What is ORS?
The Office of Research Services supports the National Institutes of Health in a wide variety of ways that are necessary for the efficient and safe operation of the largest biomedical research facility in the world. The NIH is an organization that is so much its own community that it has its own zip code.
Engineering, maintenance of the buildings and grounds, construction, renovations, telecommunications, environmental and occupational safety and health, public safety, mailing, printing, parking, transportation, conference facilities, space acquisition and management, and, last but not least, sanitation services, are all provided by the staff and management of ORS.
NIH's newest day care center, on Executive Boulevard, is expected to open this June. Division of Space & Facility Management (DSFM) Director Paul Horton made sure it was built for the future: it is the largest day care center in GSA's inventory, at 25,000 square feet. The staff can care for 220 children, infants to age 14. Approval is expected for a campus shuttle bus stop for the center. There is ample parking for drop off and pickup.
Although a waiting list exists, that should not discourage anyone: many parents have had to make other arrangements - so sign up!
Information:
Ann Anthan or Anne Schmitz
530-5550
Many recent personnel and budget changes have affected the development of the NIH Master Plan. The November 1993 draft was based on 40% growth over 20 years. Though no one knows for certain how much NIH will grow in 20 years, it is universally agreed that 40% is unrealistic given current constraints. A new draft is due to Congress this June.
Neighboring communities' input has become an increasingly important part of the process. The traffic & parking issue, a significant Master Plan component, is of major concern to the NIH and its neighbors. NIH has already come a long way in improving parking while reducing traffic. With a 15% reduction in FTE's and the success of Transhare and satellite parking, traffic has been reduced dramatically. Between 1992 and 1994, rush hour traffic entering and exiting the campus had decreased by 27% in the morning, and 31% in the afternoon.
Perhaps the most significant change to the Master Plan concerns the 3.5 million square foot Clinical Center. It will not be totally replaced as was previously planned - but it will be renewed! A 250 bed clinical research hospital, with associated laboratories, will be built adjacent to the existing facility, which could be renovated in phases.
ORS recently surveyed all NIH employees to determine interest in a commuting alternative to carpools - shared taxi rides. The idea was met with great interest: 700 people wanted more information! Barwood Taxi is now creating a database which will match likely commuting partners. Barwood will be calling NIH employees directly to discuss scheduling and cost. If there is still strong interest, NIH will work with Barwood to determine guidelines to address questions about parking permits, emergencies and the possibility of partial commitment to the program, such as 3 days a week.
The Conference Service Branch (CSB) of DSFM is providing the NIH community with access to its scheduling system. This access provides information on conference space availability in all facilities managed by the CSB, and enhances users' ability to plan for meetings and conferences.
"Read only" access is available with the following: IBM compatible PC or a MAC with IBM interface, Internet access, a log-in name and password.
Information
Computer Systems Staff or AO
should call
Assistant LAN Administrator
David Swift 594-9412
More Wrenches, Less Pencils
You can do more with less, and ORS has proven it with DES Express Service. This program gives rapid response to any job that takes 2 hours or less, with a single mechanic. Examples include installing a clock, hanging a bulletin board, or changing the location of an electrical outlet. Express Service is not new, but it is not well known. Watch the hallways for an eye-catching new poster, designed by an ORS employee, and produced to encourage more calls for Express Service.
Bonus: No paperwork needed!
Howard University School of Architecture Outreach
Program
A group of Howard's talented architecture students gained real life experience with a Studio Project class in laboratory design that was taught in partnership with NIH architects and engineers. These dedicated ORS professionals played a major role in the class, giving guest lectures and providing guidance at various stages. The project was Building 50: a plan for a lab that may replace buildings 2,3& 7. Final projects were judged by professional standards. The students will come to NIH in March for a formal presentation of their work.
Continuing the partnership, another group of students are in the midst of a Spring semester studio project with NIH - a day care center. Both NIH and Howard University gain from this partnership. The students work on plans for real buildings, and NIH recruits a new and diverse generation of very specialized lab and hospital architects! DES Acting Director Tony Clifford said that he and his staff "are very excited by the outcome of this program. Both Howard and NIH desire a continued collaboration in the fields of engineering and architecture, and envision a permanent relationship."
Every community needs protection, and the NIH is no exception. In the not too distant past, the campus was patrolled by guards; all crimes were investigated by the FBI. When this arrangement was no longer practical for NIH or the FBI, NIH received federal authority to maintain its own police force to watch over the thousands of people, 75 buildings, substantial traffic, and millions of dollars of equipment and supplies.
NIH is a unique place where occasional protests require crowd control. NIH police are trained to handle demonstrations and all types of threatening situations - with caution. "There were 100,000 calls to the NIH police in 1994," according to Jim Sweat, Director of the Division of Security Operations, who is "proud of the officers' fast and appropriate responses to these calls, and the resulting low crime rate."
Thanks to FEDEX and airline ads, people are familiar with the spoke and hub system of transportation. NIH mail is collected and distributed in exactly that way, with a new facility on Stonestreet as the hub. The spokes? 900 mail stops in 91 buildings! Mail service has improved tremendously from the days when it was sorted in the dreary basement of Building 31. Turnaround time in and out of Stonestreet is 24 hours - it used to take a week! The Director of the Division of Support Services, George Mendez, says that even good service can improve: "My goal for further effectiveness is to provide half day turnaround for interoffice mail."
--- TIPS ---
and bundle each set with rubber bands
Although ORS has tried to extol the virtues of Zip+4 with memos and posters, only about 12% of NIH mail is addressed with the nine digit zip.
Zip+4 makes a dramatic difference in US Mail delivery time: it is already sorted, avoiding the delay of local handling. The same applies to sorting (or avoidance of sorting) here at NIH's Mail Center because your MSC number is also the "+4&" part of your zip code! If your MSC# is 1234, your zip will be 20892-1234. For the time being, full addresses are still needed - the extra coding facilitates sorting.
Information
Mail Services' Customer Service Line 496-4774
Parking and Transportation
NIH TRANSHARE Participation Nears Capacity
In place since October of 1992, the NIH TRANSHARE Program gives employees up to $42 per month in transportation fare media if they commute to work by Metrorail, bus, or vanpool. Funding is available for 2,000 employees. Participation is now at 1,900. Currently, only persons officially designated as employees are eligible. NIH is trying to change that restriction through legislation which would allow Visiting Fellows and IRTAs to participate.
To join the program:
to you
The NIH subscribes to the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments' RideFinders Network, a database of local commuters interested in carpooling and vanpooling. Approximately 1,300 people carpool/vanpool to NIH. In order to be a recognized carpooler—thus gaining the right to park in an official CP parking space—at least 2 members of the carpool must be independently eligible for a general permit.
In addition, many people carpool unofficially. They park in general parking spaces and keep their own permits. People who are interested in carpooling or vanpooling, whether officially or unofficially, are encouraged to take advantage of the RideFinders service.
New Satellite Parking: New Carrollton Metro
The results of a recent survey showed that even more employees would commute to work on Metro if there was free parking at the New Carrollton Metro Station. In response to your interest, ORS has completed negotiations with Prince George's County, and leased spaces will be available April 3, at no cost to you. Reminder - the other satellite lots are:
Garage 57 in Bethesda
Mid-Pike Plaza in Rockville
Shady Grove Metro Station
Information Gail Thorsen 402-RIDE
If you use your own car for business travel, reimbursement has gone up from 25 cents to 30 cents per mile.
If you are really cool and drive a motorcycle, the reimbursement rate rose from 20 cents to 24.5 cents per mile. And don't forget to wear a helmet!
The GSA no longer publishes the Federal Travel Directory, but you can get the same information from the following source:
OAG> - The Official Airline Guide
CAT#430741
Available on paper or on-line, the OAG is a monthly publication with prices, flight times, and lodging information, updated quarterly. The published version is $28 per year plus a $13.67 Faxon service charge. On-line cost is based on use.
To subscribe:
Procurement Personnel
should call Faxon
1-800-395-1639, ext. 620
On-Line Information
1-800-DIAL-OAG
AIRPARK DCA is a parking facility just past Crystal City in Alexandria,at 3700B Jefferson Davis Highway, offering reduced rates for business travelers departing from National.
Daily Rate: $8.85
Phone: 703-519-9153
Must have:
Travel Order -or-
other verification of official business travel
Features:
Secure, fenced-in lot
24 hour shuttle to/from National Airport
Government American Express credit card accepted
Information Ann Gillen 402-1661
Communications
The purpose of this newsletter is to inform & communicate with the entire NIH community about ORS projects, policy changes & initiatives that could be of immediate practical interest, along with some items that might be filed away for possible future use. The Office of Research Services directly affects you and the place where you spend your whole day - your office, your building, your entire organization. Your satisfaction is our utmost concern. Please let us hear your ideas and comments.
Clinical Center Parking Garage
Among many other improvements to be made to this garage, the steep P1 ramp will get a snow melting system! Disruption to parking spaces will be minimized by phasing the construction in 12 steps over 3 years. Work will begin in April, not in January as was previously stated in the Record. If you should see a robot running around the garage, its purpose is concrete removal. A robotic high pressure water system has been chosen to keep the project as quiet as possible. Relocation of specially designated and reserved spaces will be well marked with clear signs. Convent Drive will also be affected by this work: 27 spaces in Lot T5 will be lost, as will the bus pull off area. All changes will be announced well in advance.
In 1993, the Army Corps of Engineers recommended that Building 2 be taken out of the old Round Robin Program - intended to rehabilitate NIH's oldest laboratory buildings - and converted to modern offices. If that request is approved, Buildings 1, 2 and 3 would form an historic administrative core on campus. For now, the interior architectural, mechanical and electrical systems will be removed. The six month project will begin in April, causing very minimal disruption to vehicular traffic and parking. Pedestrian traffic will not be disrupted at all: ORS will build a protective fence and keep all lighting in place. Note: Building 2 will remain eligible for historic registry status.
Information: Kristy Long 402-4860
us a line
Mr. Steve Ficca, the Associate Director for Research Services, would like to respond to your questions, comments and suggestions...or is there anything you would like to know about the Office of Research Services but were afraid to ask? Here is your chance!
Topic suggestions:
Your name:____________________________________________________
Building & Room:___________________ Phone Number:________
Please check if you would like your comments and our response to be kept confidential.
Fax your comments to Mr. Ficca's office at 402-0604.
Return to home page for:
 |
This page last updated November 1, 1996