In fiscal year 2013, Broward College accepted the challenge of standardizing collegewide facilities and services. Doing so required that all trades including HVAC, electrical, fleet, locksmith, landscape/grounds and custodial services would be reviewed from a collegewide perspective. Two underlying questions guided our plan to restructure and standardize operations:
The goal of the Facilities Management Department is to continually improve the level of services offered and to increase student and employee satisfaction while providing a clean, safe environment for teaching and learning throughout Broward College.The previous facilities business model was a decentralized organizational structure. Four campus facilities managers reported to the dean of business affairs at each location. Theirs was a divided structure in which each location prioritized projects and competed for funding based on individual campus needs. Each campus essentially had its own wish list rather than creating a comprehensive, prioritized needs assessment and funding based on the needs of the college.
Facilities services were clustered, all providing various operations, with no consistency in service level, or standard procedures from location to location.
The decentralized structure worked well for many years and it can be an effective model. However, because of the college’s growth over the past decade, it became apparent that a new approach was needed to assure all campuses and centers received consistent, effective and efficient service.
Broward College’s growth was a prime reason for a new approach to service. It is now a robust educational institution three thriving, full-service campuses. Add to that the Downtown Center, Business Center, and seven satellite locations representing a system-wide total of over 2 million square feet. The college’s buildings, grounds and other infrastructure are used on a daily basis by more than 70,000 students and 2,500 employees.
Making the Case for Centralization of Services
It is important to note the level of work that must precede any type of change of this magnitude. The Broward College Facilities Management Department made this transition after lengthy assessments, discussions and administrative meetings that took place throughout the previous year. Key players in this analysis were the campus facilities managers, electrical and EMS managers, facilities administration, and consultant services.
We spent all of 2013 examining all operations, using a combination of outside consultant services and in-house management expertise. After an exhaustive critical self-analysis of our operations we presented a centralized organizational structure to the college administration and the board of trustees and gained their approval to restructure. The change took place in July 2014.
With the new organizational structure in place, the newly formed Facilities Maintenance Operations Group now reports to the district director of maintenance, mechanical and electrical systems.
The following roles report to the district director:
Overall, this department consists of 100 full-time employees.
Additionally, a Custodial Services Department consisting of approximately 150 contract employees and other maintenance-related contract services fall under the management and oversight of the district director of maintenance, mechanical and electrical systems.
Centralization Contributes to Positive Results
Many positive changes have occurred as a result of this restructuring which have allowed for increased cost efficiencies, improved quality and enhanced customer service. More importantly, all changes were done with a keen eye on the college’s main focus of student safety and success. Decisions cannot be made in a vacuum and all changes and modifications should always lead back to the consumer or end user – in this case the student population. Some highlights of the restructuring:
As with any large institution, there is a growing list of deferred maintenance needs. To best address this, condition assessments were completed, utilizing contract service professionals with trade expertise in the following areas:
Assessments were performed throughout FY13/14. With complete assessments on hand, the facilities administration team had a valuable tool in which to prioritize project needs, throughout all three campuses based on present conditions. This allows us to more effectively identify project funding over the next several fiscal years.
For example, a complete roofing condition assessment was performed on 68 buildings. The assessments provided condition ratings of 1 – 5, photo documentation, and repair, renovate, replace recommendations with estimated budgets for each building.
The assessment allowed the facilities division to hone in on the most pressing needs in the system. All roofs rated between 1 and 2 (poor) were replaced over the last two fiscal years. Over the next two fiscal years the focus will be on those buildings that had a roof-rating between 2.5 and 3. Some will require a complete reroof while others may simply require partial repairs to existing roofing systems.
Additionally, the roofing consultant who was contracted to perform the condition assessments, also provided the overall project scope of work and managed the projects. This includes scheduling and oversight of required engineering testing as well as weekly inspection reports of the project once the roofing term contractor was on the job – from project initiation to completion. All work is performed in conjunction and under the watchful eye of college code officials.
Moving Forward
Now in our second year of the centralization of facilities services it is evident that the quality of work, employee morale, customer satisfaction, and cost efficiencies have all improved.
A recent Customer Satisfaction Survey released in December 2014 for both Custodial Contract Services and Facilities Management gave us high praise, with an overall rating of “very satisfied.”
Like any organizational change, the centralization of these services came with some contention and trepidation. It was a shift in campus administration responsibilities, facilities management culture, budget responsibilities, and in how the college looked at and prioritized its resources.
In addition to the maintenance, mechanical and electrical systems operations highlighted throughout this article, other departments that deal with campus infrastructure include the Construction and Design and Planning and Capital Budget divisions. Both departments have district director level oversight. All three department heads report to the associate vice president of facilities management and the changes that were made have resulted in a dynamic working relationship focused on one common goal – providing superior educational facilities that contribute positively to teaching and student success.
