University Business magazine awards the top colleges in the nation for the development of smart and innovative solutions to today’s challenges. The Models of Efficiency program is designed to promote advancements within educational facilities that can maintain or increase service, save resources, time or reduce costs. “Efficient business operations translate into better experiences for students and administrators alike, and the Models of Efficiency program aims to encourage schools to prioritize service,” says Tim Goral, University Business. “Texas A&M Health Science Center stands out for developing a very effective solution to a challenging situation.”
The Texas A&M Health Science Center was given recognition for its development of a web based asset management system. Prior to the new system, the department relied heavily on paperwork to relay information between its eight locations. Product or service requests would be sent out often on hand written notes with no way of tracking progress. Every department from purchasing to space management would have separate and different information systems varying from spreadsheets to access databases.
In 2009 the Facilities and Construction Office teamed up with AssetWorks to develop a new asset management solution that would help unify information and provide fast communication and tracking between multiple campuses. AiM, the web based program would now use 24 mobile devices (iPhones and iPods) for communication and remove the reliance on paperwork. Clay Hanks, Director of Operations and Facilities Management says he expects the department to save over $44,000 in its first year of operation and can reduce costs by almost $100,000 per year going forward.
Seven other colleges were honored by University Business including Iowa State University, Northern Arizona University, Old Dominion University, Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, California State University – San Bernardino, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and Western Washington University, who was honored twice.