The United States is expected to experience as much sea level rise by the year 2050 as it witnessed in the previous hundred years. That’s according to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)-led report updating sea level rise decision-support information for the U.S. released recently in partnership with half a dozen other federal agencies. The report and accompanying tools can help businesses and organizations with coastal facilities make location decisions, prepare for flooding emergencies and increase resiliency.
The Sea Level Rise Technical Report provides the most up-to-date sea level rise projections for all U.S. states and territories by decade for the next 100 years and beyond, based on a combination of tide gauge and satellite observations and all the model ensembles from the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The report projects sea levels along the coastline will rise an additional 10-12 inches by 2050 with specific amounts varying regionally, mainly due to land height changes.
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Green initiatives
Arooga’s Grille House & Sports Bar, the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania-based restaurant brand, offers its guests the ultimate sports bar experience and the latest trends in technology and service. In addition to 10 corporate locations in Central Pennsylvania, Arooga’s has four franchise locations in operation and others in development. Each restaurant serves between 4,000 and 7,000 customers per store, per week. Named “America’s Next Top Restaurant Franchise” in a national contest co-sponsored by Sysco Foodservice and Franchise Edge, Arooga’s shows no sign of slowing down.
Arooga’s was named the first full-service Certified Green Restaurant® in Pennsylvania by the Green Restaurant Association (GRA). The GRA’s standards provide a transparent way to measure a restaurant’s environmental accomplishments and were born from 25 years of research in the field of restaurants and the environment. To achieve this rating and to reduce its carbon footprint, Arooga’s implemented a number of green initiatives including the removal of Styrofoam from all locations, prohibiting the use of non-toxic cleaning and chemical products and the inclusion of high-speed, energy-efficient XLERATOR Hand Dryers in all restrooms.
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The global nonprofit National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has launched a new Water Based Inspection Testing and Maintenance (WBITM) Online Learning Path to help sprinkler technicians, contractors, and others grasp the content in a new Water-Based Fire Protection Systems Inspection Testing and Maintenance (ITM) Certification Program. Properly maintained water-based fire protection systems are critical for building and life safety and ensure that suppression technology will adequately contain a fire in case of an emergency and allow occupants the precious time needed to escape, if necessary, points out NFPA.
The online learning and credentialing opportunities have been developed to help those who are charged with independently managing the full spectrum of inspection, testing, and maintenance (ITM) duties.
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by Brian Stromquist, co-leader, Gensler’s Technology workplace practice
In Year 1, we asked ourselves: What is a Zoom? In Year 2, we pushed the question further: What does equitable videoconferencing look like for a hybrid workforce? We’re still working on that one. Now, we’re in Year 3, plotting our partial return to the workplace, ready to embrace our latest challenge: How do we take insights from the past two years and use them to design joyful, inclusive work environments?
We should keep advancing our research into immersive collaboration technologies, and keep investigating the inclusive possibilities of burgeoning metaverses, but we also need to invest this design energy back into the built environment. Studies show that hybrid work is here to stay, and workers who have the option of working remotely will still be coming into the office 2-3 days a week. There’s also the large swath of the workforce whose jobs preclude the possibility of remote work, who have been — and will continue to be — keeping the lights on in our offices, laboratories, factories, and kitchens. They should enjoy all the affordances of virtual worlds in IRL environments.
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Facility management leaders are tasked with ensuring that not only are facilities a sustainable safe haven for occupants to be productive, but also that teams can meet the accelerating expectations placed on our industry.
The last two years have placed the FM industry and professionals into the brightest spotlight they have ever been in. The comforts and care that FMs provide were once taken for granted and are now scrutinized like never before. Organizations and occupants demand that their spaces, air and surfaces are safe, clean and adaptable to when and how they choose to use them.
For more than 40 years, the International Facility Management Association (IFMA) has advanced industry knowledge, growth and value for FMs and their teams to perform at the highest level. Connect with extraordinary leaders and FM professionals of all career levels at IFMA’s Facility Fusion on April 26-28 in Austin, TX, USA. Professionals can also discover FM in new and exciting ways. Sign up to find out how IFMA can help you learn the language of facility management and advance your career.
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A survey conducted by CoreNet Global, the association for corporate real estate professionals, has found that global companies are currently using less office space than when the pandemic began, but many expect to increase the amount of space they occupy over the next one to five years.
The survey, conducted in January 2022, yielded more than 300 responses NA, Europe & Asia. According to the survey, when respondents were asked whether their companies were currently using less space than in March 2020:
- 45% said they were using 0-10 percent less
- 12% said they were using 10-20 percent less
- 12% said they were using 20-30 percent less
- 16% said they were using more than 30 percent less
- 15% said they had increased the amount of space they are currently using, compared to March 2020
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International collaborative outsourcing association IAOP released its annual Global Outsourcing 100 list during the awards ceremony of its Outsourcing World Summit (OWS22), the event that brings together hundreds of outsourcing buyers, advisors, providers, and academics from around the globe to share strategies for success in today’s economy — this year virtually, continuing in March.
Global Outsourcing 100
IAOP CEO Debi Hamill remarked:
Buyers understand there are hundreds of qualified service providers and advisors out there, but what they really need to understand now is what makes each exceptional. The Global Outsourcing 100 has done just that, and we’re proud to recognize these organizations.
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The unique needs of hospital and healthcare facilities professionals are addressed in a selection of sessions during the National Facilities Management & Technology (NFMT) Conference & Expo, March 29-31 in Baltimore. “Facility managers are ready to return to in-person events,” says Dan Weltin, editor-in-chief, facility market at Trade Press Media Group. “Virtual conferences have been helpful during the pandemic, but they are no substitute for a live trade show. NFMT will be the best opportunity to learn about the latest trends and see new products.”
Eileen McMorrow, editor-in-chief of The McMorrow Reports/Healthcare recommends these sessions (click on "Read more" to continue list) for facilities professionals in healthcare:
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Mar 23-24: Association of Energy Engineers (AEE) East Energy Conference & Expo.
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New events posted this week
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