Category: Maintenance and Operations

OSHA and Amazon Reach Settlement Over Ergonomic Safety at Facilities

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Amazon have entered into a corporate-wide settlement to help better protect employees from hazardous working conditions leading to serious lower back and other musculoskeletal disorders at Amazon facilities. The settlement agreement resolves the department’s multiple ergonomics cases against Amazon.com Services LLC, in the first major multi-site investigation […]

A Transformative Year: 2025 Outlook for Facility Maintenance Teams

Facility maintenance teams are on the brink of a transformative year in 2025, with emerging industry trends shaping how they manage resources and technology. With an aging workforce and growing operational challenges, facility maintenance teams must adapt to remain effective and resilient. From preserving institutional facility knowledge to navigating supply chain disruptions and leveraging artificial […]

The Rise of Commercial Building Electrification

Demand for commercial building electrification has been growing over the past decade as organizations aim to reduce their carbon footprint and become more energy efficient. By electrifying systems such as HVAC, water heating, and cooking, building owners and organizations have been able to achieve benefits such as increased energy efficiency, reduced carbon emissions, and safer […]

DOE Offers $90M to Public Schools for Clean Energy Upgrades

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has opened applications for the 2025 Renew America’s Schools Prize, which will offer $90 million for facility upgrades that improve health, safety, and energy costs in K-12 public schools across America. Funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, this third round of funding builds on $178 million awarded in 2023 and […]

ASHRAE Releases Indoor Air Quality Guideline to Protect Against Wildfires

As wildfires and prescribed burns increasingly impact communities worldwide, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) has published a new resource aimed at safeguarding indoor air quality (IAQ) during these events. ASHRAE Guideline 44-2024, Protecting Building Occupants From Smoke During Wildfire and Prescribed Burn Events, outlines best practices for building design, operation, and […]

Back to Basics: Preventing Workplace Mold Exposure

Back to Basics is an article series that highlights important but possibly overlooked information facilities management professionals should know.  There are many hazards in the workplace, but one of the most insidious is mold. Exposure to mold and fungus can lead to health problems for workers, so you need to keep an eye on it. According […]

Using Technology to Navigate FM Trends in 2025

Facilities managers have faced various challenges throughout 2024, including sustainability, labor shortages, and innovations in technology, all while ensuring building compliance standards. As sustainability efforts and technology innovations grew this year and labor shortages continued, facilities managers needed to ensure that they had the right tools to monitor and optimize their resources and chart the […]

FMA Shorts: Will AI Be a Job Killer for Facilities Managers?

On this latest episode of FMA Shorts, James Waddell, president and chief revenue officer of Cognitive Corp., addresses workforce concerns about the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) in facilities management. This clip was taken from a webinar titled “AI-Powered FM: Unlocking Tangible Results.” The full session is available for FREE on-demand here.

Taking Advantage of Predictive Maintenance Without Compromising Human Talent

Artificial intelligence (AI) has very quickly become familiar to everyone involved in facilities management. Through prescriptive data insights, combining advanced analytics and AI-driven recommendations, there are a wealth of benefits that AI brings for the industry. After all, McKinsey research estimates that generative AI could soon make up $4.4 trillion of value annually. The rise […]

Chemical Safety Board Urges Facilities to Prepare for Winter Hazards

With winter and cold weather rapidly approaching, the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) is re-emphasizing to chemical facilities the importance of being prepared for extreme cold to avoid serious chemical accidents. Data on chemical releases shows that there is a notable increase of incidents at chemical facilities during the cold weather months. In […]