Stewardship of Federal Facilities A Proactive Strategy for Managing the Nation's Public Assets (1998) / Chapter Skim
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3 Condition Assessments
3 Condition Assessments
Pages 42-58
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From page 42... ...
This chapter reviews the components of condition assessments and capital assets management programs; describes the use of condition assessments by federal agencies; reviews technologies for automating condition assessments; identifies the staffing implications for performing automated condition assessments; and identifies issues related to condition assessment programs as they are currently implemented by federal agencies. COMPONENTS OF A CONDITION ASSESSMENT AND CAPITAL ASSETS MANAGEMENT PROGRAM A condition assessment has been defined as the "process of systematically evaluating an organization' s capital assets in order to project repair, renewal, or replacement needs that will preserve their ability to support the mission or activities they were assigned to serve" (Rugless, 1993~.
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From page 43... ...
Facility condition assessments can also be used to: evaluate deferred maintenance and funding requirements; plan a deferred maintenance reduction program; compare conditions between facilities; establish baselines for setting goals and tracking progress; provide accurate and supportable information for planning and justifying budgets; facilitate the establishment of funding priorities; and develop budget and funding analyses and strategies (AME, 19911. Studies by the National Research Council, the Federal Facilities Council, and the GAO have reported that condition assessment programs are used by some federal agencies to identify and document maintenance and repair backlogs or deferred maintenance.
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From page 44... ...
Standardized inspection processes range from macrolevel assessments of facility systems for organizations with work-order systems in place to detailed microlevel inspections of individual buildings that identify deficiencies and can be used for managing daily work orders. A standardized inspection process with uniform deficiency standards and inspection methods can enable a facilities program manager to compare and prioritize inspection data from different facilities, equipment, infrastructure systems, locations, and inspectors.
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From page 45... ...
. ~ · mln~mlz~ng surprise failures of equipment or systems · determining critical maintenance requirements for physical assets · optimizing operations and maintenance dollars to maximize the ROI for large assets · developing sound, defensible budgets based on an organization's goals and objectives rather than on the physical condition of facilities alone · providing a consistent methodology for comparing requests from facility managers · allocating maintenance and repair dollars among competing requirements or organizations The application of a GAS/CAMP by federal facilities program managers can be broken down into four broad categories: CAS as a tool for identifying and validating deferred maintenance backlog CAS as a means of evaluating the condition of physical assets and their maintenance against projected life cycles GAS/CAMP as a process for identifying, prioritizing, and managing the asset portfolio · CAMP as a decision-making tool for trade-off analyses for allocating resources 4In some circumstances, it may not be cost effective to make early inspections and repairs but only to make corrections when needed.
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From page 46... ...
An internal organizational evaluation to determine the objectives and reporting requirements of the facilities management program is essential for federal program managers when choosing an appropriate system. USE OF CONDITION ASSESSMENTS BY FEDERAL AGENCIES Condition assessment survey programs were first used by federal agencies, including the U.S.
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From page 47... ...
Since 1990, the DOE system has been revised, the software upgraded, and functional improvements made (USACIR, 1996~. In the Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal year 1992, funds were provided for the implementation of a pilot test program to conduct comprehensive maintenance surveys, referred to collectively as the condition assessment survey, at selected DoD installations.
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From page 48... ...
The primary purpose of a traditional RCM program is to ensure safety at any cost; cost effectiveness is a secondary goal. A rigorous RCM analysis based on a detailed failure modes and effects analysis is used to
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From page 49... ...
ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY Recent organizational downsizing has prompted facilities program managers to look to technology to provide facility-related data for decision making. Task 2 of the committee's charge was to investigate the role of technology in performing automated condition assessments.
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From page 50... ...
The units are relatively durable in the field and are an inexpensive means to capture data as long as the inspection process is simple and does not require substantial data entry. Recent developments include the integration of geographical information systems with video and inspection data through a mix of digital camera, automated data collection devices and Global Positioning System technologies to provide an integrated data process for assessing the condition of a system.8 Testing and Instrumentation With testing and instrumentation, facilities program managers can monitor the overall condition of their key assets.
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From page 51... ...
Federal program managers must first evaluate their agency's needs and objectives and reporting requirements before choosing a computerized system. Decision Support The increase in the availability of computer systems has provided one of the most attainable and useful technological advances for facilities program managers.
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From page 52... ...
In addition, a number of multiple-attribute decisionmaking methods have been developed and automated for use in evaluating facility maintenance and repair requirements based on multiple criteria.l° These decision-support tools have been used for quite some time for the evaluation of weapons platforms, software systems, and research and development projects and could also provide facilities program managers with defensible methodologies for evaluating and prioritizing maintenance and repair requirements. Intelligent Buildings In 1988, the Building Research Board of the National Research Council undertook a study entitled Electronically Enhanced Office Buildings to provide guidance to project administrators, building owners, chief executive officers, and facility planners about incorporating modern electronic technology in new or renovated buildings (NRC, 1988~.
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From page 53... ...
Automated Condition Assessments The idea of linking building diagnostics with the monitoring and control capabilities inherent in intelligent buildings is very appealing. Building diagnostics deal with the measurement and interpretation of data and the relationship of those data to expected building performance.
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From page 54... ...
Beyond the "traditional" control of building mechanical systems, existing sensor and microprocessor technologies also have the potential to monitor and manage a range of environmental parameters that are difficult to inspect and measure during routine site visits and condition assessments. For example, interior building moisture levels behind walls and bulkheads may indicate that conditions are favorable to the growth of micro-organisms associated with Sick Building Syndrome and other adverse health effects.
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From page 55... ...
. Personnel involved in automated condition assessments would be expected to have similar computer skills.
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From page 56... ...
Type and Volume of Data Collected The federal agency condition assessment programs reviewed by the committee were designed to be comprehensive. Besides inspecting critical building components and systems, such as roofs, plumbing, electrical, and fire safety systems, agencies also collect data on more cosmetic deficiencies, such as broken door locks, and torn or worn carpeting.
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From page 57... ...
More important, perhaps, the information collected becomes less timely, more difficult to analyze, and, consequently, less useful for ongoing facilities management. Timeliness of Data Current practices take so long to gather and analyze condition assessments that the information loses its value in the budget development process.
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From page 58... ...
1998. Personal communication from Eric Teicholz, President, Graphic Systems, Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts to Richard Little, Director of Board on Infrastructure and the Constructed Environment, National Research Council, Washington, D.C.
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