Facility managers talk often about how their occupational goal is to make building conditions optimal for occupants, whether they are employees or other users such as students, faculty, patients, office workers, etc.
For Las Vegas native Doug Diaz, the profession of facilities management has an even higher calling.
“I always strive to be the best leader and best community member for the Las Vegas Valley I grew up in,” says Diaz, a 2024 Facility Champion award recipient. “All I am trying to do is give back to the public.”
Diaz is the director of facility optimization for the Department of Sustainability Energy Management and Environmental Sciences for the Clark County School District based in Henderson, Nevada, in suburban Las Vegas. He has been with the district for 25 years and supervises a team of 250 employees.
Clark County School District is the fifth largest K-12 district in the country, covering 7,910 square miles. The district’s 378 campuses and 40 support sites in Southern Nevada exceed 42 million square feet of conditioned space serving 310,000 students and 42,000 staff members.
Las Vegas was one of the country’s fastest-growing areas at the turn of the century, so the district was allocated a $4.9 billion bond to plan, design and build 88 new schools and expand almost 230 more to accommodate the growth. About 25 years later, school officials are now seeking to replace HVAC and roofing systems, so a lot of Diaz’s job currently involves working with school officials on a capital improvement plan to take the district into the next 25 years.
“We’re assisting with the coordinating and design, implementation and maintenance of advanced lighting and control upgrades to approximately 270 schools,” he says. “This $46 million energy savings contract focuses on energy efficiency projects and is expected to transform Nevada’s learning environment over the next 10 years.”
Living in a part of the country that receives very little rainfall throughout the year, Diaz is part of a team that’s seeking to reduce the district’s water demands. As a lifelong resident with roots in the community, the project is especially meaningful to Diaz.
“We plan to achieve this by replacing natural grass with synthetic turf at over 50 high schools and by converting evaporative cooling systems to air-cooled chillers,” he says. “This initiative is estimated to save around 400 million gallons of water per year from the Colorado River program.”
The district’s energy savings contract is expected to reduce energy costs by more than $2 million and operational costs by $360,000 annually. The savings will not only benefit the local economy but help showcase STEM programs while helping the community experience the benefits of new technologies.
And in an era where many facilities are seeking the next era of leaders, perhaps the STEM program will produce the next generation of Diazes for the district.
“Remain open to innovative approaches and strategies and gain knowledge from individuals at all levels, including those in junior positions,” Diaz advises to aspiring managers. “Engage in a long-term mentor and assemble a cohort of dependable individuals to provide input and receive feedback. Join local facility management organizations to become involved in the industry and assimilate praiseworthy qualities from your collaborators. Foster and lead your team by imparting the knowledge garnered throughout your career.”
Dave Lubach is executive editor of the facilities market.
