Skip to main content

Fourth Dimension in Building Strategies for Avoiding Obsolescence (1993) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:

Avoiding Obsolescence in Public Facilities
Pages 53-60

The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.


From page 53...
... Congress and other responsible legislative and executive authorities, as well as the agencies immediately responsible for facilities, influence the development and use of public facilities and their costs. At the federal level and in many states, the public facilities development process differs somewhat from the generic project life cycle as discussed in Chapter 3 (i.e., from initial planning through operations, maintenance and reuse)
Read the entire page →
From page 54...
... Most federal agencies must seek congressional approval for each individual project having an anticipated monetary value exceeding a specified amount, and this amount for some agencies is very low.2' The terms Rpla~ng" and "fiscal programming", used here, refer to the analysis and decision making associated with these authorizations and in many (and perhaps most) cases do not involve physical planning and spatial or functional programming that design professionals undertake.
Read the entire page →
From page 55...
... in government agencies may have relatively limited contact with facilities issues and therefore, limited appreciation of long-term consequences of decisions In programming, design, and construction stages of a facility's life. Strategic Planning Agencies should undertake explicit strategic planning to identify the potential for future expansion or contraction of facilities requirements within the context of likely budget limits, opportunities to secure alternative user groups, or multiagency facilities uses.
Read the entire page →
From page 56...
... Components particularly prone to obsolescence may be designated early in the process as Government famished" to allow for their procurement as late as possible and thus reduce the likelihood of early obsolescence. The need to secure executive and legislative approval of projects, combined with a desire to avoid having to request changes and reauthonzation, leads public agencies frequently to try to establish all characteristics of a project at too early a stage in the development process.
Read the entire page →
From page 57...
... Some agencies draw heavily on the national codes and standards that provide the basis for most local building codes and professional design guides, but other agencies have their own extensive, and sometimes unique, controls. In either case, however, federal agencies seeking to manage facilities in such a way as to avoid obsolescence have a particular responsibility to assure that their criteria and guidelines are up to date and do not refer to obsolete procedures and products.
Read the entire page →
From page 58...
... CAD systems that support exploration of a design's flexibility and facilitate development of an accurate facility operations database are valuable tools in this effort. At the end of construction, agency personnel should assure adequate commissioning of the facility, including systems start-up, occupancy walk-through, documentation and training for operations and managements and punch-list follow-up, so that facility performance reaches optimal design levels.
Read the entire page →
From page 59...
... Avoiding obsolescence and its costs, although only one aspect of the complex task facing facility professionals seeking to assure effective utilization, has grown increasingly important as change has become more rapid in both the technology of facilities and the demands that facilities are expected to serve. It is impossible to foresee all of the many changes likely to occur in the future, but the committee agreed that there are lessons to be reamed, particularly regarding designing for the flexibility to accommodate change.
Read the entire page →

Key Terms

  • facilities development
  • avoid obsolescence
  • agency personnel
  • facility design
  • government facilities

  • avoiding obsolescence
  • design guidelines
  • space utilization
  • agencies encountering
  • obsolete procedures

  • including user
  • valuable tools
  • design guides
  • obsolescence costs
  • consider developing

  • sometimes unique
  • immediately responsible
  • effort frequently
  • assure effective
  • preclude standardization

  • worthwhile design
  • utilized effectively
  • congressional approval
  • space demand
  • desirable changes

  • limited appreciation
  • generic facility
  • facility professionals
  • frequently leads
  • facilities terms


    • This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
    More information on Chapter Skim is available.