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News & updates
• Alicia Halberg

Today UW's Emergency Management team, a Facilities Services department, provided support to University of Washington Police Department, Seattle Police Department and the Seattle Fire Department in a training scenario at the Bryants Building in southwest campus.

Events, News & updates
• Alicia Halberg

On Sunday, November 20, UW Facilities Services used a helicopter to remove and replace HVAC equipment on the rooftop of UW Medical Center’s BB Tower.

Vac-packs
Employee & team features, How we improve, News & updates, Training
• Allison Nitch

UW Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) and Building Services Department (BSD) recently partnered up for the Safety & Health Investment Project (also known as the SHIP grant project or Participatory Ergonomics Project). Funded by State of Washington, Department of Labor & Industries (L&I), the project team engaged BSD custodians and leadership, UW EH&S leadership, Facilities Services Safety Team, and professional ergonomists in a year-long collaboration. Their collective efforts focused on the goal of developing ergonomic solutions to reduce risk of musculoskeletal injuries among custodial staff.

 

Savery Hall cupola
News & updates
• Thomas Roselyn
News & updates, Sustainability
• Alicia Halberg

Today, as a part of the 2016 SustainableUW Festival, the University of Washington celebrated its recertification as a Salmon Safe university. Salmon Safe certification entails meeting rigorous standards for irrigation efficiency, stormwater management, pesticide reduction and wetlands area management.

Events, News & updates
• Alicia Halberg

On Saturday, October 8 nearly 130 volunteers from Facilities Services came out to clean and spruce up the University District in what has become an annual event for FS staff and their families.

News & updates
• Alicia Halberg

This article was updated with additional information on Tuesday, October 11, 2016 and Wednesday, November 2, 2016.

Update: While the late Washington Elm between Communications and Clark Hall is unlikely to make a good candidate to take a cutting from to create a new scion, the UW Botanic Garden's Washington Park Arboretum has another scion of the Washington Elm which will make a good candidate to take a cutting and create a new scion.

"It will likely take a few years to grow the new scion large enough for replanting," said Grounds Management's Urban Forestry Specialist Sara Shores. "Meanwhile, we are working on a new design for the large space left vacant by our late Washington Elm."

A boiler mechanic inside a boiler closed for maintenance.
Employee & team features, News & updates
• Alicia Halberg

Every summer when the Northwest’s gray skies give way to a beautiful blue, shining views of Mt. Rainier and a long-awaited burst of warm weather, the Power Plant’s skilled maintenance staff take apart campus’ boilers for their yearly inspections.

News & updates
• Alicia Halberg

Guest post by Meredith Brothers

From the beginnings of UW Rowing in 1901 and the famous rivalry races with California, the UW has gone on to become national champions many times. The first time the UW participated in the “Varsity Challenge Cup” was in the early 19 teens.

Window washers use bosun chairs to clean a UW building.
Employee & team features
• Alicia Halberg

FS Blog: Tell me about what you do for Facilities Services.

Daniel Jung: My name is Daniel Jung and I’m a window washer lead here for Facilities Services’ Building Services Department. I started here in 2013 as a window washer. 

Savery Hall cupola
News & updates
• Thomas Roselyn
Savery Hall cupola
News & updates
• Thomas Roselyn
Savery Hall cupola
News & updates
• Thomas Roselyn
Savery Hall cupola
News & updates
• Thomas Roselyn
Employees setting up donation station outside of a residence halls for students to drop off donations.
Events, Sustainability
• Allison Nitch

Every June as the spring quarter wraps up, students living in all on-campus residence halls and on Greek Row are required to fully vacate their rooms before summer break. Often, there’s only enough time and space to pack the essentials, which means tons of items are at risk of being left behind on University District streets. 

 

Savery Hall cupola
News & updates
• Thomas Roselyn
Savery Hall cupola
Safety
• Thomas Roselyn
Savery Hall cupola
News & updates
• Thomas Roselyn
Engineers put up a sign indicating a building is unsafe after an earthquake.
Events, News & updates
• Alicia Halberg

The zipping-sound of a duct tape roll is cut off by the beeping of a radio. Employees mill about, some in Tyvek suits on an 80-degree day, others wearing high-visibility gear and hard hats. A 9.0 magnitude earthquake hit at 8:08 a.m., but luckily chaos hasn’t ensued because it’s just a drill.

As government agencies across three states participated in the regional Cascadia Rising earthquake preparedness exercise, the University of Washington took the opportunity to test coordination between its emergency response teams across campus. It’s one of only two universities participating in the state.

UW graduates at Commencement
Events, News & updates
• Nancy Gardner
Savery Hall cupola
News & updates
• Thomas Roselyn
UW Recycling employees pose with their award.
Employee & team features, News & updates, Sustainability
• Allison Nitch

UW Recycling, of Facilities Services' Building Services Department, is the proud recipient of a Washington State Recycling Association (WSRA) 2016 Recycler of the Year award.

Savery Hall cupola
Safety
• Thomas Roselyn
Employee & team features, Events, News & updates
• Alicia Halberg

The power plant electrician asks the group if they’re ready with their stopwatches, then counts down. Three—two—one—the lights go black for a beat. Five giant diesel engine backup generators, each larger than a pickup truck, begin to roar.

The lights are back on; surgeries continue without missing a beat, and priceless research continues to stay frozen in a lab on campus. It’s a monthly test of the University’s backup power generation capabilities down at the Power Plant.

A plaque commemorating UW's crew team on the side of the old canoe house
News & updates
• Alicia Halberg

In preparation for this weekend's Windermere Cup and the opening day of boating season, crews from Facilities Maintenance & Construction installed a bronze plaque commemorating the 1936 UW men's crew team featured in The Boys in the Boat.