Facility Planning / Plant Operations
Facility Planning / Plant Operations jbarber32 Thu, 06/14/2012 - 16:51Building & Utilities Maintenance
Building & Utilities Maintenance
The purpose of this document is to outline the procedures associated with Building & Utilities Maintenance.
The Building & Utilities Maintenance Departments are responsible for the operation, maintenance, and repair of all heating, air conditioning, ventilating and refrigeration equipment including the central steam and chilled water plants and their associated distribution systems. Building & Utilities Maintenance perform certain maintenance and repair functions according to regular schedule or as the need is determined through scheduled and special inspections conducted by Building & Utilities Maintenance Department personnel. Attendant responsibilities include energy conservation and cost containment.
Scheduled Maintenance and Repair
Functions performed according to a schedule or as a result of scheduled inspections are as follows:
- Exterior painting, including refurbishing all painted surfaces as required. This work is normally scheduled during the late spring and summer months. The schedule must be flexible since some buildings require painting more frequently than others.
- Plumbing system maintenance and repair, including water, air, gas, steam, and sewer systems, both interior and exterior.
- Mechanical equipment maintenance including servicing and repairs to heating, air conditioning, ventilation, and other mechanical equipment. Building Maintenance has an inspection and preventive maintenance group which makes regularly scheduled visits to each of the campus buildings.
- Electrical systems maintenance, including the campus high voltage distribution system. These systems are installed, inspected, maintained, and repaired by Utilities Maintenance personnel. Facilities Management personnel also install, maintain, and repair the secondary electrical systems within each building.
- Elevator maintenance and repair is accomplished through contract services prepared and monitored by Utilities Maintenance.
Since the indiscriminate addition of electrically operated equipment can tax a power system beyond its designated load limits, building occupants should consider power loads in purchasing equipment. Any contemplated electrical load additions requiring significant amounts of power should be discussed in advance with the Manager and the Design & Construction Department..
Unscheduled Maintenance and Repair
Maintenance performed as the need arises is as follows:
- Interior painting is performed when it is needed and when there will be a minimum of interference with classes and/or office routines.
- General repairs which may require the service of roofers, masons, carpenters, locksmiths, plasterers, or other craftsmen. All these services are available as needed.
Emergency Maintenance and Repair
When situations are observed which appear to require immediate maintenance or repair attention to either prevent or resolve an emergency, these should be reported to the building manager or by telephone to area Building Maintenance, if during normal office hours. All other times, telephone reports of emergencies should be made to the Dispatcher, Georgia Tech Police Department, telephone number 894-2500, who is provided with a current emergency call list Building Maintenance personnel. The person to be contacted and/or who can point out the problem should also be provided.
http://www.facilities.gatech.edu/om/requests/maintenance.php
Utility Interruptions
Provisions, including advance notice and duration, for interruptions to utilities permitting the contractor to make necessary connections and installations are contained in the contract specifications. The contractor is required to give notice to the owner (Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission) when an interruption is needed; they, in turn, contact the Vice President of Facilities Management. Facilities coordinates with Utilities Maintenance and replies to the owner. Utilities Maintenance then coordinates the actual interruption directly with the contractor; gives notifications of the scheduled interruptions to all Institute departments and activities involved; and arranges restoration of service.
Protection of Utilities
Electric, steam, communications, sewer, gas, chilled water, and domestic water lines are buried throughout the campus. These lines are a hazard to personnel digging or excavating in the vicinity of these lines and extreme caution should be taken to protect the lines from damage. Prior to any digging or excavation, the Manager of the Utilities Maintenance Department shall be notified. No digging may proceed until all Georgia Tech owned lines have been located by Georgia Tech personnel and all public utility lines have been located by the Locator Service and the Atlanta Water Department. Outside contractors are responsible for having all Georgia Tech owned lines located and for requesting Locator Service and Atlanta Water Department locator service.
Design & Construction
Design & ConstructionThe purpose of this document is to outline the procedures associated with the Facility Planning/Plant Operations Engineering Department.
The Engineering Department is responsible for Plant Operations data processing equipment, drafting and records management, electrical engineering, electrical estimation, mechanical design, mechanical engineering, networking and telecommunications. The scope of this department includes the design of mechanical, electrical, telephone and computer systems for renovation projects and new buildings.
The Drafting and Records Management Section assists the engineers, project designers, and estimators in producing building renovation and space improvement drawings. This section also keeps current CAD and microfilm records of all project drawings. Also assists other departments and divisions in accessing and using the project records.
The Mechanical Engineering Section estimates and designs all plumbing, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning projects. Requests to this section are initiated either by the campus departments or through the Architectural Department and are directed through the Associate Vice President of Facilities to the Manager of Facilities Engineering for design services.
The Manager of Engineering is the primary interface with outside architectural and engineering firms for large renovation projects and new buildings. The manager provides guidance and campus design criteria for campus utility, mechanical, electrical, plumbing and communications systems. The Engineering Department is responsible for all outside utility designs and coordination.
The Electrical Engineering Section is responsible for the design, and construction of all electrical facilities on the Georgia Tech campus, as well as the electrical high voltage distribution system. This section interfaces with Georgia Tech and a consulting architect or engineer working on the electrical design for a new campus building.
The Telecommunications Section is the primary interface between DOAS and Georgia Tech. This section's responsibilities include processing telephone installation requests and determining telephone service line and distribution requirements.
The Networking Section of Electrical Engineering is responsible for the design and construction documents for telephones and computer network wiring in buildings. This includes the design for the interconnection of buildings throughout the campus with fiber optics.
Telephone Request
During normal office hours, telephone requests or written DOAS requests made to the Work Order Section, Plant Operations, will be accepted for telephone adds, charges and moves. Daytime emergencies are reported to the Telecommunications person. Such telephone requests are normally made by a person designated by the dean or department head to avoid duplicate requests. The specific location, including building and room number, the name of the individual to be contacted, and a description of the problem, must be provided, so that prompt and concise instructions can be given to repair or emergency personnel.
Emergency telephone information is summarized below:
Type of Emergency | Time | Telephone |
---|---|---|
Fire | All Times | 542-2200 |
Campus Police | All Times | 894-2500 |
Facilities Engineering or Facilities Architect Department
On weekends and holidays and after normal office hours, requests are made to the Institute Police Department for relay to appropriate Plant Operations personnel. Such requests should be limited to emergencies and essential facilities requiring immediate attention.
Requests for Engineering Services
Requests for Engineering Services for work to be funded from departmental and special accounts (non-capital) may be submitted by letter or electronic mail to the Facilities Engineering or Facilities Architect's Department.
All requests for services should furnish the general scope and type of work desired; the person to be contacted concerning details with their room number and telephone number; and the person making the request. If the request involves renovation which will cause the deletion of a teaching area, the request must be in writing and accompanied by the approval of the Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
All requests will be acknowledged in writing, indicating an estimate number which has been assigned. The estimate number should be referred to in all further inquiries and correspondence.
Requests for information concerning the status of an estimate should be directed to the lead designer of the project.
The project will be evaluated to determine if architectural services will be required. A preliminary cost estimate will be developed and the client will be notified in writing or by electronic mail. Upon funding approval from the client, detailed plans and specifications will be developed and a final cost estimate will be prepared.
The client will be requested for final funding approval and a valid account number for the project to be bill.
The project will be forwarded to the maintenance and construction department for bidding.
Requests for information concerning the status of an estimate should be directed to the lead designer of the project.
Master Utility Map
Procedures for updating the master property map for Georgia Tech will be as follows.
- Basic responsibility for the updating of the utility map will lie with the Engineering Department of Plant Operations Division.
- As projects are completed, as built copies will be delivered to the Engineering Department.
- Upon receipt of the new utility information, the Engineering Department will locate the property on a large scale drawing of the campus property maps. This location will be coordinated with and checked with the Office of Campus Planning to insure a double check.
To insure that the Master Utility Maps are kept current, it is imperative that copies of all deeds or any other documents pertaining to the acquisition or disposition of property be forwarded to the Engineering Department of Plant Operations Division.
Departmental Equipment Installations
The installation of special equipment, including items where installation by others will affect space utilization, ordered by the respective department or activity for laboratories, offices, or classrooms usually imposes some work requirements on Plant Operations. This involves electrical and/or other utility connections, such as special drainage, venting, heating and cooling, or other factors and special controls peculiar to the particular equipment operation. Location with respect to existing and/or required operational requirements, physical space and access to the area involved also require early consideration and coordination. In some instances, the building systems will not be able to support adequately the proposed equipment.
When the purchase of such equipment is contemplated by a department or activity, Plant Operations should be contacted in order to verify that the operational characteristics of the equipment to be ordered are compatible with existing utilities in the building or can be reasonably provided and any other limitations reconciled prior to equipment being ordered. Any installation material to be provided by Plant Operations, i.e., special wiring, connections, ducts, and vents should be determined at this time.
As much advance notice as possible as to expected delivery date and required operational date, should be furnished Plant Operations to facilitate scheduling of installation. This will not only assist Plant Operations in timely scheduling but will preclude undue delays in placing equipment in service.
All work performed by Plant Operations Division will be charged to the department involved, and work orders must be set up prior to start of any work by Plant Operations Division.
Financial Administration
Financial AdministrationThe purpose of this document is to outline the procedures associated with the Accounting Services Department.
Expenses of operating and maintaining Institute facilities are charged to the Plant Operations accounts of the appropriate fund groups: Resident Instruction, GTRI, Auxiliary Enterprises, etc. Departments within Resident Instruction will not be specifically charged for routine scheduled maintenance of facilities; however departments will be charged for repair or maintenance of instructional or lab equipment and for non-routine or specially requested unscheduled services. Departments will also be charged for materials drawn from the POD warehouse. Where possible, expenses incurred on behalf of a sponsored account will be directly charged to that account.
The POD Accounting Department maintains a job cost accounting system which accumulates the costs of labor and materials for all POD operations and maintenance, whether routine or special. Labor and materials are charged to the appropriate accounts on a daily basis within the POD accounting system. These charges are entered once each month to the Institute accounting system by journal entry. Charges to units outside of the Institute accounting system will be billed through Accounts Receivable. Monthly statements summarizing all charges will be provided to each department which has incurred charges. Questions concerning these monthly charges should be directed to the POD Accounting Department.
POD Warehouse
Plant Operations operates a warehouse in the POD complex, where general hardware, construction, electrical, plumbing and other supplies and material are stocked. Institute departments may draw items stock in the POD warehouse by authorized use of an appropriate departmental account number. Departments may restrict the issue of materials to a pre-authorized list of individuals, provided that a letter of authorization is kept on file with the Warehouse Supervisor. The person receiving materials for a department will sign an Issue of Materials form prepared by a warehouse attendant. It is the responsibility of each department to keep their representatives informed of the account numbers which are currently valid on the chart of accounts.
POD Warehouse personnel do not normally make deliveries. However, under special circumstances, delivery may be arranged through the Warehouse Supervisor, subject to a delivery charge.
Special Requests for POD Services:
When a department has a need for POD services beyond routine scheduled maintenance, arrangements should be made through POD Operations. For emergencies requiring immediate attention, POD Operations should be contacted by telephone. For non-emergency work such as small renovations or repair of instructional or lab equipment or furniture, a written request should be sent to POD. It is recommended that requesting departments ask for an estimate in advance for all special work. Where estimates are furnished and agreed to for in-house repairs, renovations or other services, the department requesting the work will normally be charged the amount of the estimate. Should unforeseen problems arise during the course of the work requiring an increase in the scope of the work (or should the requesting department make a change in the scope of the work after it has begun), charges above the amount of the original estimate should be expected. The total amount charged in this case will reflect the original estimate plus the costs of the changes. When a department requests that special work or services be begun without an advance estimate, due to time considerations or other reasons, the amount charged will be the actual cost of the work. In all cases where specially requested work is performed by an outside contractor, the amount charged to the department will be the amount of the contract.
A written request for special work (unscheduled repairs, renovations, or other services) should contain the following:
- A thorough description of desired work and services, with location clearly specified by building and room number (where possible) and provision of sketches and diagrams where appropriate.
- The account number to be billed.
- Signature of departmental employee authorized to expend these funds.
- The person(s) to contact should questions arise as to budget transactions, scheduling, or changes to the scope or nature of the work.
General Information
General InformationThe following procedures provide general information regarding the functions and responsibilities reporting to the Office of the Vice President for Facilities Management.
The Office of the Facilities Vice President reports to the Senior Vice President for Administration and Finance, and is responsible for the orderly planning for the long-range development of the campus. This is accomplished through continuous studies of the physical needs for the Institute and coordinates the planning and construction of physical facilities.
This position is also responsible for assisting in the creation of a physical environment conducive to teaching and research, to efficiently operate and maintain this environment and to provide services that enhance the use of the facilities.
The Facilities Management Division is divided into nine departments:
- Building Maintenance
- Custodial Services
- Design & Construction
- Energy Conservation
- Environmental Health & Safety
- Financial Administration
- Landscape Services & Motorpool
- Solid Waste Management & Recycling
- Utilities Maintenance
The Facilities Vice President oversees these departments, each of which has its own respective Director/Manager.