Page 20 - College Planning & Management, July/August 2018

that must be addressed at different times. Establishing and ad- hering to a prioritized budget and strategic action plan, based on urgency of need and cost-effectiveness, can potentially reduce spending by tens of thousands of dollars annually.
The key to facility management on college and university campuses is identifying critical needs for immediate repair and then outlining specific time frames regarding system refur- bishment, replacement, or upgrade.
A university is likely to have dozens—if not hundreds—of in-house maintenance and engineering staff who play a role in the upkeep of its facilities. However, it is generally not practi- cal to have in-house staff take on a campus-wide assessment project of this scale on their own.
Thus, the first step that an institution’s management team can take to centralize asset management and establish efficient capital planning is to partner with an expert third- party firm to undertake an extensive assessment the current condition of a campus’ facilities, or Facilities Condition Assessment (FCA).
An FCA involves evaluating the condition of all buildings and their systems. Every structure can also be reviewed for ADA compliance and energy efficiency enhancement opportunities.
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A Technology-Driven Process
The evolution of field data collection and geo-coding imag- ery technologies has made comprehensive campus assessments possible on a larger scale and scope. The process is easier and more comprehensive than ever before. In an instant, data col- lected as part of a facility condition assessment can be trans- ferred into a cloud database, stored, and made readily available to reference for facility staff for years to come.
For example, AEI Consultants recently worked with the University of Alabama on a full campus-wide facilities check- up. This assessment was completed as part of the school’s all- campus strategic improvement plan. The entire campus-wide assessment included an evaluation of 260 buildings—roughly 10 million square feet—with some of the oldest structures built with the founding of the university in 1869.
As a first step, the capital planning team reviewed the exist- ing maintenance history, available blueprints, historical cost data, and energy audits prior to conducting on-site work.
Second, they meticulously evaluated academic teaching and office facilities, residential dormitories, and operational build- ings, as well as sports stadiums and complexes.
To manage a campus-wide facility and asset assessment and to ensure accurate cost estimates, high-end hardware technolo- gies and software were utilized that collect, transfer, and record all data during inspection.
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Tablet-based assessment software allowed for the easy cap- turing, organizing, and delivery of data. An iPad tablet system was employed, which enabled the assessors to take photos, scan barcodes, notate condition and age, and identify replacement costs based on a fully developed cost library.
The full facilities condition assessment and capital plan will culminate in the summer of 2018 with a series of meetings with University of Alabama stakeholders. This will finalize an impact-oriented strategic plan that considers greatest-need scenarios and establishes budget priorities. According to the university’s facilities management team, they expect this com- prehensive campus assessment to assist in the implementation of a more proactive planning process, as well as usher in a new link between thought and action for the institution.
A Solid Deliverable for Long-Term Success
Through completing a campus-wide assessment, colleges and universities can eliminate the paper trail of years past that many institutions still depend on to keep record of their facilities.
Following the campus-wide FCA, an institution’s manage- ment team received a comprehensive report summarizing all data collected. This included facility condition indexes (FCIs), which present the cost of maintenance versus the cost of replace- ment for building components and equipment as well as a variety
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