Higher Education Rethinks, Reinvests in Facilities: Report
Institutional investment in existing buildings has rebounded with growth of 33 percent over the past several years April 24, 2024
By Dan Hounsell, Senior Editor
Higher education facilities are not what they once were. Activity levels on many campuses are down, more employees work remotely, classes often happen without a classroom, and the amount of space needed for the same number of students seems to be shrinking. Facility managers in higher education are continuing to assess the impact the pandemic is having on their facilities, budgets, workloads and staffing needs.
The latest report from Gordian, a provider of facility and construction cost data, offers insights into the way higher education institutions are adjusting their facilities and spending in response to the many changes. The report is based on Gordian’s database of 43,000 campus buildings, 1.1 billion gross square feet of space and more than $13.5 billion in capital and operating budgets. Among the report’s findings:
- Institutional investment in existing buildings has rebounded with growth of 33 percent over the past several years in response to need.
- Inflationary pressure and increased wages accelerated the cost to care for existing facilities by nearly 20 percent.
- Space growth has remained flat for the third year, signaling that institutions are recognizing the importance of restraint in the face of countless indicators about the future.
- Investment levels in facilities grew more than 26 percent year-over-year and by 33 percent, a full third, since 2021. Spending on existing facilities now exceeds that of fiscal year 2019, suggesting colleges and universities now recognize the value of physical assets to the campus experience.
- This investment increase appears in both the categories of annual stewardship (dollars set aside every year for this purpose) at 17.7 percent and asset reinvestment (one-time capital dollars focused on existing buildings) at nearly 31 percent.
Dan Hounsell is senior editor for the facilities market. He has more than 30 years of experience writing about facilities maintenance, engineering and management.
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