Physical Plant Blog

Hard Worker
Leslie Hiller, a Business Manager in Herter Hall, thanks Brian Pierce, who is a Maintainer in Custodial Services. He takes initiative, is kind, and is doing a great job. He jumps in to offer help when he sees a problem. “We notice and appreciate anything done to improve the Herter environment.”

Moving Team
Rebecca Dufault of Hillside wrote to thank the Moving Team for all their help. “Their assistance in cleaning and moving the chairs was an incredible help!”

Bartlett Auditorium
Andre Gazaille has the responsibility of keeping the highly-used and much-trafficked Bartlett Auditorium clean. Richard Halgin, Professor of Psychology, wrote to commend Andre’s excellent work. He “went the extra mile,” and worked professionally and with good humor and in a timely manner.

Retired Vice Chancellor Hatch
Now-retired Vice Chancellor Hatch wrote to Pam Monn to thank the whole Landscape Team for their efforts around the flag poles in the summer and through the Fall. “Beautiful plantings! Best I have seen,” she wrote.

Artists, All
Nour Bishout and Sarah Horne wrote to thank John Stolsz and Chris Drake of the Grounds Dept for their help with the installation of an art project at the Fine Arts Center. “The Pike” was installed by “an able crew” and with the use of a lift. “I really appreciate your help coordinating the project installation and generous use of both the able crew and the lift. They got to work immediately and finished the job in a couple of hours!”

What a Relief!
So wrote Karen Searcy of the Biology Department, referencing the work ethic of Nancy Gessing of Custodial Services. She “has done much more than we ever expected.” During the major re-arranging of cabinets and equipment, “imagine our surprise” when years of accumulated and inaccessible dust was “already” removed during late summer. “She has our deep thanks. What a relief!”

Architecture Area at FAC
Patrick McNaney of Custodial was profusely thanked by Jean Crossman of FAC for his “no excuses” efforts that go above and beyond to keep the Architecture area spic and span. “He has done cleaning miracles up here on the classroom bridge.” High praise!

Floors!
@ Herter Annex
“As always, Steve Gretchel did another excellent job in cleaning and polishing the floor of our busy Conference Room. Our film studies director, Catherine Portuges, was very, very pleased with the outcome,” wrote Alice Bishko. Congrats!
@ OIT
Shari LaRock, Ed Baranowski, Christina Branche, and Mike Guzik made the floors in OIT look amazing for the start of the Fall semester. “I don’t know if you saw it beforehand, but even though the floor is only about two years old, it looked like it was fifteen years old. Now, it looks almost new! We truly appreciate the great work they do on the floors,” wrote Jo Martone.

Event Ease
Susan Young, Business Manager at School of Education, wrote to thank Mark Chabot for his help with a School of Ed special event. “I received a number of compliments for Mark, who covered the event. He was extremely helpful. Never hurts to let you know when someone has done a really good job!”

Empowering Assistance
Daniel Pepin wrote to thank Susan Paquette for a quick response in dealing with some issues arising from messy graduate students.  She not only cleaned up their mess, she also left the room with receptacles and signs to help the students police themselves better. “Once again, a job well done.”

A Day Doesn’t Go By . . .  
The Grounds Department received a beautifully written thank you note from Deputy Chief of Police Patrick Archbald.  “A day doesn’t go by that someone from the Grounds Crew is not attending to the property around the UMPD. I mean, really!” he wrote. “Keeping up with the tons of fallen leaves, trimming the bushes, watering, turning over the wood chips around the building – it has all been very much appreciated.” “They do a great job!”

Comparisons Prove Phys Plant Superior
Robert Laford of Environmental Health and Safety noted that in the wake of a recent storm, the campus looked superior to other areas nearby. “Hard work and maintenance” of the Physical Plant staff throughout the year paid “dividends” upon inspection of the campus following the storm. “Nice job!”

West Experiment Station
Lateral Steam Line Replacement meant many Utilities hands were “on deck.” Excavating, code welding, and electrical work all needed to collaborate to get the job done. Ray Jackson thanks everyone who worked on this project!

Vice Chancellor’s Office
Dan Poirier of Building Maintenance was thanked “with enthusiasm and extreme gratitude” by Carol Forman, who had in issue with a couple of framed pieces that were broken, while needing to be hung. Dan hustled and made magic happen, and Carol is one very satisfied customer. Yey!

Jennifer Konieczny from Physical Plant landscape Management has planted our spring Pansy’s in the greenhouse. The 1600 spring plant matrix is equal parts yellow, blue, and lemon.  We will have 1500 seed started plants delivered in February which also will be grown in the greenhouse, and we have purchased 2000 6″ pots which will be delivered in the spring from 5 acre Farms.

The process for the pansy’s from seed to planting is aprox. 12 weeks.  Our goal is to have the pansy’s ready to go in the ground by the first week of April. The annuals will be used in the beds around campus (Haigis mall, round-about and planters, and visitor center) to name a few. Ray Laclaire and staff have started to build a smaller hoop house next to our exsisting greenhouse which we salvaged from the old greenhouses that were removed from campus. This area will be used for harding-off some of the plants before they go into the ground; this process is usually a week or two.

He’s a Rock!

The Office of Waste Management is indebted to Maintenance Working Foreman Dennis Purdy for being willing and able to solve customer service issues wherever and whenever they arise. “He’s a rock!” Especially during the last four months, he has especially been exceptional. Thanks Dennis! Carey Simons from the School of Public Health also wrote to thank Dennis, who saved a piece of expensive equipment from being erroneously recycled.

Chancellor’s House

Rebecca Dufault wrote to thank Building Maintenance and Grounds staff for working “So hard” to prepare the Chancellor’s house for the new Chancellor and his family. The Subbaswamys can “begin to relax and live at Hillside.”

Residential Life thanks Physical Plant

Ted Mone, Associate Director for Facilities Operations in Resident Life wrote to thank Utility Plumbers, Equipment Operators, Watch Tour, Work Control, and Randall Boivin (Dig Safe) for a quick and efficient response to North Village Apartments when there was a water main break. “They all responded promptly and completed their work in a professional manner under difficult conditions, including a confined work site, darkness, high outside temperatures, and above all most of them had just completed their regular shift.”

Shiny Floors

Sue McFarland from the Asian Arts & Culture program wrote to thank Wendi Burton for the outstanding job she did cleaning and waxing the floors. “Great care was taken moving the furniture and everything was put back in place.”

Cleaners Extraordinaire

Wilmore Webley from Microbiology wrote to thank Mike Dufresne, Gil Rogers, Joe Galica Jr. and Shun Wang for “doing such an incredible job” cleaning his offices in Morrill IV. He apologized for not doing his part of the prep work, and applauded the team for doing the whole task anyway. “Keep up the great work!”

Dubois Homesite

Bob Paynter of Anthropology wrote to thank Becky Walton and the Landscape Crew who did “a wonderful job completing the installation of the new paths.” The area is safer and beautified. “They got creative and added a very nice sitting area that is a circle just off the new northern path, including using some very large tree logs for seating. It is a real added touch.” The platform is also a wonderful plus at the Homesite. “It looks very handsome and attracts people to stand” there, which was what we wanted. The neighbors Mr. and Mrs. Hitchcock also praised the good hard work the crew does. “It is such an honor to work with Becky and Ray Leclair.”

Spotless!

Acting Chief of Police Patrick Archbald wrote to thank Joseph Galica Sr and Maida Perez for the work they are doing in the new UMPD. “This place is spotless from top to bottom! The floors, the glass, the tables, everything is as clean as the day it arrived brand new!” “We are getting nothing but compliments.”

Quick Customer Service

Jennifer Donais from the Office of Research Compliance wrote to thank Lisa Jarvis of the Physical Plant Service Desk for “quick action” and for advice on how to accomplish the desired service. Kudos, Lisa!

On the Spot

Dan Pepin of GRC wrote to thank Gary Glazier for help Dan received from two summer interns in the Landscape Department. When glass was inadvertently dropped in a roadway, they were on the spot putting out traffic cones and cleaning the road surface.

Fabulous

Martha Berger of Undergraduate Admissions wrote to thank Edmund Stasz, Alain Corriveau, and Rich Piskorski for polishing floors to a glossy sheen, scrubbing and cleaning a storage area, and vacuuming a basement – “which was surely above and beyond the call of duty!” All areas needed attention, and the crew did a fabulous job. Deep appreciate for the conscientious job they do.

Shiny Floors

Marilyn Orszulak, Ed Baranowski, and Johnathan Monson were thanked by Jennifer Normanly of Biochemistry for shiny floors that “look great!”

Tag Teamwork!

Joanne Dolan of South College wrote “a long overdue” note to thank John Strycharz and his crew for sprucing up the area outside the main entrance of the Dean’s office. “John is professional and courteous and his crew is a direct reflection of the high expectations he has for his work. I also enjoy working with Cathy Collins and Beau St. Jaques. Thanks again for your help!”

Solutions

John Hayes from Building Maintenance received “candidate for sainthood” kudos from Patricia Cromack of Stockbridge Hall. John solved a “banging” problem in the heating system, which took multiple diagnostics and skill to get just right.

Terrace at Conte

Jo-Ann Bourguignon, Program Coordinator at the Center for Hierarchical Manufacturing, wrote to say how lovely the terrace looks. Landscape personnel, under the supervision of Gary Glazier, arrived to “trim, prune, mulch, edge, shape, sweep, and –  Voila! — the garden looks amazing!”

Construction Services

Gail Gray of Residential Academic Programs wrote to thank the Construction Services crew, under the direction of Robert Barnicle, for filling in the potholes on Fearing St. “Thanks for taking care of Southwest – all of our students, teachers, staff, and visitors. Job well done!”

Everywoman’s Center

Susan Mahler, Director of EWC Counseling Services, wrote to thank Steve Kosmider for his excellent work ethic in maintaining the EWC. “He takes pride in his work and is very easy to work with. Thank you.” In a separate email, she again praised Steve’s work. “He is a hard worker, thorough and attentive.”

Miraculous!

Jo-Ann Bourguignon wrote to thank Tom Patterson and Kishor Chakal for the “extraordinary efforts” of the night custodians. They are “respectful and accommodating,” including making sure ad-hoc requests are handled. In addition to routine duties, they “plow through” clean up after special events, and ready the building for daily activities. “My director, Prof. James Watkins,” also thanks you!

Commencement Activities

Lorraine Robidoux of the College of Engineering wrote to thank Physical Plant staff for their “wonderful” job during Commencement activities.

Hasbrouck Hall

Bernie Daly takes a shortcut through Hasbrouck Hall most days. She wrote to affirm the work of Phenpa Dhondup, Lyudmila Shlegal, Tatiana Sherstyvkova, and Wayne Chabot in particular, for the “cleanliness and shine” of that building. “Everything is neat as a pin!”

Speedy Help!

Samantha Willis, a Campus Sustainability Intern, wrote to thank whoever helped her get back into an erroneously locked office.

Moving Crew – 3 Affirmations

Robert Cox, Head of Special Collections at the Library, wrote to thank Hollis Henderson and the Moving Crew for picking up the carillons, and to say that the Clarke School folks had singled him out, also, for doing an excellent job. Thanks also to Lamont Allen and Ron Culver, crew members!

Also, Patricia Cromack, from the College of Natural Sciences, wrote to thank these three. “Right after graduation, we had to move (lots)! What potentially could have been a circus went very smoothly and without a hitch. (This crew) is incredibly accommodating, responsive, and great guys to work with.”

And also, Larry Snyder wrote to thank the Moving Crew for Physical Plant second floor personnel’s move to Dickinson Hall. “Everyone was professional and courteous. The transition was much less difficult with their assistance and good humor.”

Grounds Leadership

Interim Chief of Police Patrick Archbald wrote to Pam Monn to thank the Grounds Department for loaning a 40-foot storage trailer to the UMPD. “Thank you for your generous donation.

Engineering Lab

Patricia Alex, Ellen Roberts, Nancy Torrey, Donald Fisher each wrote individually to thank the Landscape Crew for their work around E-Lab I. “It has been a joy to watch the campus come alive with new plantings.” “They did a fabulous job!” “Our surroundings have an impact on how you feel each day while working. Your hard work and impressive improvement to our area is great. It brings great joy and happiness. Your hard work does make a difference!” “It’s been a pleasure seeing the transformation!” Becky Walton, Don Loper, Una Reiser, Bill Allen, and Dave Pielock worked on this.

Fine Arts Center

Don Macleod, Patrick McNaney, and Andy Hartley received kudos from Nicole Young, Audience Service Manager at the FAC. “They did an amazing job,” in preparing the Concert Hall for Commencement activities. “They made our day much easier!”

Several years ago, the Landscape Department consisted of two zones. Each zone formed a ‘SWAT’ team made up of full time and seasonal employees. Each team had five to seven members depending on the weather and how much needed to be done in each area where they were working. The original scope of work involved cleaning up and pruning overgrown shrub beds around buildings, power washing entry ways, and general clean-up to enhance curb appeal and overall aesthetics. It worked well until attrition of our workforce became so great, the loss of our seasonal help from custodial and the dinning commons for the summer, forced us into disbanding the ‘SWAT’ teams so that we could keep up with mowing, trimming, trash and litter. Obviously, there were many areas that suffered, and we’ve only been able to do periodic ‘band aid’ clean up and fix up jobs. We, as a group were not blind to this fact, and worked with budget and workforce constraints as best we could for a period of 5 years.

Within the past year or so, our budget has taken a few odd turns and we have been able to take on more full time help with hopes of more on the way. Now that we’ve been able to fill mowing and plow routes, litter and trash routes, and have been striving to operate more efficiently on a day to day basis, it was decided to make an attempt at a new ‘SWAT’ team.

The new team is made up of four Skilled Laborers and a Working Foreman. Two of the team members, Don Loper and Una Reiser work the Tuesday – Saturday shift, while Bill Allan and Dave LeBlanc work Monday – Friday. The Working Foreman who is spearheading the new endeavor is Dave Pielock, who is working under the advice and supervision of Gary Glazier, manager for Landscape and Construction Services. This team of five with their manager came up with a short list of prospective buildings to begin with. The deciding factors for these buildings are determined by how long it’s been since any work has been done, and the fact that eight of the newer buildings (soon to be ten) are considered “high profile” areas that have separate work orders where we have to track time and material.

Our scope of work hasn’t changed much from the days of the old ‘SWAT’ teams, but there are, and have been a few changes. First is the name. We decided to call ourselves “Landscape Special Projects” or “LSP”. Aside from the new name, we will also do what we can to make further maintenance less labor intensive as possible. Where time permits we are changing or removing small areas, shrub beds, islands, and blighted areas where nothing grows. Thompson Low Rise, as an example, will eventually have pavers and belgian block all around the outside of the building under the overhang that keeps everything but weeds, from growing.

Studio Arts is at this time finished with stage 1, but on our next tour through, a few more beds will be eliminated, plant material will be removed and new plants will be put in their place. The new plant material will be much better suited to a high traffic area and easier to maintain.

Gunness, Marsten, and Engineering Lab I, have just been gone through, with over grown beds being worked on, and with plants and shrubs being removed or transplanted.

The next task at hand is the entire Morrill Science complex of buildings. We are starting on the east side loading dock areas and will be working around the buildings, along with Wilder Hall, Clark Hall, and Shade Tree Lab. This will put us into early/mid June.

Buildings of concern for the rest of the summer will be Blaidsdale House/Photo Lab, Totman/Furcolo, Whitmore/Fine Arts, and Goodell/South Collage.

I hesitate to put any of these areas on a concrete schedule due to the fact that at any given day we may get pulled to go to Great Barrington, Mt Lincoln, concert clean-up after a Mullins event, clean-up after sports events, and of course the odd major storms that hit New England periodically throughout the summer months.

Obviously, some buildings need more attention than others. Our goal when starting a new building is to decide how much work needs to be done, how much work can be done on our first run through, while breaking the scope of work into three phases for each building, and finally by the third phase, cut down the amount of time needed to keep each building area maintained sustainably, and still be aesthetically appealing to the building’s occupants and the rest of the campus community.

Effective May 22, 2012, the Administrative offices of the Physical Plant Division will reside in “Dickinson” formerly UMPD.  This move (estimated 9 to 12 months) includes, the Executive Office of Patrick Daly, and the Administrative Offices for the Associate and Assistant Directors of Administrative Services, Grounds Management, Utilities/Engineering and Building Maintenance.

The Service Desk will also be relocated to the bottom floor of Dickinson. University keys can be picked up and dropped off at the Service Desk located in Dickinson on the bottom floor, west side entrance.

The dates for the annual Steam Shutdown have been changed.  This year’s Steam Shutdown will be from 05/14/12 to 06/05/12.

This year’s Physical Plant Annual Steam Shut Down has been scheduled. The dates for this Steam Shut Down are from May 13, 2012 to June 3, 2012.

The areas scheduled for repair and maintenance work during this year’s Steam Shut Down is all the Dormitories and Dining Commons in the Southwest Residential Area. Also Herter Hall, Whitmore, Isenberg, School of Management, Fine Arts and Mahar Auditorium will be affected.

The types of services that will be interrupted in these areas are steam, domestic hot water, and air conditioning. Individual building shut down notifications for Steam Shut Down 2012 have been sent out by the Physical Plant.

Please contact Tom Fydenkevez at phone number 545-3231 if you have any questions or comments about this evolution.

LGRC low rise library – 300 pieces of furniture and all the carpets (needed cleaning again due to construction)

Gunness student center – all furniture cleaned

ISB – auditorium seating cleaned as well as all common space furniture

Child care buildings – all carpets cleaned (per Maryanne Gallaghers request)

Boyden – 300 pieces of furniture in various class/computer rooms

ISOM/Alfond – all common area furniture completed

Goodell – honors area and any other common area furniture completed

Dubois library – all furniture on main, 1, 2, 3, and 5

Polymer – both auditoriums seating was all completed

Computer Science – all classroom chairs and common area furniture completed, about 250 pieces

FAC – some carpeting in concert hall perimeter

E lab II – all auditorium seating

All furniture listed is for upholstery cleaning

Physical Plant Construction Services installed six (6) BigBelly Solar Trash Compactors along the pedestrian corridor between Whitmore and DuBois Library.  BigBelly Solar Compactors are an innovative solar-powered waste collection system.  The BigBelly Trash Compactor has five times the capacity as ordinary trash can.  The BigBelly CLEAN Management Console, gives Physical Plant Landscape Services personnel real-time data, by e-mail, on the status of each compactor aiding our sustainability efforts in 70-80+% reductions in collection trips and associated operating costs, fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions are consistently achievable. Reduced collections yield deep cost efficiencies by freeing up valuable worker time, allowing managers to re-deploy staff to other important tasks, and reduce the costs and pollution of unnecessary vehicle trips.   As waste collects inside a BigBelly solar compactor (or single-stream recycling inside a BigBelly compacting recycler), an internal “eye” senses when the bin is filling and communicates that information back to the Command Center, generating a command to trigger a compaction cycle.  Our BigBelly Trash components have an enormous appetite for trash and recycling – keep feeding them!  We have plans to install six (6) Big Belly Compactors in DuBois Library.