Page 26
— Property Management Quarterly — August 2015
I
n 2014, we formed a group in which
office and hotel building engineers
could have a free-form discussion about
best practices in managing the opera-
tional side of a property. The group,
Denver Engineers and Facilities Conversa-
tion, meets monthly with the purpose of
providing a consistent and
trustworthy place for facility
engineers and managers to
share ideas. The group aims
to provide an educational
opportunity for all levels of
experience.
Because of the many dis-
ciplines and areas of exper-
tise required to operate a
building, there are infinite
opportunities to learn from
other engineers and benefit
from their experience. Many
of the engineers attending
the meetings have been in
the industry for decades and have developed
hard-won experience from trial and error dur-
ing their careers.
The discussions revolve around myriad prob-
lems that may be encountered when operating
a building as well as time-tested solutions that
are shared or presented by the group.
Some of the recent discussions have includ-
ed:
1. Heating, ventilation and air conditioning
2. Building automation systems
3. Fire safety and emergency preparedness
4. Energy management
5. Mold remediation
6. Communication capital requirements to
building owners and managers
7.Worst-case scenario and emergency plan-
ning
The group is in its second year and is grow-
ing slowly but consistently. The focus is not on
becoming a large group, but instead on provid-
ing consistent, timely and relevant information
to members through informal discussions.
The meetings are designated as a safe zone
where members are free from the pressures
of salespeople and products, unless there is
value to the ongoing discussion and the sales-
person was invited to do so. That is not to say
we do not value contractors and salespeople,
but we prefer not to have them as part of the
conversation. Networking is a large part of the
group as well. The information shared should
be helpful for engineers when making future
decision at their facilities.
The last part of the group consists of pro-
viding a place to learn for those who are just
starting out and are new to facilities main-
tenance. The group provides a place to assist
members in becoming proficient in their posi-
tions. At DEFCON, this is believed to be an
important piece and something that was lack-
ing in the Denver area. The group continues
to progress in both the learning efforts and
knowledge sharing to provide this valuable
tool to the facilities maintenance engineer. All
facility-engineering professionals are welcome
to participate.
Upcoming topics for discussion include
employee recruitment, training and retention,
and comprehensive approaches to capital
projects.We also plan to discuss budget man-
agement, the human side of engineering and
how best to go after rebates for energy reduc-
tion.
If you would like to become part of the
group and attend the educational meetings
with the purpose of enhancing your knowl-
edge and career, please contact bryan.wilske@
hilton.com for more information.
s
Bryan Wilske
Director, property
operations,
Doubletree Hilton,
Denver
Associations
