In the past, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service had the luxury of training new facilities engineers by having them assist experienced facilities engineers. As budgets and staffing have tightened, fewer and fewer national forests can afford assistant facilities engineers, and the pipeline that produced facilities engineers has dried up. Now USDA Forest Service facilities professionals are frequently hired directly from college or from outside agencies or firms. If they have previous USDA Forest Service engineering experience, it may be in roads or other specialties. They may not have in-depth knowledge of building codes or of issues affecting most agency structures.

The term facilities engineers, as used in this report, means architects, professional engineers, and engineering technicians who provide engineering support for their unit's buildings and utility systems. Although facilities engineers have many duties, among the most important is ensuring that appropriate maintenance is performed so USDA Forest Service structures meet the needs of their occupants and remain useful for their full service life. The facilities condition assessment survey is the primary tool for ensuring that appropriate maintenance is performed. This guide is intended to help new facilities engineers become proficient at conducting a facilities condition assessment survey. The term facilities condition assessment survey, or just condition survey, refers to surveys conducted by the USDA Forest Service. The term building inspection refers to similar surveys conducted outside the USDA Forest Service.

Many of the Web addresses referenced in this guide are on the USDA Forest Service's internal computer network, which can be accessed only by USDA Forest Service and U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management employees. Web addresses that begin with fsweb rather than www are on the Forest Service's internal computer network.

Responsibilities of a USDA Forest Service Facilities Engineer

Facilities engineers provide a wide variety of technical support for national forest recreation and administrative sites. They help manage buildings and other structures, water supplies, and wastewater systems. The USDA Forest Service's diverse and often unique structures (figure 1), the aging infrastructure, and the continual scarcity of maintenance funds ensure that facilities engineers seldom experience a dull day in the office. Some of their responsibilities are described in the Forest Service Handbook 7309.11, chapter 40:

• Keep facilities safe, sanitary, neat, attractive, and in good working order both inside and outside.
  
  
• Insofar as practical, preserve the original condition of buildings and related facilities owned by the USDA Forest Service.
  
  
• Prevent major unplanned repairs, reconditioning, or replacement costs by developing and implementing a preventive maintenance program.

Figure 1—This historic barn was built by the Civilian Conservation
Corps at the Bitterroot National Forest's Sula Ranger Station.

To carry out these responsibilities, facilities engineers use information gathered during periodic inspections. Facilities condition assessment surveys, also referred to as maintenance condition surveys or building inspections, provide most of the information needed for technical support and maintenance. Condition surveys are also an accountable target, which means managers are responsible for seeing that they are completed. The data gathered can be a basis for the allocation of funds. As a bonus, the facilities engineer becomes very familiar with the facilities that are inspected regularly, which improves response time and accuracy when problems occur and emergency engineering expertise is needed.

What a Facilities Condition Assessment Survey Is and What It Is Not

A facilities condition assessment survey is an inspection and record of the physical condition of an existing building. An instruction letter about common definitions for maintenance and construction terms from the acting deputy chief for the National Forest System dated September 29, 1998, provides this definition: A periodic inspection of fixed assets and associated resources to determine and document their condition and estimated costs to correct any deficiencies.

Condition surveys are sometimes confused with other inspections. The Forest Service Handbook (7309.11) requires several other types of inspections and evaluations of existing structures, including inspections for safety and health, facility performance, energy conservation, accessibility, vulnerability, and asbestos management. Table 44.1-Exhibit 01 (https://fs.usda.gov/wps/myportal/fsintranet/!ut/p/c5/) of the Building and Related Facilities section of the handbook describes the required inspections and evaluations and how often they must be performed. Although several inspections may be conducted at the same time, each inspection has special requirements, including specific expertise for the inspector. For example, safety and health inspections cover high-risk areas, such as electrical and mechanical systems, hazardous materials, and U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requirements. Health and safety inspectors must have extensive training and experience in these areas. Typically, electrical and mechanical experts conduct specialty inspections during health and safety inspections. Specially trained Forest Service employees usually perform hazardous materials inspections and other safety inspections. Building construction inspections are performed on buildings under construction by personnel who have passed specialized construction administration tests and are certified for that work.

Condition surveys are general inspections that include a cursory look at specialized systems and requirements. They are not intended to replace more focused inspections, although there is some overlap. Condition surveys include examinations of the building envelope (everything that keeps the weather out), structural elements, and interior soundness. They also include checks to see whether systems and equipment operate effectively and appropriately. As with most facilities engineering work, condition surveys are complex and require some knowledge in many areas of expertise. Because of the breadth of knowledge required, few facilities engineers are experts in all areas. When facilities engineers identify an item of concern that is beyond their expertise, they should consult a specialist.

According to the Forest Service Handbook, a condition survey has two primary purposes:

• To ensure the accomplishment of routine maintenance and servicing of equipment and building systems. This may require reviewing preventive maintenance records.
  
  
• To list items noted during the inspection that need correction, repair, replacement, or similar action.

Home Inspections and Condition Surveys

Because commercial home inspections are similar to USDA Forest Service facilities condition assessment surveys, it is worth looking at industry standards for an overview. The American Society of Home Inspectors and the California Real Estate Inspection Association (see Professional Organizations in appendix A) have published standards of practice to assist home inspectors. These standards require inspectors to inspect structural components (foundation, framing, and so forth) and to probe structural members for soundness. Inspectors must examine interior and exterior wall coverings and finishes, flashing, trim, doors, windows, decks, steps, railings, walkways, eaves, soffits, fascias, vegetation, grading, surface drainage, retaining walls, roofing, roof drainage systems, chimneys, walls, ceilings, floors, cabinets, countertops, paint, carpeting, window treatments, appliances, insulation, any visible vapor barriers, ventilation systems, electrical systems, and mechanical systems. Inspectors must identify the presence or absence of seismic anchoring and bracing and drainage systems within the foundation footprint. In short, the inspector must describe the condition of the facility and all of its parts (Casey and O'Malley 2000).

There are some differences between a commercial home inspection and a USDA Forest Service condition survey. Facilities engineers are much more involved with solving problems and working with the occupants of buildings than are home inspectors. USDA Forest Service facilities engineers take the lead in correcting deficiencies they discover, perform engineering or architectural services such as structural analysis, and give advice on fixing problems. Home inspectors do not. Facilities engineers typically consult with maintenance personnel and building occupants to learn about problems that need to be investigated and noted in the condition survey report. Facilities engineers also are expected to review and maintain records validating completion of routine maintenance and required inspections. These records include operation and maintenance manuals for equipment, sanitary surveys for water and wastewater systems, potable water testing records, past condition survey reports, and other specialized reports, such as asbestos inspections.