Overview

As America’s sixth-oldest college, Moravian College (Moravian) has been a little revolutionary from the start. The College has been pushing boundaries in small ways that have big impacts since 1742. That’s when a 16-year-old girl founded Moravian as the nation’s first school to educate women, and more than 275 years later, the College gives 2,000 undergraduates an experience that will forever change who they are and who the will become.

When the new Director of Facilities was hired to replace the previous director who was there for 30+ years, Moravian decided it would be an ideal time to conduct a Facility Condition Assessment (FCA) of the entire campus to help inform the new Director on the conditions of the campus.

The forty-seven (47) buildings and athletic fields evaluated, encompassed approximately 1,367,852 square feet. Our team carefully surveyed each facility, identifying and prioritizing repairs and improvements as well as quantifying the aggregate cost of deferred maintenance, capital improvements and capital renewal liabilities and projecting costs over a ten-year period.

More than 750 projects were identified with total project costs estimated at over $57M. The most expensive improvements were related to the HVAC systems, with the majority of those addressing cooling related needs. Additional projects included fire alarm replacements, interior finishes and floor repairs, envelope repairs, and addressing older plumbing. Projects were ranked from priorities 1-5, with 1 being the most critical, to aid the College in planning and budgeting for improvements.

The most immediate needs included roof replacements, window replacements/restorations, air handling units and woodwork restoration. Due to the age of several historic buildings, some components of the buildings are over 100 years in age.

Data gathered during this assessment is stored in FM-Assistant, a customized database that allows the College to view, manage, and update their data as projects are completed or reprioritized. Administrators and staff are equipped with the information needed to make informed decisions and maximize the investment in their physical assets.

Careful planning assures that all their facilities – dating from 1748 to 2017 – will continue to serve students for decades to come.