Building and Estates Annual Report 2020

Buildings and Estates Working Together to Safeguard the Campus

Annual Report

2020

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 1

Acknowledgements Editor Ian O’Donoghue Design One Little Studio Imagery Sean Curtain, Alan Place, Brian Arthur, Ian O’Donoghue, John O’Sullivan, Bidvest Noonan Contributors Tony Considine, Eric Crowe, Cliona Donnellan, Pat McMahon, Kieran Tuite, John O’Sullivan, Eilis Gaffney, Brian Considine, James McDonnell, Eoin Meagher, Chris Fogarty, Kelly O’Connor, Ger Manning, Marian Hartigan, Robert Reidy, Jim O’Callaghan, Gerald Hallinan.

2 | Building and Estates Annual Report 2020

Table of Contents 01.

Director’s Welcome....................................................................................... 04

02.

2020: A Year in Numbers........................................................................... 05

03.

Overview ............................................................................................................ 06

04.

Mission and Vision ....................................................................................... 07

05.

Strategic Plan: Progress Report ........................................................... 08

06.

COVID-19 ......................................................................................................... 13

07.

Department Activities.................................................................................. 21

08.

Projects................................................................................................................ 47

09.

Health and Safety ......................................................................................... 61

10.

Green Campus.................................................................................................. 62

11.

Quality................................................................................................................. 64

12.

Recurrent Expenditure............................................................................... 70

13.

Buildings and Estates Organogram ..................................................... 72

14.

Our Team........................................................................................................... 74

Director’s Welcome

The academic year 2019/2020 was an extraordinary one in the history of the University of Limerick. For the Buildings and Estates Department, the year started full of promise with exciting construction projects for the Student Centre, the Climbing Wall, the Foundation Lift and other smaller projects, which were all making steady progress. Furthermore, the University had acquired the Dunnes building in the city centre, and early ideas for its development were being explored.

The University had also finalised a Draft Framework for Physical Development for the main campus, which was due to be considered by the Governing Authority around March 2020. Also in March, Buildings and Estates was undergoing its external peer quality review.

However, there were murmurings in the news about a coronavirus outbreak in China, which the World Health Organization was very worried about. The outbreak was declared a pandemic on 11 March 2020. And then it came – the Taoiseach’s announcement on 12 March 2020 that Ireland was entering a lockdown. Buildings and Estates was tasked with shutting down and securing the campus. Increased national restrictions introduced during March were maintained until May, after which there was a gradual phased easing until late August.

Restrictions were then gradually re-introduced due to an upsurge in COVID-19 cases. It became apparent to UL authorities that teaching in AY2020/21 needed to be conducted online with only very limited access being permitted to essential laboratory activities. Apart from a brief removal of many restrictions in December, a Level 5 lockdown was re-introduced and remained in force well into 2021.

Throughout the period March to October 2020, the Buildings and Estates Department was tasked by the Executive Crisis Management Committee and later

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by the expanded Space Management Committee to develop detailed physical and operational responses to the evolving situation and to help devise and implement the various protocols (health declarations, return to work, etc.) developed by Government departments.

The University was requested to accommodate and construct an intermediate care facility at the Arena.

This major installation, with capacity for over 100 patients and subsequently 64 beds, including all the necessary facilities, was to provide step-down care and rehabilitation to patients from hospitals in the area. The facility was designed, procured, installed and made operational in less than 10 weeks. Around the same time, an existing lab in the Tierney Building was reconfigured, including enhanced airhandling/filtration systems, to facilitate COVID-19 research.

Throughout this period, mechanical/electrical and other essential systems throughout the campus had to be either brought back on stream or maintained in operation. This work was undertaken by Buildings and Estates staff, grounds staff, core maintenance staff, cleaners and security in the midst of the worst global pandemic in 100 years. There is great credit due to all these workers. I would like to acknowledge and thank each of them for their continued hard work and dedication.

We look forward with hope that the vaccination programme for the population will allow a return to normality for AY2021/22.

Robert Reidy Director

2020: A Year in Numbers

128,000

PPE items ordered

17th

42,000

COVID signage items ordered

in the World UI Green Metric Rankings

110

classrooms and lecture theatres set up by the Portering team to comply with social distancing guidelines

85

departmental returnto-work business plans received

15,000

2,000

570

customer emails to B&E Help Desk

items of homeworking equipment issued

of space managed across 47 buildings

3,090

litres of sanitising gel ordered

office chairs ordered for staff remote working

261,850m2

Two-in-a-row winner of Best Student Campus Award (Education Awards 2020)

729

teaching events (labs/ tutorials) audited by the Portering team in Semester 1

18

At 18 metres, Ireland’s highest indoor climbing wall opened in October 2020

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 5

Overview Buildings and Estates (B&E) is a customer-driven department that aspires to providing an excellent service to the UL campus and wider community. The B&E mission is to support the University to achieve its goals; its vision is to provide outstanding physical facilities for the pursuit of academic, cultural and recreational activities; its ethos is to sustain and seek to continually improve the quality of the services it provides to the campus community. The department is led by the B&E Director, who reports to the University’s Chief Operations Officer.

B&E’s brief includes the following functions: ■

New building and works projects

■

Goods inwards and distribution

■

Maintenance of the campus building fabric and associated building plant

■

Space planning and management

■

Maintenance of all campus grounds, sports fields, roads, pavings, water features, lighting and services

■

Insurance

■

Energy management

■

Land acquisition, including legal issues

■

Security

■

Signage

■

Traffic and parking management

■

Key management

■

Cleaning

■

Furniture – procurement and maintenance

■

Waste management

■

■

Portering service

Liaison with Higher Education Authority (HEA) and Department of Education and Skills in relation to buildings and physical development matters

B&E comprises 46 full-time UL direct staff, 46 full-time contract maintenance staff, 57 full- and part-time security staff and 63 full- and part-time cleaning staff. In addition to the full-time contract staff, B&E hires specialist contractors to maintain items such as safety systems and other mechanical and electrical systems. B&E’s current organisational structure is depicted on the organogram on pages 72 and 73.

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The University of Limerick’s mission is to build on the expertise of its scholars in creating, harnessing and imparting knowledge for the benefit of its students and the enrichment of its community.

This mission shapes that of Buildings and Estates, which is to support the University to achieve its goals.

Vision

Mission

Mission and Vision

The Buildings and Estates Department delivers services to ensure the provision of outstanding physical facilities for the pursuit of academic, cultural and recreational activities. The Buildings and Estates Department provides the framework for the infrastructure that realises this vision through the campus/ physical development plan.

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 7

Progress Report Buildings and Estates Strategic Plan 2017-2021

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In 2017, Buildings and Estates published a five-year strategic plan to provide a medium-term development and management plan both for the department itself and the UL estate. The plan was written to align with and support Broadening Horizons, UL’s strategic plan 20152019. Whilst the activities of B&E have always supported the strategic direction of the University, this was the first strategic plan devised by B&E. To support the UL plan, B&E identified the following five pillars around which to formulate its own plan.

2.2

Infrastructure improvement plan

2.3

Space strategy

2.4

Vehicular access strategy

2.5

Sustainability strategy

2.6

Excellence

On 1 November 2019, UL launched a new strategic plan, UL@50, to cover the period 2019–2024. In November 2020, the President established a Consultation Review Group to develop a process whereby all UL staff would be given the opportunity to provide feedback and contribute to an examination of what we do well, what we could do better and how that could be achieved in relation to the UL@50 goals. The ultimate aim of the consultations is to ensure that staff have a voice in determining the University’s strategic initiatives. The final report is projected for early summer 2021. It is envisaged that this report will cover both the recalibration of the UL@50 strategic plan and a sustainable structure for consultation into the future. Once the report is published, B&E will review the University’s strategic initiatives and will issue, as necessary, an addendum/amendment to its own strategic plan to bring it in line with the new institutional strategy.

An overview of the status in December 2020 of each of the aforementioned pillars is presented on the next three pages.

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 9

2.2

2.2.1 Capital development plan

Work complete on the Climbing Wall and CONFIRM. Construction ceased on the Student Centre and the contract was terminated. A completion contract is being procured for a restart in Q2 2021. An Architectural competition will be held during 2021 for a design for the future City Centre Campus. An interim use by Fablab and part of the School of Architecture is currently under discussion along with talks with UL Community Engagement and LCCC for a Citizens Observatory and Community Hub. A briefing document on Framework for Capital Development 2020-2030 is complete together with a 3D model of the proposed plan. The plan is due for presentation to the Governing Authority.

2.2.2 Refurbishment plan 2017–2019

The Framework for Capital Development envisages a significant recurring budget to tackle backlog and recurring maintenance. Resurfacing of the Main Avenue complete. B&E were successful in securing €1.1m under the HEA Devolved Grant 2020/21

2.2.3 Campus and landscape development plans

See Note under 2.2.1 above. The Campus Landscaping Masterplan will follow.

2.2.4 Parking for special campus and sports events

Consultant engaged to develop tender drawings to complete road connection into Kilmurry Village and thereby creating a third exit on to Plassey Park Road for UL traffic. A Link road from Kilmurry Village to the University Road (at Troy Studios) will be completed and the full resurfacing of University road will commence in Q2 2021.

2.2.5 Student accommodation

The Framework for Capital Development envisages an additional student village being built on campus. The brief for the City Centre Campus includes provision of further student accommodation.

2.3

2.3.1 Management of existing spaces

Briefing document on framework for capital development 2020-2030 is complete. A 3D model of the proposed plan has been created. Plan is due for presentation to the Governing Authority.

Space strategy

2.3.2 Space planning

Terms of reference for Space Management Committee have been agreed and adopted.

Membership of Committee has been finalised.

UL Space Policy has been approved. Since the first lockdown in March 2020 the Committee has been meeting weekly. Its terms of reference have expanded to deal with COVID-19 response and membership of the committee has been expanded to deal with COVID-19 challenges.

Infrastructure improvement plan

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2.4

2.4.1 10-minute city-to-UL link

The draft Limerick Shannon Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy (LSMATS) was published in September 2020 by the National Transport Authority (NTA) in collaboration with Limerick City and County Council, Clare County Council and Transport Infrastructure Ireland. Public consultation on the draft strategy continued until 30 October 2020. The UL strategy for dealing with traffic transport and Smarter Travel was presented to GA and was approved.

2.4.2 Limerick Northern Distribution Road*

UL works on the North Exit are complete. The exit is now closed pending discussions with the local authority.

2.4.3 University Road exit at National Technology Park*

Road works on Plassey Park Road by LCC are not scheduled to start until Q2 2021 at which point work on the third exit on the southern boundary can commence (also see 2.2.4)

2.5.1 ISO 50001

Condition survey tempate has been developed for the CS Building but rollout for additional buildings on hold due to COVID-19.

2.5.2 Energy behaviour change

Physical infrastructure to enable commissioning of the OPW’s EM&T now in place. OPW has completed an energy review of buildings.

2.5.3 Waste management

As of mid-Jan 2020, the dual waste bin system was installed in all buildings operated by the University.

2.5.4 Biodiversity action plan

UL has signed up to the All Ireland Pollinator Plan

2.5.5 Ground water

Filtering system in the Arena, PESS and Schrodinger to be upgraded.

Vehicular access strategy

2.5 Sustainability strategy

*Subheading updated to reflect current status

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 11

2.6 Excellence

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2.6.1 B&E staff plan

3 new porters were recruited in late 2020 and will commence work in Q1 2021. In March 2020 the External Quality Review Group recognised that B&E are under-resourced staff wise and made a number of recommendations for some additional roles.

A recruitment plan for these roles is currently under way.

2.6.2 Quality management system

B&E’s External review took place 02-05 March 2020.

Overall the feedback from the reviewers was very positive. The Buildings & Estates QRG report was approved by the Quality Committee on 28/05/2020 for publication.

2.6.3 Customer engagement

A survey via Office 365 Forms was circulated to 456 customers who used B&E’s services for Qtr 1 i.e. for Minor Works, Mechanical, Electrical and Buildings Maintenance. 24% response rate. 87% rated service ’Good’. Due to COVID-19 additional surveys have been deferred until customers are back on campus.

2.6.4 Stakeholder engagement

Stakeholder engagement ongoing through various meetings with B&E staff. COVID-19 brought a whole suite of new challenges to the department in 2020 with the department supporting over 100 Return to Work applications. There was immense effort and coordination from the Facility Managers and Technical Services teams to get UL back to research and teaching in a safe and compliant way in 2020.

2.6.5 Benchmarking

UL rose to 17th place in the world in the UI Green metric rankings. The Times Higher Education World Rankings 2020 rank UL 501-600.

2.6.6 Technical improvements

A report on CAFM was prepared but progress was impacted by COVID-19. However, enabling modules for data repositories for a CAFM system have been identified and ordered, with implementation due to commence in Q1 2021. B&E took delivery of a new fleet of grass-cutting machinery and transport vehicles that will be operated by the Grounds staff.

Included in the package were four ride-on mowers and one walk-behind mower as well as three runaround buggies, two of which are battery operated and have zero emissions and are extremely quiet around the campus grounds.

COVID-19

Overview On 12 March 2020, then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced the closure of all schools, colleges and childcare facilities until 29 March.

The announcement came one day after the World Health Organization formally declared that the outbreak was a pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented societal challenges. Like all Irish universities, UL has maintained ‘business as usual’ to the greatest extent possible by rapidly transitioning in March 2020 to remote learning and working. B&E played a key role in the efforts to reopen the campus for the 2020/21 academic year and contributed to the national emergency response by fitting out the UL Sport Arena as an intermediate care facility for the Health Service Executive (HSE).

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 13

Timeline of COVID-19 Events at UL March 12 UL Campus closes at 6pm to all staff and students

March 22 Request received by B&E to assist with setting up a field hospital in the UL Sport Arena

May 15 Space Management Committee tasked with preparing a UL specific plan on how to make the campus safe for the return of staff & students, creating a plan that meets all the requirements outlined in the government roadmap and UL’s own specific needs.

June 1 Work commences on getting buildings ready for reopening, sourcing PPE and signage

August 27 Ecostatic equipment and chemicals arrive

September 10 Treatment of water systems for legionella now 100% complete

June 8 HSE Intermediate Care Facility opens in the UL Sport Arena

August 20 University sector-wide Cleaning Regime ‘Taskforce’ established

September 13 Return to Work Project Manager and Space Manager meet with MARCOMMS to help plan information video which is part of communications plan for students

December 8 In advance of students returning home for Christmas, mass COVID-19 testing of students is facilitated on campus.

14 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

November 27 HSE hands back the UL Sport Arena. Decommissioning works

by B&E commence.

March 24 Taoiseach announces universities will remain closed until 19th April

March 24 B&E as a department develops its own protocol, induction and self-declaration forms to reduce the spread risk of COVID-19 in the workplace.

May 8 March 29 Government Return to UL closes to public access. Barriers put in Work Safely Protocol is place across entrances. Access to campus published. Work from restricted to UL personnel carrying out home continues. essential business and campus village residents

June 8 Bernal Institute pilot return to work starts

July 2 COVID-19 Signage tenders returned

March 28 Non-essential construction ceases

June 10 June 19 Goods Inwards reopens to Physical Distancing survey support the deliveries to completed for teaching spaces at 2 research labs metres and 1 metre.

June 26 Multiple departmental COVID-19 Business Response Plans & requests for assistance in developing plans received by B&E. A process is put in place to record, circulate to relevant personnel and coordinate the completion of items within.

September 17 A fulfilment company appointed to distribute face coverings to 17,063 students

November 20 Government publishes Work Safely Protocol

September 25 HR issues ‘Homeworking Equipment’ information

September 28 Semester 1 commences. Return to Work Safely Protocol and sector-specific guidance rolled out across all academic spaces in time for the return of students.

November 9 Student Attendance tool within Sulis goes live and replaces sign-in sheets.

15 | Building and Estates Annual Report 2020

October 15 B&E commences dispensing homeworking equipment from Park Point.

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 15

Return to Work Safely Protocol Following the publication of the Government’s Return to Work Safely Protocol in May 2020, the UL Space Management Committee, chaired by the Chief Operations Officer, appointed a project manager to coordinate the implementation of the protocol. The B&E Director nominated a member of (B&E) staff to undertake this role (Return to Work Project Manager), which was approved by the Space Management Committee. Since the publication of the Return to Work Safely Protocol, the Space Management Committee has met on a weekly basis to monitor its implementation and the implementation of emerging sector-specific guidance, such as the latest public health advice.

An initial review of the Return to Work Safely Protocol identified 93 individual tasks that needed to be carried out to fully implement the protocol. Having examined the individual tasks in further detail, it became evident that the tasks could not be completed in isolation and needed to be grouped into discrete work packages. The resulting implementation plan for UL segregated the delivery of the protocol into two major strands: (i) the implementation of campus-wide measures by a select number of support departments; and (ii) the development of COVID-19 business response plans at the level of research areas, departments and units.

COVID-19 Business Response Plan Template B&E developed a COVID-19 Business Response Plan template to enable research areas/departments/units, etc. to comply with the requirements of the Return to Work Safely Protocol. B&E set up a process to record, track, approve and action submitted COVID-19 business response plans and presented these to the Space Management Committee on a weekly basis for initial approval and prioritisation. This enabled B&E to manage the expectations of those wishing to return to work on campus and helped us to plan our activities.

Campus-wide Measures B&E led the implementation of campus-wide measures, such as physical measures, revised facilities management procedures and procurement of personal protective equipment (PPE). To this end, B&E procured COVID-19 signage, ordered all of its PPE requirements for the Autumn semester, identified and kitted out isolation rooms in all buildings, defined the additional cleaning requirement (which led to an increase in the complement of cleaners on site by 20%), ordered ecostatic cleaning equipment and accompanying chemicals, commenced a process to ensure buildings were Legionella-free prior to reoccupation, programmed its ventilation equipment to minimise the risk of COVID-19 spreading and erected multiple hand sanitising stations. B&E also applied agreed physical distancing rules to determine revised capacities for each classroom, lecture theatre and shared space. This enabled us to set up furniture and deploy signage as appropriate.

The project plan was rolled out across all academic spaces before students returned to campus. This was a mammoth task. By way of example, a nonexhaustive list of measures implemented in the Kemmy Business School (KBS) and Schuman buildings is presented opposite.

16 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Mechanical and electrical checks completed ■ Water

hygiene services (Legionnaires’ disease mitigation) ■ Water

storage tank clean

■ Sterilisation

of services pipework

■ Daily

flushing regime due to reduced usage

Sanitising gel stations

■ Heating

unit

■ Ventilation

Stations were strategically installed in locations at all building entrances, points of frequent footfall and outside computer labs. Units were checked daily by the porter and cleaning staff.

■ Fire

Movement systems

■ Electrical

A keep-left system was put in place in the wide corridor spaces on the ground floors of the two buildings while a one-way system operated on staircases and upper levels where corridors are narrow. Signs were used to indicate routes.

17 | Building and Estates Annual Report 2020

system

systems: sprinklers, smoke fans, fire extinguishers and hose reels, and fire hydrants

■ Emergency

■ Building

lighting

distribution board

management system control

■ Fire

alarm

■ Gas

supply (test)

■ Lift

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 17

Cleaning and sanitisation ■ Building cleaning plan in place, e.g. standard office cleans (of rooms identified as being in use), corridor vacuuming, removal of waste from bins

■ Classrooms:

■ Sanitisation

■ Lecture

students at 1-metre spacings; lecturer located 2m away from students

■ Computer

labs: 1m spacings; lecturer located 2m away from students

plan in place:

theatre: while students can be spaced at 1m, all lecture theatre seating is measured at 2m spacings as we have the space to do so in line with the national guideline of a maximum of 50 people in an indoor space.

■ Twice-daily

sanitation of all common touch points, e.g. door handles/push plates, corridors, lifts, stairs, bin lids

■ Wipes

available for self-service in classrooms, lecture theatres and computer labs

■ Ecostatic sanitising of

the classrooms carried out in the evenings once per week (remains effective for up to a month)

■ Deep

cleans completed (ongoing periodically throughout summer)

Restrooms ■ Restrooms deep-cleaned and re-opened for use ■ Legionnaires’

disease mitigation measures completed, including replacing all toilet seats

■ Max

capacity signs on the door; capacity based on 2-metre distancing at wash-hand basins

■ Installation

of paper towel dispensers

■ Installation

of liquid soap dispensers

■ Installation

of pedal assist bins

■ Removal/decommissioning

units and hand towel units

of hand dryer

Multi-occupancy room capacities ■ Audits of classrooms, lecture theatres, computer labs and multi-occupancy offices completed ■ Max

capacity signs on all room doors

■ Furniture

adjusted to facilitate seating at the required distance, with sticker signage indicating which seats not to use

18 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Staff kitchenette After reviewing the kitchenette in the KBS, it was decided that it was safer to keep it closed to avoid the risk of contaminated items being shared.

Isolation rooms ■ One isolation room provided per building – one in KBS, one in Schuman ■ Provision

of PPE in dedicated pedestal

■ Seating ■ COVID

waste bin for contaminated waste

• Breakout spaces ■ Seating adjusted to ensure 2m spacings only ■ Excess

furniture removed and cordoned off to prevent misuse

Signage The following page shows samples of signage located across KBS/Schuman.

buildingsmaintenance@ul.ie

NO STAIRS: ACCESS UP ONLY Reserved For Persons With Disabilities And Service Staff Only

Face coverings must be worn are here. Face StayCoverings safe.

Mandatory in the Protect each other.

Glucksman Library

STAIRS:

Coronavirus COVID-19 Public Health Advice

ENTRY ONLY

EXIT ONLY

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

Max Occupancy

Wearing a face covering helps prevent the spread of COVID-19

Masks must be worn for TWO WAY CORRIDOR: #holdfirm the duration of your visit.

> It should fit snugly and cover your nose/chin > Avoid touching it while wearing > Continue to wash your hands and social distance > Not suitable for under 13s or those who have difficulty wearing them

DOWN ONLY

Stay safe. Protect each other.

KEEP LEFT

Place Art Work Here

PLEASE EMAIL:

PLEASE CLOSE LID BEFORE FLUSHING

PLEASE WIPE DOWN YOUR WORK SPACE REGULARLY

IF THIS ROOM IS USED FOR A COVID RELATED OCCURANCE

Coronavirus COVID-19

Ireland’s public health advice is guided by WHO and ECDC advice

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

Max 1 Person

Max 2 People

Max 3 People

Max 4 People

Max 1

Max 2

Max 3

Max 4

Maximum quantity of people permitted at any one time

Protect yourself and others from getting sick Wash your hands • after coughing or sneezing • when caring for the sick • before and after you prepare food • before eating • after toilet use • when hands are visibly dirty • after touching cuts, blisters or any open sores • you can use alcohol hand rub, if hands are not visibly dirty

Place Art Work Here

Maximum 1 person permitted in the toilets at any one time

Maximum 2 people permitted in the toilets at any one time

Maximum 3 people permitted in the toilets at any one time

Maximum 4 people permitted in the toilets at any one time

PLEASE WIPE DOWN YOUR WORK SPACE REGULARLY

ndhygiene

www.hse.ie/ha

Coronavirus COVID-19

THIS WAY

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

THIS WAY

NO ENTRY

Coronavirus COVID-19 Public Health Advice

Stay safe.

Protect each other.

Continue to:

Wash

your hands well and often to avoid contamination.

Cover

your mouth and nose with a tissue or sleeve when coughing or sneezing and discard used tissue safely

Distance

yourself at least 2 metres (6 feet) away from other people, especially those who might be unwell

COVID-19 symptoms include

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

Avoid

crowds and crowded places

> high temperature > cough > breathing difficulty > sudden loss of sense of smell or taste > flu-like symptoms

Know

the symptoms. If you have them self isolate and contact your GP immediately

If you have any symptoms, self-isolate to protect others and call your GP for a COVID-19 test.

#holdfirm

Coronavirus COVID-19

Coronavirus COVID-19 Public Health Advice

Stay safe.

Protect each other.

THIS WAY

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

Continue to:

For more information

www.gov.ie/health-covid-19 www.hse.ie

Ireland’s public health advice is guided by WHO and ECDC advice

Wash

Cover

Avoid

Know

your hands well and often to avoid contamination.

Coronavirus COVID-19

Distance

yourself at least 2 metres (6 feet) away from other people, especially those who might be unwell

Coronavirus COVID-19 Public Health Advice

To protect yourself and others you need to wash your hands with soap and water Wet your hands with water and apply soap Rub your hands together until the soap forms a lather Rub the top of your hands, between your fingers and under your fingernails 20

your mouth and nose with a tissue or sleeve when coughing or sneezing and discard used tissue safely

crowds and crowded places

ONE WAY SYSTEM IN OPERATION

COVID-19 symptoms include > high temperature > cough > breathing difficulty > sudden loss of sense of smell or taste > flu-like symptoms

#holdfirm For more information

www.gov.ie/health-covid-19 www.hse.ie

Do this for about 20 seconds Rinse your hands under running water Dry your hands with a clean towel or paper towel

the symptoms. If you have them self isolate and contact your GP immediately

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

PLEASE DON’T MOVE THE FURNITURE

Ireland’s public health advice is guided by WHO and ECDC advice

Kill the virus. Save lives.

Ireland is operating a delay strategy in line with WHO and ECDC advice

NO ACCESS

TWO WAY CORRIDOR:

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

19 | Building and Estates Annual Report 2020

19 | Building and Estates Annual Report 2020

KEEP LEFT

HAND SANITISER

SANITISING WIPES

IF FOUND EMPTY PLEASE EMAIL THE FOLLOWING LOCATION CODE:

IF FOUND EMPTY PLEASE EMAIL THE FOLLOWING LOCATION CODE:

TO

TO

buildingsmaintenance@ul.ie

buildingsmaintenance@ul.ie

ISOLATION ROOM PLEASE FOLLOW SOCIAL DISTANCING

Building and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 19

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 19

Updated Guidance During the roll-out of the Return to Work Safely Protocol, additional guidance documents were published, including Implementation Guidelines for Public Health Measures in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and Practical Guidance for Further and Higher Education for Returning to Onsite Activity in 2020, which were integrated into the overall project plan.

Recording Information for the Purposes of Contact Tracing Updated guidance placed an onus on higher education institutions (including UL) to record attendance at all ‘events’ on campus. B&E prepared a briefing note for discussion at the Space Management Committee to outline potential approaches that could be adopted.

These included technology-based solutions, paperbased solutions and the use of existing records held by Academic Registry (e.g. timetables). It was agreed to use a paper-based system initially with a view to switching, if possible, to a technology-based alternative. The paperbased system required daily deployment and collection of sign-in sheets by Security to and from all teaching spaces in use (157 of the total 425 teaching spaces available). Spaces not in use were kept locked.

To facilitate the cross-referencing of information collected for the purposes of contact tracing against the expected number of sign-in sheets, B&E’s Portering team undertook utilisation surveys of centrally scheduled teaching spaces over a 10-week period (making 2,147 observations in the process). The information helped inform the decision to switch to UL’s learning platform (Sulis) to record information for the purposes of contact tracing. Weekly utilisation rates ranged from a low of 18% in Week 11 (Year 4 only on campus) to a high of 74% in Week 4/ Week 7 (Year 1 and Year 3/Year 1 and Year 4 on campus).

The weighted average weekly utilisation rate was 64%. Overall, 94% of all centrally scheduled classes were labs.

Accessing UL Buildings In keeping with the latest public health and government advice, B&E maintained and implemented an up-todate process for permitting access to UL buildings. The process complements UL’s health & safety process to manage visitors to campus. Both processes ensure that workers travelling to and working on campus are doing so for essential purposes.

Homeworking Equipment

In keeping with the latest public health and government advice, B&E maintained and implemented an upto-date process for permitting access to UL buildings.

20 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

In early October, B&E began dispensing homeworking equipment from Park Point. Details of the numbers are given in the Administration section of this report.

Mass Testing In advance of the Christmas break, the HSE contacted UL to request that a COVID-19 test centre be set up to facilitate the mass testing of UL students. To minimise the potential for spreading the virus (especially by those travelling home for Christmas), free COVID-19 tests were offered to all students. B&E worked with the HSE to identify a suitable testing space and to set up the space in accordance with HSE specifications.

Preparations included installing floor tape and signage, arranging/removing furniture, opening windows and providing waste collection facilities. Over 1,000 students signed up to avail of a test, 917 of whom attended for testing. After testing was complete, B&E reinstated the facility to its original setup and deep-cleaned the space.

Department Activities Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 21

Technical Services Elimination

Most Effective

Substitution

Engineering Controls Administrative Controls

Personal Protective Equipment

Community Protective Equipment

The world changed on 12 March 2020 with the first COVID-19 lockdown. This was keenly felt by everyone, none more so than the B&E Technical Services (TS) team. The lockdown and subsequent restrictions brought many challenges, as described below.

Return to Work/Return to Teaching Process B&E processed over 85 return-to-work applications by various departments, research groups and units.

The TS team played a major role in developing and mapping out these processes, which involved modifying building infrastructure and systems to comply with COVID guidelines. The TS team took the processes and developed specific procedures and instructions for TS staff, such as ventilation and anti-Legionella precautions. An overview of some of these items is presented in the checklist on page 24.

The return to partial occupation of buildings following the initial lockdown of 12 March presented a major challenge for the TS team. Many systems required checking or recommissioning, as outlined in the checklist. This was carried out on a building-by-building basis as the return-to-work process progressed.

Least Effective

Ventilation According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there are multiple categories of measures, each with differing levels of effectiveness, that can be put in place to prevent hazards (CDC, 2021). The figure above shows the US CDC’s hierarchy of controls adapted to the COVID-19 context (source: Cornell University, 2021).

The Government’s Work Safely Protocol1 recognises the usefulness of, amongst other things, engineering and administrative controls (e.g. increased ventilation) in mitigating against the spread of COVID-19.

The protocol sets out two methods of increasing ventilation: mechanical ventilation (i.e. forced ventilation) and natural ventilation. The protocol also points to specific guidance on ventilation from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HSPC); European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC); Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE); and Federation of European Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Associations (REHVA).

1 Published in November 2020, this protocol is a revision of the May 2020 Return to Work Safely Protocol.

22 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Ventilation Switch off

Mechanical Ventilation (Forced Ventilation) B&E reviewed all relevant guidance on mechanical ventilation and modified the campus building management system control strategies to maximise this type of ventilation. The general thrust of the guidance on mechanical ventilation is to: ■ Supply

as much outside air as possible [in place]

■ Use

the most efficient filter possible for the system where recirculation is used (in UL’s case, this is an ePM1 85%) [in place]

■ Switch

on mechanical ventilation in ‘occupied mode’ for two hours before occupancy commences and two hours after occupancy ends [in place]

■ Continue

to operate ventilation outside of ‘occupied mode’ to achieve the minimum outdoor airflow rate as set out in EN16798-1:2019 [in place]

In the hierarchy of controls shown on the previous page, mechanical ventilation is an engineering control and, accordingly, plays a central role in preventing the spread of COVID-19. The figures above and below show the impact of mechanical ventilation on the amount of virus-laden particles within the breathing zone (above figure ventilation off, below figure ventilation on) (source: REHVA, 2020).

Ventilation Switch on

23 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 23

Returning to Work - Building Services Systems Checklist To be completed prior to building reoccupation.

BUILDING NAME

System

Component

Task

Natural Gas Supply

Gas installation

Carry out soundness test.

Reinstate gas supply to building.

Compressed Air

Re-commissioning checks

(Note: The re-commissioning process should be coordinated with the specialist provider)

Run systems to working pressure.

Check all safety devices.

Check system for any air leaks.

Check running current.

Water Hygiene Services

Water storage tanks

Clean water storage tanks.

Water services

Sterilise/disinfect water services pipework.

Flushing regime to be agreed.

Incoming mains water supply

Take a meter reading.

Check mains water filters and replace if required.

Water softeners

Check salt level and top up.

The water softener should then be put through a manual regeneration so that it is ready for use.

Heating

Ventilation

Drinking fountains

Run five (5) litres of water through outlet

Sanitary ware

Check operation of Cisternmiser Units

Hot water storage vessels

Inspect and replace anodes where required.

Waster water traps

Inspect sample of traps to determine whether there is a requirement to clean the traps prior to opening the building.

Cold water main

Check the cold water supply to the heating system is on.

Pressurisation unit

Check unit status for faults.

Fresh air requirements

The ventilation systems have been accessed and all units are switched to 100% fresh air.

CO2 control

Where applicable, adjustments to CO2 control not to exceed 400PPM.

24 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

System

Component

Task

Chilled Water

Cold water main

Check the cold water supply to the cooling system is on.

Pressurisation unit

Check unit status for faults.

Chilled water system

Start the system.

(Note: The re-commissioning process should be coordinated with the specialist provider)

Circulate the system water.

Schedule the recommencement of routine service visits, system analysis and dosing of the system with inhibitor.

Laboratory Gas Supply

Gas installation

Carry out soundness test.

Remove lock-off tag-off.

Reinstate power supply to gas manifold.

Fire Protection

Sprinkler

Periodic inspection checks are up to date.

Smoke fans

Check operation of fans.

Smoke curtains

Check operation of curtains.

Fire extinguishers and hose reels

Periodic inspection checks are up to date.

Fire hydrants

Periodic inspection checks are up to date.

-

Periodic inspection checks are up to date.

Addressible

Check system for fault list.

Central battery

Check system voltage and charge rate.

Cooling

Fan coils and cassette units

Where units have been switched off, ensure that any condensate drainage is free-flowing and the tray/reservoir is emptied.

Electrical Distribution

Distribution boards

Visually inspect.

BMS / Controls

Controlled devices

Controlled devices

Fire Alarm

-

Periodic inspection checks are up to date.

Gas Detection

-

Periodic inspection checks are up to date.

All devices are functioning.

Emergency Lighting

Lifts

-

Check functionality of passenger lifts; report issues to specialist provider.

Automatic Opening Vents

Air compressors

Check operation of compressor.

Chain driven

Check control panel for faults.

Manually open vents.

25 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 25

Legionnaires’ Disease Threat Large water distribution systems require an appropriate sterilisation regime to prevent the risk of Legionella Pneumophilia bacteria growing. Growth of the bacterium in question is dependent on a number of variables, one of which is the degree of water use, i.e. drawing the water through the system and maintaining a fresh supply. Under-utilisation of a system runs the risk of promoting Legionella. Following the March 2020 lockdown, UL buildings generally had very little occupancy, which obviously meant very little water use. The TS team was faced with the dilemma that while the buildings were sparsely occupied, they were not empty. Furthermore, shutting down and draining water distribution systems is not a solution to the Legionella threat because small pockets of stagnant water will be present in the system and thus will exacerbate the risk.

After consulting with various published guidelines and with water treatment specialists, the TS team adopted the solution of bringing forward B&E’s normal annual water supply sterilisation process and designing and implementing a flushing regime. Seventy-nine individual water systems were included in the process. The flushing regime involved B&E staff running water through the systems (running taps, flushing toilets, etc.) in a controlled and systematic manner to simulate normal building water use.

This flushing regime is still ongoing at the time of writing and will continue, in accordance with guidelines, until building occupancy rises to above 40% of normal design occupancy.

Energy Savings Initial guidelines advised that mechanical ventilation plant and systems be modified to provide as much fresh air as possible – even at the expense of comfort and energy consumption. Subsequent versions of the guidelines stepped back from this because it was acknowledged that: 1. Maximising fresh air throughput in cold conditions was likely to overwhelm the capacity of ventilation plant and possibly cause damage 2. Running ventilation systems around the clock does not add any benefit over running the systems for two hours before and after occupancy Resolving these changes to the guidelines in an effort to reduce excessive energy consumption involved making further major modifications to building management system control strategies.

Toilet Seats REHVA guidance draws attention to the potential for SARS-CoV-2 aerosols to be generated by flushing toilets with open lids. A survey conducted by the TS team showed that 254 toilet WCs on campus were not fitted with a lid. The team replaced these seats with seats that incorporated a closable lid and erected signage in restrooms advising that the lid should be closed before the toilet is flushed.

26 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Operations

Space Management The Buildings & Estates Department currently manages 261,850m² (2,818,530ft²) of space across 47 UL buildings. The table on the next page sets out how this space is broken down into different room types and indicates the broad spectrum of the space portfolio that is handled by the department.

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 27

Type of space

Area m²

% of total space

Office and related

32,408

12.38%

Laboratory and support

33,265

12.70%

Teaching

11,775

4.50%

Catering/bar/commercial

8,405

3.21%

Library

9,758

3.73%

Sports facilities

15,130

5.78%

Student residences

76,142

29.08%

Non-assignable

52,240

19.95%

Other

22,728

8.68%

261,850

100%

Total

B&E continues to work to consolidate and rationalise the space occupied by the various faculties, divisions, departments and research centres within UL. Although most of us worked off campus for the greater part of 2020, significant expansion plans for many areas throughout the campus were developed during the year and a number of new initiatives, which have added greatly to the challenge of managing space in general, were introduced.

The past year saw a reduction in the number of office moves when compared to more recent years. However, a total of 81 office moves still took place in 2020, which led to further consolidation of many divisions and departments across the University. All moves are agreed in advance with ITD to ensure that staff’s computers, printers and phone extensions are moved and operational on the day of the move.

The chart opposite shows the number of office moves that were planned and implemented by B&E over the last number of years.

Office Moves February 2020 saw the first meeting of the newly reconstituted Space Management Committee. Comprising several members of UL senior management, the committee makes key decisions in relation to future space planning and considers proposals on how vacant and decanted spaces should be reallocated to best serve the University’s strategic plan.

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, much of the work of the committee since April focused on the safe operation and re-opening of the University.

28 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Office Moves 315

300

No. of Office Moves

250

218

200

195

162

150

155 144

142

142 131 112

110

101

100

81

78

2008

2010

2012

2014

2016

2018

2020

Year

In September 2020, the HEA requested all higher education institutions to complete a major space survey. The survey asked responding institutions to provide in excess of 4,000 separate pieces of information. The range of information sought included but was not limited to: ■ A

breakdown by building of all space on campus. For each building, space was to be split into 22 different pre-defined categories.

■ For

each building, the primary and secondary discipline occupier and the percentage of that space as well as the percentage of the building devoted to research

■ Latitude

and longitude co-ordinates and Eircode for each building

■ Area

of playing fields, number of car parking and bicycle spaces

■ Area

and folio numbers for all land holding as well as available development land

■ Insurance

valuation for each building

■ Detailed

condition breakdown of each building by defined categories and an estimate of costs to bring each building back to a good level. This is defined as operationally safe with only minor defects.

■ Functional

suitability of each building to accommodate the activity housed in the

building

■ Breakdown

of staff and student numbers

■ Form

of construction and materials used in each building, including floors, walls, roofs, etc.

■ Annual

energy usage and emissions, BER ratings and details of mechanical plant and lighting types, etc.

■ Annual

waste mass

■ Environmental ■ Operating

management system in place

costs

29 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 29

As a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic, to support the operation of the University and to ensure the safety and wellbeing of its staff and students, B&E conduced the spacerelated surveys opposite.

30 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Space-related surveys ■

■

■

Separate 2m and 1m social distancing capacity surveys in over 140 separate classrooms and lecture theatres, in over 300 undergraduate and postgraduate labs and in over 50 computer labs A 2m social distancing survey to establish the capacity of almost 300 multi-occupancy offices To assist Student Life, a 2m social distancing survey of all rooms in the existing student centre

In addition, B&E carried out a number of other space-related initiatives: ■

■

■

■

■

■

To ensure that postgraduate research students returning to the Foundation Building would be properly distanced from each other, B&E met with representatives from each faculty and agreed a schedule for when each of the 300+ desks could be used and the name of the person who would use it.

B&E engaged with many different departments to agree the temporary re-purposing of rooms as isolation rooms. In total, 26 isolation rooms across 19 different buildings were provided. B&E ensured that all the rooms were fully stocked with required PPE, waste disposal receptacles, cleaning schedules, etc.

Due to social distancing capacity guidelines, B&E reviewed campus spaces that would potentially be suitable for converting to classrooms on a short-term basis. Twelve separate spaces were identified, costs were estimated and, finally, in conjunction with ITD and Academic Registry, four additional teaching spaces were provided as part of the central pool of rooms.

Before students returned to campus in September, B&E identified areas that would be suitable as social/communal/study spaces for students to use between attendance at labs and tutorials. The spaces comprised communal and catering areas that were to remain closed otherwise. In all, 12 spaces were identified. B&E carried out 2m social distancing capacity surveys in all areas and removed seats or tapedoff areas where students would not be permitted to sit.

From Week 3 to Week 12 of the Autumn semester, B&E carried out an hourly audit of every centrally scheduled teaching event to physically check whether or not the event took place. This information was then used by ITD/HR to monitor attendance tracking and by the Provost & Deputy President to monitor the uptake of teaching events that were deemed to have to take place on campus.

From Week 6 to Week 12 of the Autumn semester, B&E worked with colleagues in the Library to monitor the Library’s daily and peak occupancy figures. In the event that the capacity of the Library would be exceeded, B&E put a contingency plan in place to provide additional study spaces in the Main Building. This additional space was not required ultimately.

The year 2021 is shaping up to be another very challenging year in terms of space planning and allocation, and a number of significant requests for additional space are already in the planning stage.

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 31

Cleaning

B&E is responsible for cleaning UL’s academic buildings. The work is carried out by Bidvest Noonan. The contract for the provision of UL cleaning services was tendered in 2019 in consultation with the Office of Government Procurement (OGP). The contract was awarded in August 2019, the duration of which is in accordance with the OGP guidelines.

Generally, the cleaning of buildings is carried out between 6pm and 2am, Monday to Friday. All general areas and teaching spaces are cleaned daily. Offices are cleaned twice a week on an agreed cleaning schedule, which is available on the cleaning section of the B&E website.

Daytime janitorial staff provide a restroom service from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, and attend to any emergency cleaning situations that might arise during these hours.

COVID Cleaning Due to COVID-19, B&E adapted the cleaning services in accordance with the requirements of the Return to Work Safely Protocol and the aforementioned guidelines for public health measures in higher education institutions.

The cleaning scope was expanded to include an additional daily clean of all restrooms; provision of pedal bins in restrooms; use of disinfectant chemicals; twice-daily sanitisation of common touch points (push plates, door handles, bin lids, lift buttons, hand rails) in buildings; ecostatic spraying; additional waste removal, including the use of specific storage areas for PPE waste; and an automated audit of sanitised areas.

32 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Ecostatic Spraying With the help of Bidvest Noonan, B&E researched additional sanitisation methods that could be used in conjunction with general cleaning to ensure that the high-usage areas would receive extra sanitisation. Ecostatic sanitisation systems were deemed to be the most suitable. Ecostatic cleaning agents are safe to use, non-corrosive, non-irritating, non-toxic, food-safe and cost-effective and have a prolonged antimicrobial effect that degrades/decomposes into safe by-products after use. The process is implemented using a backpack spray system by specifically trained cleaning staff. An ecostatic sanitisation schedule was developed for classrooms, lecture theatres, the Library, public spaces and the seating areas of catering spaces on a five-day rolling cycling.

B&E would like to take this opportunity to recognise the outstanding work provided by our cleaning staff throughout what was a very challenging year.

Window Cleaning The contract for the provision of window cleaning services for UL was tendered in 2017 in consultation with the OGP. The contract was awarded in August 2017 to Bidvest Noonan for a period of time in accordance with the OGP guidelines.

All external glazing and internal windows are cleaned between July and September annually, when the campus is at its quietist. The contractor uses a reach and wash system that is environmentally friendly as no chemicals are used. This system also eliminates the need for ladders or high-access equipment, which reduces health and safety risks.

Taken in 2019

Portering The Portering team has a wide-ranging mix of duties and responsibilities. The following are examples of the activities carried out by the Portering team:

■ Being

■ Setting

■ Providing

up and regularly spot-checking teaching spaces, communal areas, seminar spaces and a significant number of nonscheduled labs, computer labs and PBL (problem-based learning) rooms

■ Setting

up and regularly checking exam centres for central and locally held departmental exams

■ Setting

up and supporting special events, such as VIP visits, ceremonies, open days, teaching and career fairs, as well as numerous local departmental events and functions

■ Stewarding

and marshalling UL events such as ceremonies, open days, Science Week, Party in the Plaza and the Christmas tree lighting ceremony

■ Transporting

and delivering goods inwards materials and sorting and delivering SDS postal items and general postal packages

■ Moving

equipment, furniture and other large items around the campus

■ Actively

participating in UL emergency response procedures and being first responder for emergency calls

■ Moving

Print Room material, including A4 paper and printed matter

■ Reporting

faults to the Buildings office

■ Being

responsible for housekeeping in communal areas and teaching spaces

■ Being

responsible for the security of campus buildings and car parks

33 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

responsible for the security of internal spaces, including individual offices and restricted areas such as labs and roof access frontline support for AV equipment in a number of outlying buildings, lecturing spaces and seminar rooms

■ Providing

frontline interaction, information and support for students, including students with a disability

■ Generally

supporting members of the public by dealing with their enquiries and providing visitors with information on events and seminars

The onset of restrictions in March 2020 due to the global pandemic brought with it challenges to how we all conduct ourselves in the workplace. Our team of porters remained on campus and continued to offer support to UL students and staff. The team set up 110 classrooms and lecture theatres to comply with COVID-19 social distancing guidelines and later audited 729 teaching events (labs/tutorials) in Semester 1.

October marked the end of an era within the Portering team. Tony O’Donnell (pictured above, fourth from right) brought the curtain down on a career spanning almost 30 years with B&E. Starting his time in the Main Building, Tony went on to offer support to our colleagues in the Students’ Union and, finally, the Foundation Building. While COVID-19 robbed us of the opportunity to say a proper goodbye, all his friends in green and the wider B&E family wish Tony all the best for the future and a long and happy retirement.

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 33

Taken in 2019

Goods and Materials All goods purchased on behalf of UL are channelled in through Goods Inwards. The relevant paperwork is processed and the goods are despatched via the portering service and a delivery van to outlying campus buildings.

Goods Inwards handles an average of 1,000 goods a week (counting pallets as one, even though each pallet may contain multiple items).

Adhering to UL’s Return to Work Safely Protocol, the Goods Inwards team returned to campus on 10 June, alternating between them the weeks working from home or in the office. While the volume of deliveries to research labs increased and to administrative offices and teaching labs dropped, the overall volume was nearly back to normal levels by the end of the year.

34 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

The biggest change during 2020 related to the number of despatches from Goods Inwards – large numbers of laptops (after encryption) were shipped out by departments to staff working at home. Goods Inwards also arranged collections from home addresses back to UL or between home addresses, and even between countries.

UL uses its Agresso financial system – known as the ‘Procure-to-Pay’ process – to manage the ordering, receipt, delivery and payment of goods. Goods Inwards is an integral part of this process: the goods are logged (received electronically) on the system, which, in turn, clears the way for payment to be authorised.

Building Architectural Maintenance B&E is responsible for the building fabric of UL’s academic buildings. This work is carried out by an external building maintenance contractor procured through the OGP tendering process. The appointed contractor maintains the building fabric (excluding mechanical and electrical installations) with an on-campus building trade team and manages third-party contractors specialised in the maintenance of the building fabric. The on-campus building maintenance team comprises one building maintenance supervisor, eight carpenters and four general operatives.

Work carried out by the building maintenance team includes repairing and maintaining the building fabric, carrying out planned preventative maintenance (PPM), delivering furniture between campus buildings and carrying out minor works requested by UL departments.

Between October 2019 and October 2020, in addition to general maintenance (GM) and repairs, B&E completed eight minor works to a value of €117,000 and carried out substantial COVID-related works in preparation for students returning for the Autumn semester in September. This latter work involved:

Forklift

Minor Works / Projects

■

■

■

■

Installing over 330 hand sanitiser units with related signage Erecting 260 paper towel dispensers to replace cotton towel dispensers Setting up 30 COVID pop-up banners at entrances to various buildings Setting up of 26 COVID isolation rooms in buildings around campus Erecting over 9,000 COVID-related signs around campus (e.g. room occupancy, hand-washing, directional, toilet flush, etc.)

The table and graph show the breakdown of works carried out during the period October 2019 to October 2020.

Works

No. completed

% of total

GM (customer generated)

3,788

59.12%

GM (PPM generated)

857

13.38%

Minor works/projects

116

1.81%

PPM

146

2.28%

Forklift

316

4.93%

Van

1,184

18.48%

Total no. of jobs completed

6,407

100%

316

GM (Customer

3,788

Generated)

Completed Jobs

116

Van

■

1,184

857

146

GM (PPM Generated)

PPM

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 35

Grounds Standing on 149 hectares (368 acres) in total, UL’s south bank comprises 47 hectares (116 acres) while the north bank covers 102 hectares (252 acres). The growth of the University at strategic times is guided by physical development plans, an integral part of which is an assessment of the landscape. The priority given to the landscape has resulted in a high-quality, attractive and pleasant environment, which has become a major asset to the campus. B&E is responsible for the development and upkeep of the campus landscape. The University’s in-house grounds staff and external contractors carry out these works.

In addition to the landscape, the grounds staff are responsible for providing and maintaining outdoor sports facilities. These include the athletics track, tennis courts, over 12

36 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

hectares of high-quality sports fields and the newly developed McGuires sports complex. Together with the UL Sport Arena, these areas enable UL to provide excellent sport and recreational facilities to the campus community and to host high-profile sports events.

As essential work continued all through the pandemic, our grounds staff were busy mowing grass, edging paths and attending to the sports pitches. They weeded and mulched shrubs and trees, trimmed hedges, planted trees and shrubs, and cleared leaves, frost and ice from paths and trails to make the campus a peaceful sanctuary where resident students and members of the local community could exercise within 5km of their home during this difficult time.

Notable Trees on Campus One of the most outstanding trees on campus is the copper beech, which is located close to the main reception on the plaza. Copper beech, also known as purple beech, is a cultivated form of common beech (although copper-coloured beech trees are also sometimes found in nature). It grows to a height of more than 40m. The bark is smooth, thin and grey, often with slight horizontal etchings. Twigs are slender and grey but not straight – their shape resembles a zigzag. Torpedo-shaped leaf buds are coppery and up to 2cm in length, with a distinctive criss-cross pattern.

Some quick facts: ■ Common

name: Copper beech

■ Scientific

name: Fagus sylvatica f. purpurea

■ Family: Fagaceae ■ Flowers:

Monoecious, meaning both male and female flowers grow on the same tree. In April and May, the copper beech’s tassel-like male catkins hang from long stalks at the end of twigs, while female flowers grow in pairs, surrounded by a cup.

■ Leaves:

Deep purple in the spring, turning to a coppery hue in the autumn, oval and fringed with silky brown hairs

■ Fruits:

Once wind-pollinated, this cup becomes woody and encloses one or two reddish brown beech nuts (known as beechmast).

Ongoing Native Tree and Shrub Planting As part of our ongoing improvements to the campus landscape, we carried out a tree-planting management scheme in winter 2020. Notable work included planting: ■ Large

hornbeams (Carpinus betulus) outside the Arena building

■ Oaks (Quercus

robur) opposite the Concert Hall

■ Holm

oaks (Quercus ilex) – landscape planting on the plaza outside the climbing wall

■ Hollies

(Ilex) near Plassey House

■ Pollinator-friendly

shrub layers outside the Library

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 37

Campus Security B&E is responsible for securing the UL campus and buildings, managing the campus car parks and directing the campus traffic at peak times. B&E aims to provide a safe and secure environment for the campus community. The campus security team comprises two senior managers, eight supervisors, and 15 full-time and 33 part-time officers. Building porter staff assist Campus Security during normal working hours by monitoring internally the academic buildings. Campus Security monitors activity externally using mobile security vehicles, a security motorbike and the campus’s CCTV system, which includes 380 CCTV cameras located throughout the campus. Outside of normal working hours, Campus Security takes overall responsibility for the security of the entire campus. Campus Security also monitors the newly installed emergency-beacon system that is strategically located around campus.

The campus security control centre is located on the south bank and operates 24/7, 365 days of the year.

During the outbreak of COVID-19 and the introduction of the Government’s Level 5 restrictions in March 2020, Campus Security

assisted the University to ensure compliance by restricting access onto the campus to approved essential UL staff and HSE key workers who were supporting the temporary on-campus field hospital in the UL Arena. The security operations were modified to prevent access to amenities on both the north and south banks (i.e. pitches).

As COVID-19 restriction levels were reduced, Campus Security adapted to support UL policies based on government guidelines and advice. In October 2020, with the start of the new semester and the return of students to campus, Campus Security helped collect ‘proof of attendance’ from students at lectures for the purpose of contact tracing should the need for tracing arise. Campus Security also helped issue equipment to staff who were working from home due to the pandemic.

As the nationwide lockdowns evolve, Campus Security continues to be flexible and adaptable to meet the security needs of the University.

Below is a snapshot of security activities during the pandemic.

Essential Workers & Key Staff Accessing Campus During Lockdown. Period March -June 2020

Permission for access to University Buildings Period June - Sept (Restricted) June

March

July 789

April

142 4,252

1,695

June 5,922

6,213 4,215

5,703

August

May External 1,767 2,636 Internal

Campus Security patrols 2020

38 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

September

Administration

Emails Monthly Summary Received

Sent

4,000

3,500

Emails received

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0 March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Month

Overview The year 2020 started like any other in the B&E administration office: maintenance requests were cleared and new ones opened, Relevant Contract Tax (RCT) renewals for the departments’ various contractors were processed, purchase requisitions were raised, invoices were approved for payment, uploads were made to Agresso and meetings for the year ahead were scheduled. In general, the office was getting ready to greet B&E’s first customers of 2020 face to face.

However, this normal working environment was not to last, and by March 13, the Administration team had moved to working from home full time. Forty-one weeks later, the team continues to work from home. This new method of working brought its challenges, some of which we have never had to consider before.

Between 13 March and 23 December 2020, the team received 15,447 emails of enquiry. The number peaked at 247 on one day in August.

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 39

Insurance Policies

Renewal Rates

The following insurance policies are administered by B&E on behalf of UL and specified associated bodies: Property Damage & Business Interruption, Public & Products Liability, Employers’ Liability, Professional Indemnity, Motor, Computer, Directors and Officers Liability, Personal Accident, Travel (staff and Erasmus students only), Marine Hull, Crime, Engineering, Fine Arts, Environmental Impairment Liability and Cyber Liability. In addition, a single Medical Malpractice insurance policy is held for a particular contract and a single Clinical Trials policy is held for a particular research project.

When the insurance policies were renewed in September 2019 for 2019/20, market indicators influenced the renewal rates of particular policies held by UL. The most significant changes were:

IIMG UL is a member of the IIMG (Intervarsity Insurance Management Group). The purpose of the group is to ensure that all opportunities for collaborative working are identified and evaluated in the short, medium and long term and to assist in ensuring that an effective insurance programme is in place across the six universities. The members are UL, UCC, NUI Maynooth, NUI Galway, TCD and DCU. IIMG collectively purchases Property Damage & Business Interruption, Employers’ Liability, Public & Products Liability, Professional Indemnity and Motor insurance. The OGP ran the tender competition for insurance brokers in 2019 and appointed the successful broker on behalf of IIMG in early 2020. The OGP also tendered insurance underwriting services on behalf of the IIMG in 2018, and this awarded contract will remain in place until 2022.

The annual bursary from the property insurance underwriters to each IIMG member institution to spend on preventative works to protect property, as agreed with the underwriter, was available again in 2020. UL used the 2019 bursary in 2020 to upgrade a number of the older generation fire alarm panels to a version capable of operating on the ID2net protocol and installed a number of fibre optic cables between various fire alarm panels. Phase 1 of this work was supported by this bursary.

40 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

1. Property risk underwriting: Due to a ‘hard’ insurance market and insurers’ detailed approach to underwriting, property insurers automatically applied rate increases, even on premises with no claims experience, with individual rates applying to institutions with significant claims and/or unfavourable underwriting characteristics.

2. Liability claims environment: 2020 saw movement in quantity and quantum for liability claims, which is now very evident in the claims numbers and resulting insurance company actions.

The performance of the general liability and motor insurance accounts has been significantly loss making. Factors shaping this deterioration include: a. 75% of Injuries Board awards relate to motor personal injury claims. b. An increasing number of employers’ liability and public liability cases are rejected and then proceed to the circuit and high courts, which increases costs. c. The number of employers’ liability claims in the lower wage occupations increased. d. Under-pricing of premiums in the past, under-reserving and the implementation of Solvency II (capital allocation per product line) are affecting insurers’ profitability. e. The cost of claims in Ireland is too high – the size of the average personal injuries award in the high and circuit courts continues to rise as we live in an increasingly litigious society.

COVID-19 COVID-19 brought unique challenges in relation to managing the UL insurance programme. For example, with buildings unoccupied, security, heating, ventilation and waste water still had to be managed and the UL Sport Arena was handed over to the HSE for use as a temporary hospital ‘step-down’ facility for patients recovering from COVID-19 who were well enough to leave hospital but still needed some nursing and therapy care. The pandemic also gave rise to the additional cost of computing equipment not just for staff working from home but for the University as a whole to support remote workers to log into the UL servers. In addition, revenue from accommodation and commercial facilities was lost, which remains an ongoing challenge for UL with its insurance underwriters.

Future Insurance Goals B&E operates in an ever-changing environment. This was never more obvious than in 2020 as we endeavoured to stay abreast of new developments within the insurance space at a time when UL strived to grow its share of regulated and unregulated clinical trials and address the increasing concern around cyber security. IIMG insurance brokers will continue to assist with arranging forums on topics of growing interest to the group.

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 41

Challenges Finance New procedures were documented for purchase requisitions, purchase orders and online invoice approvals (typically signed by the manager in wet ink), to name just a few.

Communication with Colleagues The initial difficulty was to find the best method of communicating with each other. It soon became clear that multiple emails would not work because all members of the team were receiving excessive amounts of messages and it was becoming increasingly difficult to stay on top of the influx. Like the rest of the UL community, the staff soon moved to Microsoft Teams, which proved to be the best solution for the department. The Administration team, in particular, quickly adapted to and embraced this online system of communication.

Access to Buildings While the campus was shut down, many essential personnel were required to remain on campus. These included maintenance contractors, security staff and researchers who had deadlines to meet with materials that could spoil if not used within a certain timeframe. B&E administrators became the first point of contact for a new procedure to access the campus – all requests for access were processed through the buildingsmaintenance@ ul.ie email account. Each email had to be replied to and processed, with daily approval reports issued to Security. June to August became the busiest period, which, traditionally, would be when most staff take annual leave but were instead preparing for online teaching. Some days the buildings maintenance inbox volume tripled in size.

Between 13 March and 23 December 2020, the Administration team received 15,447 emails of enquiry. The number peaked at 247 on one day in August.

42 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Monthly Summary by Category 800 700 600

Requests

500 400 300 200 100 0

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Month Security incl. access

RTW requests

Chair requests

Builders

Electrical

Mechanical

Reply Statistics 80

Percentage

60

40

20

0

15

30

45

60

60 - 70

120 +

Time in Minutes You respond

People respond to you

Weekly Statistics

1,000 800 600 400

Received

Dec 13

Dec 20

Nov 29

Dec 06

Nov 15

Nov 22

Nov 08

Oct 25

Nov 01

Oct 11

Oct 18

Sep 27

Oct 04

Sep 13

Sep 20

Sep 06

Aug 30

Aug 16

Aug 23

Week

Aug 09

Jul 26

Aug 02

Jul 12

Jul 19

Jul 05

Jun 21

Jun 28

Jun 14

Jun 07

May 31

May 17

May 24

May 10

Apr 26

May 03

Apr 12

Apr 19

Apr 05

Mar 29

Mar 15

0

Mar 22

200 Mar 08

Number of Messages

1,200

Sent

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 43

Return to Work Following the establishment of the Space Management Committee, a return-towork implementation plan was developed for those for whom it was essential to return to the campus, e.g. researchers and chief technical officers charged with preparing labs for face-to-face teaching in September 2020. As noted earlier in this report, the implementation plan was adapted from the Government’s Return to Work Safely Protocol and project managed by a B&E member of staff. The plan was administered through the buildings maintenance log by the Administration team, which assisted the facility managers with the approval procedures. With 85 academic and support units making return-to-work applications, this new task represented a sharp learning curve for everybody involved.

COVID-19 Declaration and Training To enter the campus following the submission and approval of returnto-work business plans, all B&E staff underwent UL Return to Work training so that they could return to a safe working environment, no matter how short the visit. The Administration team commenced a rota of weekly visits to the campus to issue items such as keys and parking permits to B&E’s customers.

Lead Worker Representatives B&E appointed COVID-19 lead worker representatives for each discipline.

Those designated staff members along with B&E staff then underwent COVID-19 training.

Provision of PPE B&E was tasked with ordering and distributing PPE equipment to those researchers and essential staff returning to work on campus. All the requests for PPE came through the Administration team.

44 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

COVID-19 Expenditure Tracking B&E was assigned the duty of tracking COVID-19-related expenditure around PPE, cleaning, ventilation and security with the goal of facilitating researchers and essential staff to return to work safely.

Government guidance documents were constantly changing, and the team had to react in a prompt but considered way.

Remote Working When it became clear that UL staff would not be returning to campus anytime soon, the University introduced a remote working scheme and published a homeworking equipment policy to facilitate staff to work from home. Under the scheme, staff could apply to be issued with a monitor, keyboard and mouse, docking station and chair. The initiative was embraced by staff; the initial requests were managed by the Human Resources Division (HR) and the equipment was ordered by ITD and B&E. In conjunction with its security contractor, B&E managed the distribution of the equipment. The Administration team provided weekly updates on requests to the Space Management Committee through the Return to Work Project Manager. In excess of 2,000 items of homeworking equipment were distributed to UL staff.

Remote working presented staff with the new challenge of being able to shut down the PC at 5pm; some staff reported logging on late at night to respond to the non-stop flow of emails. UL has since promoted a policy of not sending emails outside of 9am to 5pm, or at least not expecting a response outside of office hours unless one is working flexible hours to facilitate home schooling, caring responsibilities, illness or managing family life with multiple members of the household working from home.

588

Keyboards & Mice

525

Monitors

570

Chairs

475

Docking Stations

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 45

Positive Change and Opportunities For those members of staff who normally travel well over an hour to and from the campus every day, the end of commuting for those working from home was surely the most significant positive change during 2020. Many pandemic-related remote workers discovered that working from home gave them time in their day to take a walk before work and to exercise good mental health practices, such as mindfulness. HR continues to provide many supports for a positive homeworking environment, such as weekly skills workshops. A HR survey during 2020 found that 70% of staff rated remote working positively.

While the pandemic provided parents with the opportunity to home-school their children and spend more time playing with the smaller children, this also brought challenges, not least of which was the rising demand for highspeed broadband. However, during the 2km and 5km travel restrictions, the pandemic presented people with opportunities to reconnect with their local natural environment and enjoy the amenities they may otherwise take for granted. As previously stated, the UL campus provided the wider local community with a beautiful landscape to enjoy as a welcome distraction from the worries of COVID-19.

46 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Projects Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 47

Small Capital Projects Essential building upgrade projects are carried out annually by B&E and are classified as small capital projects, i.e. under the EU procurement value threshold. The types of project carried out can be categorised as health and safety, energy and money saving, building reorganisation and refurbishment or customer project requests. The tables and photographs to follow show some sample projects completed and underway in 2020.

Sample small projects completed in 2020 Building

Project title

Description of works

Grounds

Main plaza paving

Construction of a universal access path across sections of the plaza

Grounds

Main avenue resurfacing

Resurfacing of the main avenue from flag poles to roundabout

Main Building

Registry

Reconfiguration of the layout of Registry area in Block E

Languages

Language

Refurbishment of the Language Centre offices and teaching rooms

KBS/Schuman

KBS/Schuman

Reconfiguration of office spaces to house additional staff

Arena

Track changing room upgrades

Refurbishment of the changing rooms

Health Sciences

HSG032

Reconfiguration of space into administration office

Lonsdale

Compressors

Replacement of compressors

Crèche

New gate/path

Creation of new path and gate at side of building

Small projects underway in 2020 Building

Project title

Description of works

Various

Fire assessment works

Remedial works to specific buildings following fire risk assessments

Student Centre

Stables archway

Repairs to roof

Grounds

Watermain

Replacement of a section of old asbestos watermain along the main avenue

Grounds

Basketball hoops

Installation of a number of hoops in student villages

Boathouse

Pontoon

Replacement of damaged pontoon

City Campus

Fab Lab

Relocation of the Fab Lab from Ruthland Street to City Campus

48 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 49

Large Capital Projects Completed

Details on recently completed capital projects are given below.

Climbing Wall Size – 250m2 Completion – October 2020 Architects – Hugh Kelly Architects

50 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Confirm (Park Point Unit 2) Size – 1,327m2 Completion – March 2020 Architects – KOBW

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 51

External Lift – Foundation Building Completion – November 2020 Architects – KOBW

52 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Capital Project Underway

New Student Life Building Size – 3,528m2 Completion – Summer 2022 Architects – Carr Cotter & Naessens

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 53

Future Capital Project

City Campus (former Dunnes Stores)

54 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

HSE Intermediate Care Facility

HSE Intermediate Care Facility at UL Sport Arena In early March 2020, then UL President Dr Des Fitzgerald reached out to the UL Hospitals Group to offer the use of the UL Sport Arena as a field hospital. The B&E Director offered the services of B&E’s core contractor teams to realise this goal. Following on-site meetings on 31 March and 1 April with representatives of HSE Estates West Team and UHL staff, specifications, drawings and an Order of Magnitude were quickly produced, and work commenced immediately on getting the facility up and running in a short period of time.

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 55

Credit must be given to the members of the B&E team for their incredible work in getting this initiative over the line. Thanks to the following groups for their support in the works: ■ KOBW Architects – ■ Maurice

room layouts and details

Johnson & Partners – fire consultants

■ Sensori FM

– mechanical and building services

■ Kirby

Group – electrical services

■ ASM

Group – health & safety (construction)

■ Drombanna Engineering ■ Bidvest

– external ground works

Noonan – cleaning and security

■ JW

Flooring – temporary flooring

■ UL

Sport Arena maintenance team – on-site support

56 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Some of the key works required to get the facility up and running included: ■ Dividers

installed in showers

■ Construction of

25m pools

■ Squad

temporary walls to separate the changing rooms from the 50m and

changing room fitted out as a staff canteen

■ Deep

clean of high-level structural steelwork and services (e.g. air-handling ducts) in Sports Hall

■ New

floor covering laid over existing sports hall floor

■ Construction

of temporary walls with sinks along sections of the sports hall

■ Construction

of temporary external wall and double doors to the outside instead of roller

shutter door

■ Creation ■ Oxygen

of temporary external bin storage area

tank concrete base laid and fenced

■ Store

areas in the sports hall subdivided into clean utility, dirty utility, clean linen, dirty linen and pantry rooms; new partitions, ceilings and alto sheeting on walls added

■ New

dirty utility room built in one corner of the hall

■ Existing

classroom subdivided into a pharmacy; window openings closed up for security

■ Existing

first aid room converted into a dirty utility

■ Offices and ■ External

reception areas to be used by HSE staff cleared out

generator hired to provide backup in the event of power failure

■ Extensive

additional power sockets, water and waste connections and extraction systems installed to service the new rooms

■ Entire

facility deep-cleaned to a high standard

■ External

fenced-off seating area created for patients

Work progressed quickly, and the facility was handed over to the HSE on 15 May for it to be fitted out with partitions, beds and equipment. The facility was officially opened on 8 June and started to receive its first patients straight away. The Intermediate Care Facility wound down operations at the start of November 2020 and was handed back to UL by the HSE at the end of November. The B&E team then commenced work on returning the facility to its original state.

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 57

Tierney Building – Research Lab At the end of April 2020, the Office of the Vice President Research requested B&E to produce costings and a plan for reconfiguring a laboratory in the Tierney Building to a high-specification research laboratory. The lab was required to be operational by 25 May 2020. Following the production of initial costings, approval was given on 1 May for the work to proceed.

The internal work within the lab was completed on Friday 15 May, which enabled work on setting up the area to be carried out from Monday 18 May. In accordance with the schedule, the external structures were completed and weatherproofed by Friday 22 May. The works involved in the project included: ■ Whiterock fitted

to walls

■ Modifications

to ductwork within the room

■ Replacement

of filters to AHUs (air-handling units) and fume cupboards

■ Bio

safety cabinet relocated and fitted

■ External ■ All

changing area with enclosed link to lab erected

existing equipment recommissioned

58 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

HEA Devolved Grant 2020 In August 2020, the HEA announced a devolved capital grant allocation of €25 million to the higher education sector. The grant is intended to help institutions address their most urgent infrastructural requirements for the academic year 2020/21, including maintenance and refurbishment of facilities; replacement and upgrade of equipment, including ICT equipment; and small-scale building works in the context of the delivery of strategic goals. UL was awarded an allocation of €2,165,000 from the grant. B&E received €1.144 million of this.

Some of the works being carried out under the devolved grant include: ■

Fall prevention/edge protection improvements

■

Hockey pitch lighting distribution boards

■

Lift installation improvements

■

Roof leak repairs

■

Emergency lighting and fire alarm upgrades

■

Building security upgrades

■

Main electrical protective earthing upgrades

■

Improved disability access

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 59

60 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Health and Safety

The onset of COVID-19 in early 2020 gave rise to new challenges and ways of working for all of us. The whole area of safety, health and welfare at work came into sharper focus in March 2020 than at any other time in the past. After the initial lockdown, we saw a gradual transition to a ‘new normal’ with the introduction of COVID-19 inductions, health declarations, lead worker representatives and response plans.

B&E worked closely with its direct staff and service providers to ensure the requirements of the Government’s Return to Work Safely Protocol were implemented as we continued to maintain the campus throughout the pandemic.

Below are some of the headline health and safety statistics for 2020.

Area

Total

Lost time accidents arising as a result of work activities (+3 days lost)

0

Workdays lost as a result of accident/incident or near miss

1

No. of different service providers (contractors) used by B&E to undertake works on campus

120

No. of B&E service provider inductions completed

555

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 61

Green Campus

UI GreenMetric Ranking 2020 UL came 17th out of 912 entrant institutions across 84 countries in the 2020 UI GreenMetric World University Ranking. The table below shows UL’s performance in the scheme from 2012 to 2020 compared to six of the other seven Irish universities (NUIG did not partake in the scheme).

DCU

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

80

46

53

58

27

15

12

12

15

93

190

128

130

97

154

NUIM TCD

94

107

TUD*

198

157

193

274

229

59

UCC

3

2

2

4

12

9

9

9

9

22

24

20

20

17

UCD UL

111 58

29

11

16

Note: A blank cell means the university in question did not partake in the scheme that year. *Technological University Dublin – was Dublin Institute of Technology until January 2019 UL’s ranking from 2012 to 2020 in the context of the total number of entrants globally is given below.

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

UL

58

29

11

16

22

24

20

20

17

Total no. of entrants

215

301

360

407

516

619

719

780

912

UL in top percentile

27%

10%

3%

4%

4%

4%

3%

3%

2%

UL’s ranking in the suburban category from 2014 to 2020 in the context of the total number of global entrants is given below.

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

UL’s suburban ranking

3

2

7

6

6

6

5

Total no. of entrants

95

105

126

151

181

183

222

62 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Environmental Update 1. Green Campus reaccreditation for 2020 confirmed 2. Report prepared for Governing Authority Subcommittee on Traffic, Transport and Smarter Travel, which centred on sustainable transport options to and from UL and traffic alleviation measures 3. Two submissions made for grant funding to the Higher Education Energy Efficiency and Decarbonisation Pathfinder Programme 4. HEA higher education institution decarbonisation study on selected UL buildings completed 5. Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment survey completed on all UL buildings to inform the upgrade of public sector buildings to B BER by 2030 6. Commissioning of OPW’s energy monitoring and targeting system completed 7. B&E now reporting to the Campus and Infrastructure Committee (chaired by the President) on the activities of the Green Campus Committee, Environmental Committee and Environmental Society 8. Technical Services team working on water stewardship accreditation 9. Continued attendance at Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges (EAUC) and Irish Universities Association (IUA) Sustainability Working Group meetings

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 63

Quality

The Buildings and Estates Department is a customer-driven organisation that strives to provide excellence in the services it delivers. We believe that the campus community is entitled to a high standard of quality from us. The department’s quality ethos is

“To sustain and seek to continually improve the quality of all services that we provide to the campus community”

64 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Key Business Processes The figure below sets out the key B&E service procedures (on the right) that are used to provide and maintain outstanding physical facilities. The associated quality management system (QMS) procedures are shown on the left. The supporting procedures that underpin these key procedures are reviewed, discussed and challenged in accordance with the schedule set out in the department’s quality calendar.

Quarterly Business Review

Quality Manual

Quality Policy

QMS PROCEDURES

KEY SERVICE PROCEDURES

Documentation Management

Management of Capital Projects

Department Objectives and Measures

Maintenance and Minor Works

Departmental / Management Communication

Measurement and Continual Improvement

Space Management Cleaning Management

Employee Satisfaction

Waste Management

Training and Continuing Professional Development

Portering Operations

Continual Improvement and Customer Satisfaction

Customer Interaction and Feedback

Goods Inwards and Distribution Furniture Provision Insurance

Customer Feedback and Customer Focus Group

Security

Self-Assessment

Key Control

Process Structure and Interaction

Parking Grounds Maintenance Energy and Water Customer Satisfaction

Signage

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 65

Memberships B&E (and hence UL) is a member of the following associations/organisations/groups: ■ Association

of University Directors of Estates (AUDE) (B&E was its first member outside of

■ Association

of University Chief Security Officers (AUCSO)

the UK)

■ Irish

Association of University Directors of Estates

■ Irish

Universities Association Sustainability Working Group

■ University

Sector Energy Environment Economy Group (E9)

■ Environmental ■ Insurance

Intervarsity Management Group

■ Chartered ■ Golf

Institute of Engineers

Course Superintendents Association of Ireland

■ Project

Management Institute

■ Mid-West ■ EPA

Association of Universities and Colleges Office Bearers Group

Project Management Networking Group

(Environmental Protection Agency) Large Water Users Community of Practice

■ OGP

(Office of Government Procurement) Category Councils

■ Corporate

Enabling of Clinical Research

66 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Quality Team Although B&E has a quality leader, the department does not have a dedicated quality team as such. All core members of staff are considered members of the quality team, and quality features as a permanent agenda item at multiple departmental meetings (e.g. Quality Business Review, Coordination). While a representative subgroup of B&E’s quality team was tasked with compiling the department’s selfassessment report (SAR) for its 2020 external quality review, all members of staff were involved in the selfassessment exercise to some extent. In addition, the wider quality team members were encouraged to provide feedback on a draft version of the SAR prior to delivering the final report to the Quality Support Unit for circulation to the external quality review group.

Quality Improvement Plan B&E maintains a quality improvement plan (QIP).

Contained within the QIP are action items arising from multiple sources, including customer focus groups, staff and student surveys, Quarterly Business Review meetings and self-assessments. The action items span a wide range of issues, including environmental improvements, facilities improvements, outdoor events, maintenance and minor works and improvements to the QMS itself. Specific action items are overseen by the relevant forum, such as the Operations, M&E Team and Minor Works meetings.

The overall implementation of the QIP is monitored at the Quarterly Business Review, and the efficacy of specific quality improvement action items is measured using existing feedback channels.

2020 External Quality Review The Universities Act (1997) obliges universities in Ireland to formally establish quality assurance procedures aimed at improving the quality of education and related services. Furthermore, the Act stipulates that each university’s quality assurance procedures must be evaluated at regular intervals (but not less frequently than once every 10 years). In support of the requirements of the Act, UL published a standard framework for support departments on the implementation of a QMS.

In preparation for the March quality review, B&E appointed a new quality team leader, established a core quality team, undertook focus groups (among both staff and students), introduced new and more effective mechanisms for collecting and acting upon feedback, reviewed its quality manual and associated procedures in their entirety, updated its QIP and completed a SAR for the quality review group (QRG).

In its post-review report to B&E, the QRG made this comment in relation to the SAR: “We wish to record our appreciation of the excellence of the SAR and of the effort that clearly went into preparing it.” The QRG found the SAR “to be a very comprehensive and professional document, showing evidence of commitment to the UL quality process over a long period and a keen awareness of the need to monitor and account for the division’s performance.” The report later stated that “B&E provides an excellent operational service within its resources”.

The QRG other things: ■

■

■

commended

B&E

for,

amongst

The delivery of the B&E strategic plan, Building a Sustainable Future, 2017-2021, and the subsequent annual reports demonstrating progress against this plan.

The division’s commitment to and delivery of the environmental sustainability agenda and Green Campus and its active collaboration with the UL Environmental Society.

The clear recognition by B&E of risks posed by specific resource gaps for the division’s capability and capacity to support the University’s strategic plan.

B&E received 23 recommendations from the QRG – 10 at Level 1 and 13 at Level 2. Of the 23 recommendations, B&E accepted 22 in full or in part; one recommendation was rejected. The QRG’s recommendations can be largely broken down into three thematic areas: (i) the strategy for developing and managing the estate; (ii) additional human resources; and (iii) communication. The Buildings & Estates QRG report was approved by the Quality Committee on 28 May 2020 for publication.

B&E was an early adopter of a QMS, and for this reason, the department’s most recent external quality review (March 2020) was the third of its kind. The review took place just after the worst of the flooding and before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Ireland. The earlier reviews focused primarily on ensuring that the department had adopted a fit-forpurpose QMS. While the March 2020 review also evaluated the B&E QMS, the review placed a greater emphasis on strategic alignment, organisational structure, management and governance.

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 67

Our Customer Charter Maintenance

Us

Maintenance

You

> Promptly acknowledge receipt of your request > Respond to your urgent requests immediately > Advise you immediately when your request has been completed and within five working days when your request has not been completed

> Send an email to Buildingsmaintenance@ul.ie, including location room number > Read emails from BENotices > Give at least 24 hours notice for collection/ delivery requests

Cleaning

Cleaning

> Clean buildings as per Service Level Agreement with cleaning company > Collect recycling paper from offices weekly > Provide janitorial service during normal working hours for toilets and emergency clean-up of spillages > Carry out deep clean of new buildings & vacant offices > Clean building glazing once a year > Provide feminine hygiene service in female toilets

> Report any floor spillages that could result in an accident > Segregate paper and general waste > Dispose of general waste in corridor waste bins > Report toilets that require servicing (including blockages) to Buildingsmaintenance@ul.ie

Security

Security

> Provide a safe and secure environment on campus > Monitor vehicle parking to ensure compliance with UL parking policy > Be responsible for traffic management > Be responsible for security of campus building stock > Respond to incidents/accidents and contact emergency services when required

> Park in official car park spaces > Follow instructions issued by security officers > Report any suspicious behaviour by individuals or vehicle occupants > Inform campus security of any proposed events taking place on campus

Space Management & Office Moves

Space Management & Office Moves

> Promptly acknowledge receipt of your request > Respond to the changing requirements of UL’s teaching and research priorities > Allocate space in the best interests of UL according to space allocation protocol > Provide you with a suitable single/shared office or workstation > Endeavour to provide everyone with sufficient space to enable them to carry out their function > Discuss with you your space requirements or any issue about your office move

> Outline your space requirements to your faculty manager or head of department > Make your request as clear as possible > Ensure your department’s existing space is fully utilised before seeking additional space > Adhere to UL’s space allocation protocol and understand that space is a valuable and finite resource > Relinquish any unused or under-utilised space

Landscaping & Grounds

Landscaping & Grounds

> Manage the maintenance and development of the campus landscape to provide an attractive and pleasing environment for the campus and wider community in support of UL’s mission > Manage and maintain the field sports facilities > Keep the campus clean

> Enjoy and respect the parkland facilities and riverside setting > Report any safety or hazard issues to Buildingsmaintenance@ul.ie

68 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Minor Works

Us

The same as maintenance, above, with the addition of the following: > If your request is on hold because we’re awaiting information from you, we’ll send you a reminder after 10 working days > If you don’t receive a quotation within five working days, we’ll advise you of the status of the request

Minor Works

You

> Complete a Minor Works form > Provide a detailed description of the works

Porter Service

Porter Service

> Promptly acknowledge receipt of your request > Set up and support special events > Take responsibility for housekeeping in communal areas and teaching spaces > Provide security in campus buildings and car parks (in conjunction with Campus Security) > Provide frontline support for AV equipment in a number of outlying buildings, lecturing spaces and seminar rooms > Participate in UL emergency response procedures, including fire alarms, major incidences and medical emergency calls > Provide information about events and seminars to visitors > Deliver goods inwards material, sort and deliver SDS postal items and sort and deliver general postal packages

> Email requests to Buildingsmaintenance@ul.ie > Give adequate notice of events that you host > Report suspicious activity to Buildings and Estates or directly to Campus Security > Give advance notice of the need to relocate material within buildings > Leave teaching spaces in the correct setup for the next class (leave them as you would like to find them) > Include your room number on orders that are being delivered to UL

Insurance

Insurance

> > > > > >

> > > > > >

Promptly acknowledge receipt of your request Provide evidence of UL insurance cover Advise on existing UL policies Liaise with UL insurance brokers on your behalf Update Asset Register with new plant/equipment Lodge settlement cheques to your dept. cost code > Seek additional cover on your behalf (additional charge may apply) > Submit claims on your behalf > Assist with incident investigations

> > > > >

Send an email to cliona.donnellan@ul.ie Make your request as clear as possible Advise of incidents/accidents immediately Submit claim forms promptly Pay additional bespoke premiums promptly Provide requested additional details promptly Advise Buildings and Estates of new plant/ equipment in your department Complete questionnaire/claim forms comprehensively and provide supporting docs Provide dept. cost code for settlement Advise insurance administrator of planned sabbaticals at least one month in advance of travel Ensure your contractors/visiting groups have current public and employers’ liability insurances to levels of €6.5m and €13m respectively

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 69

Recurrent Expenditure The Buildings and Estates recurrent maintenance and operations expenditure for the financial year 2019/2020 was €15,441,942. A breakdown of this expenditure is shown in the various graphs. Much of the annual recurrent budget goes on energy costs and labour costs for maintenance, cleaning and security contractors. The department continues its drive for continual improvement and adopts better work practices, where possible, to ensure all its resources are managed prudently. This is very evident in the financial data for the last 10 years, where the spend per square metre (sqm) of building footprint has remained static while over the same period, the total building footprint has grown by 34%.

Financial year

2010/11

2011/12

2012/13

2013/14

2014/15

2015/16

2016/17

2017/18

2018/2019

2019/20

Recurrent spend (.000)

€12,213

€12,280

€12,621

€12,649

€12,900

€13,570

€14,053

€14,734

€15,908

€15,442

Total gross floor area sqm

121,488

123,305

127,600

127,600

127,600

141,815

141,815

149,135

154,297

154,297

Recurrent spend per sqm

€101

€100

€99

€99

€101

€96

€99

€99

€103

€100

Grounds Maintenance

Water 2%

3%

Other

6%

M&E maintenance

Gas & Electricity

11%

14%

Security

70 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

16%

Salaries

18%

Building Maintenance

14%

Cleaning

10%

Waste Disposal 4%

Insurance

1%

Recurrent Spend per Year and per Sqm

160,000

120 115

150,000

110 105

130,000

100 95

120,000

Euro Per SQM

SQM

140,000

90 110,000

85

100,000

80 2010/11

2011/12

2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18 2018/19 2019/20 Year

Total GFA Sqm

B&E Recurrent Spend per sqm

Total Spend and Recurrent Spend per Sqm 120

15,000

115 110 10,000

100 95 5,000

Euro / SQM

Euro ,000

105

90 85

0

80 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18 2018/19 2019/20 Year

Total Spend

B&E Recurrent Spend per sqm

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 71

Organogram Director Buildings & Estates Robert Reidy

Energy Manager Chris Fogarty Engineering Services Technical Services Manager Tony Considine

Goods Inwards Technician Jim O’Callaghan

Personal Assistant Marian Hartigan

Space Manager Brian Considine Buildings Officer Pat McMahon

Grounds Manager John O’Sullivan

Facilities Managers (3) Gerald Hallinan Sean Collins Eilis Gaffney

72 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

Projects ProjectsManager Officer Ger Manning

Projects Manager Ian O’Donoghue

Administration & Insurance Manager Cliona Donnellan

Senior Administrator Procurement / Compliance Jane Murphy

Mechanical & Electrical Maninenance Contractors

Technical Services Engineer Eric Crowe

Goods Inwards Operative Mike Clifford

Grounds Foreman (2) Denis Walsh Noel Copse

Grounds Staff (5)

Grounds Maintenance Contractors

Services Supervisor (Acting) James McDonnell

Senior Porter (1) Tony O’Sullivan

Porters (12)

Security Contractors

Buildings Maintenance Contractors

Cleaning Contractors

Administration Kelly O’Connor

Safety Co-ordinator Eoin Meagher (PT)

Administration Karen Fraher Carmel Kirwan Amanda Lee

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 73

Our Team The 46 members of B&E staff listed below are employed directly by UL. Director

R. Reidy

Technical Services Manager

T. Considine

Buildings Officer

P. McMahon

Projects Officer

G. Manning

Projects Manager

I. O’Donoghue

Facilities Managers

G. Hallinan, E. Gaffney, S. Collins

Energy Manager

C. Fogarty

Technical Services Engineer

E. Crowe

Administration Manager

C. Donnellan

Space Manager

B. Considine

Senior Administrator – Procurement and Compliance

J. Murphy

Administrators/PA Support

K. Fraher, K. O’Connor, C. Kirwan, A. Lee, M. Hartigan

Goods Inward Technician

J. O’Callaghan

Safety Co-ordinator

E. Meagher (part-time)

Goods Inward Operative

M. Clifford

Resident Engineer

O. Downes

General Services Supervisor

D. Corrigan, J. McDonnell (acting)

Senior Porter Attendants

T. O’Sullivan

Porters

T. O’Donnell, D. Madden, A. Beville, D. Hogan, J. Mulligan, N. McCarthy, M. Collins, S. Kett, R. Cosgrave, J. Kett, B. McInerney

Grounds Manager

J. O’Sullivan

Grounds Forepersons

D. Walsh, N. Copse

Grounds Staff

M. Morrissey, P. McGrath, E. Barry, N. Noonan, M. O’Kelly, V. Fraher, D. Meehan

Student Co-op Placement (Smarter Travel)

74 | Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020

E. Hogan

Buildings and Estates Annual Report 2020 | 75

Buildings and Estates

061-202001/2006 buildingsmaintenance@ul.ie AM-065, Main Building, University of Limerick