Maintenance as a Top Priority

I’m Dan Hounsell, editor of Maintenance Solutions magazine. Today’s topic is, maintenance as a top priority.
Commercial and institutional organizations finally might be coming to understand maintenance really does matter. For decades many people have preached on this issue, pointing out that providing safe, energy-efficient, comfortable and accessible facilities for both occupants and visitors is essential for any organization’s success.
It makes sense in every possible way, including on the bottom line, to give maintenance and engineering departments the resources they need to keep buildings operating as designed. This fact becomes more true every time building technology leaps forward and departments must update training and maintenance procedures to ensure systems perform as intended.
Now, the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) is addressing the need for resources and training to help departments properly maintain facilities and the technology they contain. Specifically, William Harrison, ASHRAE’s president, is asking members to focus on the energy-efficient operation of high-performance buildings.
In remarks to members, Harrison said, “The unfortunate truth is that many buildings with great designs fade from green to grey when building operators don’t understand how to realize the full potential of the energy-conserving systems they manage. We must accept the task of educating the people who operate these sophisticated systems in the technical fundamentals that will enable them to make good decisions.”
ASHRAE’s effort is a welcome step — and an important one — toward the goal of giving managers and technicians the resources they need to do their jobs properly. Many managers will be watching closely to see what the next steps look like.
You can find Harrison’s remarks at www.ashrae.org/aboutus/page/1870.

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