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Friday, March 29
The Indiana Daily Student

Several IU departments work to keep campus roads, sidewalks clear in winter

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Snow and ice are two elements to expect with Indiana winters, and when this potentially dangerous weather hits Bloomington, several IU departments make sure students, faculty and employees are safe driving to work and commuting around campus. 

Monitoring winter is an essential job for IU staff. To battle unexpected snow, Samuel Robertson, Director of Facility Operations, has a three-step system that helps his team coordinate for the weather. 

“We continue to work towards this plan, perfection is hard, but the staff carries these services as a badge of honor,” Robertson said.

First, IU Bloomington Facility Operations monitors the forecast.  Then, when accumulation is expected, staff-on-call and workforce supervisors are coordinated.

The second step is to locate where the storm is at and where it will begin. This will let employees know what equipment will be needed. Residential Programs and Services, Building Maintenance and Operations and Landscape Services are tasked with snow removal.

The last step is to make sure the equipment is fueled, gassed and geared up for use. This includes snow blowers, blades and sweepers, as well as other snow removal items like ice melt and rock salt. 

The snow management plan is set to help staff understand what procedures need to be in place and what the best way they get it done. 

Although the work is done through multi-departmental efforts, each department has its tasks to get done.

If snow is in the forecast, Landscape Services will ready its trucks and equipment, and workers are called in. IU Police Department works in helping with IU Facility Operations Maintenance for any complaints. 

“This is an operation from the outside in and the inside out,” Robertson said. 

About 70 part-time and hourly employees are responsible for snow removal. Building Maintenance and Operations is responsible for the sidewalks and roads. 

The department responds to any call or need. Complaints are sent to the Operation Center where a ticket will be sent to the working supervisor. 

Assignments are split between of primary and secondary categories. Primary walks are considered priority work. This includes pavements, sidewalks, building entrances, accessibility ramps and routes of access to entrances.

The primary walks are the locations on campus where more students walk, like Sample Gates, 10th Street and behind the Chemistry Building. Secondary walks are the less traveled parts of campus. 

Streets are also split in both primary and secondary roads. Primary campus streets are the number one priority for large snow plows. 

The operation takes about four hours for the team, Robertson said. 

Pretreatment anti-icer is put down on the streets before snowfall to prevent them from freezing. 

On a normal snowy morning, employees are up as early as 4 a.m. or as needed, to prepare the campus by maintaining campus rounds and using Kubota's, salt dispensers, sweepers and large trucks for extra help.

 For 2 to 4 inches of snow, the operation takes about 8 to 12 hours to complete, Robertson said. 

Landscape Services clears 21 miles of streets and 53 miles of walks. With 3 inches of snow, they use 150 tons of road salt and 1,500 pounds of ice melt bags. 

“It’s a labor of love,” Robertson said. “We want to make sure campus is taken care of.”

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