In these days of economic uncertainty, declining revenues, and aging facilities it becomes ever more difficult to adequately plan for future operations. Typically, buildings are viewed as assets but can quickly become liabilities if not properly cared for. Capital improvements and maintenance for a building’s infrastructure are necessary to keep a building and a business functioning. Allocation of limited revenue is a difficult, yet necessary, task that is subject to thorough review by the stakeholders of a business or governmental entity. To help accomplish this juggling act, many chose to have facility condition assessments performed for their facilities.

The facility condition assessment process is utilized to assess the major systems of a facility and determine which of those systems are in good or satisfactory condition or those that are in need of repair or replacement. The assessment is in-depth enough to allow for the development of corrective action recommendations and costing, listed in the order of what should be done immediately and what should be contemplated within the next 3-5 years.

The facility condition assessment report is used for capital improvement planning, support of capital improvement budget requests; providing justification for maintenance and repair/replacement fund allocation, and for determining the most beneficial method of achieving energy conservation or LEED-EB certification. A facility condition assessment report is a key element in assisting an appraisal firm in developing an accurate estimate of value for a facility for the owner for tax purposes, or when selling or buying a facility. The report is a “living document” which can be easily added to, subtracted from, or simply updated on a yearly basis or at the very least, every three years.

Having an up-to-date facility condition assessment will aid building owners or operators (in both the private and government markets) in keeping their buildings in the asset column and not in the liability column.