HISD facilities and maintenance staff and plant operators gathered at Barnett Stadium on Tuesday, April 12, to attend a training event hosted by HISD’s Energy and Sustainability Department in partnership with Republic Waste. The training included a slideshow moderated by Republic Services Operations Manager Fernando Cedillo, who presented simultaneously in English and in Spanish.
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HISD Facilities worker pleasantly surprised to win the February Customer Service Impact Award
Thinking it was a business office meeting, Administrative Assistant Irene Martinez attended a gathering of her peers in the 228 McCarty training room, and she was overwhelmed with delight.
Continue readingCrews keep students, staff warm during coldest days of the year
On the rare occasion that Houston temperatures drop to freezing, it’s not just people who may struggle to get going in the morning. HISD schools and buses need extra time to warm up, too.
But for every cozy classroom or bus ride, there is a team that has braved the weather in the dark and early morning hours to make learning environments comfy and safe for students’ arrival.
They are the cold-start crews – the ones who are called in when temperatures drop to 32 degrees and below.
Continue readingPlant operators play an essential role in students’ return
If you follow Eliot Elementary School Plant Operator Irma Martinez along on her new cleaning route, you’ll see her clean and disinfect the school from wall-to-wall — figuratively and literally.
As part of her new duties, Martinez is required to clean and sanitize restrooms and high touch surfaces every hour. It includes walls, door handles, light switches, faucets, cafeteria tables, and anything else young students may touch that could harbor viruses.
“I try to help the students as fast as I can,” Martinez said. “That’s why I don’t work by myself. I work with my team.”
Continue readingWith 6 weeks left in hurricane season, facilities crews stand ready
From the moment a severe storm is predicted to make landfall along the Texas Gulf Coast, Facilities, Maintenance, and Operations staff are among the first to spring into action.
Crews place sandbags around flood-prone campuses. Generators are checked and filled with fuel. Pump systems are inspected to make sure they are operational.
“As long as we don’t have a power outage in the area, the pumps should carry all the water that could cause more damage down the road,” said North Maintenance Plumbing Team Lead Kenneth Wesley, who oversees the dispatch of plumbers to campuses when faced with a severe weather threat.
Continue readingCustodial services emphasize sanitization as students return
As an HISD plant operator at Field Elementary, Maria Santana has always worked hard to keep her school clean and safe. When students return to campus on Oct. 19, she’ll work even harder to do so.
As part of enhanced cleaning procedures, HISD custodians are required to target high touch surfaces every hour. This includes continuous sanitization of sink faucets, handrails, and desks using a host of cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting methods on an hourly, daily, weekly, and even emergency basis.
“We know how to clean,” Santana said. “But now it’s going to be about the details. Hitting those high touch areas like doorknobs.”
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