Lands, Buildings and Real Estate is reorganizing its facilities operations to make it easier for people on campus to receive the services they need on a timely basis.

The move makes permanent a pilot program implemented more than two years ago that placed about 45 mechanical, electrical, plumbing and grounds crew members in four locations throughout campus on an experimental basis. Previously, the crews were all housed in buildings at Bonair Siding on the far eastern part of campus.

The pilot program resulted in increased customer interactions, reduced response times and cost and time savings through the elimination of travel between the Bonair Siding facilities and work locations, according to Jack Cleary, associate vice president for Land, Buildings and Real Estate, and Robert Carpenter, executive director of operations in Buildings and Grounds Maintenance.

Cleary said studies showed that LBRE staff were spending as much as 30 percent of their day traveling back and forth between Bonair Siding and their assignments to fetch equipment, clock out in the morning and afternoon, and use break room and locker room facilities. Under the new district system, the need to travel will be eliminated by placing small tools and commonly used appliances in various locations throughout campus, eliminating driving time and increasing the time spent on actual projects.

“Overall, it’s been a very successful pilot program,” Cleary said. “We’ve reduced the travel back and forth to Bonair, which in turn has reduced the time it takes to respond to the campus community.”

Cleary said LBRE staff members have embraced the initiative, developing a new way to use technology like smartphones and iDevices to manage work-order response and to order materials that are brought directly to the job site.

“They have also been active in developing new mobility modes like specialized electric bikes and stand-up scooters to move between buildings and work centers in lieu of trucks,” he said. “To date, the bikes and scooters have allowed for the reduction of 100 carbon-emitting vehicles from the maintenance fleet.”

Cleary said that the crew members were housed in temporary spaces in existing buildings throughout campus as the pilot was conducted. Moving forward, three new 4,000-square-foot work centers will be built to replace facilities demolished at Bonair to make way for the new Public Safety and Emergency Operations Center buildings.

The new work centers will be constructed at Memorial Way behind Frost Amphitheater, north of the Roth Way Parking Garage and south of the electrical substation near the SEQ South Service Road.  In addition, a space will be renovated on the first floor of the Stanford Bookstore to accommodate one of the district offices.

Each district work center will accommodate office, breakroom, locker and shower facilities and a small shop area. All four districts facilities are expected to be complete and operational by the end of 2019.