COVID-19 FOD Response

Facilities Operations and Development (FOD) is working closely with the Wexner Medical Center to provide additional custodial support to assist in the fight against COVID-19. During winter break, FOD will reassign a portion of custodial staff from the academic campus to the medical center. As a result, effective December 13, custodial services will be adjusted temporarily in academic, research and administrative facilities that are expected to have lower occupancy during winter break. With minimal foot traffic inside these buildings, FOD will scale back on high touchpoint disinfection, restrooms will be cleaned once daily rather than twice a day, and FOD will forgo planned winter break projects like carpet cleaning and floor refinishing in classrooms. Disinfecting wipes will continue to be available for building occupants. The university's COVID-19 Transition Task Force's Safe Campus and Scientific Advisory Subgroup was consulted about these temporary protocols.

FOD expects to resume the same autumn semester cleaning and disinfecting protocols in academic, research and administrative buildings before spring semester.

Information about signage is available on the UniPrint website.

NOTE: During winter break (beginning Dec. 14, 2020) FOD will reassign a portion of custodial staff from the academic campus to the medical center to assist in the fight against COVID-19. As a result, custodial services will be temporarily adjusted in academic, research and administrative facilities that are expected to have lower occupancy during winter break. FOD expects to resume the same autumn semester cleaning and disinfecting protocols shown below in academic, research and administrative buildings before spring semester.

For FOD-managed buildings, custodians will clean restrooms and disinfect high touch point areas at least twice a day, including door handles, faucets, handrails and other commonly touched surfaces in high traffic areas. Specific cleaning protocols will continue to evolve in alignment with central guidance from the university's Transition Task Force. Everyone should review the current guidelines for specific building spaces to determine which areas they are responsible for disinfecting:

• Individual Offices - Individuals will continue to be responsible for cleaning and disinfecting their own workstations. For employees who occupy single offices, we ask you to please empty your own deskside trash and recycling bins into centrally located containers. This will limit foot traffic in and out of your office.
• Research Labs - Lab benches and sinks will remain the responsibility of the lab employees. Shared spaces and high touch surfaces will require more frequent disinfection and cleaning. Individuals should clean and disinfect shared workspaces before and after use.
• Kitchen and Break Areas - Building occupants utilizing break rooms or kitchens should wipe down surfaces after each use, including handles and buttons on water coolers, microwaves and refrigerators.
• Conference Rooms - Virtual meetings are a preferred alternative. If in-person meetings must be held, users are responsible for wiping down conference room high touch surfaces after each use.
• Classroom – Classrooms will be cleaned and disinfected nightly. Students and faculty should wipe down their personal area (e.g. seat, desk or podium, keyboard, mouse) on their arrival in the classroom before use. Individuals may use the wipes that are part of the university's welcome kit, and the university will also be distributing cleaning supplies in classroom buildings.

Other unique space needs will be determined as we move forward.

Individuals will continue to be responsible for cleaning and disinfecting their own workstations. For employees who occupy single offices, we ask you to please empty your own deskside trash and recycling bins into centrally located containers. This will limit foot traffic in and out of your office.

Research lab benches and sinks will remain the responsibility of the lab employees. Shared spaces and high touch surfaces will require more frequent disinfection and cleaning. Individuals should clean and disinfect shared workspaces before and after use.

Building occupants utilizing break rooms or kitchens should wipe down surfaces after each use, including handles and buttons on water coolers, microwaves and refrigerators.

Virtual meetings are a preferred alternative. If in-person meetings must be held, users are responsible for wiping down conference room high touch surfaces after each use.

NOTE: During winter break (beginning Dec. 14, 2020) FOD will reassign a portion of custodial staff from the academic campus to the medical center to assist in the fight against COVID-19. As a result, custodial services will be temporarily adjusted in academic, research and administrative facilities that are expected to have lower occupancy during winter break. FOD expects to resume the same autumn semester cleaning and disinfecting protocols shown below in academic, research and administrative buildings before spring semester.

Classrooms will be cleaned and disinfected nightly. In addition, custodians will clean bathrooms and disinfect high touch point areas at least twice a day, including door handles, faucets, handrails and other commonly touched surfaces in high traffic areas. 

Students and faculty should wipe down their personal area (e.g. seat, desk or podium, keyboard, mouse) on their arrival in the classroom before use. Individuals may use the wipes that are part of the university's welcome kit, and the university will also be distributing cleaning supplies in classroom buildings.

Students and faculty should also plan to engage in regular hand hygiene throughout the day (e.g., prior to coming to class, immediately after leaving class).

Cleaning supplies for individual use are the responsibility of building occupants or may be provided by your college or unit. In limited circumstances, FOD may provide cleaning supplies, when available. Please contact your zone leader with any questions.

Despite limited supplies nationwide, the university has hand sanitizer in stock and FOD will place a limited number of dispensers in each FOD-managed building. Each floor will receive at least two hand sanitizer dispensers. We will prioritize hand sanitizer placement near exterior building entrances, followed by interior stairwells, outside of restrooms and near elevators, when possible.

For employees who occupy single offices, we ask you to please empty your own deskside trash and recycling bins into centrally located containers. This will limit foot traffic in and out of your office.

Disposable facemasks can be discarded in waste baskets. Those needing a facemask can find one most university libraries or in their welcome kit.

Drinking fountains in FOD-managed buildings will remain operational and FOD will disinfect them at least twice per day.

Public water devices, including drinking fountains, were flushed on a regular schedule to avoid water becoming stagnant in unoccupied, FOD-managed buildings. Water systems are being thoroughly flushed prior to reopening each building. It is important to note that sinks or other water-using devices in non-public areas, such as ice machines, may require additional flushing and cleaning (such as discarding old ice). Departments are responsible to ensure these devices are flushed and cleaned.

Please refer to the Safe and Healthy Buckeyes website for steps to follow if you or a fellow Buckeye is sick or tests positive for COVID-19.

The university’s approach to keeping shared spaces clean during the pandemic is based on scientific guidance to reduce the risks of exposure. Those measures will typically be adequate when someone tests positive. For example, classrooms will be cleaned and disinfected nightly. In some cases, such as those where an infected individual has an office with a door, it will make the most sense to not enter the space and suspend cleaning for an appropriate amount of time. For FOD-managed buildings, custodians will clean restrooms and disinfect high touch point areas at least twice a day, including door handles, faucets, handrails and other commonly touched surfaces in high traffic areas. Regarding additional cleaning needs, all requests will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Submit service requests to Service2Facilites or your zone leader.

Please contact your zone leader with any questions.

Building HVAC systems are a secondary means of protecting occupants. According to the CDC, COVID-19 is spread mainly through close contact from person-to-person.

Ohio State’s HVAC systems are all designed to meet building code requirements. In addition, FOD follows the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) position document on infectious aerosols. FOD is focused on ventilation and filtration. We use MERV 13 filters wherever possible. These filters are recommended for COVID-19 and are effective against particulates generated from coughing and sneezing.

FOD meets all code-required outside air ventilation and runs building and supply exhaust air systems 24 hours a day which dilutes contaminants.

FOD is in alignment with commercial guidelines and follows CDC and ASHRAE recommendations. Commercial HVAC systems, like the ones used in most Ohio State buildings, are designed to comply with code and must meet minimum ventilation requirements. Additional testing is not needed. Outside air ventilation requirements are set during the design process and building systems are maintained in alignment with required codes.

All building and classroom ventilation systems have been checked for appropriate filtration. Classroom pool air filters will be replaced prior to autumn semester with additional air filter replacements scheduled in the coming weeks in all other locations. MERV-13 filters will be used wherever possible, per industry standards. Building HVAC systems are a secondary means of protecting occupants. Per the CDC, COVID-19 is spread mainly through close contact from person-to-person. 

HVAC air filters will be changed according to their normal cycle. FOD routinely changes air filters and they actually become more efficient over time by screening more and smaller particles until they are replaced.

There is no approved air quality testing to detect COVID-19. According to the CDC, COVID-19 is spread mainly through close contact from person-to-person.

According to the CDC, the virus that causes COVID-19 has not been detected in treated drinking water. Currently, there is no evidence that the virus that causes COVID-19 can be spread to people by drinking treated water. COVID-19 is spread mainly through close contact from person-to-person. FOD will be cleaning all water fountains, and high touch points in common space, twice daily.