APPALACHIAN STATE UNIVERSITY Pioneering Spirit Drives New Efficiencies

ASU’s Physical Plant Department is responsible for creating and maintaining an aesthetically pleasing, environmentally sustainable and energy efficient environment for the campus community by maintaining campus buildings and grounds, providing auxiliary services and preserving the value of the university’s infrastructure. Prior to installing a Web-based Integrated Workplace Management System (IWMS), ASU relied on a homegrown UNIX system that was originally developed in the 1980’s and ran on a legacy DEC server. Over the years, this system became increasingly difficult to maintain and update, because much of the information was deeply hard-coded into the software. Sharing information inter-departmentally was difficult and the existing library of reports was inadequate. ASU realized a modern maintenance management system was needed to keep pace with the demands of a growing university. The university initiated a search for a system that would enable them to effectively share data and quickly make informed business decisions given the daily operational demands facing the Physical Plant Department.

Appalachian State University (ASU) is a pioneering institution located in the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina. The university boasts a student population greater than that of the neighboring hamlet of Boone, a town named for legendary American revolutionary war veteran, pioneer, explorer and politician Daniel Boone. ASU is a pioneering institution that continues to explore new paths to success. This pioneering spirit carries over to how business is conducted at ASU, and although insightful business decision are often made behind the scenes, the success of ASU’s facilities management program merits a closer look. ASU’s Physical Plant Department is responsible for creating and maintaining an aesthetically pleasing, environmentally sustainable and energy efficient environment for the campus community by maintaining campus buildings and grounds, providing auxiliary services and preserving the value of the university’s infrastructure.