Facility Modifications

• When to Use a FacMod Request?
• When to Use a Work Order Request?
• Why is a FacMod Request Required?
• What to Submit with Your Request?
• Who Can I Contact With Questions?
• Download Facility Modification Forms

When to Use a Facilities Modification Request

Use a FacMod Request when you are requesting a change or modification to interior and/or exterior area of your campus/building, such as:

1. Structural/physical changes of interior space, for example:
   • Demolition or new construction of walls, ceilings, floors, stairs, etc.
   • Installation of fixed equipment or furniture requiring utility connections, including HVAC or exhaust ventilation systems.
   • Connecting to building utilities or mechanical systems.
   • Adding hardwired electrical equipment, data outlets and electrical outlets to support technology, etc.
   • Adding/moving shelving or chalk/white boards.
2. Changes in use of interior space, for example:
   • Changing conference rooms to offices, offices to classrooms, Career and Technical Education classrooms to computer labs, etc.
   • If the change in space is due to a course addition or course elimination, please complete the form (Course Addition/Elimination Request) found under the forms section of this site, submit the completed form to the appropriate program reviewer for approval, then submit the approved form with the FacMod to Facilities Design & Construction for review.
   • Changes in the way space is used on your campus may impact capacity. Therefore, a FacMod must be submitted to the Facilities Design & Construction Department in order to track these changes within our database. This will allow Wake County Public Schools to keep the most up-to-date statistics on space utilization.
3. Changes to the exterior of the building.
4. Location of new equipment on the site.
5. Changes or modifications to exterior spaces, (i.e. the grounds or play fields) for example:
   • Installation of playground equipment, (Follow Design Guidelines for Development of Playgrounds criteria) found under the forms section of this site.
   • Constructing dugouts.
   • Adding lighting.
   • Adding bleachers.
   • Installation of a new track.
   • Installation of an irrigation system.
   • Painting of any kind.
   • New plants of any type.
   • New gardens of any kind.

ALL modifications on your campus need a FacMod submitted to the Facilities Design and Construction Department for review and approval, before proceeding with the work. Regardless of funding source, (e.g. PTA, a corporate sponsor, a grant, school budget or if you are requesting funding through WCPSS Parent Volunteer Matching Grant Funds) a FacMod form must be submitted.

Before Parent Volunteer Matching Grant Funds are approved for your project, a FacMod must be submitted to the Facilities Design & Construction Department, and approved.

When to Use a Work Order Request

When you are requesting an item to be repaired or replaced, use a Work Order Request; DO NOT USE A FacMod REQUEST. Work Order Requests are for maintenance items, such as:

• Repairing of worn carpet.
• Repairing damaged steps.
• Repairing damaged pavement.
• Replacement of old damaged chalkboards or tack boards.
• Any heating or cooling problems.
• Any electrical problems.
• Replacement of dead landscape plants.

Who Should I Contact to Place a Work Order?

To Place a Work Order for any of the items listed above, plase contact Maintenance & Operations Customer Service at: (919) 856-8120

Why is a Facilities Modification Request Required?

Listed below are some of the problems that can be avoided when a Facilities Modification (FacMod) Request is completed, submitted and processed.

• Room becomes too hot after being converted into a computer lab. - Computers generate heat and have special requirements for electrical and network wiring. Converting an existing classroom into a computer lab requires consideration for HVAC, electrical, technology networks, etc.

• An area has insufficient water and electrical hookups. - A washer/dryer is purchased and delivered for use in an athletic facility prior to plumbing and electrical being evaluated.

• Increase in bee stings in high traffic areas. - New landscaping is added without consideration of the preferred types of plants.

• Planting trees and shrubs, which obstruct windows. - New landscaping is added in front of windows without considering the height of the mature trees/shrubs.

• Failure to comply with current building codes. - Constructing a new structure on your campus without considering current ADA, Federal, State, and local code requirements.

• Sidewalks and pavement rupture and crack. - Planting trees and plants too close to the sidewalks and buildings without considering the growth of the roots.

• A newly constructed nature trail or outdoor teaching space is destroyed. - New/Future construction is planned for that location.

• Exceeding the impervious surface percentage requirement for your campus. - Adding concrete sidewalks, basketball courts, hard surface play areas, etc., resulting in the school being fined by the city/county.

• Paint peeling off the walls from an area that your PTA recently painted. - Not properly preparing the surface, or using correct paint.

• The school is “written up” by the Fire Marshall. - Students were placed in an area not appropriate for use as a teaching space, and the room then does not meet fire code.

• Failure to comply with Wake County School Systems Educational Specifications. - Placing special needs students in a room not designated as an exceptional children classroom, when it is required that the Wake County Public Schools System must provide all students with comparable spaces. (This is an issue that can have legal consequences.)

What to Submit with Your Request

When requesting a project involving new construction:

Submit:

• Construction drawings with an Architectural or Engineering seal.
• A site plan that shows the location of the proposed new construction on the campus.
• List, or show on the site plan, additional/relocation of plumbing or electrical work needed for the project.
• The name and contact information for the contractor that will be involved in this project.
• The contractor and architect’s commercial insurance certificates showing the Wake County Board of Education additionally insured.(Insurance requirements are as followed: 1 Million of General Liability, 1 Million of Auto and Workers Compensation)

When requesting a project involving new equipment to the campus:

Submit:

• Shop drawings and the manufacturer specification that pertain to the new equipment.
• A site plan showing the location of the new equipment on the campus.
• If exterior - Drawings show the location of any new underground cabling that will have to be run and where it is tied into the main building.
• If interior – Drawings showing all new cabling and where that new cabling is tied into the building.
• If the equipment is playground equipment, please provide a 2-D and 3-D drawing of the playground design.

When requesting a project involving new landscaping to the campus:

Submit:

• A site plan showing the entire area subject to additional landscaping.
• A compete list of all plants that will be used. Refer to Wake County Public Schools Preferred Plant List. (If a plant you would like to use is not listed, submit the plant name with your request for approval, prior to the start of your project.)
• The number of plants that will be used, and their approximate size at maturity.
• On the site plan, show any ponds or additional structures that will be added.
• The type of filler (pine straw, mulch, etc) that will be used.

Please refer to the Facilities Design and Construction Design Guidelines under the Guidelines section for a copy of the Preferred Plant List, Fencing Guidelines, Irrigation Systems Guidelines, and Playground Equipment Guidelines.

Please note - If the project requires permits or municipality reviews, a copy of all documentation must be sent to facilities prior to the start of the project.

Facility Modification Forms

• Facility Modification Request Form

  This form must be completed and turned in before any work on a Facility Modification can be done. Please download, read and complete this form in order to start the FacMod Process.

  Download Form

• Parent Volunteer Matching Grants

  The purpose of the parent volunteer maintenance program is to provide parent volunteers the opportunity to participate in buildings and grounds improvements at the school(s) of their choice thereby improving school facilities for students and staff and with cost savings to the taxpayers and citizens of Wake County. Projects which meet the requirements of the program must comply with the current WCPSS guidelines for systems, materials, and amenities currently provided in WCPSS school facilities.

  Download Form

• Planning Worksheet

  This form is designed to help you plan out everything you will need for a successfull FacMod. By answering these questions on this worksheet, you will decrease the chances of something being overlooked or something forgotten about during this process.

  Download Form