Snow removal, the key to a safe campus
Bradley Hilovsky
Issue date: 1/27/10 Section: News
Robert Morris University's Facilities and Operations Departments have been hard at work with snow removal on campus thus far.
January has been particularly difficult to manage, large in part because of the regularity of the snow, according to Facilities Manager Richard Showrank.
"The quantity of the snow is does not necessarily pose the biggest threat to the safety, but when it snows for ten to fourteen days in a row, it is hard to keep up with it," he said.
When it does snow on campus, all of the facilities departments contribute and work together to keep everyone as safe as possible. Showrank said that there is no higher priority than the safety of the campus community.
"It's an all hands on deck mentality," he stated.
Lately the jobs of those in charge of snow removal have been incredibly demanding, working 24/7 if need be. Despite the time of day the snow begins to fall, facility employees must be ready to begin the snow removal process.
Showrank said that it is easier to maintain safe conditions when employees can begin their work at 3 a.m., in order to get somewhat of a head start before the campus streets are being heavily traveled. However, the snow does not always cooperate.
This school year, in order to be more efficient, the university has purchased a fourth dump truck for plowing the roads as well as a third sidewalk machine. The sidewalk machine is capable of plowing, sweeping, and salting the sidewalks.
These two new purchases have been especially critical to the success of the snow removal process thus far. They allow for more bodies to assist in the snow removal process, which enables the campus to be a safer environment more quickly. Manual labor, though, is still in full force, as many of the sidewalks, outdoor stairways, and building entrances still require shoveling by hand.
Four years ago Robert Morris switched the type of salt being used on the sidewalks around campus to help melt the ice. They switched from calcium chloride to calcium magnesium acetate (CMA). CMA is more environmentally friendly and is much easier to work with.
January has been particularly difficult to manage, large in part because of the regularity of the snow, according to Facilities Manager Richard Showrank.
"The quantity of the snow is does not necessarily pose the biggest threat to the safety, but when it snows for ten to fourteen days in a row, it is hard to keep up with it," he said.
When it does snow on campus, all of the facilities departments contribute and work together to keep everyone as safe as possible. Showrank said that there is no higher priority than the safety of the campus community.
"It's an all hands on deck mentality," he stated.
Lately the jobs of those in charge of snow removal have been incredibly demanding, working 24/7 if need be. Despite the time of day the snow begins to fall, facility employees must be ready to begin the snow removal process.
Showrank said that it is easier to maintain safe conditions when employees can begin their work at 3 a.m., in order to get somewhat of a head start before the campus streets are being heavily traveled. However, the snow does not always cooperate.
This school year, in order to be more efficient, the university has purchased a fourth dump truck for plowing the roads as well as a third sidewalk machine. The sidewalk machine is capable of plowing, sweeping, and salting the sidewalks.
These two new purchases have been especially critical to the success of the snow removal process thus far. They allow for more bodies to assist in the snow removal process, which enables the campus to be a safer environment more quickly. Manual labor, though, is still in full force, as many of the sidewalks, outdoor stairways, and building entrances still require shoveling by hand.
Four years ago Robert Morris switched the type of salt being used on the sidewalks around campus to help melt the ice. They switched from calcium chloride to calcium magnesium acetate (CMA). CMA is more environmentally friendly and is much easier to work with.
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