Practical Facilities Tips, News & Advice.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revealed its annual “Top Cities” list, spotlighting the cities with the greatest number of ENERGY STAR-certified commercial and multifamily buildings in 2023. Los Angeles leads the pack, with 876 ENERGY STAR-certified buildings. In second place is Washington, D.C., with 631 buildings, followed by New York in third place (390 […]
The University of Richmond’s Eco-Corridor, an 18-acre restoration, was an old road, previously ignored, a “place of possibility,” said Rob Andrejewski, the university’s director of sustainability. Opened in 2020, the project includes an extensive stream restoration, the planting of 25,000 grasses, shrubs, and trees, invasive species removal, new trails, plus picnic tables, a learning lab, […]
During the opening keynote session of Facilities Management Advisor’s FM Now: Healthy Buildings virtual summit, “Connecting the Dots: Moving Toward an Integrated Approach to Healthy and Sustainable Reporting for Buildings,” the topic of healthy buildings was discussed, including the financial and employee benefits of healthy facilities, how healthy buildings can combat climate change, ways healthy […]
The New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) and the New York Power Authority (NYPA) announced the completed installation of energy-efficient LED lights at New York City Police Department (NYPD) facilities. The nearly $17 million lighting replacements and retrofits will save the city government about $750,000 in annual energy and maintenance costs and will reduce […]
Schools are considered high-risk environments for the transmission of infectious diseases due to the close and frequent contact and communication that occurs among students and teachers. Environments such as athletic training rooms, gymnasiums, cafeterias, and classrooms can act as sources for the spread of infection. After the historic disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic, the education […]
As life outside gets greener, spring is also a good reminder of the importance of green practices in facilities. HVAC systems use 40-50% of a commercial building’s energy, translating to high energy usage and significant greenhouse gas emissions. However, this also presents ample opportunity to find efficiencies. Balancing occupant comfort with sustainability is not always […]
On this latest episode of FMA Shorts, Melanie Danuser, director of education and training at the Smart Buildings Center, explores the many upsides of using high-tech solutions in facilities. This clip was taken from a webinar titled “Navigating the Future: Top Trends and Challenges for Creating Smart Buildings.” The full session is available for FREE […]
The cicadas are coming! The cicadas are coming! Some facilities professionals will indeed experience a “cicada-geddon,” a term coined by John Cooley, a University of Connecticut cicada expert. According to The Associated Press, two broods of cicadas—13-year and 17-year varieties—will be coming together for the first time since 1803, meaning trillions of them will come […]
Unless Elon Musk stops messing around with Twitter and gets us to Mars, Earth is our only home for the foreseeable future. That means we’ve got to take good care of the planet and conserve its finite natural resources. It’s also why sustainability is a hot topic all year long and why facilities managers are […]
On April 12, the Biden administration finalized congressionally mandated energy efficiency standards for the most common residential and commercial lightbulbs. The standards will go into effect in July 2028 for newly produced bulbs. Over 30 years, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) projects the standards will save Americans more than $27 billion on their utility bills […]