Papyrus Summer Fall 2012

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Papyrus Summer 2012

Message from the President

This will be my last "Message from the President" before I hand over to your new President at our Mid-Atlantic conference in September. I have really enjoyed the last four years, and thank you all for your support—both to me, and to our organisation—during this period, particularly through your participation at our conferences in Washington, San Francisco, and Auckland, all of which have been such a success.

John Castle and his team have put together a wonderful programme for this year's Mid-Atlantic conference in Philadelphia and Delaware. We will be visiting eight top museums and galleries, which I know you will find fascinating and helpful in solving some of your local facilities problems. I understand that we already have 120 people booked into hotels, so this one might even be bigger than the London conference in 2008!

It has been tempting to want to expand IAMFA into a much larger association. I have belonged to large associations in the past, however, and they do lose the close friendships which we build together at IAMFA, as well as requiring costly administration and infrastructure. It is the close relationships, friendliness and willingness to help—plus the fun that we have when we meet—that has made this organisation my favourite of all the professional organisations to which I have belonged.

I have received four key benefits from my association with IAMFA. The first is the publication of Papyrus, which contains such relevant and interesting articles—and has been made such a success by Joe May over the past four years. The second is the learning opportunity in going behind the scenes of the world's best museums and galleries at each annual conference, learning from our peers how they have improved delivery of facilities services so we can return home and make our own improvements—ample justification for attending our Conference!

The third benefit has been participation in the benchmarking group to compare how we were managing our costs against similar cultural organisations, and learning from them how to manage better. The fourth is the strong bonds and friendships you build up with like-minded professionals—both to discuss ideas and help solve problems at your own organisation—again supported by Joe May in his management of a large and growing LinkedIn group.

At this year's Conference, you will not be able to resist Monday's tour of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, which is an amazing building that has just finished a major extension. Following that tour, we’ll be heading to the newly refurbished Rodin Museum, and a brand-new museum: The Barnes Foundation, completed during this summer.

Tuesday will be a real treat, as we tour and learn about four museums in Delaware, three of which are linked to the Du Pont family. We’ll all end the day with a lovely dinner in the Longwood Gardens Conservatory, followed by a stunning Fountain Show. The huge fountain pump house will excite even those without an engineering bent!

Wednesday is based around the Independence National Historical Park. We’ll go behind the scenes of a newly finished museum, tour the National Constitution Centre, and visit the Liberty Bell (still with a crack, thank goodness!), before our Gala dinner in the National Constitution Center.

The excellent guest programme for our partners, I know, is also an enormous attraction.  Please do everything you can to attend, learn what others are doing, and renew friendships with your colleagues. The hard times and financial pressures you currently face are not likely to abate in the year ahead, so it is essential that you and your facilities departments continue to demonstrate where you add value to your organisations—hopefully reducing the risk of your role being questioned or removed. Hopefully you have learned enough through IAMFA to show that you are not just a cost centre, but can have a highly positive business impact on your cultural organisation. Have you delivered a material reduction in operating costs over the past two years, and are you seen as an integrated business manager by the rest of your corporate colleagues?

Many thanks again to our Board for supporting me over the past four years, and helping make IAMFA a much more professional organisation. Also to my previous PA, Merida Fitzgerald, for being the power (engine?) behind the role, and Harry Wanless for his help and support at the British Library (mostly rewriting everything I did)! Harry, rude as always, did think Merida was the real President, and I was just the frontman!

One minor achievement: I think I have persuaded my American friends to be more adventurous in wearing colourful socks—but unfortunately not to undo the mistake they made in 1776.

I hope to see you all at the conference in September, when you can tell me how you are managing in these tough times. When you receive this issue of Papyrus, I will be in Tuscany preparing for my full retirement—see photo above!

Letter from the Editor

Greetings from Los Angeles!

As I write this, we are now just two months from IAMFA’s 22nd Annual Conference in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The conference organizing committee reports that progress in planning this year’s conference is on track, and both the committee and the IAMFA Board are eager to see IAMFA members again in September at venues in Philadelphia and the surrounding region.

Please make sure you read John De Lucy’s Message from the President in this issue of Papyrus, as this will be his final one. John has been a superb leader for IAMFA during the past four years, and we all look forward to seeing him and wife Livi this September at the conference. We all hope that, despite his retiring from the British Library, John will continue to remain active in IAMFA.

In this issue of Papyrus, you will find a variety of articles both from IAMFA members, and non-members who are leaders in their field. Please read the article in this issue contributed by the American Institute of Conservators. This article provides an introduction to AIC—and, we hope, the beginning of a growing collaborative effort between AIC and IAMFA members to evaluate possible revisions to environmental specifications, and how this could foster higher levels of energy conservation at cultural institutions in America and beyond.

You will also find an article by Elizabeth Wylie and Niall Cooper titled “Who’s Afraid of Green Museums: Fear and Loathing and HVAC”. This article is a follow-up to a session at the American Association of Museum’s (AAM) Annual Conference in Minneapolis in late April 2012. During a provocative forum, experts examined many of the questions that arise when museums undertake a capital project and want to pursue environmentally sustainable practice in design and construction, as well as in ongoing operations.

You’ll read about The Philadelphia Art Museum which is a venue for the IAMFA Conference in September, and you’ll be able to practice up on your colloquial Philadelphia terminology so that you can be prepared to speak as the locals do . . . you never know when this may come in handy while in Philadelphia for the 2012 IAMFA Annual Conference!

Hershow Al-Barazi has contributed an interesting article about the External Vertical Shade Automation Project at the greenest museum on Earth. Many of you visited the California Academy of Sciences during the 2010 IAMFA Conference in San Francisco, but may not be aware that they received their second LEED Platinum award in 2011. You will also find an update from Pat Morgan about the many awards received by the Auckland Art Gallery during the past year. The Auckland Art Gallery was a venue for the 2011 IAMFA Conference, and host of a truly unforgettable closing gala at the 2011 Conference. We will never forget that evening; I wish everyone reading this could have been present.

Michael Arny, President at the Leonardo Academy, writes in this issue about LEED certification at the National Geographic Society. You may remember Michael from when he joined us in Bilbao, Spain at the 2006 IAMFA Conference. Michael and I made a joint presentation about the Getty Center’s new LEED-EB Certification in 2005, which was the first post-pilot LEED-EB Certification in the nation. Michael actually chaired the committee that developed LEED for Existing Buildings. You will read about the organization that received the very first LEED-EB Certification in the nation during the LEED-EB pilot program back in 2003. Congratulations to the National Geographic Society on their new LEED recertification at the Gold level. 

Ian Williams and Chris Bailey of the Museum of Liverpool describe some of the actions taken over the past 12 years in understanding, managing and reducing energy consumption, as well as the carbon impact of National Museums Liverpool (NML) on society. These actions have culminated in NML recently being placed joint first in the UK Carbon Reduction National League Tables. National Museums Liverpool is a group of nine museums and galleries from Liverpool. 

You’ll also read about recognition of the Architect of the Capitol’s Office of Security Programs by Building Operating Management Magazine with its FMXcellence Award for excellence in customer service. The FMXcellence awards recognize facilities management teams that “spearhead and execute stand-out projects and programs.” You may remember that we visited the U.S. Capitol during our 2009 IAMFA Conference.

Please make sure you also read the update about the latest U.K. Regional Meeting hosted by Nicola Walker, Head of Collection Care and Access at the Manchester Museum.  There is more news about the growing movement to reassess temperature and RH settings. Please also see Stacey Wittig’s update about the IAMFA Annual Benchmarking Exercise—and make sure you plan on attending the Benchmarking and Learning Workshop September 16 in Philadelphia.

One last thing; I’d like to report that IAMFA’s LinkedIn Group continues to grow, now with 358 members from 31 countries. If you know someone whom you think may benefit from learning more about IAMFA, please encourage them to join our LinkedIn group, and to also visit our new website, www.NewIAMFA.ORG. 

There’s more in this issue; I hope you enjoy it. Thank you so much to everyone who contributed articles.

Joe May, Editor

Introducing the American Institute for Conservation of Artistic and Historic Works—Collection Care Network

By the AIC Collection Care Network

Have you ever had difficulty obtaining professional conservation advice on a specialized topic? Would you like easy-to-navigate access to the conservation community? Did you know that many conservators have wanted to be better connected to the professional facility management community?

To facilitate this kind of connection and communication, the American Institute for Conservation of Artistic and Historic Works (AIC) recently established its Collection Care Network (CCN). Created in early 2012, the Collection Care Network combines the preservation knowledge and skills of AIC members, and links them with allied professionals. The AIC CCN is committed to advancing the critical importance of preventive conservation as the most effective means of promoting the long-term preservation of cultural propert, and recognizes that both preservation and stewardship rest on the talents and skills of numerous professionals and volunteers.

The AIC CCN serves people in every preservation profession: archaeologists, architects, archives staff, art handlers, collection care specialists, collection managers, conservators, curators, engineers, entomologists, exhibit designers, facilities staff, historic house museum staff, library staff, mount makers, preparators, preventive conservation materials vendors, registrars, technicians, and the many others who aid in preservation. For more on our mandate and purpose, please visit our website at www.conservation-us.org/collectioncare.

Since its first meeting at Winterthur, Delaware (USA), funded by a generous grant from Tru Vue, AIC CCN has worked to support the critical work of collection care by bringing together preservation organizations, professionals, and information resources. The Network’s aim is to foster dynamic exchange among those engaged in preventive care, to expand the body of preventive care knowledge, and to disseminate this knowledge in order to support the work of all collection care practitioners and allied professionals.

In May 2012, AIC CCN was launched at the aptly named 40th annual AIC meeting, Connecting to Conservation: Outreach and Advocacy in Albuquerque, New Mexico (USA). As part of the “Outreach to Allies” session, attendees were invited to share ideas and suggestions for future projects. The format included brief videos of various stakeholders in the preservation field discussing the dilemmas they faced. Among these videos, a lighting designer and an architect presented building-related issues. It is vital that this discussion continues beyond that national AIC meeting. Please visit the AIC blog at www.conservators-converse.org/ where you will soon have an opportunity to view the videos and add your voice.

One of the major goals of AIC CCN is to pursue collaborative projects in collection care. Recently, the Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections (SPNHC) and AIC CCN announced that the Kress Foundation has funded the development of a web-based resource entitled, STASH: Storage Techniques for Art, Science, and History collections. Based on a former SPNHC publication, this venture will present an expanded range of storage solutions, and integrate the many new materials which have become available since its previous print edition. Moving the publication to the web will expand access and improve timely integration of new information. Review and critique of draft segments will be possible on-line. Look for the STASH link in 2013 on the Conservation OnLine (CoOL) website at www.cool.conservation-us.org.

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Caption:  The SPNHC book, STASH, which will be reproduced and expanded in a joint partnership between AIC CCN and SPNHC.

Future collaborative projects on other collection-care topics are also being developed. One such project seeks to team AIC CCN with allied professionals to develop a wiki-based publication on exhibition standards and guidelines. The entries will describe key steps in planning, developing, and maintaining exhibitions from a preservation point of view. The project will build upon the work of former U.S. National Park Service conservator Toby Rafael and museum consultant Felicity Devlin. Some modules have already been posted on the AIC Wiki, with more expected later this summer. This topic, along with many others, can be found at www.conservation-wiki.com. The direct link to Conservation Standards & Guidelines for Exhibitions Utilizing Museum Collections is www.conservation-wiki.com/ex.

We invite you to collaborate in developing our next projects, and to consider joining us at upcoming national meetings. Contemporary Issues in Conservation is the theme for the May 29 to June 1, 2013 meeting, planned for Indianapolis. We welcome suggestions to help us shape a workshop to present at this meeting.

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No Caption

Looking ahead to our 2014 national meeting in San Francisco, we envision a conference program focusing on preventive care, incorporating the ideas of many of our preservation allies.

We look forward to beginning a long and enriching exchange between our organizations.

Board of the AIC Collection Care Network

Joelle Wickens, Chair 2012–2014

Winterthur Museum, Wilmington, DE

[email protected]

Rebecca Fifield, Vice-Chair 2012–2014

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY

[email protected]

Wendy Claire Jessup, Secretary 2012–2013

Private Practice, Arlington, VA

[email protected]

Karen Pavelka, Treasurer 2012–2015

University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX

[email protected]

Gretchen Guidess,

Communications & Outreach 2012–2015

Historic New England, Haverhill, MA

[email protected]

Robert Waller, Editor 2012–2015

Protect Heritage Corp., Ottawa, ON 

[email protected]

Patricia Silence, Founding Member

Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Williamsburg, VA

[email protected]

Julia Brennan, Founding Member

Private Practice, Washington, DC

[email protected]

Rachael Perkins Arenstein, Founding Member

Private Practice, Scarsdale, NY

[email protected]

Catharine Hawks, Founding Member

National Museum of Natural History, Washington DC

[email protected]

Who’s Afraid of Green Museums? Fear and Loathing and HVAC

By Elizabeth Wylie and Niall Cooper

This article is a follow-up to a session at the American Association of Museum’s (AAM) Annual Conference in Minneapolis in late April 2012. In a provocative forum, experts examined many of the questions that arise when museums undertake a capital project and want to pursue environmentally sustainable practice in design and construction, as well as in ongoing operations.

Capital construction projects are not a common occurrence within the career trajectories of most museum professionals. The session aimed to empower museum leadership to ask and seek answers to tough questions. The challenge of designing, building and operating environmentally sustainable museums (new, existing, and historical) is a multi-headed hydra that sows conflicts around budget and need, desire and reality, vision and capacity. The job of articulating goals, matching budget and schedule, and keeping the vision and intended outcome in sight is a tall order. Add in new green technologies, differing metrics, and shifting collections care standards, and you end up with a brew of challenges and opportunities.

There are significant barriers to greening museums, many of which arise from confusion related to costs and technologies. The session’s format provoked a candid exploration of barriers and points of conflict. Onsite questions, as well as those pre-solicited from the field, stimulated a frank examination of the issues. Sample questions included: How important is LEED certification to achieving a green museum? Given the current discussion about collections care standards, how do you design for a situation in flux? Can you provide an example of when you have questioned a design brief? We have an 1880s building—won’t greening cost too much?

Top-flight experts—all of whom either have been, or are currently involved in some of the country’s most high-profile museum building projects—offered valuable experienced-based perspectives. The primary outcome was that participants were empowered to ask questions, question assumptions, and push for excellence. The saying goes that the best buildings are the result of the best clients. This session was aimed at helping participants be better clients, getting the results that they want and that the museum field needs: green buildings that perform and make a positive contribution to the fabric of their communities. We wanted to help to make the connection between the design and construction process and mission-fulfillment, underscoring long-term thinking, and the power of green for branding and education, as well as environmental responsibility.

The idea for this forum was born of a conversation we had when we wanted to collaborate on an AAM session. While brainstorming, we kept circling back to the same basic issue: Why aren’t museums greener? They are here for the long haul, right? Their missions revolve around saving collections for the “future”, right? This results in the expenditure of untold resources on energy and water—resources that are at risk, and which are harmful to the environment in their production/extraction. Other industries are already positioning themselves to adapt to climate change in innovative, systems-based ways that can serve as models.

Museums have started this process, but . . .

We looked at the LEED program (www.usgbc.org), just one of many metrics, and where museums fall within the nearly 10,000 LEED certified projects. Certified is the lowest rating and Platinum is the highest (or most resource efficient). Silver is little more than what is required by code in some states. In a sample of 60+ LEED certified museums, Silver is the predominant target.

If you look at the rate of adoption, there was a precipitous falling-off of deep green around the time stricter energy requirements were rolled out in the 2009 version of LEED. It seems that museums are interested in—and indeed, are—going green; but they just aren’t reaching higher, which is something other sectors (colleges, universities and corporations, for example) are already doing. Why aren’t museums—trusted and valued institutions with smart staff and leadership—similarly positioning themselves to adapt? The technology and professional expertise exists to help museums get to deep green; as a whole, however, the industry has been behind the curve in getting there. What are the barriers? What are the solutions to help museums get to fearless green?

The Project Kick-Off Meeting

For the session, we tried something new: a roleplaying exercise. Audience members were invited to become “flies on the wall” during a project kick-off meeting. This was followed by a randomized Q&A to keep it lively and educational. The approach was intended to explore a serious subject in a fun way, in order to cut through the fear and confusion, and show how to get where museums want to go.

The scene is 45 minutes into an hour-long project kick-off meeting. The team has already introduced itself, shared existing documentation, and reviewed schedule and budget, and program goals are being discussed. We enter as the architect has just asked for specifics on what the Owner broadly described as “Green” approaches.

As the scenario played out and the audience asked questions, the themes below emerged as areas that pose potential barriers to museums reaching for fearless green.

How do I know what Green is?

Without exception, every member of the panel agreed that early definition of sustainability goals is one of the single most important factors affecting costs—and ultimately performance—down the line. There was also agreement that each museum needs to educate itself about sustainability, and what it means for them as an institution—not just within the context of a building project, but also going forward in terms of operations and education. Cross-disciplinary representation on the Building Committee—including staff working in collections care, exhibits, advancement and, yes, facility management—was seen as important. Establishing a Green Team is optimal for developing, managing and monitoring museum-wide green practice going forward.  Making a commitment and embedding sustainable practice into your organizational values can have a substantial impact on how you design, operate, fund, and interpret your green building. 

The LEED Certification process scares me. I feel overwhelmed? What can I do?

LEED is a recognized brand, and your audience and financial supporters likely know and appreciate that there is some verification of sustainability. The LEED process has been streamlined over time: documentation is less onerous (new online tools help, as has LEED’s adoption in the marketplace), and professionals are more skilled. There is still some concern about what is sometimes called a LEED premium. Studies show, however, that working with a truly integrated design team—and establishing and committing to green goals early in the process—can minimize or even eliminate any premium for sustainable design and construction.

There is also general recognition that some of the LEED criteria are not geared towards the special requirements of museums. To begin to address this, members of PIC Green (AAM’s sustainability committee www.facebook.com/PICGreen) have formed an ad hoc committee on LEED in museums. Encouraged by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the group has started reaching out to LEED-certified museums to foster an evaluation mindset, to comment on LEED 2012 (now v4.0), and to make recommendations for LEED and ways to increase its effectiveness for museums. This work parallels similar conversations between PIC Green, AAM and Energy Star (the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy’s energy-efficiency program www.energystar.gov/) to find ways in which the museum community can better use this online tool.

When asked if LEED is necessary for the Emerald Museum and Gardens expansion project, the roleplay engineer responded that “it’s not necessary, but is a good framework for our approach as a design collective.” For the Emerald Museum and Gardens, the idea is to “choose our own destiny with goals that make sense for what we are trying to do.” From an engineering perspective, the team could work up the budget by looking at the following three areas of opportunity with increasing order-of-magnitude costs.

1.      Don’t forget the big picture and your long-term goals. Look well beyond simple payback by examining larger investments that keep paying for the life of the building (ground-source heat pumps, etc.).

2.      Look at the interface and integration between the historical building and new construction.

3.      Design a super-efficient new-build component through integrated systems and building-envelope strategies.

Benchmarking was also mentioned, as was IAMFA’s annual benchmarking report. Participants in the exercise know how useful that kind of data can be over time, as it has resulted in significant savings in operating expenses. Knowing how your museum currently sits in relation to its contemporaries is important. Tracking overall energy usage (often referred to Energy Usage Intensity, or EUI) provides a useful benchmark for how well the building fabric and systems are working together as a whole.

It’s not easy to obtain a true apples-to-apples comparison in EUI between museum buildings, given the wide variety of spaces and program configurations. However, carefully measuring where and how energy is used (when compared to similar building programs and geographical locations) can provide an extremely useful guide in forensic engineering efforts, which can improve both climate control margins and overall energy usage. It can also be used to set realistic EUI-improvement targets for renovations, as well as sensible green-stretch exercises for new building components. Such assessments can be hugely beneficial prior to engaging in significant capital development programs of expansion or upgrade. These exercises can help tune the system design and prioritize upgrades, in order to obtain the “biggest bang for your buck”. 

The take-away is about looking holistically at your institution, your project, locale and culture. It is also about measurement and goal-setting. Return-on-Investment (ROI) was cited as one decision-making tool that can help museums come to terms with what is sometimes described as a “green premium”. A truly integrated design team can work with energy modelers and cost estimators to test scenarios for various building and systems schemes, and can lead the charge in discussing trade-offs.

There is a dizzying array of products and technologies out there. How can I measure the cost-effectiveness of installing these?

Again, measurement plays a role in understanding how the building is being used and how to continually adapt and improve energy efficiency as space use shifts and changes. An example is sub-metering. By monitoring every component of energy use in the building, facility managers can gather and analyze data, and respond by changing the way in which the building is operated, in order to maximize opportunities to save even more energy.

An important point was made here about operating a green building. As the roleplay sustainability consultant put it, “We can design a great sustainable LEED Platinum project, and still have a really crappy building if we don’t run it right.” Making sure the building is actually operated and maintained over time, the way it was designed to be operated and maintained, is critical. The panel reinforced the fact that engaging facility staff at the beginning of a capital project can have a substantial impact on the outcome.

Commissioning—a systematic assessment of building-system design and post-occupancy performance—is required by the LEED program, and is a good idea whether LEED certification is pursued or not. Retro-commissioning is also useful for existing building systems. In each case, commissioning ensures that the building is operating as efficiently and safely as possible, and that it is operated and maintained by well-trained staff. This activity can also address some of the fear that springs up when the design team is specifying highly interactive design strategies and sophisticated control systems.

How do I convince my museum to become energy efficient? How do I make sure that the art is not sacrificed in the process?

Internal buy-in was identified as a significant barrier, with leadership questioning the costs, and staff reticent to adopt new approaches that seemed at odds with commonly accepted collections care and exhibition practices. The roleplay CFO, a green skeptic, did concede that, as environmental responsibility becomes more important to museum audiences, they expect and are looking for evidence that resources are being used wisely.

Can we succeed in a fundraising campaign if we aren’t green?

The roleplay major donor said she would absolutely support green approaches, saying she would work with the advancement office to target asks around the kinds of things that motivate donors. She suggested that “some are only interested in green bling” (e.g., PV panels that can be easily identified), while others understand that integrated green approaches aren’t necessarily visible. Showing leadership, she noted, has tremendous benefits, and can be leveraged for more support. There is also the compelling argument for donors that raising money for green-building purposes is in fact front-loading operating costs, since capital support is traditionally easier to raise than operating funds. This kind of thinking is again looking holistically at an institution’s needs.

Telling the green story before, during and after construction can educate and inform, while also generating support both internally and externally. What are the sustainable design features inherent your existing historical building that you are restoring and/or reactivating in your renovation project? How is the new construction designed to take advantage of passive green-design strategies (solar and wind orientation, envelope design, etc.)?

You can also get a lot of mileage out of things you don’t see, which can also capture the imagination. While that geothermal heat-pump system might be kind of “techy”, it is interesting to think about the principles of the system. Standing-column wells that are 1,500 feet deep can be described as measuring the height of the Empire State Building— underneath your building. You can further explain this this means you can avoid giant cooling towers on the roof, which might mar the building’s historical context, which in turn feeds into a preservation story. Sharing the ideas behind sustainable-design strategies provides opportunities to connect energy efficiency to mission-fulfillment and the true cost of collections care.

Greening heritage buildings is not as daunting as one imagines when thinking about historic district commissions and the Secretary of the Interior’s Guidelines. Often it is simply about letting the historical building do what it was designed to do, in terms of thermal mass, ventilation, and day lighting. Comparative studies of historical windows and insulation strategies support restoration and retrofitting for preservation-oriented green building (www.english-heritage.org.uk/professional/research/buildings/energy-efficiency/thermal-performance-of-traditional-windows/).

Preservation of collections, and the compatibility of this with sustainable design, has been demonstrated by leadership among collecting institutions that have led the way with deep-green buildings that conserve resources while also carrying out the mandate-based work of preserving the objects, creatures, plants, and structures in their care. This has been, and will continue to be, facilitated by new thinking about collection-care practices. The conservation community has ramped up the conversation and, indeed, has begun to outline new risk-based parameters for conditioned spaces for objects (www.iiconservation.org/sites/default/files/dialogues/plus-minus-en.pdf).

This has created discomfort for some who have rigidly held to the 50%RH/72ºC  formulation that many museum curators and collection managers have had seared into their brains. Scientific research, education, and honest discussions within the field are shifting practice. This greater flexibility has also extended to day lighting. Increased day lighting (direct, reflected, and diffused), in galleries as well as in museum public spaces, reduces energy use and cooling load, while also improving the visitor experience. 
The visitor experience lies at the heart of these issue—after all, what else is the point of saving all this stuff? As the roleplay collections manager put it, “As far as I am concerned, the objects we collect have no value without the human component. They have no relationship to one another in our absence. The value they have is for our access and our interaction with them. If we were to be simply concerned with the preservation of our objects, we would never display them, we would never loan them out, and they would live forever in a dark storage vault.”

Clearly, museums have already made the decision that is not what we want to do. Within that context, museums are reliant on increasingly at-risk resources in order to fulfill their  mandates to preserve collections forever. Accepting that—and understanding that energy and water are critical, if we are to continue to enjoy and learn from our collections—is the first step towards fearless green. And that requires leadership and a longer view.

The good news is that museums across the globe have already shown leadership and a willingness to step onto the green road and follow it for the long term. The examples set by these early adopters and continual adapters are important in encouraging others, large and small, to follow. Professional training programs with embedded sustainability, as well as a general green zeitgeist, have also begun to break-down barriers. Finally, it is up to those who design, build, and run museums—architects, engineers, directors, curators, facility managers, et al—to demonstrate that they are connecting the dots between mission-fulfillment and the health of the planet, and that they are taking action to secure a bright future for both collections and people.

Elizabeth Wylie LEED AP BD+C is Principal at WYLIE projects, a consultancy providing strategy, marketing, development, and sustainability planning for the A/E/C industry and for museum, cultural and preservation organizations.

Niall Cooper CEng MCIBSE BEng (Hons) MSt is an Associate Principal at Buro Happold, an independent international practice of consulting engineers.

The Philadelphia Museum of Art

By Rich Reinert

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is housed in a unique and spectacular landmark building that is as much a symbol of the greatness of the City of Philadelphia as Independence Hall or the Liberty Bell. As intense a source of civic pride today as it was when it first opened over eighty years ago, the building has always stood as the physical expression of Philadelphia's most ambitious cultural aspirations.

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Caption:   The Philadelphia Museum of Art.

When it first opened in 1928, only ten percent of the galleries were fully completed and installed. The decades since have been characterized by extraordinary and steady growth, and by the late 1970s acquisitions of great works of art and donations of legendary private collections filled all available physical space. In 1981, the Museum completed an architectural master plan, intended to maximize the Museum's facilities for collections and programming. Among the most notable results of this undertaking were the reinstallation of 90 galleries of European Art, completed in 1995, and the expansion of our art-handling facility, which will open soon.
The master plan identified the limitations of the Museum's physical plant. There was a very real need—exceeding the Museum’s existing capacity—for significantly expanded space in which to display and store the collections adequately, house the Library, and provide work areas for staff.
Simply put, there was no room left to grow, which is perhaps the most troubling reality for a Museum fighting to keep pace with the ever-expanding needs and interests of the public it serves. While annual attendance and demand for our internationally acclaimed programs continue to increase, adequate space is not always available to accommodate more visitors. The legacy of deferred maintenance was also apparent, as was the lack of sufficient parking for our visitors.
The creation of new physical space consistent with the integrity, beauty, and architectural significance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art was a priority in preparing the institution for tomorrow's visitors. The expanded facility will provide for the future growth of collections and programs, along with state-of-the-art facilities for art storage and conservation, a technologically advanced library and learning center, and adequate staff and back-office operations. It was estimated that 150,000 square feet would be required to meet all of the needs cited within the master plan.

In 2002, the Philadelphia Museum of Art started bringing the objectives of the master plan to fruition. Various projects were implemented in phases:

·         Purchase of a 50,000-square-foot building, which was converted to an art storage facility in 2004.

·         Purchase of the Reliance Standard Life Building, which was converted to the Perelman Building in 2007.

·         Main Building Exterior Envelope Project in 2009.

·         Opening of the newly constructed Parking/Sculpture Garden facility in 2009.

·         Expansion of the main building art-handling facility involving 38,000 square feet of new structure and 24,000 square feet of renovated space in 2012.

The expanded art-handling facility, which will open in August 2012, will include a dedicated art-loading dock, a dedicated loading dock for general materials, a collection area for recyclable materials, various workshops, IT labs, and a distance-learning broadcast studio.

During the September 2012 IAMFA conference, we look forward to showing you around the new art-handling facility.

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Caption for all three:   Expansion of main building art-handling facility, opening in August 2012.

Rich Reinert is Facility Contracts Manager at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Yo, Philly!

By Rich Reinert

Yo! Prepare to learn a unique version of the English language. The key is to train your brain to fill in the blanks—so, when trying to speak Philly slang, put your brain on half-speed and have at it.

Here in Philly, we are so excited to be welcoming our friends from IAMFA that I thought we had better pass along this little translation guide. If you’re bringing one of those translator dictionary dingies, you can put that jawn—er, book—away. My advice, if you get into a Philly slang discussion, is to watch for clues in body language.

By the way, “jawn” pretty much means anything. It’s a word used in Philadelphia to describe any noun when the right word cannot be remembered within a reasonable space of time.

Let’s try a few words, just to get you acclimated.

A-needing:       Anything

Baffroom:        Bathroom

Confer-bill:      Comfortable

Do-inn:            Doing—greeting, as in “Hal-yu-do-inn”. Respond by saying “Hal-yu-do-inn” in a deeper tone.

Fildelfia:          Philadelphia

Fi-dollar:          Five Dollars

Ga-head:         Go ahead

Get-in:             Getting

Haf:                 One-half

I-dear:             Idea

Ice-in:              Icing

Jeeet?:             Did you eat?

Kant:                Cannot

Ly-berry:          Library

Mayan:            Mine. Not those ancient Indians.

Nut-in:             Nothing

Off-en:             Often

Pock-a-book:   Purse

Roun:               Around

Sow-filly:         South Philadelphia

Tawk;               Talk

To-mara:         Tomorrow

Underneef:      Underneath

Wooder:          Water

Wit:                 With (When ordering a cheese steak you may be asked wit or wit-out. That means Cheese Wiz. Or not).

You-ze:            The plural version of “you”.

I hope this helps you-ze. If you need a-neding, ga-head n send me an email. You-ze kant wander roun Filedelfia wit-out speaking the language.

Of course I’m over-exaggerating. You’ll have a great time here.

Rich Reinert is Facility Contracts Manager at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Benchmarking Options: New Energy Survey and Classic  Comprehensive Survey

By Stacey Wittig

The IAMFA Benchmarking Steering Committee just released a new energy survey to help facilities reduce energy costs and consumption. The IAMFA Energy Survey gives IAMFA members a second benchmarking option. The new survey was designed to meet the needs of smaller museums and conservators who are looking for benchmarking data to support changes in environmental conditions.

The IAMFA Energy Survey measures results from the same survey questions found in the energy section of the classic IAMFA Benchmarking Survey. The essential difference between the two surveys is that the IAMFA Energy Survey does not collect cleaning, maintenance, landscaping or security data.

Both IAMFA benchmarking surveys collect more data on summer/winter temperature and humidity setpoints than in previous years. The Steering Committee looked at the feasibility of an energy study over a year ago, after facility managers in the U.K. brought the need to the Committee’s attention. Additionally, the Committee had been interested for years in increasing participation from small institutions, which have neither the budget nor the manpower for the complete survey. The Energy Survey, offered at a reduced fee, appears to meet the needs of both groups.

“I think it is absolutely vital that Facility Managers not only keep energy consumption under very close scrutiny, but also benchmark that energy consumption with their peers. With much work currently underway to make the environmental control of collection spaces more sustainable, energy consumption should be reducing. So the real question is: Is it reducing enough? One way to really measure this is to participate in the IAMFA benchmarking exercise and attend the annual benchmarking workshop. Recognizing that this is not practicable for all members, IAMFA has proposed a shorter energy survey, which will at least record energy consumption and compare that consumption with their peers,” said Jack Plumb, Facilities Manager, National Library of Scotland.

The IAMFA Benchmarking Steering Committee formed a subcommittee, conducted a pricing survey, and discussed definitions and appropriate survey questions. The subcommittee included Guy Larocque, Keith McClanahan, Randy Murphy, Jack Plumb, David Redrup, David Sanders and Stacey Wittig.

With International Council of Museums (ICOM) conservators and European Bizot Group museum directors becoming more focused on environmental guidelines, the subcommittee recommended questions about temperature and humidity setpoint variances in different types of spaces. Hence, setpoints are collected for Exhibition Areas—Permanent Displays; Exhibition Areas—Temporary Exhibitions; Conservation/Lab Areas; Collection Holding Areas, not including any off-site storage; Collection Storage; and Library space, among seven other space categories. The data collected is very specific to museums, libraries and archives, unlike other benchmarking studies. Harry Wanless, retired from the British Library, called it “comparing apples to apples.”

The subcommittee completed the IAMFA Energy Survey in time for the annual European meeting in Paris last March. Guy Larocque edited the French translation for the survey and brochure, which was distributed in the handouts to each attendee.

In May, the IAMFA Energy Survey was presented to the IAMFA Environmental Group Meeting held at the Manchester Museum. According to participants, Jack Plumb provided an excellent overview of IAMFA and benchmarking at the joint Conservation and Estates/Facilities meeting. The concept of benchmarking was new to some of the participants from smaller institutions.

Not only will conservators and facility managers, new to IAMFA benchmarking, get a tool to help meet the demands of government mandates for measuring and reducing energy cost and consumption, but longtime participants of the classic study will be able to add sites for which measuring energy is crucial, but a full survey is not warranted. For example, Plumb completes the complete survey every year for his main facility, but is looking to benchmark other sites for the Energy Survey alone.

Participants of the Energy Survey will also be able to print out an IAMFA Energy Label to display in their buildings. Four years of data are needed for a valid energy label. The IAMFA Energy Survey is offered at one-third the fee of the complete benchmarking survey. Enrollment and results will be available year round. Read more at: www.facilityissues.com/Museums/E_IndexE.htm

Stacey Wittig, Marketing Director at Facility Issues, is an IAMFA member and sits on the IAMFA Benchmarking Steering Committee. She can be reached at [email protected] or 928-255-4943 (GMT -7 hours).

External Vertical Shade Automation Project at the California Academy of Sciences

By Hershow Al-Barazi

The California Academy of Sciences has exterior shades installed on the east, south, and west façades of the Research, Collection, and Administration (RC&A) buildings. Yes, they do help provide some relief from the sun’s glare, but mostly they prevent heat-loading from the sun. Reducing the heat load = reducing the amount of cooling needed = energy savings! 

Until recently, the shades were on a timer to extend/retract, depending on the time of day. The shades would be lowered regardless of actual conditions. For example, some floors that require shade during the summer may not require shade during the winter, and the time of day that a floor requires shade changes throughout the year. Our beloved fog may have enveloped the building, or it may also be raining—regardless, the shades would be lowered on schedule.

We needed to automate the shades to extend or retract based on the sun’s actual intensity and position. We also needed to integrate this automation into the Building Management System (BMS).

We mounted 3 solar irradiance sensors (facing east, south and west) to measure the sun’s direction and angle relative to the roof’s surface.

Using the sensor’s signals and vector analysis, the system calculates the approximate position of the sun throughout the day, in terms of the elevation and azimuth angles (angle from the horizon, and the angle from east to west, respectively).

Hershow Al-Barazi was part of the CAS LEED O&M Certification team, and works primarily with the Air Handling and Building Management system to help monitor and maintain ambient conditions in the administrative offices, live exhibits, and collections.

The National Geographic Society is a LEED-EB Recertification Star

By Michael Arny

The National Geographic Society is one of the world’s largest non-profit scientific and educational organizations. Founded in 1888 to “increase and diffuse geographic knowledge,” the Society works to inspire people to care about the planet. It reaches more than 400 million people worldwide each month through its official journal, National Geographic and other magazines, as well as the National Geographic Channel, television documentaries, music, radio, films, books, DVDs, maps, exhibitions, live events, school publishing programs, interactive media, and merchandise. The National Geographic Society has funded more than 10,000 scientific research, conservation and exploration projects, and supports an educational program promoting geographic literacy.

The National Geographic Society also works to provide a model for corporate sustainability. The Society has been involved from the very beginning in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED^®), a rating system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) to promote building sustainability. The National Geographic Society headquarters building was, in fact, the first building to be certified under the LEED for Existing Buildings (LEED-EB) pilot program, earning Silver certification in 2003. This building is a multi-purpose building measuring 746,237 square feet, with offices, museum space, a gift shop, a cafeteria and meeting spaces. The museum space is about three percent of the building’s total floor area.

LEED-EB requires recertification every one to five years. This is because the rating system is all about maintaining existing building performance, while also having a continuous improvement program in place to improve performance over time.

History of LEED Recertification

The first cycle of recertification led to Gold recertification being earned in 2009, under the LEED-EB v2.0 rating system. The Society started the recertification cycle as soon as the USGBC started to define the process and the requirements for recertification.

The second cycle of recertification led to the earning of Gold recertification in 2010, under the LEED-EB v2.0 rating system.

The third cycle of recertification led to the earning of Gold recertification in 2012, under the LEED-EB Operation and Maintenance v2008 rating system (LEED-EB O&M 2008).

During the past nine years, the National Geographic Society has implemented many green actions to increase its sustainability performance, including:

·         Recycling 56.4% of all waste through a comprehensive diversion program, including cafeteria recycling and composting.

·         A comprehensive alternative transportation and commuting program, including flexible schedules, telecommuting, bicycle racks and preferred parking for carpools and alternative-fuel vehicles.

·         Fixture water-use reduction 30% greater than LEED requirements (with a calculated savings of 1,133,057 gallons per year).

·         A multi-phase plan to upgrade building control systems over several years.

·         An overhaul of the major mechanical systems that led to a 20% decrease in energy use.

·         Formation of a corporate Go Green steering committee and five subcommittees.

·         Purchase of wind RECs covering 100% of energy use.

·         Participation in an energy demand-response program.

Michael Arny has been a leader on energy, environmental and sustainability issues for more than 30 years. He is the President and founder of the charitable, non-profit organization Leonardo Academy, which advances sustainability and puts the competitive market to work on improving the environment. Mr. Arny chaired the committee that developed LEED for Existing Buildings. He can be reached at www.leonardoacademy.org

Carbon Management at National Museums Liverpool

By Ian Williams and Chris Bailey

National Museums Liverpool (NML) is a group of museums and galleries, with diverse venues that attracted over three million visitors last year. Our collections are among the most important and varied in Europe, containing everything from Impressionist paintings and rare beetles, to a lifejacket from the Titanic. Members of the public have free access to these collections in the following venues across Merseyside:
Images Page 24

Caption: The Walker Art Gallery.     

Caption: World Museum Liverpool.                                     

Caption: Merseyside Maritime Museum, which also houses the The UK Border Agency Museum, and the International Slavery Museum.

Caption: The Conservation Centre.

Caption: The County Sessions House.

Images Page 25

Caption: The Piermasters House.                                         

Caption: Lady Lever Art Gallery.                              

Caption: Sudley House.                                             

Caption: Museum of Liverpool.                                

NML has some of the most interesting and important buildings in the region in which to show off its magnificent collections; however, the historical nature of these buildings have presented a challenge when it comes to energy/carbon management. 

This article provides a brief overview of some of the actions taken over the past 12 years to understand, manage and reduce energy consumption and by doing so, reducing the carbon impact on society. These actions have culminated in NML recently being placed joint first in the UK Carbon Reduction National League Tables

Image Page 25

Caption:  Ian Williams (left) and Chris Bailey (right) receiving the Carbon Champions award at the recent Merseyside Environmental Awards.

When preparing an Energy and Environmental Policy 12 years ago, NML put in place energy-saving environmental measures, which led to accreditation as an energy-efficient organisation from the National Energy Foundation in 2002. 

NML realised at a very early stage that improvements could only be assessed if a baseline of information was collected, and targets set using that information. NML made a major investment in installing half- hourly monitoring throughout its Estate over a period of 2 years. This system provided the information to map trends in electricity, gas and water use, both for buildings as a whole, and—in the case of the larger venues—by area, through sub-metering.

These actions assisted NML to gain re-accreditation from the Energy Foundation in 2005 and 2008, and Carbon Trust Accreditation in 2010 and 2012.

The most significant energy use in NML’s buildings is the “Base Load”. As many of the buildings require environmental control for the protection of artefacts, the Base Load exists 24 hours a day. Managing this has required careful analysis and reference to the half-hourly data. 

There was an increasing trend in energy usage until 2008, with consumption peaking at approximately 13 Gigawatts of gas and 16 Gigawatts of electricity across the venues.  This was due, in part, to the physical growth of the Estate and the opening of new galleries throughout the first half of the decade. Although energy consumption had increased, energy consumption per square metre was being reduced.

The electrical infrastructure of the Estate, given the age, nature and use of the different venues, had been altered and added-to over the past 40 to 50 years, leading to (in places) inefficient electrical performance. This has led, in turn, to two specific schemes: the introduction of power-factor correction equipment, to reduce the adverse effect of motors and fluorescent lights on the system; and, more recently, the introduction of a Voltage Optimisation system.

At World Museum Liverpool (where energy consumption is highest), an energy-stabilising and -reducing system was installed, which delivers a fixed 222 volts, reducing energy and maintenance to machinery. The system is delivering an average 7% reduction in electrical consumption at the venue. NML funded the scheme through a UK Government Energy Savings Loan, which is repaid from NML energy savings over four years.

To develop staff involvement and commitment, NML initially launched an Energy Champions forum, which was specifically geared to localised energy watch and action.  This group achieved a limited number of successes over the years. In 2010, a broader “Green Forum” was created with staff from each building, representing all levels of management, including representation from an Executive Director. This was designed with a much broader scope, in order to engage the organisation’s whole approach to sustainability. The Forum has created a Vision Statement, a Sustainability Policy (which has superseded the previous Energy and Environmental Policy), and an Action Plan. The group meets on a regular basis to discuss and develop the organisation’s green credentials.

NML has (in line with government requirements) continually assessed and reported energy/water usage over time. The result of this—in addition to the development of energy-efficient initiatives and prudent management—is that the targets originally set in 2002 have been exceeded, as verified through accreditations from the Energy Foundation and Carbon Trust.

NML’s newest Venue “The Museum of Liverpool” has been designed as a twenty-first-century building, and has received much acclaim for its green initiatives. The Museum is powered using state-of-the-art renewable and energy-efficient technologies. Its combined heat and power (CHP) system at full capacity will reduce carbon emissions by 884 tonnes each. The building also benefits from a rainwater-harvesting system, which supplies “grey” water to the Museum’s toilets.  Prior to opening in July 2011, the building achieved an A-rated energy performance certificate, and has recently won the Museums & Heritage Award for Sustainability. CNN, in its climate-change television documentary, The Road to Durban: A Green City Journey produced in preparation for the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Durban (2011), hailed the Museum of Liverpool as “one of the greenest museums on earth”.

The Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme (CRC) in the UK is a new regulatory incentive to improve energy efficiency in large public and private organisations. This mandatory scheme aims not only to improve energy efficiency, but also to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide (CO²) emitted in the UK. Every organisation whose annual half-hourly metered electricity was above 6,000 MWh in 2009–2010 was obliged to participate. NML’s energy and facilities team submitted energy data reports, and evidence of accredited energy management systems in the summer of 2011. 

A Performance League Table including 2,104 participants has recently been released (December 2011), placing NML joint first with an emissions level of 9,207t CO². This high standard was achieved through the initiatives taken over time in order to improve how energy use is measured and, more particularly, managed. 

Since 2011, NML has set new targets based on the Government’s Sustainable Development in Government guidance. Although these targets are challenging, the organisation believes it is well placed to drive towards meeting these in the coming years.

Chris Bailey is Estate Manager for National Museums Liverpool. Ian Williams is Director of Estate Management at National Museums Liverpool, and has been a member of IAMFA since 2008.

Awards for the Auckland Art Gallery

By Patricia Morgan

The Auckland Art gallery has been winning a number of awards in recent weeks, and we are all feeling very proud! We thought this might interest IAMFA members—particularly those who attended the 21st IAMFA Conference last year in Auckland.

Image Page 28

Caption:  The New Auckland Art Gallery.

Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki has won the International Award for Architectural Excellence from The Royal Institute of British Architects—the first time a New Zealand building has won. The awards are given to only 12 buildings a year, and recognise some of the world’s most imaginative, dramatic and green buildings. Other winners in 2012 include the world’s tallest building: the Guangzhou Finance Centre.

Image Page 28

Caption:  Entrance to the Art Gallery.

This international award comes within a month of the Gallery also winning the New Zealand Architecture Medal at the New Zealand Architecture Awards, and the Supreme Award at the 2012 Property Industry Awards: the highest accolade a New Zealand commercial property can receive.

Gallery director Chris Saines said, “We set out to develop a world-class gallery, and FJMT+Archimedia’s elegant and considered design has been instrumental in achieving that goal. Judging by the response of the near 600,000 visitors to date, this restored and expanded heritage building has become a flagship for the city’s architectural and urban design future.”

Image Page 28

Caption:  IAMFA members tour the galleries.

Full list of awards won by Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki in 2012:

2012 Royal Institute of British Architects

• International Award for Architectural Excellence

2012 NZ Museum Awards

• Project Achievement Award for Museum or Gallery Development

2012 NZIA Awards

• New Zealand Institute of Architects incorporated, NZ Architecture Award, Heritage—May 25, 2012

• New Zealand Institute of Architects incorporated, NZ Architecture Award, Public Architecture—May 25, 2012

• New Zealand Institute of Architects incorporated, NZ Architecture Medal—May 25, 2012

2012 Property Council New Zealand Property Industry Awards

• Education and Arts Property Award

• Heritage and Adaptive Reuses Property Award

• Supreme Award

Patricia Morgan is Head of Learning & Gallery Services at Auckland Art Gallery Toi O Tamaki.

Security Tip: Epidemic Prevention at Work

Adapted from Allied Barton Services/AlliedBarton.com 

Keeping yourself healthy in the midst of a flu or other epidemic starts with healthy habits such as the ones below.

• Maintain a balanced diet.

• Exercise regularly.

• Get plenty of rest.

• Wash hands thoroughly—for at least 10-20 seconds—and often.

• Cough or sneeze into your sleeve, not your hands.

• Routinely clean and disinfect desks and common areas.

• Keep up with immunizations.

• Stay home when you are sick.

• Avoid close contact with those who are ill.

Architect of the Capitol’s Office of Security Programs Recognized for Excellence in Customer Service
The Architect of the Capitol’s Office of Security Programs was recently recognized by Building Operating Management Magazine with its FMXcellence Award for excellence in customer service. The FMXcellence awards recognize facilities management teams that “spearhead and execute stand-out projects and programs.” The honorees are chosen for demonstrating that they add significant value to their customers by helping to achieve their broader goals.

“Providing extraordinary customer service and going the extra mile are among our agency’s strategic goals, and receiving this award, which recognizes that we are achieving our mission, is a great honor,” said Architect of the Capitol Stephen T. Ayers, FAIA, LEED AP.

The AOC’s Office of Security Programs (OSP) is responsible for the care, maintenance, and operations of the U.S. Capitol Police’s buildings and grounds, while also providing customer service and support related to the physical security of the Capitol campus. To improve its customer service concerning issuing, tracking, and responding to customer work orders, Office of Security Programs staff implemented a new and improved work order system, in conjunction with the U.S. Capitol Police. The new work order process eliminated the use of redundant systems across the two agencies by consolidating all work orders into one system. In addition, it created a new customer service center as the central point of contact for all customer requests, ensuring timely response and close-out of work orders, and implemented a “Pulse Survey” that provided immediate feedback from customers as to the quality of the service they received.

The improvements were dramatic. Before the work order system was changed, there was, on average, a backlog of 380 work orders, and it would take an average of 55 days to complete a work order request. After the new process was put in place, there were fewer than 20 outstanding work orders, and it would take only three days to complete a customer request.

“In addition to rolling out the new work order system, OSP staff initiated an educational campaign to inform our customers about the services we provide, and the improvements we made to the work order process,” noted Kenneth Eads, Director of the AOC’s Office of Security Programs. “Our team did a great job of analyzing the changes that needed to be made. They worked closely with the U.S. Capitol Police to implement the changes, and they have successfully made this process more effective and efficient—as demonstrated by this award for excellence in customer service.”

IAMFA Environmental Group Meeting—Manchester Museum

By Jack Plumb

Another sunny day, another fantastic venue—it must be the latest gathering of UK IAMFA members. And so it was, the occasion being the latest IAMFA Environmental Group meeting, where over thirty IAMFA members and preservation professions get together to discuss common themes.

David Redrup, our IAMFA colleague at the Tate Gallery, held the first meeting following a request from UK members to work more closely with our preservation colleagues to move towards a more sustainable environmental control of collection spaces and archives. This was our third meeting of this group, and I do think that these meetings are starting to lead to a better understanding all round.   

We are very grateful to our host for this meeting, Nicola Walker, Head of Collection Care and Access at the Manchester Museum/The Whitworth Art Gallery. Nicola is also on the Manchester University Sustainability Group, representing the Museum.

Image Page 31

Caption:  Gallery front exterior: Whitworth Art Gallery at Manchester University.

Nicola provided the first presentation on the £12-million development of the Whitworth Art Gallery. Nicola explained that the Whitworth Gallery became part of the University in 1959, so this major development is being managed by the University. The University is a signatory to the 2005 Tallories Declaration: an official commitment to environmental sustainability in higher-education establishments. As the Museum representative with the University Sustainability Group, Nicola has a seat at all design team meetings.

To come up with a basic sustainable design, the design team identified a number of fundamental proposals, which were accepted by the University:

• Provide gallery space that did not need air-conditioning.

• Provide a view of parkland at the rear of the Gallery to bring the Gallery closer to the public.

• Move current archive storage to an existing basement location, improving the environmental stability of the collection.

• Achieve a BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Energy Assessment Method) “Excellent” rating.

The design team, working with Museum staff, identified existing underground vaults as the most environmentally stable location within the Museum. Following a satisfactory analysis of the flood risk, these were accordingly deemed adaptable as an ideal location for the archive store. This left the main hall, formerly used as an archive store, as an ideal place to form new galleries. The hall also had an unbroken gable end, which could be opened out onto a public park, thereby meeting one of the fundamental principles of the design brief.

The design team then turned its attention to deciding the environmental control parameters for the archive store and new galleries. The design team looked at the BIZOT (NMDC) standards—16ºc-28ºc (61ºf - 44ºf) and 30%-70% RH—and also VAM (Victoria and Albert Museum) standards—18ºc-25ºc (65ºf - 77ºf) and 40%-65% RH. Using these broader parameters, and the latest guidance documentation—PAS 198 and PD5454—the design of the new galleries will have a passive approach with no air-conditioning, and will be naturally ventilated.

Image Page 31

Caption:  MUMA design for WAG park entrance—Whitworth Art Gallery at Manchester University—showing proposed extension.

Dean Whiteside, also of the Manchester Museum, provided the next presentation on how the Museum went about installing a green roof over its canteen area. The green roof was funded with European finance, provided through a Manchester Council initiative. He explained how a detailed structural investigation of the roof was required to ensure that the existing roof could support the green roof. The Museum managed to persuade the University to bring forward planned maintenance of the roof, in order to install a new roof membrane with an anticipate 20-year lifecycle. The Museum took considerable time to decide on which plant to select, and eventually decided on sedum as the plant that best met their requirements.

Dean also spoke about other initiatives that the Museum had started, including the establishment of a small allotment garden to demonstrate what could be grown in Manchester’s city centre. The garden is cared for by staff, volunteers and students, who together have managed to grow over 30 varieties of vegetables, herbs and fruits. Another initiative, involving the installation of beehives on the roof of the Whitworth Art Gallery, sounds very similar to the Grand Palais in Paris.  

Patrick Dixon of the British Library was next up, telling us how even with a brand-new building—the fully automatic storage facility, which some colleagues fortunate enough to attend the 2008 IAMFA conference in London would have seen— there can be problems. Patrick explained that, once the plant was in operation, despite the fact that it was maintaining the correct environmental conditions, energy consumption was still considerably higher than predicted. This even included boilers running through the summer and chillers operational through the winter. With close observation of the BMS controls, it was noticed that the different plants were actually fighting one another: as one unit went into cooling mode, it caused the adjacent unit to go into heating mode. The solution was simple enough: the dead band for the environmental control regime was increased, leading to a considerable reduction in plant operation. This amply demonstrates the benefits of having an intelligent client managing the contractors who are generally in charge on a daily basis.

The final presentation was made by Paul Davies, Head of Estates and Facilities at the National Archive. Paul has been working with Kostas Ntanos, Head of Conservation and Development at the National Archive, for a number of years to establish the most effective balance between controlling an archive’s environmental parameters and long-term protection of the collection stored within that archive. In his presentation, Paul described how he took this great work by Kostas and turned it into a control regime for an air conditioning system, which he has called “seasonal drift”. I won’t go into the details of this presentation here, as the work by both Paul and Kostas fully deserves a more detailed explanation. Perhaps something to look forward to in a future edition of Papyrus.

The meeting was wound up by David Redrup of the Tate, who expressed his thanks to Nicola Walker and the Manchester Museum for being our hosts for the morning.

Image Page 32

Caption:  UK IAMFA members gather for the third meeting of the UK Environmental Group.

On a final note, David Sanders announced that he will be retiring from his post as Director of Estates and the Natural History Museum in June. David has made a significant contribution to IAMFA, and I am sure that all of our IAMFA colleagues around the world will miss David as much as we will miss him here in the U.K. David has supported the Benchmarking working group for a number of years now, and I know that group will be the poorer for his absence. The good news is that David will be Philadelphia—no doubt to tell us all how difficult it is to be retired, and the challenges that brings!

Jack Plumb is Head of Estates at the National Library of Scotland and is the U.K. Region Chair for IAMFA.

Regional Updates and Member News

Baltimore-Washington, D.C. Member Region

Quarterly Meeting of the Baltimore-Washington, D.C. Member Region

By Maurice Evans

The Baltimore-Washington, D.C. Member Region held its quarterly meeting on Wednesday, June 6, with over 35 members in attendance. The meeting was held at the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), Smithsonian Institution. John Bixler, a Zone Facilities Manager at the Smithsonian Institution, presented a captivating presentation titled “An Overview of NMAI LEED Certification Accomplishment”.

John's presentation provided an overview of the obstacles and challenges they had to endure in order to achieve LEED certification. His presentation initiated plenty of discussion concerning LEED certification. Roger Chang was also introduced on behalf of the AAM Green Building Initiative.

During the meeting, IAMFA members were also informed of the exciting news that Washington, D.C. will host the 2013 IAMFA Annual Conference. Planning for that conference will start soon, but in the meantime, members of the Baltimore-Washington, D.C. Member Region are looking forward to seeing everyone at the upcoming annual conference in September.

Smithsonian Office of Facilities Management & Reliability Hold Safety Stand Down at the National Zoological Park

By Dan Davies

The Smithsonian Office of Facilities Management & Reliability (OFMR) held a Safety Stand Down at the National Zoological Park (NZP) on Monday, June 5, 2012. They celebrated 221 days without an OFMR lost-time injury—a site record dating back more than five years. The event was inspired by a brief burst of near-miss incidents that could have caused injuries but, due in part to enhanced awareness, did not.

Among these incidents were timely responses to a freon refrigerant spill, a fuel oil spill, and a pallet jack accident. The Stand Down, organized by Mary Lariviere, Interim NZP Safety Coordinator, included a crowd-rousing session with Nancy Bechtol, Director, OFMR, and welcoming remarks from Dennis Kelly, Director NZP.

Morning presentations on safety policy and theory were given by Steve Walden and Chuck Fry, and by Mary Lariviere, all from the Office of Safety Health & Environmental Management (OSHEM). After burgers and dogs in the alley, afternoon sessions focused on applying some of that theory in Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) assessments, and Job Hazard Analysis (JHA) exercises. Fully half of the OFMR staff at NZP participated actively in this Safety Stand Down.

United Kingdom Member Region

John De Lucy’s Fourth of July Update

On July 5, 2012, Randy Murphy wrote to the IAMFA Board:

Hope all had a great Fourth of July, particularly you John—I assume there were huge celebrations in London!

Randy

John’s reply:

On July 4, all I heard was wailing and the gnashing of teeth. How can you celebrate the madness of our shared King George the Third? Don't forget he was your king too, for 16 years! In 1776, my town here—ROYAL Tunbridge Wells—was celebrating 170 years of history. The Pantiles, next to where I live, was the first street in the world to be built for the sole purpose of perambulation in 1660, and has never carried any traffic of any kind. If any of you care to visit me, I will happily take you for a perambulation on the Pantiles!!
One walks on the Pantiles to show off one's fine clothes!

My two pith helmets, one white and one brown, worn by my father in Malaya and Tanganyika during colonial times (which I know you remain jealous of), cause quite a stir on the Pantiles.

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Caption:  IAMFA President John De Lucy looking very dapper in one of his pith helmets.

I know you will not be able to resist, so let me know when you plan to visit. We can have lunch on my Mediterranean Terrace at the back of my garden.

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Caption:  The Mediterranean Terrace at the De Lucy house, decorated for the Fourth of July.

Please visit  www.visittunbridgewells.com/site/discover-the-town/the-pantiles for more images and information on the Pantiles in Tunbridge Wells.

Yours, John

New Zealand Member Region

By Patricia Morgan

Following the 2011 conference in Auckland, there was heightened enthusiasm from New Zealand members to meet on a regular basis. At Cliff Heywood’s kind invitation—and through his proactive approach in actually encouraging us to get together—a group of us met at his facility, the Navy Museum in Devonport, on May 24. This date coincided with a visit to Auckland by Rob Stevens and Pam Harris from the National Library of New Zealand in Wellington, so they joined us as well. Others in attendance were John Glen (Auckland Museum), John Manning (Te Papa, Wellington), Murray Dick (Voyager Maritime Museum), and Patricia Morgan (Auckland Art Gallery).

The day included a welcome from David Wright, Director of the Navy Museum, and his interesting presentation on the Museum’s long-term development plan. We were also given a tour of the Museum’s collection store and the Navy base, including the Armoury.

An update on the 2012 conference (which John Glen will attend) and upcoming Board vacancies was given, and those present also wanted to note their appreciation for John De Lucy’s leadership as President of the Association. Discussions were held on how we can increase New Zealand’s membership in IAMFA, and there was a roundtable discussion on issues and developments occurring at each attendee’s institution.

It was agreed to hold the next session in Wellington in late October, so that there would be feedback on the 2012 conference in Philadelphia. All in all, it was a great first meeting—and Cliff even ensured that the sun was shining, so the views over the Waitemata Harbour were spectacular!

Left to Right: John Glen, Rob Stevens, Patricia Morgan (seated), Pam Harris, John Manning, Cliff Heywood.

Patricia Morgan is Head of Learning & Gallery Services at Auckland Art Gallery Toi O Tamaki.

List of Contributors

Michael Arny

Hershow Al-Barazi

Chris Bailey

Niall Cooper

Dan Davies

John De Lucy

Maurice Evans

Joe May

Patricia Morgan

Jack Plumb

Rich Reinert

Ian Williams

Stacey Wittig

Elizabeth Wylie