“We started using Veoci to help us manage emergency management response. For instance, as a virtual communication tool to collaborate with various members of the University and external agencies. Most recently, with the support of the Veoci team, we are now using Veoci to help us manage some of the facilities operational functions for the 24/7 Facilities Operations Service Center. As a result, the service center team members now have nearly all of the information they need in one place as opposed to searching for documents in binders, sharing handwritten notes, or information verbally passed onto them.”
With the foundation of Veoci deeply rooted in emergency management, and many of our airport, government, hospital and higher education customers relying on us to help them activate emergency plans and notify first responders in times of crisis, we certainly do not want to abandon our roots. And with Yale University being our first emergency management customer, why would we?
However, with a platform as flexible as ours, we would hate for our emergency management reputation to limit us to being a software that can only help when everything has gone wrong.
Yale University knew not to limit our ability right away when they needed a solution to take inventory of campus lights and the work associated with them. They knew it was time to nix their paper-based inventory. Soon after their implementation of Veoci, interns were walking along campus with mobile phones and tablets with the Veoci App, taking inventory of all campus lights and documenting them directly into our system. Should a light be broken, a work order can be created directly from the field via our Mobile App. This information is then available to be viewed on a map with color-coded icons to indicate the status of each light, the status of a created work order, or any other custom form information such as the building the light is associated with, the type of light, the type of equipment needed for repair, and a photo of the light.
Yale also implemented our system for their documentation and visualization of building information. They mapped building parameters and power sources, and uploaded each building’s corresponding contact list of grounds crews and supervisors. These two solutions lead Yale to create a complete system for their facility operations management.
“As an example, we were able to create custom rooms that provide facility operations members with the ability to enter real-time information, which in turn updates the dashboard in the Facilities Operations Service Center side room.” – Carlos MercadoBe prepared for the back-to-school bustle
After these unique implementations with Yale, along with help from other customers, we at Veoci recognized more and more that each day brings up a new batch of things to worry about, along with those recurring, tedious daily tasks that require the coordination and collaboration of multiple teams, a timely completion of assignments, and a transparent, big-picture view of exactly what is going on and where.
With summer coming to an end and back to school just around the corner, colleges and universities are gearing up for the annual mass influx of students. All facilities must be functioning to perfection, campus safety officers must be at their posts, and managers and operations teams must be in constant communication, collaborating to ensure that the welcome-back process runs safely and smoothly. Campus operations, facilities management, and emergency management and response departments rely on each other for:
- Recording and maintaining accurate data: Emergency management, as well as all management and response teams, need access to data such as floor plans, power sources, and hazardous material information in each building on campus.
- System status: Should an elevator be out of service, or any other resource or piece of equipment be compromised, this information needs to be shared from facilities to EM teams.
- Preliminary assessments: Anything that can cause damage to campus, like flooding or other weather-related damage, needs to be reported on, evaluated and, should it become of real danger to students and faculty, emergency management must be notified to potentially activate the EOC and track the cost of damage.
How Veoci can help
With this constant need for timely and seamless collaboration, Veoci is proud to help colleges and universities get the job done and ensure safety with our real-time messaging, form, workflow, plan execution and record-keeping tools for:
- Work order assignment and tracking
- Asset management
- Equipment and resource databases
- Accountability
- Inspections and assessments
Situational awareness
- Visibility of operations, resources, logistics on an interactive, customizable GIS map
- Support decision making
Planning and safety
- Executing plans
- Safety precautions
Everything that we do at Veoci, both for our customers and for each other, is a team effort. We never fail to recognize that nothing great can be accomplished alone, so when it became clear that we could connect our original emergency management processes with the critical daily processes of other teams, we ran with it. With each new school year, our solution and our ability to help universities stay organized, proactive, and safe, continues to grow and improve.
