The Green Bellwether
The University Of Alberta Leads With Sustainable Programs

George Thomlison once picked up a few samples of microfibre at a tradeshow and took it back to his staff to trial it. He know nothing of the environmental benefits of this new material, he just wanted a product that could replace the current cleaning cloths used on campus. When he went back a few weeks later to see how the staff liked it, they adamantly requested more. It was then that Thomlison replaced all of the cloths throughout the facility with microfibre – and that was 12 years ago.

The Buildings and Grounds Services (BGS) a division of Facilities Management at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alta., is a long-time pioneer in the cleaning industry. They began using “green” processes and techniques long before it became an industry trend. However, George Thomlison, manager of Human Resources and Procurement, and Ray Dumouchel, associate director of Buildings and Grounds Services, prefer to use the word “sustainable” when describing the way they have always approached their operations. So when they rolled out a new program with a focus on health and environmental sustainability, there weren’t many changes that needed to be made to their existing processes and procedures.

“We try to clean in a way that makes sense,” Thomlison said. “We have been looking at the chemicals and equipment we use for a number of years – long before ‘cleaning for health’ became a focus in the industry. We continually test best practices introduced. If they work, we implement it. Sometimes we might have to modify it to fit our program, but we do what we can to make it work.”

Ever since the Facilities Management Department implemented a paper recycling program in 1972, they have gradually increased their commitment to environmentally sustainable initiatives.

In 1975, the department implemented an energy conservation program that included lighting retrofits, heat recovery and building automation systems that helped reduce the amount of energy consumed by buildings on campus, resulting in an estimated savings of over $196 million since the program’s inception. That same year, the department also instituted a new water conservation program.

Over the past few decades, the department continues to roll out new initiatives and updates to existing programs focusing on environmental sustainability. The most recent of which is the Cleaning for a Healthy U program, which matches many of the industries’ best practices with green chemicals and equipment to limit cleaning’s negative impact on the environment.

Successful Cooperation
Securing staff buy-in is a common challenge facility managers face when implementing any new program. Because Thomlison and Dumouchel regularly test new products and techniques with their staff, they experience little resistance. By placing new products in staff member’s hands and soliciting their input, Thomlison hopes to gain their cooperation and respect.

“We keep the staff very involved in testing new things,” he said. “We stay on the cutting edge of what’s going on in the cleaning industry by regularly attending tradeshows, visiting other facilities and reading trade publications. When testing a new piece of equipment, we send it to the supervisors who then distribute it to staff members to use. After a few weeks, we ask for their feedback on how they felt the equipment performed. Every product or piece of equipment we use on campus is here because it was tested and approved.”

Cleaning for a Healthy U
The key to the success of this program requires the proper training of the staff, students and building occupants so that all contribute to a more sustainable operation. Within the program, several target areas are highlighted as best practices. These include:
  •  Entryway systems care and maintenance;
  •  Cleaning chemical storage;
  •  Green cleaning practices;
  •  Cleaning chemicals (concentrates and dispensing equipment use);
  •  Carpet maintenance guidelines;
  •  Cleaning equipment guidelines;
  •  Disposable cleaning products guidelines;
  •  Paper products and dispensing systems;
  •  Integrated pest management.

Through selective vendor partnerships, the BGS has worked to maximize the resources at their disposal to implement “Cleaning for a Healthy U” and other programs. Eight years ago, the BGS teamed up with a manufacturer to introduce a new matting program to reduce the amount of airborne particulates inside buildings on campus. After an audit was conducted to determine the different types of traffic that entered the building at different times throughout the day, the group worked together to develop a matting program that included varying lengths and types of matting, and a schedule that increased the maintenance for entryways.

“We have really adopted a partnership attitude with our suppliers,” Dumouchel said. “By establishing long-term contracts, we increase our value to the vendor because they know they have our business for the next five years and can plan their services around us. The vendors with whom we have partnered, such as JohnsonDiversey, have an elevated level of commitment to service. They go above and beyond to assure our needs are being met. These vendors also share similar goals and ideals.”

Perry Koroluk, senior market manager for JohnsonDiversey, played an integral role in the development of the “Cleaning for a Healthy U” program. In fact, he helped to ensure that “Cleaning for a Healthy U” was aligned to meet the university’s ambitious goals of LEED Certification for some of its new and existing buildings. After the program was developed, Koroluk and Thomlison conducted six sessions to train the entire division staff.

“When we introduced ‘Cleaning for a Healthy U’, we told our staff that we were making a switch to sustainable cleaning,” said Thomlison. “What they didn’t realize until midway throughout the process was that they had been doing most of these things all along. You could see the smiles cross their faces as they watched Perry’s presentation and recognized there was very little they would need to do differently.”

On the Horizon
While Thomlison and Dumouchel have only recently implemented “Cleaning for a Healthy U,” they are already thinking about the next sustainable project scheduled on their list. The construction of a new recycle transfer station is currently being constructed. This will allow the division to not only enhance the current paper and old corrugated cardboard recycling but will make it possible to recycle plastics, glass and light metals. The initiative is expected to reduce the amount of waste going to landfills by up to 40 per cent. Because all materials will be compacted on site prior to transportation, there will also be a reduction in the amount of fuel needed to remove the materials from campus.

Recycling organic waste is another initiative of the facilities management department scheduled for later this year. An audit completed in 2006 found that organics and plastics make up more than 60 per cent of the waste stream at the University. In order to divert some of this waste, the facilities management department is working together with other departments and local businesses to develop an organics program. By separating all organic waste coming from food operations and taking it to be processes, they hope to bring two tons of compost back to the campus for every ton that is processed.

Spreading the Word
Because of their success with sustainable initiatives, the facilities management department at the University of Alberta wants to share their ideas, techniques and plans for the future with others. To help celebrate the University’s 100th anniversary in 2008, they will be hosting a conference titled “Sustaining Our Buildings and Grounds – The Next 100 Years.” It will be held Jun. 1 to 3, 2008, on the University of Alberta campus. Facility managers from post secondary institutions across Canada and the U.S. are invited.

“Sustainability is more than just switching cleaning chemicals,” said Dumouchel. “We want others to see how proactive our team is in protecting our students, faculty and staff from some of the potential threats posed by the indoor environment. We also want others to understand how they can adjust their current practices to limit the negative impact on the environment.”

Your Buildings, Your World
Thomlison and Dumouchel look at maintaining buildings similar to the way that they look at protecting the earth. As a result, they have developed several programs in conjunction with their vendors to maximize the sustainability of their operations. The responsibility of any facility manager is to help keep a building clean and in good condition to extend its life. This same mentality should be applied to maintaining the earth.

“Whenever there’s a building constructed, the attention focuses on the architects and designers who are responsible for constructing it,” said Thomlison. “A building has to be properly maintained so that the students and staff have an environment that enhances and supports them while also allowing them to teach, learn and carry out research. The same thing goes for the Earth. What we do no will affect the way that future generations are able to live and carry out their work. Simply put, we want our current practices to positively enhance the environment, today and into the future.”

The University of Alberta, located in Edmonton, Alta., is one of the top 100 teaching and research universities in the world serving some 36,000 students with more than 11,000 faculty and staff. Founded almost a century ago, the university has an annual budget in excess of $1 billion and attracts more than $400 million in external research funding. The university offers close to 400 undergraduate and graduate programs in 18 faculties. For more information on the University of Alberta Facilities’ Services Department go to www.uofaweb.ualberta.ca/facilities/Bldgs&GroundsSvs.cfm. For more information on their upcoming conference, please visit www.uofaweb.ualberta.ca/facilities/BGSConference08.cfm.

The case study is sponsored by JohnsonDiversey. For more information, visit www.johnsondiversey.com.