Climate change and how it might affect CRE in the future    While often a political hot-button, climate change has the potential for massive effects on the commercial real estate industry. The past couple of years have seen rising sea levels, larger storms and and increased empha [...]    
   Lights Out: Tips for Creating Your Power Outage Plan    Emergency preparation is about thinking ahead. We have all seen how that “that’ll probably never happen” attitude has worked out at one point or another. Bottom line is that preparation means lower costs when the i [...]    
   
   Legionella: Beyond the Cooling Tower Threat   In 2015, New York City saw an outbreak of Legionnaire’s disease spread through a cooling tower. Legionnaire’s disease is a type of pneumonia caused by the Legionella bacteria. Since this outbreak, cooling tower maint [...]    
   Sustainability: From Low-Hanging Fruit to Cutting Edge    Sustainability can sometimes feel like a nebulous goal. People throw the word around a lot, but it seems overwhelming to tackle an entire sustainability project at once. While large scale changes can have social and econ [...]    
   When Does a Preventative Maintenance Work Order Become Retro Commissioning?    A building engineer or property owner may look at an HVAC or lighting system a work order for and decide it's time for something new. Retro-commissioning is a cost-effective way to update building to new building standar [...]    
   Know Before Your Go: First Budget Meeting   Working with a budget is one thing. However, creating a budget is another. Maintenance and operations account for a large part of a property’s budget. If you are given an opportunity to be a part of a budget meeting, i [...]    
   
   The Key to Continual Learning: BOMA Membership   Many adults don’t picture sitting in class after they have a degree, but those who are successful embrace lifelong learning. Continual education is a pillar of BOMA’s values and mission as an organization. The CRE in [...]    
   White Paper on Property Management and Firearms in Georgia   Changing firearms laws in Georgia present a unique set of considerations for building owners and property managers. After the ‘Georgia Safe Carry Protection Act was passed in 2014, Georgia citizens are now allowed to c [...]    
   
   Know Before You Call: Roof Inspections   In between calling in the professionals, routine roof inspections are an important item on the preventative maintenance to-do list. If a roof problem can be fixed before it gets worse, that can save money and time in the [...]    
   Mindfulness as a Leadership Competency   The on-call phone rings. The emails for your property manager are beginning to pile up. A tenant’s electrical is on the fritz. This is the schedule for the day. When you hear someone tell you to work mindfulness and se [...]    
   The Systems Maintenance Administrator – Is it Time for Me?    Taking the next step in a career can feel like a leap. Is the time and money is worth what you will get out of a promotion and do you even qualify? For technicians and building engineers, the next step may be the Systems [...]    
   Off the Grid: Work-Life Balance for Building Engineers   Work-life balance seems to be the term of the day when it comes to professional development and stress management. In jobs that sometimes requires 24-hour availability, the idea of finding time “off-the-clock” can se [...]    
   Communications: Building Engineers to Property Managers   In order to troubleshoot efficiently, one must know how to communicate priorities to all involved. In emergency situations, property managers and building engineers can find themselves speaking different languages.  
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   Dress the Part: Building Engineer   From the office to the property, building engineers must fit into a lot of environments. When you can be fixing a broken chiller one minute and in a meeting about building plans the other, it can be hard to find the righ [...]