> Property Management Executive Council (PMEC) Vision Statement

The PMEC is engaged in collaborative effort with commercial industry to develop best practices in the area of asset management from an asset's inception through disposal.  In partnership with commercial entities, the PMEC is setting the groundwork to effectively reduce the cost of managing the government's personal property while increasing the accountability through the use of skilled professionals, commercial standards, meaningful performance measures, and innovative technology.  During the past year the PMEC created a broad set of values that reflect core principles for developing a strong, invigorating environment where the PMEC can strategize and develop specific sustainable performance goals and measures that reflect the needs of the property management community.

The vision of future asset management in the federal government is building collaborative efforts by engaging private organizations, universities and commercial/industry entities to share approaches and build on existing techniques and new strategies to improve property management processes in the federal government.  

Skilled Professionals:  To create a sustainable work force that meets current challenges and develops leadership for the future, the PMEC is reaching out to federal agencies, commercial entities, and organizations that have made significant contributions to the educational needs of property management staff.   Included among the leaders is the Department of Health and Human Services with the development of KnowNet.  KnowNet is an on-line, interactive training module that provides educational information and certification in all aspects of Government Personal Property Management.  The Interagency Committee on Property Management (ICPM) seeks to provide a quarterly forum for the discussion of property management issues.  Of particular interest is the ICPM Subcommittee for Professional Development which is examining ways to advance the property management profession.  Also included in this effort is the National Property Management Association, a leader in the field of education for asset managers in the federal, military and commercial arenas.  Also, PMEC is exploring partnerships with universities to incorporate classes in Federal Property Management and also capitalize on research conducted to ensure that the property management staff is continually improving its state of operations and performance.  

Commercial/Industry Standards:  The PMEC strives to identify and provide for the adoption of industry best practices by federal agencies.  Several organizations have developed asset management standards that can be and should be adopted by federal agencies to management personal property.  Voluntary standards issued by ASTM cover a broad spectrum of life-cycle management of property, plant and equipment.  Voluntary standards are also available from various sources, e.g., the Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Standards, Intellectual Property Management and Protection Standards, National Occupational Standards for the Management of Property, and various property management standards issued by Universities throughout the Nation.  For consistency and accuracy in developing asset management programs, we believe that agencies should adopt and implement commercial/industrial standards.  

Technology Innovations:  We are in the process of information sharing with the Uniform Code Council (UCC) to develop concepts and technologies that will allow the federal government to account for property from the time it leaves the manufacturer throughout its life cycle using uniform manufacture identification tags.  The UCC, known for the implementation of the Uniform Product Code (UPC), has created the industry standard for labeling parts, supplies and items.  The new standard used by manufacturers to label property provides a unique bar code label for each item being produced.  Although at first glance this may be a small initiative, it has significant impact on the way the federal government accounts for personal property assets.  By adopting this standard technology, government agencies will not only have access to all items being shipped by manufacturers, we could also, by incorporating technology of the transportation carriers, have access to the property while in transit.  In addition, agencies would no longer be required to affix their own bar code labeling on equipment at the time of receipt, subsequently reducing personnel resources required to perform this function.  

The UCC, with the partnership of over 250,000 manufacturers, has created a global repository (UCCnet) for standardized item information that could be utilized by Procurement Offices throughout the Government.   The use of UCCnet will permit all agencies to standardize nomenclatures, manufactures, part numbers and associated attributes, and at the same time build the asset record for integration with agency finance and personal property systems.    The use of the UCC could also standardize the acquisition and property management data throughout the federal government and allow for efficiencies in both operation and performance at various levels.

Also, the UCC has partnered with MIT to deploy radio frequency identification tags (RFID).  WalMart and Microsoft have recently partnered with UCC to implement this technology by January 2005 throughout the United States.  RFID will allow for the rapid identification of assets from a centralized location and has the potential to reduce costly, labor-intensive physical inventory processes in the future.  This technology will also permit the immediate identification of items received, in transit or in storage, with the potential of significant reductions of personnel to monitor these types of transactions in the future.

The benefits of this collaborative effort will provide greater visibility of all assets acquired by the federal government.  It will provide program managers with the ability to effectively analyze future financial requirements for property and equipment, measure organizational performance, and provide sound budget allocations for various programs in the agency.  It will give Financial Managers the data accuracy required to reconcile the General Ledger, including assurance for the Government's Financial Statements, and prioritize financial needs of the organization.  It will assist the Procurement Offices in developing standard acquisition system information that will migrate across the government.  Finally, it will provide property management standardization, reduce the resources necessary to account for assets, and ultimately provide better accountability of taxpayers' money.

The implementation of this collaborative effort will require the support of the Chief Financial Officers, Chief Information Officers and Chief Procurement Officers.  PMEC recognizes that resistance from some communities is inevitable, but believes the benefits to the government significantly outweigh the resistance to change.  

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