Purpose of the Space Survey

The purpose of the annual space survey is to confirm the rooms used by each department, gather information on how that space is used, and to verify attributes, such as room type and square footage. This information is always very important, but this year it is even more significant because Washington University is currently in the base year for its Facilities and Administrative (F&A) Rate Proposal. All activity in the current fiscal year will be consolidated into the F&A proposal to develop overhead rates that will be effective for fiscal year 2011 and beyond. The space survey is a critical part of the F&A proposal because it determines how most of the facility costs (equipment and building depreciation, interest and operations and maintenance expenses) will be allocated to organized research. Because space has such a substantial impact on the costs allocated to the federal government, it is essential that the survey is done in accordance with the regulations and the results are accurate. In addition to the F&A proposal, the space survey is also used for rent prorations, space analysis and planning, management reporting, and financial statement allocations.

Time Period Covered

The functional classification of a room is based on the activities conducted in that room during the entire fiscal year. It is not a snapshot of how the space was used at the end of the year. This survey must reflect the average functional use throughout the fiscal year. When completing the study, consideration should be given to the anticipated activity for the remainder of the fiscal year.

Floor Plans

Small scale floor plans of your area are available upon request. Contact your Space Coordinating Office.

Deadlines

Medical School departments should complete the space survey by May 29, 2009.

Danforth Campus departments should complete the space survey by June 30, 2009.

The space utilization report is provided to you by your Space Coordinating Office. It is a summary of the space information in the space system. Your space utilization report should reflect the space assigned to your department. Compare this report with the rooms your department actually occupies. The department field should reflect the specific department of the primary occupant, not the main or "roll-up" department.

The space utilization report is a continuous form, with one line for each room. It is designed to allow you to verify the following information: building, room, floor, square feet, room type, space functions and percentages, and principal investigator / primary occupant.

Please review this report and note any changes. The report should be signed and dated by the department space coordinator and returned to the appropriate Space Coordinating Office.

Room Type

Functional Use of the Room

Deadlines

Return the signed space utilization report, with any changes marked on it, to the appropriate Space Coordinating Office as follows:

Medical School Campus

• Keith Van Booven
• Facilities Management
• Box 8034

Danforth Campus

Types of Rooms

Laboratory space - You must consider the following issues when assigning functional use percentages for lab space:

Determine occupants

Identify all individuals who use the space, including anyone not paid by the University, such as visiting faculty, Howard Hughes investigators or unfunded students. Anyone that uses the space on a regular basis should be identified. Individuals who use the space on a non recurring basis for a material amount of time should also be identified.

Determine funding sources

Classification of space must be consistent with the coding of the expenses that support the activities in that space so it is necessary to determine the funding sources of the occupants of a room. However, individuals who use a room but are not paid by the University must still be taken into consideration when calculating functional use percentages by assigning them an appropriate percentage of room usage.

Determine how the occupants use the room

What a person does in a particular room determines how that room should be coded. A person can work in multiple rooms and do different activities in each room. For example, a faculty member may use a research lab for organized research and a classroom for instruction.

Consider the extent of use by each occupant

A person working in a lab 15 hours a week for four months should be counted much less than someone who works in the lab 40 hours a week for the entire year.

What you will receive

Space Utilization Report (Short Form)

The space utilization report is a summary of the space information in the space system. Your space utilization report should reflect the space assigned to your department. Compare this report with the rooms your department actually occupies. The department field should reflect the specific department of the primary occupant, not the main or "roll-up" department.

The space utilization report is a continuous form, with one line for each room, and contains the following information: building, room, floor, square feet, room type, space functions and percentages, and principal investigator / primary occupant.

Research Support Data Sheets (Long Forms)

Because this is a base year for the F&A proposal the Research Support Data Sheets (Long Forms) have been included for rooms previously reported as containing organized research. Documentation must be provided for all rooms or room clusters identified as being used for organized research. Either the Long Form or Completed Space Report from WebSpace are acceptable forms of documentation and must be reviewed and signed by a person familiar with the activities in the room.

Additional Reports

Medical School departments will receive the following reports:

Report # 1 -- Employee effort by function -- YTD payroll % Academic and Non-Academic

Report # 2 -- Funding sources by function -- YTD expenditures

Report # 3 -- Funding sources by P.I. - YTD expenditures

Those reports will not be distributed to Danforth Campus departments, but are available on request.

Deadlines

All rooms or room clusters must have a completed survey in WebSpace.

Documentation must be returned to the appropriate Space Coordinating Office for all rooms or room clusters identified as being used for organized research. Either the Long Form or Completed Space Report from WebSpace are acceptable and must be reviewed and signed by a person familiar with the activities in the room.

Medical School departments should complete the space survey by May 29, 2009.

Danforth Campus departments should complete the space survey by June 30, 2009.

WebSpace