Practical Facilities Tips, News & Advice.
Facilities managers are feeling increasing pressure to limit operational expenses and maintain aging buildings efficiently. Building information modeling (BIM) already serves as the digital underpinning for facility life cycle management. BIM, coupled with artificial intelligence (AI), is a more responsive technology that can analyze building data and support smarter decision-making. Why BIM Is Ready for […]
A large office complex recently issued a request for bids for filter maintenance. The scope called for 2,100 filter changes twice a year. When the facilities manager ran the numbers, he realized the program consumed roughly 400 labor hours annually. By optimizing the filter specifications and maintenance strategy, he determined he could cut that in […]
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. In many commercial buildings, the HVAC system is not broken. The plant runs. Occupants are mostly comfortable. The building automation system (BAS) shows no obvious crisis. However, the utility bill may still be higher […]
Hotel equipment failures disrupt operations and drain budgets through emergency contractor fees and damaged customer satisfaction ratings. Preventive upkeep flips this dynamic by catching problems before they escalate into costly crises. Facilities managers who implement structured maintenance programs see reduced overhead, improved guest experiences, and better protection of their property investments. The True ROI of […]
Empty schools can look quiet during summer break, but their roofs, plumbing, and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems remain active. With fewer people present to notice a musty odor, a stained ceiling tile, or water under a mechanical unit, a small moisture problem can spread for days or weeks. The U.S. Environmental Protection […]
Summer 2026 has made an already familiar problem nearly impossible to ignore. In early July, a heat dome fell over the central and eastern United States, breaking daily temperature records from Newark to Boston, with heat indices reaching 115°F in some areas, according to the National Weather Service. The same week, grid operator PJM Interconnection […]
The best facilities managers don’t just keep buildings running—they help people succeed, too. Kyle Rager is proof of that. Early in his career, mentors recognized his potential and encouraged him to take on bigger challenges. Now, after more than 15 years in the profession, he believes one of the most important responsibilities of an FM […]
Every day in schools across the country, millions of children and adults are impacted by poor indoor air quality (IAQ). Though IAQ is a top environmental risk to public health, more than half of K-12 schools do not have IAQ management plans to proactively address air quality risks. To help create healthier learning environments for […]
The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI), the Brown University Pandemic Center, and the Air Club have jointly released a new report highlighting a rapidly expanding wave of indoor air quality (IAQ) policy innovation across the globe. Drawing lessons from nearly 160 policies spanning 40 countries, the report identifies five leading policy models that governments are […]
Some building owners and tenants view facilities managers as people who handle unexpected problems. But in many cases, the problems FMs face are predictable. The evidence: an analysis of 9 million service requests from 2024 and 2025, which revealed common patterns across geographies, building classes, and building types—patterns that may remove the element of surprise and […]