School grounds can be defined as the full extent (i.e., corner pin to corner pin) of all school property, including school sites, the central office, and other administrative or … Grounds maintenance groups are typically organized into zones or areas. Many colleges and universities are finding that the use of part-time labor is an alternative to contract services and provides needed cost reductions while still preserving the greater degree of control that may be lost with contract services. The APPA was originally incorporated in Washington, D.C., in March 1998, and was reincorporated in Trenton, New Jersey, in April 1999. The composted material can be used in amending soils, as top dressing, and to reduce water consumption. Discuss life-cycle planning. Paved surfaces can range from loose gravel to hand-laid tile or exposed aggregate surfaces. Heavy windrows of clippings can create fungus problems. Annual aeration of heavy-use areas will reduce compaction and allow moisture to permeate the surface. However, a number of problems can result from poor quality in the mixing or placement of concrete. As a result of research on turf grass varieties, new selections regularly come on the market. Figure 3. Preventive maintenance scheduling that may be less routine is effectively done by a computerized preventive maintenance program. Plants grown in artificial light require substantially less fertilization than do those grown in natural light. Good documentation of training is essential. Prior to losing its leaves each fall, like most deciduous plants, it displays fall colors of bright orange, red, and crimson. Industry time standards such as those developed by the Professional Grounds Management Society are very useful for benchmarking. All APPA Member organisations agree to abide by the APPA Code of Conduct. Student health centers that provide similar emergency care would also have a high priority. These standards should specifically establish responsibility for management and enforcement of the program. They give people directional clues and complement furnishings with color, texture, size, and shape. Insufficient humidity creates symptoms similar to those of underwatering. Just before the first snow or ice conditions are expected, hold a brief meeting of all employees and contractors to explain or review the mission and expectations of the operation and delineate responsibilities of the various crews. At institutions with medical centers that provide 24-hour emergency care, access to this service from major arterial roads and sidewalks is critical. Many factors must be considered to ensure that the proper plant is chosen for a specific location. A balanced fertilizer containing nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium should be used. The supervisor should implement worthy suggestions from the staff and keep track of which techniques work well. APPA Code of Conduct. Have a revision suggestion? At the point of installation of such art, a maintenance plan for these items should be developed in conjunction with the artist and the administration. Please enter your email address here to subscribe to the Inside APPA newsletter. The APPA Standards and Codes Council monitors standards and code activities among standards-setting organizations; communicates and educates APPA member institutions on standards compliance; and influences the development and creation of standards and codes, to ensure that the interests of educational institutions are realized in the standards-setting process. Some institutions supplement their regular maintenance crews with part-time student workers during periods of heavy snowfall, and many institutions have standing contracts to use contractors and their equipment for snow removal. Regular water treatment is necessary in warm climates or during the summer to control algae growth, and occasional emptying is required for cleaning and the removal of foreign objects. A landscape IPM program is a multidimensional approach to pest management that evolved to address the ecological, social, and economic implications of overreliance on chemical pest control. The former gives a more uniform appearance to a campus and is much less complicated to carry out. APPA: Leadership in Educational Facilities, Business Partner Code of Ethics & Conduct, ACUHO-I/APPA Housing Facilities Conference, Certified Educational Facilities Professional (CEFP), Facilities Management Evaluation Program (FMEP), APPA/NACUBO Key Facilities Metrics Survey and Report, Part I: General Administration and Management, Part III: Energy Utilities and Environmental Stewardship. One such function is snow removal. Placing stakes at walk intersections to guide operators when the area is entirely covered, or providing coffee and hot chocolate for employees during long hours of overtime, improves the operations efforts. No common seed mixture is perfect, and no two turf consultants will prescribe the same solution. System selection will depend on the following factors: Properly designed and installed irrigation systems require little maintenance. APPA publications help you transform your institution with the most current, innovative, and relevant information available, including industry standards, best practices, creative solutions, and practical tools. APPA Technology Corporation offers including: Clamp Meters, Leakage Current Clamp Meter, Electrical Test Tools, Bench Instruments, Digital Multimeters Note about cookies This site uses cookies to provide you with a better user experience. Irrigation systems will benefit any landscape setting and will represent an asset to the facilities organization. After priorities are set, scheduling can begin. Sunlight is the most desirable kind of light but may be unavailable. Characteristics such as street, sidewalk, and parking lot sizes; vehicle weight restrictions; snow emergency zones; street and sidewalk bollards; and bridges are all factors that need to be considered when purchasing or evaluating equipment. Most plants can be sprayed with a mixture of one tablespoon of liquid dish soap with one gallon of water to help keep them clean, shiny, and healthy. An accumulation of grass cuttings on the lawn is a good indicator that the mowing frequency needs to be increased. Turf grass plants that are irrigated on well-drained soils require fertilization several times each year, but a good shade tree in natural conditions may require no fertilization. Downtime can waste considerable amounts of money. You may need to prioritize your lawn areas or even go to non-maintained grassy areas in lower priority sections of your campus or facility. A landscape specialty group is often formed to support the general landscape maintenance group. Good drainage is essential to effective pavement maintenance. Discuss the principles, development, and values of preventive maintenance programs. Foliaged plants most often found in campus buildings are placed in public areas such as entrances, hallways, lobbies, and lounges. When the hole is dug, it should be no deeper than the depth of the ball to plant at the original level. Associated with high- National and local weather forecast information and contacts with local agencies are important. A well-planned, continuing program of training will benefit any area of the facilities organization. Replacement scheduling can allow for budgeting in a systematic fashion, minimizing the peaks and valleys in equipment funding needs that occur in the absence of a strong replacement plan. How much water depends on soil type and turf variety and the seasonal changes of the evapo-transpiration rate (defined as moisture taken from the soil by plants and air). This problem is particularly evident when non-degradable twine is used. This is the updated software application that supplements APPA's popular publication, Operational Guidelines for Educational Facilities: Grounds, second edition and third edition.GroundsOpsStaff-2ed includes the five APPA Appearance Levels, the six standard grounds areas, worksheets for grounds inventory data in multiple units of measure, and much … It also creates an environment conducive to insect and fungus disease growth. Once a system is installed, it requires only occasional maintenance and, in colder climates, winterization. The use of the hedge clippers can injure plants and ruin the plants’ intended purpose. The latter method can incorporate fertilizer, seed, and mulch in one operation. In addition to maintaining existing plants, many of these companies offer purchase-only, purchase/maintenance, and lease/maintenance contracts. Grounds maintenance groups generally include a variety of disciplines. For more information, please click the links below: Maintenance. Repetitive shifts in cold weather should last a maximum of about 12 hours. This group may include people with special skills to handle the diverse problems the campus faces and may include chemical application specialists, arborists, turf renovation and irrigation specialists, horticulturists, greenhouse operations personnel, and athletic field maintenance personnel. Ensuring that the special needs of an educational setting and the flexibility of campus events can be accommodated can be difficult with contracted services. Mowing schedules and heights must be regulated. Foliage must be cleaned regularly to keep plants healthy and attractive. If this planning is to be effective, it must be written down in a well-organized and comprehensive way. Beyond this, efficiency and safety capabilities decrease rapidly. Whenever possible, equipment should be selected for multiple purposes. Discussion will include the various methods of work identification and processing, work flow in the maintenance organization, and management controls. Pest infestations are common among plants growing indoors and may need to be professionally eradicated. Grounds operations typically require expensive machinery, but the machinery can be cost-effective in diverting labor and conserving resources. The lower the number, the higher the risk factor, because less volume of material is required to be lethal. Seasonal watering times may be needed to react to severe deviations from regional weather norms, and winterization and restart will be required in cold climate areas. Street and parking lot snow removal may be assigned to grounds maintenance crews or to a campus service group that operates heavier equipment and trucks. The grounds crew typically has a clear responsibility for snow removal on sidewalks, exterior stairs, and parking lots, whereas the custodial staff may be responsible for entryways, building steps, wheelchair ramps, or walks leading to the building. If the tree will not stand on its own or is loose in the ball, it should be staked. Overworking of surfaces, retempering, or excessive water can produce surfaces that will crack or spall. The use of bio-fuels, electric vehicles, and 4-stoke engines are additional environmentally friendly practices that should be considered in landscape planning, as well as the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Areas compacted by heavy equipment should be loosened, or turf establishment will be difficult until the soil loosens naturally, which can take several years. APPA Custodial Standards: Level 1 Orderly Spotlessness. Temporary fencing should be avoided. Level 2 - Student Union. Some smoother surfaces do not have enough texture to support English ivy. Appa (Chinese: 阿柏; pinyin: Ā Bǎi) is a fictional character on the Nickelodeon animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender and in the film The Last Airbender.In the series, Appa is the only known living sky flat-tailed flying bison, a species of animals that can fly naturally, and is the animal spirit guide of the protagonist, Aang. In December 2016 the volunteers met via conference call to form a work plan on reviewing and … Staking reduces losses caused by wind, people, and other physical problems. As the promotional industry's only professional association we're here to help both our members and consumers navigate the marketplace. Shop rules for safety and procedural methods must be established. Avoid placing plants near drafty doors or windows because these areas may be significantly cooler than the rest of the area. Health testing procedures are available for use in protecting employees and, in turn, the institution. Before any material is selected, consideration should be given to its intended use, type of traffic, cost of installation, cost of maintenance, life expectancy, aesthetic conditions, material availability, and weather and seasonal factors. The Snow Fighter’s Handbook, available from the Salt Institute, contains information pertaining to all phases of snow control. In addition, wood from forestry operations can be chipped and used as mulch, saving significant material costs. A consistent, uniform exterior signage program can play an important role in creating visual continuity and a distinctive institutional image throughout a campus. Standards of care should be set for the various zones or areas of the campus and personnel and resources appropriately assigned. A chemical can be highly toxic but have little hazard potential because of the way it is used (or misused) and the way it is formulated. Standards of care are typically set by the desired level of maintenance established by the administration. Environmental concerns have led to the creation of invasive species removal programs and limit the types of fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides that grounds departments may use. Leasing equipment can be an attractive alternative to ownership because one can avoid the large capital investment costs. An irrigation watering source that controls water usage through specific precipitation rates and precise watering times is more effective. A clear, mutual understanding of these responsibilities and close coordination to ensure that the snow removal tasks are fully completed are essential to success. Concerted effort with student organizations to encourage people to refrain from cutting corners or creating paths in turf areas and shrubs can reduce the need for obtrusive temporary fencing. Items with similar maintenance needs can be grouped, whereas items with specialized maintenance needs should be inventoried separately. The presentation will include ideas on organization and staffing, equipment and supplies, and employee training. It is now commonly known that the appearance of a college campus affects recruitment and the mental and physiological health of the students, faculty, and staff who live and work there. The APPA’s founding Special Counsel is Jennifer Hauge, Esq. 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