January/February 2023 • volume 39, number 1

Technology in the Workplace

Technology in the Workplace: Reports from the Field

By Compiled by Steve Glazner

College and university campuses have always been a cauldron of innovation in research, development, and application of practical and beneficial technologies. Those innovations carry from the engineering departments to information technology to agricultural sciences and throughout virtually all other academic disciplines. Facilities management has also experimented with, designed, programmed, adopted, and incorporated technology throughout their […]

Feature

Informatics: A Journey to Data Visualization

By Jacob Olson and Markus Hogue

Several years ago, the industry buzzword was “Big Data.” All of us jumped in—feet first—and agreed: Big Data is the future. We needed more and more data so we collected more and more data. Just think of what we could do with all this data… Fast forward to today and look back at all the […]

Feature

Lessons from My APPA Journey

By Glen R. Haubold, APPA Fellow

I retired from New Mexico State University (NMSU) in 2019. Many people over the years made an impact on my personal growth and career, and I wish to express my gratitude. This is my APPA journey. My first APPA-related event was a short seminar on preventive maintenance at Trinity University in the summer of 1982. […]

Feature

2022 Regional Reports

By APPA Regions

ERAPPA—Eastern Region By Sheri Vucci ERAPPA President Smithsonian Institution A total of 409 participants, including 95 first-timers, attended the 2022 ERAPPA Annual Meeting, themed “What’s Next?,” in Verona, New York. This year’s annual conference was hosted by the New York Chapter of APPA (NYAPPA), under the leadership of John Moore and Rex Giardine, […]

From the Editor Jan/Feb 2023

By Steve Glazner

Facilities Digest Jan/Feb 2023

By Anita Dosik

The Bookshelf Jan/Feb 2023

By Theodore J. Weidner, Ph.D., P.E., RA, NCARB, DBIA, CEFP

New Products Jan/Feb 2023

By Gerry Van Treeck

Membership Matters

We Are Here … We Are Here … And Grateful You Are Too!

By Suzanne Healy

For those of us with kiddos, grandkids, or who are just fond of Dr. Seuss, the phrase “we are here … we are here” might conjure up images of the story Horton Hears a Who. In this story, our hero Horton deals with several challenges, and is labeled an outcast by residents of the Jungle […]

Perspective on the Profession

All Duties as Assigned: A New Years Motto for 2023

By Raj Shah, PE, MBA, CHC, BSME, CHFM, FASH

I will start with a statement: Employees are the backbone of businesses. Every business has employees, and even the owner is an employee. COVID-19 helped every business innovate new ways to handle activities as well as human assets. Every business came up with a modified work structure, e.g., traditional with flexibility, traditional with high tolerance […]

Code Talkers

Higher Education Laboratories and the International Fire Code

By William Koffel, P.E., FSFPE, SASHE

The International Fire Code addresses hazardous materials using concepts such as maximum allowable quantities, control areas, and hazardous occupancies. Beginning with the maximum allowable quantity (MAQ), the Code establishes maximum quantities of various hazardous materials that are permitted within a building that is not considered a Group H occupancy (occupancies containing materials presenting a health […]

Facility Asset Management

Overcoming IAQ Concerns with Mechanical HVAC Solutions

By Emily Wright

It is no secret that indoor air quality (IAQ) is a primary concern for K-12 facilities. The COVID-19 pandemic brought heightened awareness to the importance of IAQ three years ago. In addition, there was an increased amount respiratory illness, including RSV and flu, that created problems for schools near the latter part of 2022. These […]

APPA U Wrap-Up

Fort Worth Played Host to APPA & Great Educational Offerings!

By Suzanne Healy

Fort Worth, Texas, played an excellent host site APPA U in January 2023. We welcomed members from across the APPA community to invest in their professional development supported by leaders who see the impact engaged employees have on the success of their teams. Participants gathered for sessions and networking opportunities with experts in the community, […]

Technology + Trends

A Holographic Dashboard: How Digital Twins Can Improve Facility Operations

By Craig Park, Associate AIA

“The future is already here. It’s just not that evenly distributed.” — William Gibson The smart building concept first appeared in the early 1980s and was defined as “a marriage of two technologies — old-fashioned building management and telecommunications.”i In the past few years, the building industry has developed advanced applications at the intersection of […]

Power Tools

Why Energy Efficiency Deserves to Be a Top Focus For Facilities Professionals in 2023

By Rick Sporrer

From melting glaciers in the Himalayas to wildfires in California, global warming has become an immediate and pressing crisis. The good news is that solutions currently exist to take immediate action in reducing emissions. According to the International Energy Agency, most of the global reductions in carbon emissions needed for Net Zero by 2050 come […]