Category: Maintenance and Operations

Combat Wildfire and Infection Hazards with Good Indoor Air Quality

How is the air quality inside your facilities? Is it time to reevaluate your HVAC systems and maintenance procedures? Proper ventilation and air filtration can lower indoor concentrations of both infectious disease particles and particulate matter from wildfires, protecting a facility’s employees, customers, and visitors. Particulate matter from wildfire smoke—material less than 2.5 micrometers in […]

Mitigating Poor Air Quality in Schools Now Can Prevent a Shutdown Later

Editor’s note: FM Perspectives are industry op-eds. The views expressed are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of Facilities Management Advisor. As students return to school from a record-breaking hot summer, many are entering facilities with poor indoor air quality (IAQ), the effects of which can be dangerous. Though temperatures are beginning to […]

Back to Basics: Flood Mitigation 101

Back to Basics is an article series that highlights important, but possibly overlooked, information facilities management professionals should know. No matter where their facilities are located, facilities managers should have a long-range and short-range plan to mitigate flood damage to their buildings, as well as a plan to clean up damage caused in the aftermath. […]

Worker Survey Shows Demand for Clean Indoor Air

In observance of the U.N.’s International Day of Clean Air on Sept. 7, Fellowes announced results from a recent U.S. and Canadian survey around workplace wellness. The survey, canvassing 1,085 U.S. and Canadian workers who work on-site indoors at least one full day a week, sheds light on the salient issue of indoor air quality (IAQ) in the workplace. […]

4 Ways to Prepare Your Facilities for Fall

With summer coming to an end, it’s time for facilities managers not only to examine the inside, outside, and landscaping elements of their facilities but also to be prepared for power outages, which are more likely to happen as it gets colder. Whether it’s an office complex, college or hospital campus, recreational hub, transportation hub, […]

Safeguarding Your Facility: The Power of Proper Humidity Control

Maintaining ideal relative humidity levels in the built environment results in substantial benefits. By prioritizing humidity control, facilities managers can create an environment that optimizes productivity, preserves assets, and ensures the well-being of all occupants. Proper humidity regulation is a crucial component of comprehensive building management, and its positive impact extends across industries and facility […]

FM Industry Welcomes the 2023 Class of IFMA Fellows

The International Facility Management Association (IFMA) has announced the 2023 Class of IFMA Fellows. Bestowed with the association’s highest honor, Marshall MacFarlane, Paul Ratkovic, and Debbie Jaslow Shatz will be inducted officially on Sept. 27 at the opening session of IFMA’s World Workplace 2023 Conference and Expo in Denver. IFMA’s Fellows Program was established in 1992 to recognize […]

How Facilities Managers Can Maintain Six Stormwater System Types

It’s important that facilities managers understand how to properly maintain their stormwater management systems, including, but not limited to, catch basins, retention and detention ponds, bioretention cells, rain gardens, permeable pavement, and stormwater vaults. Facilities Management Advisor’s July 13 webinar, “Exploring Stormwater Best Management Practices across the United States,” featured speaker Erin Zaske, a certified […]

College Boiler Plant Project Builds on Campus-Wide Energy Upgrades

The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has partnered with the City University of New York (CUNY) to implement a boiler plant upgrade at Bronx Community College that will improve the reliability of the campus’ heating system. The improvements directly support BuildSmart2025, a statewide energy efficiency program administered by NYPA, aimed at reducing energy usage in […]

Michigan Utility Helps School Districts Add Electric Buses

With classes starting across Michigan, utility Consumers Energy is working with 11 school districts to put all-electric school buses on the road. “Michigan is in the middle of an electric vehicle transformation―that means vehicles of all shapes and sizes, including the traditional big yellow school buses so many of us rode as kids,” said Lauren […]