Customer Division. “The program will help to reduce high energy demand patterns we typically see in the summer months.”

Night Shift is for mid-commercial customers who have buildings with three to 20 ton roof-top air conditioner units and an electricity demand of at least 200 kilowatt hours per day. Facilities that fit this profile typically include office buildings, libraries, school and university buildings, and big box retail stores. Customers who participate in the program will receive a rebate from SCE to help offset some of the equipment and installations costs. They also will realize ongoing energy savings based on time of use electricity rates that reward off peak consumption.

The hybrid cooling systems are specifically designed for refrigerant based air conditioners, which serve nearly 80% of commercial buildings in California. This differs from other permanent load shifting programs that have traditionally targeted only water based air conditioning units. Consequently, Night Shift can accommodate a wide range of commercial customers and help them cut their energy bills.

EPA Recognizes Performance Track Leaders

On May 21, EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson announced 2008 awards to a limited number of National Environmental Performance Track members for exceptional achievements in reducing their facility environmental footprints, reaching out to local communities, working with state agencies, and demonstrating environmental stewardship at the corporate level. Performance Track, what EPA calls its most comprehensive environmental leadership program, recognizes and drives environmental excellence by encouraging facilities with strong environmental records to go above and beyond their legal requirements.

"Our Performance Track leaders are helping change the way businesses view their responsibility to protect our shared environment," said Johnson. "These companies are meeting this challenge by proving that doing what's good for our environment is also good for business."

Since the program's inception in June 2000, Performance Track membership has grown to more than 500 facilities in 49 states and Puerto Rico, and members have made more than 3,500 commitments to the environment. Through their combined environmental efforts, Performance Track member facilities have reported cumulative reductions in water use of 5.2 billion gallons, greenhouse gas reductions of 309,780 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, increases in use of recycled materials in production by 559,991 tons, and conservation of 16,809 acres of habitat. Many of the members' achievements address issues that are not covered by current regulations.

EPA is designating Xerox Corp. of Webster, NY the 2008 Performance Track Corporate Leader for its exceptional corporate wide commitment to environmental stewardship and continuous improvement, and for its substantial involvement in Performance Track. All five of Xerox's U.S. manufacturing facilities are members of Performance Track. Xerox joins the ranks of other Performance Track Corporate Leaders: Baxter Healthcare Corp., Johnson & Johnson, Rockwell Collins, and Xanterra Parks & Resorts.

Also receiving environmental performance awards were: TDK Components USA Inc., Peachtree, GA; Rohm and Haas, Kankakee, IL; Lafarge Aggregates SE, Douglassville, GA; and the Naval Air Engineering Station, Lakehurst, NJ. EPA made its selection based on members' progress toward achieving environmental performance goals and the breadth and challenge of these goals.

The winners for extraordinary efforts in outreach are the Management and Engineering Services, LLC, Longmont, CO; Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Palmdale, CA; Bridgestone Firestone North American Tire, LLC., Wilson, NC; and Hewlett Packard, Corvallis, OR. Outreach award winners make a special effort to inform the public on what it means to be a Performance Track member through presentations, promotional materials, and employee awareness.

Two state agencies—the State of Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Environmental Services, and the State of South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Waste Management Division—received special recognition for supporting Performance Track and its members.

The state of Louisiana expedited issuance of air and water permits for Marathon Oil based on the company's environmental performance and Performance Track membership. In South Dakota, the state agency collaborated with Ellsworth Air Force Base to provide regulatory benefits that enable the facility to pursue its environmental goals.

At the awards ceremony on May 21, Administrator Johnson also officially welcomed 97 new facilities that have joined Performance Track since May 2007.

The awards dinner was is held in conjunction with the fifth annual National Environmental Partnership Summit, an interdisciplinary gathering of environmental professionals and assistance providers from diverse sectors all over the world. It was created five years ago with the merger of the annual meetings of the National Pollution Prevention Roundtable, the Compliance Assistance Providers' Forum and the Performance Track Participants' Association.

Report From Germany: Upward Trend In Office Furniture Continues

The German office furniture industry maintained its growth course in the first quarter of 2008. The manufacturers, who are members of the BSO (Association of Office, Seating and Object Furniture/Verband Büro-, Sitz- und Objektmöbel), increased their turnover in the months January to March 2008 by 10.2% compared to the same period the previous year.

Commenting on this positive development, BSO Chairman Hendrik Hund, pointed out: “The investment restraint of previous years has led to strong backlog demand at many companies. We are now benefiting from this. For some time now, the quality of office furnishings and furniture has increasingly become the focus of customers’ attention. In particular, high ergonomic value furniture in high quality, attractive design is enjoying strong demand.”

In the past two years, the manufacturers of office furniture were already clearly able to increase their turnover. In 2007, the BSO members reported sales growth of 14.7%. This led to a rise in the office furniture production volume to 2.12 (1.85) billion Euro.

In 2007 the office furniture manufacturers benefited from the increased interest in connection with both the domestic market as well as exports. In contrast, foreign suppliers did not contribute to the growth of the domestic market.

While the BSO members in Germany reached sales growth of 14.5% (according to figures released by the Federal Statistical Office), imports were in decline. Imports of wooden and steel framed furniture fell by 2.6% compared to the previous year, while imports of swivel chairs declined by 0.2%.

The most important export markets for German office furniture were the other neighboring countries of Holland, France, Switzerland, and Austria. In terms of exports beyond the borders of the European Union, business and trade particularly with Russia and the Gulf states developed at a positive level.

According to observations by the BSO, in both regions the high quality associated with “Made in Germany” continues to apply as a powerful sales argument. In the area of office chairs, the export quota of total turnover achieved by the BSO member companies in 2007 was 41.7%. Nevertheless, 23.1% of framed furniture, which is more difficult to transport due to its bulky volume, was exported abroad.

The productivity factors for the German office furniture manufacturers also developed at positive rates last year. In this connection, the BSO member companies increased sales per employee by 9.0% and sales per rendered working hour improved by 8.4%. In 2007, for the first time in many years, additional staff and employees were taken on once again. Compared to the previous year, the number of employees increased by 4.9% to around 12,600.

Due to the turbulence on the financial markets and slight decline in worldwide economic activity, the BSO expects lower growth compared to last year. Currently the association assumes an average growth rate of 4% to 6%.

As Chairman Hund also explained, the trend in raw materials prices is a cause of concern for the German office furniture producers. In order to compensate for the rising costs of metals, wood, and plastics, which in some cases have reached double figure percentage increases, as well as the increases in energy and logistics costs, the beginning of the year already saw office furniture prices rise by an average of 5%.

According to the BSO, the fact that the prices have not increased further is in particular due to the increased efficiency of company procedures and processes. Further increases in material costs will however necessitate a renewed price adjustment by the end of the current year at the latest.

New Research Shows Employers Offering More Amenity Options

Companies are offering employees a wider range of amenities than in years past, according to results from a recent International Facility Management Association study. When compared to similar data from 2004,the most common amenities are still break rooms and coffee bars, but employers are increasingly providing Internetcafés , outdoor recreation areas, and employee health facilities as well, according to the report,"Benchmarks V: Annual Facility Costs."

While previous IFMA studies have shown employee workspace size decreasing—middle manager office space, for example, has shrunk from an average of 151 square feet in 1994 to 121 in 2007, a decline of nearly 20%—the variety of amenities being offered is on the rise. This increase in employee amenity options could be attributed to companies wanting to attract and retain the best employees while compensating for reduced workspace size.

“As companies reduce personal workspace, employees place greater importance on in-house amenities that simplify and enrich their work day, such as lunch-hour yoga at the company fitness center,” said AngieEarlywine, workplace strategist for HOK Advance Strategies. “Employees benefit from feeling refreshed and relaxed as they return to the remainder of their day, and employers benefit from the increase in afternoon productivity.”

Headquarter and educational facilities are the most likely to offer the majority of
employee amenities, according to the report, and while some amenities are being offered by fewer companies than in 2004, the emergence of new alternatives is pronounced. Multi-purpose space, for example, has become a popular feature, being offered by 35% of survey respondents. Other popular amenity options found by the new study include exercise parks, cot rooms, and nursing/lactation areas.

Based on a survey of 1,032 facility professionals from across North America, the
new report covers a variety of costs associated with employee amenities. The costs are broken down by industry, facility type, and geographic region. Companies on the West Coast, for example, annually spend an average of 30 cents per square foot to operate and maintain amenities, while those in the Midwest spend only 4 cents.

IFMA annually conducts a benchmarking survey of its members in an effort to
collect data that allows for easy comparisons of built environment costs and practices. These reports allow facility professionals to gauge their performance against similar facilities—whether in the same industry or a different one. This year’s report includes data from more than 1,000 facilities and isIFMA’s largest benchmarking study to date, with many survey respondents supplying information from multiple facilities.

To learn more about the "Benchmarks V: Annual Facility Costs" survey results and methodology, or to order a copy of the report, visit www.ifma.org/tools/research/benchmarks_v.cfm.

What amenities have you added to your facility in the recent year? What are employees looking for when it comes to amenities? Post a comment below and share your thoughts with other facility managers.

FRIDAY FUNNY: Facility Managers Know Better (We Hope!)

Most of the time, it takes the trained eye of a professional inspector to identify defects or potential hazards within a facility. On some occasions, however, certain maintenance issues are easy to spot. And in private residences, where untrained homeowners act as D-I-Y facility managers, well, the results can sometimes be catastrophes waiting to happen.

Each year, the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) releases unusual home inspection discoveries from the field. The photos below were submitted by ASHI Certified Inspectors and published in ASHI’s publication, the ASHI Reporter. Photos appear monthly in ASHI’s “Postcards from the Field” section.

“Some of the most unusual discoveries I’ve made as a home inspector have happened while I was inspecting dark crawl spaces, attics, and roofs,” said Brion Grant, 2008 ASHI president. “From time to time, though, I spot some pretty unusual and potentially dangerous issues simply by walking into a room.”

Monumentally Bad Planning
Electrical outlets come in all shapes and sizes, but even John Fryer, an ASHI Certified Inspector from Oakland, CA, was stumped by this unique contraption. While Silicone Valley (the site of this finding) is lauded as a premier location for creative minds and innovation, this improvised design is more dangerous than ingenious.

ASHI’s founder, Ron Passaro of Bethel, CT, advised the owner of this home to take caution when walking out this door. Watch out, that first step can be a little tricky.


Fun With Water
Each year, ASHI emphasizes the importance of winterizing outdoor faucets as part of an ongoing winter maintenance regimen. While inspecting this home in Hopedale, MA, however, ASHI Certified Inspector Ron Cook concluded that this homeowner did not heed the Society’s advice.

The owner of this home in Bartlett, TN, does not appear to believe in the expression “all things in moderation.” There are six hoses connected to the faucet shown here. ASHI Certified Inspector Brandon Dyles said the homeowner was hoping it would pass as a “sprinkler system.”

KA-BOOM!
The junction box shown here is the “Grand Central Station” of junction boxes with more wires coming and going than ASHI Certified Inspector Garet Denise of Littleton, CO, cared to count. Surprisingly, this is the work of a licensed contractor and was approved by the local municipal inspector.

Oops. A licensed contractor. Reminds me of my first house, which was owned by a former engineer from a company I will mention by initials only: G.E. The kitchen was wired in such a way that the dishwasher would only run when you turned on the wall oven. Needless to say, this gentleman's friendship with the inspector was the only reason he was able to get the Certificate of Occupancy required in order to sell the house. His engineering prowess was certainly dubious, at best.

Have you seen anything like this during your tenure in the facility management profession? Send your photos to us!

Greenpeace co-founder speaks out

Greenpeace co-founder and former leader Dr. Patrick Moore recently spoke out against attempts by activist environmental groups to politicize the green building agenda.

Addressing members of the National Association of Home Builders at their recent National Green Building Conference in New Orleans, Moore said, “Greenpeace is using the US Green Building Council's LEED green building standard as a Trojan horse to deliver an activist agenda that is not in line with science or sustainability."

“Ironically, many of the positions that Greenpeace and other activist organizations advocate run contrary to a sound green building approach and will likely do more harm than good,” said Moore, Chair and Chief Scientist at consulting firm Greenspirit Strategies Ltd.

“Greenpeace is opposed to the use of hydro power, nuclear energy, widely accepted sustainable forestry standards, and vinyl products, to name but a few of the things they are opposed to," said Moore.

"How ironic since nuclear and hydro are among the most sustainable of energy sources while wood and vinyl are among the most sustainable of building materials," said Moore.

“These unscientific biases, fostered by activist groups, have found their way into the LEED standard,” said Moore.

“Healthcare is an important field where vinyl materials perform well because of their low cost and anti-bacterial qualities," said Moore.

"In my opinion, banning vinyl from healthcare—as some activist organizations would have us do in the new LEED for healthcare standard—runs contrary to everything I know about sustainability," said Moore.

"A ban on affordable vinyl products might increase healthcare costs at a time when we can least afford it," said Moore. "Such a ban might also have negative implications on hospital hygiene," Moore said.

“We need to be practical and realistic," said Moore.

"There are over six billion people on this planet, all of whom need food, energy, shelter, and materials," said Moore.

"By initiating campaigns against nuclear and hydro power, wood, and vinyl, the Greenpeace agenda would have us deny people basic needs, and that runs completely contrary to true sustainability," said Moore.

“One way to ensure LEED and other green building standards are not unduly influenced by the activist political agenda is to encourage rigorous competition among the various standards,” said Moore.

“No green building standard should have a monopoly on the market,” said Moore.

“Competition is important to ensuring high quality green building standards that are based on sound science and focused on sustainability,” said Moore.

Bird-X, Inc. Adds Resources To Its Web Site

The company has introduced its redesigned site to offer more information on bird control issues. While retaining all of the information from the previous site, the updated site (www.bird-x.com) contains an array of relevant information pertaining to specific bird problems and solutions. It is designed to serve as a complete authoritative resource on bird and animal control with educational and practical information, along with links to articles and customer testimonials.

"We wanted to create a Web site that functions as more than just an online store," says Mona Zemsky, marketing manager for Bird-X, Inc. "For example, if a corporate complex has a problem with territorial Canada geese destroying the grounds, we want them to know how to solve it, of course, but also why that solution is going to be successful in the long-term."

The Web site encompasses information learned after four decades of working with scientists, biologists, humane and Audubon societies, animal rights groups, environmental groups, concerned citizens, and global leaders of industry. Secondly, it highlights the real world experiences of the organizations who have suffered the financial, aesthetic and health effects of birds and their droppings.

About Bird-X, Inc.
Founded in 1963, Bird-X, Inc. is known for producing the world's most humane bird and animal pest control products. With new laser, ultrasonic, sonic, and visual repellents, the Bird-X tradition of innovation, high quality, and premium materials continues to endure. The company is located in Chicago, IL.

Green Cleaning Firm Launches New Web Site

With the new site, The Ashkin Group LLC is striving to illustrate how green cleaning can be beneficial in a wide variety of industries, including healthcare and education. The site, launched in April 2008, is a project spearheaded by Ashkin technology director Eric Hauck.

“It has a lot more functionality for users,” explains Hauck. “We wanted to present green cleaning in a much more easy to understand format.”

President of The Ashkin Group, LLC., Stephen Ashkin, has been a leader in the effort to green the cleaning and maintenance industry for more than 15 years. He is a writer, speaker, and advocate for safer and healthier cleaning methods.

Among the materials available on the site is a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) about green cleaning. “We included the FAQ section because we wanted [the Web site] to be designed for those just now being introduced to green cleaning as well as those who are pros,” says Ashkin. “This is our second Web site and with each one we try to get more inclusive, more helpful, and more informative.”

The site is located at www.ashkingroup.com/homenew.html

About Stephen Ashkin and The Ashkin Group
Stephen P. Ashkin is president of The Ashkin Group, a consulting firm specializing in Greening the Cleaning process and executive director of the Green Cleaning Network, both based in Bloomington, IN.

China is Third Largest Destination for U.S. High-Tech Exports

AeA, a trade association representing all segments of the high-tech industry, has released the 23rd edition of its ongoing Competitiveness Series. The report analyzes the strong economic relationship between the U.S. and China in terms of high-tech trade and foreign direct investment.

“China’s economic rise poses not a threat but a host of opportunities and challenges to the rest of the world,” said Rob Mulligan, AeA’s Senior Vice President International. “Public policy in both the U.S. and China must recognize the interdependent nature of our economies and avoid protectionism and distorting trade practices. Such policies restrain trade, damage economies, and raise prices for consumers.”

U.S. high-tech goods exports to China more than doubled between 2001 and 2007. This makes China the third fastest growing (and the third largest destination) for U.S. high-tech exports. Only the United States’ two NAFTA partners, Canada and Mexico, are larger export destinations for American tech products than China. Between 2001 and 2007, U.S. high-tech goods imports from China rose from $26 billion to $112 billion.

Total U.S. direct investment in China was $22.2 billion in 2006, a 30% increase over 2005. In 2006, U.S. technology investments in China totaled $1.9 billion, a 69% rise over 2005.

"As China seeks to become a global leader in technological innovation,” continued Mulligan, “it will need to move away from policies promoting discriminatory local standards, domestic government procurement preferences, and protectionist competition laws."

The report outlines a series of public policy recommendations for dealing with China as a rising economic power.

Data Center Users Group Conference Tackles Today’s Most Pressing IT and Facilities Issues

More than 230 industry experts representing 135 companies with the world’s most business-critical networks discussed server virtualization, energy efficiency, cooling strategies, and high-density power distribution during the two-day Data Center Users’ Group® (DCUG) spring conference earlier this month in Tampa, FL.

The DCUG is a group of influential data center, IT, and facility managers formed by Emerson Network Power, a business of Emerson. The group provides a collaborative, focused environment where those closest to the data center can address the issues, trends, challenges, and solutions associated with building a highly available, flexible, and cost-effective facility.

The spring conference focused on analyzing emerging technologies and best practices for data centers, 2010 and beyond, and featured a series of discussions with experts from different focus areas, including presentations on these subjects: The impact of virtualization on the data center; next-generation cooling–supplemental, embedded, and chip level; alternative UPS and distribution configurations; building an energy-efficient data center; and data center monitoring and measurement

“The evolving data center demands new technologies and strategies, and a forum such as this—that includes industry thought leaders and experts sharing experiences and ideas—is an invaluable resource as we tackle these challenges,” said Bob Miller, vice president, marquee accounts, Emerson Network Power’s Liebert business and a member of the Data Center Users’ Group board of directors. “As an industry, we must adapt to take advantage of the opportunities presented by issues such as increasing heat densities, demands for high-density power distribution, and the growing need for effective energy efficiency strategies.”

The DCUG members in attendance at the conference reviewed results from the group’s recent industry survey that indicates an overwhelming majority of data center operators are seeing rising power densities in their racks and expect the trend to continue.

Thirty-two percent of survey respondents reported an average of more than eight kilowatts (kW) per rack in their facilities, up from 25% at that level in 2006. Looking ahead, 57% said their rack power density would exceed that level by 2010.
“The significance,” said Miller, “is that once you get above eight kW it really points out the need for next-generation high-density cooling strategies.”

Respondents also demonstrated significantly more interest in monitoring and energy efficiency. In spring 2005, 18% said monitoring was important. That number jumped to 43% in this survey. The increased emphasis on energy efficiency is even more dramatic. In spring 2005, zero percent said it was important. Now 40% say energy efficiency is important.

More than 150 DCUG member companies and non-member Fortune 500 companies participated in the survey, which covered a variety of data center topics, including power management, precision cooling, server virtualization, and server consolidation.

Founded in 2003, the DCUG includes approximately 1,500 members; the group meets semi-annually to collaboratively discuss the most relevant issues affecting the reliability, availability, and cost of operation for mission-critical installations. The group’s membership comprises executives with a wide variety of IT and facilities management expertise from an assortment of companies, including board member companies Vanguard, Cincinnati Bell Technology Solutions, and JPMorgan Chase, among others

WEIRD WEDNESDAY: The Ants Go Marching...

Today's Weird Wednesday story comes straight from the "you can't make this stuff up" file. For facility professionals outside of the Houston, TX area, this story is odd, but amusing. For fms in the largest city in Texas, it's "A Bug's Life" with a nightmarish twist, and the siege shows few signs of ending anytime soon.

The story is about ants...crazy rasberry ants. What makes them doubly nightmarish (especially for fms) is their appetite for electronics (computers, motors, wiring) and their tenacity (it's nearly impossible to kill them because of their extreme numbers and the cost of the treatment).

First spotted about six years ago, paratrenicha species near pubens (their formal name) may have arrived in Houston by way of cargo ships from South America or the Caribbean. Their numbers have gone from the thousands to the millions in the meantime, and their infestations have spread to five surrounding counties. Moving at the rate of a half a mile a year, the ants (named after Tom Rasberry, the first Texas exterminator to do battle with them) do bite, but they don't sting.

Linda Stewart Ball of the Associated Press reports:

Exterminators say calls from frustrated homeowners and businesses are increasing because the ants — which are starting to emerge by the billions with the onset of the warm, humid season — appear to be resistant to over-the-counter ant killers.

And when you do kill these ants, the survivors turn it to their advantage: They pile up the dead, sometimes using them as a bridge to cross safely over surfaces treated with pesticide.

"At this point, it would be nearly impossible to eradicate the ant because it is so widely dispersed," said Roger Gold, a Texas A&M University entomologist.

The good news? They eat fire ants, the stinging red terrors of Texas summers.

But the ants also like to suck the sweet juices from plants, feed on such beneficial insects as ladybugs, and eat the hatchlings of a small, endangered type of grouse known as the Attwater prairie chicken.

Worse, they, like some other species of ants, are attracted to electrical equipment, for reasons that are not well understood by scientists. They have ruined pumps at sewage pumping stations, fouled computers and at least one homeowner's gas meter, and caused fire alarms to malfunction. They have been spotted at NASA's Johnson Space Center and close to Hobby Airport, though they haven't caused any major problems there yet.

Apparently, Moscow has called Houston to make sure everything was safe at NASA.

Here's more on these critters from the Center for Urban & Structural Entomology, Texas A&M University, Department of Entomology:

They have been known to short out many different types of electrical apparatuses. In some cases the ants have caused several thousand dollars in damage and remedial costs. These ants often cause great annoyance to residents and businesses.

Currently, little is known regarding specific biology of this ant. Texas A&M's Center for Urban and Structural Entomology is currently investigating food source attraction (Rachel Wynalda, M.S. student), colony growth, and immature development (Jason Meyers, Ph.D. student). However, research regarding other Paratrechina species is available and may offer close approximations of this species.

Colonies are polygyne (multiple queens) with moderately sized numbers (several hundred to few thousand). However, size of the colony can be much greater, especially when considering their unicolonial (supercolony) behavior. The colonies can be found under or within almost any object or void, including stumps, soil, concrete, rocks, potted plants, etc.

Check out this news footage from a local Houston station:

This story makes me itch.

US Private Security CEO Addresses Mexican Government Leaders

Kent Moyer, CEO of The World Protection Group, a company specializing in executive protection, uniform protective services, investigations, and threat management based upon proactive U.S. Secret Service philosophies and security best practices, was recently a featured keynote speaker at the Simposium Interacional de Seguidad Publica in Mexico City. The symposium was attended by nearly 700 people involved in national security and safety including Mexico's congressional, judiciary, and law enforcement leaders, as well as attorneys and corporate and private security professionals operating in Mexico.

Moyer spoke by special invitation from the Mexican government based on his extensive career in private security, law enforcement, and operations in Latin America that relies on cooperation with local and federal law enforcement on both sides of the border. The symposium featured four English speakers including Moyer, a representative from the U.S. Department of Justice, and representatives from Scotland Yard and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Moyer's presentation emphasized the importance and relevance of recruiting, training, and incentivizing law enforcement and private security, highlighting the challenges facing Mexico such as lack of uniform standards and limited financial resources, that also challenge United States public-private partnerships. He also highlighted the value of "working together to combat criminal activity" citing working examples in the United States, such as Building Improvement Districts (BIDS), where businesses pool resources to employ private security to proactively deter, detect, and detain criminal activity in support of local law enforcement.

Moyer has been involved in private security for nearly 17 years and is a graduate of the Wharton School of Business, at the University of Pennsylvania; the Executive Security International Executive Protection & Protective Intelligence program; the Executive Protection Institute, and the Los Angeles & Orange County Sheriffs Academies.

"LEED 2009" Open For Public Comment

The U.S Green Building Council (USGBC) has put proposed improvements to the green building rating system up for comment through June 22.

LEED 2009 represents a reorganization of the existing LEED rating systems for commercial buildings, combined with a series of major technical advancements focused on improving energy efficiency, reducing carbon emissions, and addressing other environmental and human health outcomes.

“Continuing to seek the right balance between technical advancement and market transformation was a driving force behind the LEED 2009 work,” explained Scot Horst, chairman of the volunteer LEED Steering Committee, which leads the technical development of the LEED rating system. “The ‘big ideas’ we’ve proposed include transparent weightings of LEED credits so the highest priority credits achieve the most points, a new mechanism for incorporating bioregional credits, and a more nimble framework that supports rapid response to emerging environmental and human health issues.”

The LEED Green Building Rating System was developed by USGBC to drive market transformation in the building industry by defining a consensus metric for leadership in green building that forms a basis for continuous improvement. The evolution of LEED is based on technical, scientific, and market-based advancements.

“When it was introduced in 2000, the LEED Green Building Rating System helped to spark a revolution that is changing the way we build and operate our offices, schools, hospitals and homes,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO & founding chair, USGBC. “LEED 2009 resets the bar for green building leadership because the urgency of our mission has challenged the industry to move faster and reach further.”

LEED 2009 is the product of thousands of hours of volunteer time and expertise provided by representatives from all areas of the building industry who serve on the USGBC member committees and oversee the development of LEED. LEED 2009, coupled with an expanded third-party certification program and enhancements to LEED Online, make up a multifaceted initiative referred to as LEED Version 3.0.

Detailed information about specific proposed technical changes to the rating system can be found in the number of background documents that accompany the public comment forms on USGBC’s Web site. Further information about the expansion of the certification process and improvements to LEED Online as well as future technical improvements, including the integration of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) into LEED, will be forthcoming in late summer.

About the Public Comment Period
The public comment period is a critical part of the consensus process by which LEED is developed. During public comment, all stakeholders are invited to review all proposed improvements and offer technical or market oriented perspectives through USGBC’s Web site on the slate of changes represented by LEED 2009. All public comments are reviewed by the USGBC volunteer committees that oversee the LEED rating system. USGBC will respond to all comments and post the comments and responses (without commenter names or organizations) to the USGBC Web site. If changes to the LEED system are made as a result of comments, a 15-day second public comment period will be undertaken. The resulting draft will be sent to all USGBC member organizations for ballot prior to release.

The public comment period will be open for 30 days, from May 19 through June 22, 2008, at 5 PM Pacific Time.

United Steelworkers Ratify New Contract with OMNOVA Solutions in PA

OMNOVA Solutions recently announced that members of United Steelworkers Local 22L have ratified a new labor agreement covering the company's Jeannette, PA plant. The agreement will take full effect on September 2, 2008, the expiration date of the current contract. Certain provisions were implemented as of May 12, 2008.

"The cooperative working relationship that exists today in Jeannette allowed early talks that resulted in a win-win for all involved," said Kevin McMullen, OMNOVA Solutions Chairman and CEO. "Hard work by the negotiating teams on both sides culminated in a fair agreement that continues to provide excellent jobs with very good wages and benefits for our union associates, while helping to secure a competitive position for the Jeannette plant in a very challenging marketplace."

The Jeannette, PA facility is part of OMNOVA's Decorative Products business unit, with about 116 of its 150 employees represented by Local 22L. The plant produces industrial films and laminates used in a number of products, including awnings, signage, swimming pools, window shades, and floors and ceilings for manufactured housing.