Health & Safety
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As temperatures rise, math performance drops
The findings are significant because HVAC systems are inadequate in more than 40% of public schools in the United States.
By Naaz Modan • Oct. 23, 2025 -
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Google’s New York City campus hit with bedbugs
Exterminators brought in a sniffer dog to confirm the outbreak. The company says the infestation was quickly remediated and asked employees to see if they took any bugs home with them.
By Robert Freedman • Oct. 21, 2025 -
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Employees value office time but struggle with noise, air quality: survey
Time in the office provides “social glue” and advancement opportunities, but building operators must use data to inform decision-making, XY Sense says.
By Joe Burns • Oct. 20, 2025 -
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Common building equipment used in Louvre heist
Thieves used a truck-mounted furniture elevator and angle grinders to access a second-floor gallery while visitors and museum employees watched them steal some of France’s crown jewels.
By Robert Freedman • Oct. 20, 2025 -
Courtesy of Security 101
Facilities add surveillance trailers to security mix
Low video streaming costs and the embedding of AI into cameras has made what was once limited to construction sites a cost-effective approach elsewhere, an industry executive says.
By Robert Freedman • Oct. 16, 2025 -
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OpinionThe hidden costs of water leaks
Higher insurance premiums and difficulty getting coverage are two costs from water leaks that facilities managers might not be thinking about, but they can impact your organization’s bottom line.
By Nadav Schnall • Oct. 7, 2025 -
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IAQ doesn’t need to increase energy costs: IWBI summit speakers
Technologies can help facility managers improve energy efficiency and indoor air quality at the same time, ASHRAE President Bill McQuade said.
By Joe Burns • Oct. 3, 2025 -
Spencer Platt / Staff via Getty Images
Once unthinkable, extreme security is becoming a best practice
With hundreds of mass shootings a year, gun detectors, second sets of doors and drones are on the shopping list at more properties.
By Robert Freedman • Oct. 3, 2025 -
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Newer multifamily housing shows how fire safe buildings can be: Pew report
Self-closing doors and fire-resistant materials are among the reasons multifamily buildings are safer than other property types, including single-family homes.
By Ryan Kushner • Oct. 2, 2025 -
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Healthy buildings mean strong ROI: IWBI Policy Summit
There’s an urgency to improve indoor environments, said facilities leaders, public health officials and lawmakers at the high-profile event.
By Joe Burns • Oct. 1, 2025 -
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Healthy buildings offer bottom-line benefits to building owners, report finds
Improved ventilation, lighting and thermal comfort can provide more than $50 per square foot in productivity gains and support rent premiums, the International WELL Building Institute says.
By Joe Burns • Sept. 23, 2025 -
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Facility managers on front lines amid rise in building-control cyber threats
Bad actors are targeting weak links, such as third-party vendors, to get into operational systems. Building operators can reduce vulnerability by working in concert with security teams, a tech specialist says.
By Joe Burns • Sept. 19, 2025 -
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As workplace incidents rise, so do panic button laws
A security CEO touts the versatility and privacy protections that can be part of an alert system.
By Robert Freedman • Sept. 17, 2025 -
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AI-assisted camera data hovers at the edge of biometric privacy
Capturing security images isn’t the same as capturing people’s biometric data but a risk manager thinks it’s close enough that disclosing what you’re doing is a good idea.
By Robert Freedman • Sept. 15, 2025 -
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Kirk shooter appeared to fire from roof of university student services building
Outdoor event security and building security are facing scrutiny following the shooting of the conservative political activist speaking at Utah Valley University.
By Robert Freedman • Sept. 11, 2025 -
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Younger generations more likely to consider leaving job over IAQ: Fellowes
All generations say clean indoor air enables their best performance, but fewer than half of employees think their employers are taking the right steps to address air quality.
By Joe Burns • Sept. 9, 2025 -
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School IAQ bill that aims to strengthen EPA oversight reintroduced, with industry support
The Indoor Air Quality and Healthy Schools Act would establish a nationwide assessment of air quality in schools and childcare facilities and bolster the EPA’s Indoor Environments Division.
By Joe Burns • Sept. 4, 2025 -
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Health issues cloud cost-benefit equation of artificial turf
Facility managers must weigh the trade-off between ease and lower cost of turf against the heat, microplastic and PFAS concerns it raises.
By Robert Freedman • Sept. 2, 2025 -
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Jury is still out on widespread use of UV lights in cutting infections
Although respiratory ailments dropped in a test of ultraviolet lights in long-term care facilities, it’s not clear use of the technology is warranted in many settings, research suggests.
By Robert Freedman • Aug. 26, 2025 -
Courtesy of Hydrosense
Testing gaps can leave FMs blind to Legionella risk
Delays and other shortcomings of lab culture tests can prolong building users’ exposure to the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease, a testing specialist says.
By Robert Freedman • Aug. 25, 2025 -
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Arizona’s system for funding K-12 facilities ruled unconstitutional
Built-in jurisdictional disparities prevent the state from providing a uniform school system that meets minimal standards, a state court says.
By Robert Freedman • Aug. 22, 2025 -
Courtesy of Campus Guardian Angel
Florida schools will test armed drones this fall to thwart shooters
Three districts in the state will have the devices available as a first-response option that coordinates with local law enforcement, drone provider Campus Guardian Angel says.
By Robert Freedman • Aug. 21, 2025 -
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American Lung Association urges school radon testing
HVAC systems must be functioning properly, with clean filters, for the tests to accurately identify levels of the radioactive gas, the organization says.
By Joe Burns • Aug. 20, 2025 -
Spencer Platt via Getty Images
Deep DiveNew York City workplace shooting exposes building security weaknesses
The mass shooting in July underscores how access controls fail, but facility managers can get better security out of the technology, specialists say.
By Joe Burns • Aug. 18, 2025 -
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Legionella just one of many HVAC risks, microbiologist says
Even products that operators use to clean ventilation systems can cause illness among building occupants, a scientist says.
By Robert Freedman • Aug. 15, 2025
