Facility Assistant Manual

2014-2015

Virginia Commonwealth University

University Student Commons & Activities

Introduction

The ongoing upkeep of the University Student Commons is essential, if we are to provide effective services and remain a fully functional facility. Our guests’ impressions of the building are made by the quality of work you do as a Facility Assistant (FA). Whether it is in keeping the main lounge clean or doing a set up in the Ballroom for a major event, your work makes the Commons what it is: a central meeting place that all of Virginia Commonwealth University can feel proud to be a part of.

No other position in the Commons is as dependent on good teamwork as that of the Facility Assistant. A lack of coordinated effort or the inability of coworkers to help each other does now only make working together uncomfortable, but it also seriously jeopardizes the quality of services we provide.

FA’s are also the most independent employees on staff. Your area is the entire building, and because you are not tied to a desk or specific area, there is an expectation placed on you to assume a great deal of initiative and self-direction. You were hired for this position, because we feel that you exude the qualities in order to be successful at this job.

*Note: There are times when set-ups change or additional meeting rooms are added throughout the day. When a room is vacant, set up for the next meeting or next day. Do not leave work that could be finished on your shift for the following shift. There is always plenty to do.*

Position Description

TITLE: Facility Assistant

SUPERVISORS:

- Jennifer Chapman

- Terry Brown

- Student Managers

Starting Salary: $7.25/hour

Position Summary: FA’s are responsible for a variety of duties involved in maintaining a comfortable environment and an efficient operation of the University Student Commons and Activities. An FA prepares meeting rooms for usage by setting up meeting furniture and cleaning event spaces before and after use. FA’s also make regular tours of the building, provide general building security and policy enforcement, perform light housekeeping when needed, and assist with errands when time permits.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Prepare meeting rooms for use by customers. Assist customers with requested changes or additions to set ups upon the approval of the Student Manager on duty.

2. Act on own initiative working independently or as part of an FA team to perform room set ups as required by daily set up worksheets. Duties include installing folding tables, chairs, coat racks, staging, and other equipment as indicated on set up sheets and diagrams.

3. Lock rooms and turn off lights promptly and prepare them for the next event, after use by customers.

4. Maintain meeting rooms, lobbies, lounges, hallways, and other Commons areas in clean and orderly fashions, on an ongoing basis. Make regular tours throughout the building, during shifts, to identify areas which need cleaning or resetting.

5. Provide general building security by completing regular building tours, as well as enforcing all Commons policies, where applicable.

6. Report damages to facility equipment or furniture immediately to supervisor.

7. Assist with errands, such as deliveries, movement of furniture, etc., as directed by supervisor.

8. Attend staff meetings, dress in staff shirt, and wear name tags while on duty.

FA CHECKLIST

Beginning of Shift:

1. Retrieve Radio 2. Retrieve Keys3. Check Setup Worksheet4. Plan Shift Schedule of Setups5. Check current Setups6. Complete any Setups that can be done during your shift7. Make building tours8. Rearrange any misplaced furniture9. Clean any untidy places10. Enforce Building Policies

Ending of Shift:

1. Return Radio, Keys, and Setup Worksheet to Office for next shift2. Make sure you have written all work done while on duty in FA Log 3. Make sure the Student Manager on duty has signed off on the FA Log

FA EVERYDAY DUTIES

Section One: FA Building Responsibilities and Policy Enforcement

1. Keeping the Commons Looking Good

When planning your shift, include regular tours through the building (all floors, all lounges, and main hallways) to check the condition of various areas.

2. FA Tours throughout the Building

When not working on set ups, you should be “out and around” the building, making a tour of the facility. You should pay attention to your surroundings for:

Customers who need assistance, such as directions to a particular room or office. Things which need repairing or may have been vandalized. Call these items to the attention of the

Student Manager, so a maintenance work request can be filled out to correct the problem. Things which are missing or may have been stolen, such as furniture, plants, artwork, signs or

equipment. Violations of Commons Policy, such as the “no bicycles” or “no smoking” policy. See Section on

“Policy Enforcement”. Things which need a custodian’s attention, such as spills or stains on floors or furniture.

3. Lounge and Lobby Checks

About once an hour (when set up schedule permits), FA’s should make a Lounge and Lobby check for the various lounges in the Commons, including:

The main lobby lounges (North, Central & South) Plaza Lounge on the 2nd floor Salons Lobby James River Terrace

In your Lounge and Lobby checks, you will be doing a number of things:

Removing trash left on tables, furniture and the floor Wipe lobby tables down Straighten any furniture that has been moved from its correct placement If you have any questions regarding placement of the furniture, ask a fellow FA or Student

Manager

4. Facility Assistant Tours- Crime Deterrent

As a Facility Assistant, you should be a highly visible member of our staff as you make your tours in the lounges of the Commons. Your visibility can be a real deterrent to crime in the Commons, as

crime is less likely to happen when someone appears to be alert and watchful. If you see someone leaving valuables unattended, remind them that thefts occur in the Commons.

5. Enforcing Building Policies

As a representative of the Commons, you have a responsibility for seeing that policies of the facility are being followed. These policies are established to protect the building from abuse, as well as to protect its users from injuries. During your shift, try to be observant of whether those around you are complying with basic building policies. Policies of which you will most often have to deal with are:

1. No smoking is permitted in the Commons.2. Smoking outside the building is permitted, but only within fifty feet of any door or entrance of

the building.3. Shirt and shoes are required. We cannot be responsible for someone cutting their feet by walking

barefoot. In addition, because of the food service areas in the building, we must observe city health regulations.

4. No bicycles, skates, or skateboards are allowed in the building. 5. No animals allowed. Service dogs are permitted.6. When you see someone violating a policy, you should approach them, politely explain the policy,

and ask them to conform to it. If they will not listen to you, inform the Manager and let her or him handle it.

Section Two: Facility Assistant Shifts

1. Opening Facility Assistant Shifts

If you work the first shift of the day…

1. Obtain FA keys and radio from Student Manager.

2. Locate FA set up sheets from previous night’s shift.

3. Unlock all meeting room doors that need to be unlocked 15 minutes prior to event time.

4. Set up any lobby tables, Commons Plaza tables, and umbrellas, if the weather permits.

5. Check and straighten lobbies and lounges.

2. Midday Shifts

Here are some typical duties which you will work on as an FA working a midday shift:

1. Upon arrival of your shift, communicate with your fellow FA’s to see what has been done on the prior shift. Ensure you get the keys and radio before they leave.

2. Check the day’s set up sheet and speak with your Manager to determine which set ups or changeovers need to be done on your shift.

3. Bring in lobby tables, Plaza umbrellas, and other outdoor equipment when the reservation has ended or at dusk (sundown).

4. Put away or change directional signs that were used for daytime meetings or events.

3. Closing Shifts

If you work the last shift of the day, the following things need to be done:

1. Complete all set ups for the next morning which were not completed earlier in the evening, unless excused from doing so by the Student Manager.

2. Post the next day’s activity sheets and room cards in their appropriate place around the building.

3. Go through the entire building and make certain all the room lights are off, the room doors are locked, and no one is left in the building.

4. Straighten up lobbies, lounges, and small rooms. 5. Indicate on the set up sheet for the next day what has been accomplished. Leave it in the FA

Office. 6. Put away any equipment that you used, return your radio and keys, and always make sure to

punch out correctly.

Section Three: Facility Assistant Set Ups

1. Sample Set Up Sheets

See Diagram

2. Meeting Rooms in the Commons

Large, multi-purpose meeting rooms:

The VA Rooms: This area can be used as a whole, in sections (1/4 size) as rooms A, B, C or D, or in any combination of these rooms. If you do not know how to position or remove the wall dividers, please ask for assistance from a fellow FA or a Student Manager.

The Commonwealth Ballroom: This area can be used as a whole, or in sections A or B. If you do not know how to position or remove the wall dividers, please ask for assistance from a fellow FA or a Student Manager.

The Richmond Salons: This area can be used as a whole, in sections as rooms I, II, III, or IV, or in any combination of these rooms. If you do not know how to position or remove the wall dividers, please ask for assistance from a fellow FA or a Student Manager.

Small Meeting Rooms:

Canal and Shockoe Room Alumni Board Room and Metro Room

o These rooms generally remain in a fixed set up. However, sometimes a table, additional chairs, or other equipment are added, which must be removed before the next group comes into the room. If the room has a dry erase board, erase it, wipe tables, and straighten the chairs.

Forum Roomo This room also generally has a fixed set up, classroom style. Again, sometimes a food

table, table top podium, or some other piece of equipment may need to be added. This room also has a built-in lecture sound system, which a Student Manager may set up.

Commons Theatero Set ups in the Theater are not usually very complex. Often, they require specialized use

of the lights or a microphone set up by the manager. The standard podium location is 1/3 back from the stage. Head tables are sometimes used for panel discussions. If food or information tables are requested for inside the room, they may be placed on the stage area, against the wall. Registration or check-in tables may be requested by sponsor; they should be placed in front of the FA Storage Room, but not so that they block the exit from the Theater or the Theater Lobby.

3. Commonly Used Room Set Ups

Sample diagrams of each of the commonly used set ups that are described below are provided on the next few pages. File copies of these set up diagrams are also posted in the storage rooms.

1. Conference or Square- This diagram is a closed square or rectangle of tables with the necessary number of chairs around it. When the request is for a small number as eight or ten, the tables should be pushed together (without a hole in the middle), so people are not sitting with great space between them.

2. U-Shape- As the name implies, this is an open end set of tables. If the number of chairs exceeds the number that can comfortably fit around the outer edges of the “U,” chairs can be placed on the insides of the two long legs of the “U.”

3. Lecture- This is a set of chairs in rows facing the front of the room with an aisle in between. Depending on the sponsor, a request for two aisles with chairs set in three sections may be permitted. Usually, a lecture style set up will include a head table and/or a podium.

4. Classroom- This diagram is set up in rows of tables with chairs all facing the front of the room. Classroom tables are the same length as six foot tables, but they are half as wide. Again, an aisle in the middle of the setup is expected, and a head table and/or a podium may be required.

5. Circle of Chairs- Chairs are set like theater style, but they form a semi-circle or a circle. The number of chairs will always be in the set up notes on the set up sheet.

6. Banquet Round- This set up requires circular tables, which can be found in all of the major rooms’ storage rooms. These set ups require having symmetrical banquet rounds set up with a certain number of chairs around each table. These set ups generally require a head table and food tables.

Standard Set Ups

The rooms in the VA Rooms generally have a fixed set up most of the time:

Virginia A Lecture for 50

Virginia B Lecture for 50

Virginia C-D Lecture for 100

4. Meeting Room Set Ups

As an FA, one of your major responsibilities is preparing meeting rooms for use. You are expected to take the initiative on this. Do not wait for the Student Manager to “motivate” you to begin the next set up. Get started on the next set up as soon as possible!

For some rooms, such as the Shockoe, Canal, Metro, or Forum Rooms (Small Rooms), this means:

o Opening and unlocking the doorso Turning on the lightso Being certain chairs are in place and orderlyo Checking that tables are cleano Checking that the dry erase board is clean and has adequate markers and eraserso Checking that the room is clean (no debris and no vacuuming needed) and trash can does not

need emptying

However, in the large, sub-dividable multi-purpose meeting rooms (such as Commonwealth Ballroom, VA Rooms, and Richmond Salons), preparing the rooms for use means setting the tables and chairs up in a pre-arranged style, in addition to the other items listed above.

It will be important that you decide on a schedule for doing set ups before actually doing them. Often, there is little time between reservations in which to get the set up done. If you are doing another job that could have been done earlier or later, the set up could be missed and so the group using the room is inconvenienced. Reviewing what changes need to happen to all the rooms through the day is a good habit to get into.

One last important point about set-ups: Setting up rooms can be noisy. Please try to set up rooms while adjacent rooms are not in use, so as not to disturb meetings and events in progress.

The Facility Assistant’s Daily Set Up Worksheet

The first shift of the day will pick up a daily Setup Worksheet from the Manager on Duty. This is a computerized form listing all events for the day. This sheet should have notations from the previous night’s FA crew indicating the status of set ups. You are to make notes on the set up sheet to communicate to other shifts what has been done and what remains to be done. The setup sheet also provides the following information:

o “Reservation Start” or “Res Start” – The time that the setup must be done by and the doors need to be unlocked and open for sponsor.

o “Location/Event”- Where an event is taking place (1st line) and the name of the event (2nd line)

o “Setup/Event Type”- Which type of setup is required in a specific room. If a diagram is provided, it will be written on the Setup Worksheet as “See Diagram.” The expected attendance is given in parentheses after the Setup/Event Type information. This is the number of people the setup should be prepared for- for example, “Lecture (150)” should have 150 chairs set up in rows.

o “Equipment”- Any equipment needed, such as tables, chairs, podiums, microphones, etc. and the quantities needed for each.

o “Setup Notes”- Sponsor’s description of desired placement or any other specific requests that need to be fulfilled for room set up.

o “Reservation End” or “Res End”- Time at which the organization should be out of the room. This is the time for you to lock the room and/or break it down for the next setup.

o “Sponsor”- Organization or group who made the room reservation. Along with a contact name, it is provided for those times when you need to ask for a representative of the group when they have requested setup related assistance.

5. Quality Checking A Set Up: Important for Good Customer Service

Each setup should receive the following 8-Point Quality Service Check TWICE:

Once, when you have completed the setup. And the Final Quality Check, which must be completed at least 20 minutes before the meeting or

event is scheduled to begin and as you prepare to unlock the doors.1. Check the setup against the setup sheet—have we provided everything requested?2. Are the tables and chairs neatly organized and straight? Are the tables and floors clean? 3. Are the lights turned on? 4. Is the area outside the door clear of leftover tables, trash, or chairs from the previous set up?5. Is the door handle unlocked from the outside, so the door can be opened when closed? Is the door

propped open?6. Have we checked with the Student Manager before the event to see if everything is adequate, or if

last minute changes or additions are needed?7. If the location has been moved, have we provided enough visible and clear signs to redirect those

coming to the meeting or event?

Section Four: Facility Assistant Equipment

1. FA Keys and Radios

When you come onto your shift, you will need to pick up a set of keys and radio from the Manager on duty. FA keys will open:

1. P3355 Key- All Meeting and Storage rooms2. P3356 Key- Commons Theater and Commons Theater Storage Room

Always check to make sure you have NOT taken the FA Keys home or to class with you on accident. They are needed by the following shifts, in order to set up rooms and provide assistance to Commons’ guests. This greatly slows down a shift’s ability to move quickly.

2. FA Storage Rooms

Keeping FA Storage Rooms clean and orderly is everyone’s job.

Each and every FA is responsible for keeping the Storage Rooms clean and organized, with equipment neatly stored in designated areas.

Richmond Salons Storage (Room 204):

Racks of chairs are the immediate left inside the doors. Banquet rounds are placed in the round table storage racks- face-to-face, with legs against the pipes to avoid marring the plastic table tops. Table carts are stored in front of the round table storage racks. In the alcove to the right of the door are stored podiums, table skirts, easels, dry erase boards, and empty chair carts. The drapes are located in the same area as the skirts, and the pipes are located straight inside from the doors.

Riser Storage (Room 214):

Houses equipment shared between Salons and Virginia Rooms, as well as less frequently used equipment. This storage room is also used by the Student Government Association (SGA) sometimes, so they may ask a Student Manager to open it for them periodically.

Virginia Rooms Storage (Room 225):

For this Storage Room, always use the doors directly across from the Virginia Room D back hallway doors. Banquet rounds go in the specified round table racks in the back of the room, to the left of the doors. Racks of chairs go to the right of the round table racks. Empty chair carts go in the alcove connected to the wall adjacent to the door. Podiums, table carts, dry erase boards, and all else goes to the right of the doors. Pipe and drape is located straight inside from the doors.

Commonwealth Ballroom Storage (Rooms 242, 245):

The portable stage pieces, rectangular tables (including 8’, 6’, and classrooms), cocktail rounds, easels, pipe and drape, table skirts, empty table carts, dry erase boards, and the Genie are all located in Room 242. Chairs, chair carts, and banquet rounds are all located in Room 245. Signs will be posted on the walls indicating where each type of item should be stored.

Outdoor Storage (Room 100):

Tables and chairs used for outdoor setups are kept here, along with Plaza umbrellas, barricades, and equipment necessary for setting up on the Plaza.

A few minutes spent after each setup to straighten up the Storage Rooms you used can save many minutes later, by avoiding unnecessarily searching frantically for required materials that are not where they are supposed to be. Also, always think of your fellow co-workers when using organizing Storage Rooms, taking equipment out, or replacing equipment—the way you choose to treat these spaces affects all other employees, as well as making a huge difference on how easily people can get their work done.

3. Equipment in Setups

1. Podiuma. Free-standing, rolls at a 45-degree angle, sits on floor. If you need more than one podium

in any room, check the other Storage Rooms, starting with the closest. In this situation, also check your setup sheet to be sure the podium you are taking away will not be needed later. In desperate situations where there are not enough podiums for the setup(s), use a table top podium (or table top lectern) and place it atop a head table. ALWAYS return podiums to their correct location after use.

2. Head Tablesa. A head table is standard for all lecture style events. For all other setups, check “Setup

Notes” on the worksheet.3. Food Tables

a. A six foot table that is used for refreshments and food in events. Food tables are never skirted, unless especially permitted by the event planner.

4. Registration Tablesa. These are six foot tables that are generally placed outside the entrance of a room or just

inside the door, perpendicular to the doorway, with two chairs. Never block a doorway or the balcony hallway outside the Virginia Rooms, as these are safety hazards.

5. Dry Erase Boardsa. Portable boards that require a dry erase marker and an eraser. Always make sure the

board is equipped with both of these and that they are not written on with permanent marker. If this is the case, locate a different dry erase board and replace it back to its proper space after use.

6. Easelsa. Easels are available via sponsor’s request. Sponsor must provide their own pads of paper

and markers.7. Six Foot Tables

a. Six foot tables are used in a variety of setups, and their assigned position will be described in “Setup Notes” on the set up worksheet. Each storage room has their own six foot tables; if an FA is required to use these in another set up, please return them to the original storage room after use.

8. Banquet Round Tablesa. Banquet Round Tables, commonly referred to as “Banquets” or “Rounds,” are large

circular tables that are most frequently used for events that will include eating.