1.2 Designing the Database
According to the basic principles underlying the organization and use of the FICM classification system, some items of information are described as required (e.g., a unique space identifier, the square-foot area of the space, the organizational unit to which it is assigned, and the space use category), while others are optional (e.g., physical characteristics of the space, legal ownership, age, condition). In designing the facilities database, it is good practice to provide fields for both the required and the optional data elements, even though not all types of data may be collected at the outset. Even if some fields are ultimately not used, it is usually more cost-effective to program extra space than to add fields after the database is already in use.
Individual Spaces Are the Building Blocks of the Facilities Inventory. The most basic discrete spatial unit to be measured, inventoried, and tracked is an individual space. While the terms room and space are commonly used interchangeably, they are individually defined for purposes of this manual. A space is an area bounded by walls and/or an imaginary boundary line (a “phantom wall”) that accommodates a single use. A room is defined as a contiguous area enclosed by walls on all sides; it may consist of one or more spaces. As discussed in chapter 3, where clear distinctions between the two terms are made, some rooms may be subdivided into several discrete spaces because they accommodate multiple uses.
For purposes of this manual, the term space will be used wherever both terms could be used interchangeably, primarily regarding the use codes defined in chapter 4.
Database Technology. Database software has become much more user-friendly, inexpensive, powerful, and customizable in recent years, making data storage, maintenance, analysis, and reporting of inventory data far more practical and cost-effective, even for the smallest institutions. Software to support inventories is available and can be modified for particular institutional uses. Decentralization of computing resources through departmental, campus, regional, and national networks has become a common and effective means of making inventory information widely available.
The facilities inventory information for virtually any institution can usually be stored in a desktop computer, using commercially available database software. Some software vendors have designed interfaces that enable exchange between computer-aided design (CAD) drawings and computer-aided facilities management (CAFM) system databases.