Facilities staff outline pilots, condition findings and maintenance spending

Facilities and construction staff presented an extensive update on June 3 to the Chesterfield County Public Schools board, outlining new custodial pilots, condition assessments for aging systems and the district’s major maintenance spending plans.

Mister Thuma, who led the facilities briefing, said the district is testing a custodial‑materials delivery pilot at seven schools near the facilities office and will trial ATP meters and UV checks to measure cleanliness objectively rather than rely on visual inspection. "We're starting a new custodial, pilot program to see with delivery of our materials," he said, and named ABM, Golden Gate, "S" (a new vendor) and XL as custodial partners.

He described a switch in floor care from traditional wax to a "Pearl" program that uses "a less toxic chemical" and produces a harder finish; he said the change should keep floors "cleaner, brighter for a longer period of time." Thuma also said two vendors will run a monthlong floor‑scrubber demonstration at several schools; board members asked whether the scrubbers would reduce headcount, and Thuma said the pilot "is not about reducing staff at all," adding it is intended to make staff more efficient and could allow movement of staff into maintenance roles if the pilot succeeds.

On building systems, Thuma said the preventive maintenance program continues to expand and the district is shifting some HVAC, fire protection and roofing work from outside contracts to in‑house crews to reduce costs and improve data quality. He provided condition counts, saying "54% of our HVAC systems have 0 to 5 years left," roofing shows about 7% red and 61% yellow, and electrical panels include roughly 9% red (many obsolete). He said the district will prioritize yellow‑rated items to extend useful life.

Thuma reported recent maintenance volumes and spending: his crews completed more than 10,000 work orders and another ~11,000 were done by field staff; he cited about $3,100,000 in HVAC work completed this year and an additional $3,100,000 underway, plus about $2,600,000 in smaller HVAC/plumbing jobs under $50,000. He also identified Evergreen and Gates as phase‑2 projects trying to get under contract and described a conversion of the building automation system (Tridium) to an open protocol.

The presentation included condition assessments of the district’s seven oldest schools not on the CIP; Thuma said those sites have significantly high Facility Condition Indices, citing Thomas Dale with an FCI near 46% and Bellwood about 21% in better condition. He noted a fleet concern: roughly 139 vehicles with high mileage (around 150,000 miles) and a van model whose transmission may be discontinued in 2026, creating replacement and repair pressures.

Josh Davis and board members discussed funding and priorities. Thuma said the district’s capital benchmark figures and current receipts differ—he referenced a benchmark need and current funding levels—and acknowledged that while much essential work is funded, additional money would be needed for aesthetic items such as painting.

The board asked several operational questions about pilot rollout and staffing; Thuma reiterated the pilot's aim is efficiency, not layoffs. The facilities team closed by thanking members and noting ongoing summer work schedules and monitoring plans.

What’s next: staff will run the custodial scrubber pilot, continue condition‑based repairs and proceed with planned summer projects; the board will receive additional project and budget details in upcoming meetings.