- FICM Overview
- How to Use
- Table of Contents
- 1. Getting Started
- 2. Basic Database Principles and Applications
- 3. Building Area Measurement
- 3.1 Overview of Building Measurement Terms
- 3.2 Definitions of Building Areas
- 3.2.1 Gross Area (Gross Square Feet—GSF)
- 3.2.2 Net Assignable Area (Net Assignable Square Feet—NASF)
- 3.2.3 Nonassignable Area
- 3.2.4 Building Service Area
- 3.2.5 Circulation Area
- 3.2.6 Mechanical Area
- 3.2.7 Net Usable Area (Net Usable Square Feet—NUSF)
- 3.2.8 Structural Area
- 3.2.9 Illustrative Cross-Section of a Building
- 3.2.10 Parking Structures
- 3.3 Proration and Phantom Walls
- 3.4 Area Measurement Questions and Answers
- 4. Space Use Codes
- 5. Data Analysis and Reporting
- 6. Emerging Issues
- 1. Getting Started
PDF & Related Info3.2 Definitions of Building Areas
The definitions5 and procedures provided in this chapter are intended to clarify and provide guidelines for the most commonly used types of data about buildings that would be collected and compiled. These guidelines are based on the definitions and standards established during the 1960s for the Federal Construction Council and published by the National Academy of Sciences. The Federal Construction Council standards were intended for use by federal agencies, but they have been widely adopted and used by postsecondary institutions.
The definitions and guidelines in this chapter attempt to clarify and update some of the earlier standards by providing additional guidance on how to interpret and apply measurement procedures. The guidelines also are intended to establish a common standard for the minimum amount of data to be included in a building inventory to provide a database that is usable for both intrainstitutional and interinstitutional purposes. Institutions are not precluded by these guidelines from collecting additional building data or from including other types of structures in their facilities inventory.