The introduction of a Lean approach to management requires the development of understanding and capability. This in turn requires a structured training intervention and other supporting activities. This paper explores, through a case study, the way in which action learning groups (ALGs) supported the development of Lean capabilities in the…

Recreation administrators have had to evolve their approach to managing areas and facilities as both financial and environmental resources have become more limited. One way that administrators have attempted to meet such challenges is through strategies that are more environmentally sustainable. The following article addresses the importance of…

In September of 2012, a mixed methods exploratory research study was conducted from among the 270 presidents of public two-year colleges in the 11-state region accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. The purpose of the study was to examine the environmental sustainability practices used at these…

Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs) are electronic speed controllers used mainly to modulate and reduce the overall speed and power consumption of an electrical motor. They can be used as soft starters for equipment that has a large rotational mass, thus reducing belt ware and large electrical peaks when starting large pieces of equipment. VFDs have…

"I had no idea how to convince someone to hire me," recalls APPA President, Glen Smith. His first interview was with Bryn Mawr College, a small, prestigious private college with Quaker roots, located 12 miles west of Philadelphia. That was in 1997, after 24 years in the Naval Civil Engineer Corps, and he still remembers a certain…

This article reports on the historical meeting that took place March 23, 1914, with nearly a dozen "Association of Superintendents of Buildings and Grounds" leaders from Central Western Colleges and Universities in Chicago, IL. At that time, the term "superintendent of buildings and grounds" had only been adopted around the…

APPA's highest institutional honor, the "Award for Excellence in Facilities Management (AFE)," recognizes those educational institutions whose facilities management organizations demonstrate quality in overall operations and effectiveness. The Award for Excellence is based on a set of criteria that include: Leadership; Strategic and…

This article reports that since its founding in 1914, APPA has become a premier association serving its diverse membership of international educational institutions in all areas of facilities management. APPA's programs, products, and services are designed to equip facilities professionals with the technical knowledge and necessary…

Recently, there have been many discussions regarding APPA's upcoming 100-year anniversary celebration. APPA's international and regional officers are collectively planning an extraordinary event that will take place in San Diego, California in July 2014. There is no doubt that the APPA staff will provide exceptional educational programs…

Maggie Kinnaman is an APPA Emeritus Member, APPA Fellow, and Past APPA President. In this article she provides helpful tips for completing the APPA Facilities Performance Indicators (FPI) survey for 2013, which closed on December 16, 2013. She began by calling attention to some enhancements that have been added this past year, and encouraged…

There are often situations in facilities management where the daily repetition of certain tasks can seem meaningless to the employee if facilities managers are not conscientious. In this article, Joe Whitefield asks and answers the question: If your workplace morale is sagging a bit, what can be done to prop it up? To answer that question, he…

Facilities departments at colleges and universities are facing the same challenge: how not to do just the most projects, but also the right projects with the limited funds they are given. In order to make the best decisions, they need more control over the capital planning process, which requires accurate, current facility condition data. Each…

The BOK (Body of Knowledge) is APPA's "Facilities Management" online manual. It makes information readily available, anytime and anywhere, to not only its members at all its institutions, but to anyone. Web media allows the BOK to be updated as needed, and includes links to additional resources. Because the BOK is an important part…

Buildings consume approximately 40 percent of the energy used in the U.S., and efficiency is widely recognized to be the most effective means for containing demand and reducing use. Institutions of higher education make up a significant proportion of building area and annual energy and facility-related costs in the United States. The national…

This article addresses two of the most repeated questions in APPA (1) How can we convert our reactive maintenance operations to a planned and predictable operation? and (2) In addition, how can we do this with little or no additional resources? It seems reasonable to assume that if a department is short on resources and in a full-blown reactive…