Springtime Tips to Prepare Businesses for Extreme Weather

Springtime Tips to Prepare Businesses for Extreme Weather

    This spring may bring about damaging weather events, including heavy rain, severe thunderstorms, tornadoes, and hurricanes. With such threats looming, insurance firm QBE North America has shared best practices to help U.S. business owners and facilities managers stay prepared and protected. “As we shake off winter, now is the time to identify potential…

Safety Challenges, Mistakes and Misconceptions

Safety Challenges, Mistakes and Misconceptions

  The COVID-19 pandemic changed nearly everything about the operations of institutional and commercial facilities. For maintenance and engineering managers, these changes prompted them to revisit and rethink nearly every building system and technician activity. The pandemic also affected front-line technician safety, both the way managers selected and provided training and, in some cases, the…

Onsite prefabrication for healthcare construction: It’s more than a process, it’s a partnership

Onsite prefabrication for healthcare construction: It’s more than a process, it’s a partnership

    As health systems plan for the future of their facilities, they’re navigating in a time of uncertainty. The problem they face is two-fold: Ongoing supply chain issues. Material shortages and volatile fuel prices are compounding long-term issues (especially, skilled labor shortages) in a way that exacerbates market instability and increases owner’s risks. While…

The Consequences of Unacknowledged Grief in the Workplace

The Consequences of Unacknowledged Grief in the Workplace

      Creating grief-informed workplaces is a needed response to the tolls of the pandemic — and an opportunity for cultural change. Alan, an executive in his mid-50s, had been one of my therapy clients for nearly three years, but it was the first time I’d seen him cry. A respected champion of a…

Article 90: Why It’s So Important for Electrical Inspectors

Article 90: Why It’s So Important for Electrical Inspectors

    Some people may not consider Article 90 of NFPA 70®, National Electrical Code® (NEC®), to be a backbone of electrical inspector knowledge. But a familiarity with Article 90 is crucial for electrical inspectors. The sections found within Article 90 provide a comprehensive overview of when the NEC applies and when it doesn’t, how…

Back to Basics: Noise Exposure and Safety in the Workplace

Back to Basics: Noise Exposure and Safety in the Workplace

    Back to Basics is an article series that highlights important, but possibly overlooked, information facilities management professionals should know. Do you work in noisy facilities or around loud equipment? All of the human senses must be protected from hazards and damage in the workplace, including hearing. According to OSHA, the CDC estimates that…