Rouages: “Managing Information Related to the University’s Real Estate Assets”
Philippe Simonin is the head of the Strategy and Asset Management Department within the Real Estate Assets Division (DPI). From fieldwork to analyzing the vast amounts of data he collects, and creating 2D and 3D plans, he talks about his work in the video series “Rouages” produced by the University of Montpellier.
To find them, however, you need to know the Triolet campus like the back of your hand, because Building 27—with its single story and hangar-like appearance—seems quite modest amid the massive high-rises dedicated to teaching and research. Yet it is within these walls that the “key holders” work. Forty-eight people spread across five departments make up the Real Estate Management Division.
Accessible via a single hallway, visitors pass by the technicians’ workshops—a veritable Aladdin’s cave where humorous collages speak volumes about the atmosphere here. Next comes the office of the director, Monique Lambert-Sebastiani, where the towering stacks of files and plans that fill the entire space evoke a paper metropolis; and at the very end of the hallway is finally the office of Philippe Simonin, head of the strategy and asset management department.
Career Plan
Philippe Simonin is a rather reserved man, but he makes no secret of it: video isn’t really his thing, but maps and floor plans—now those are his thing! And that, in fact, is the primary mission of his department, which consists of four staff members, including himself. “We create and keep up-to-date the floor plans and technical documentation for all buildings in order to manage information related to the University’s real estate assets, ” explains the department head. “In total, that amounts to more than 200 buildings—or 500,000 square meters—in a state of constant change.”
Campus and building maps, plans of underground utility networks, technical installation plans showing the location of electrical, heating, and plumbing systems as well as their connections… Everything has been recorded, noted, and updated since each campus was built.“Creating these plans allows us to extract building data such as floor area, room type, and the number of staff per office.” All this valuable information feeds into the database used to optimize the management of UM’s facilities. “It’s a task that requires a true photographic memory to keep the building layouts and room configurations in mind…”continues Philippe Simonin
Key figures
And it is precisely the management of this data that constitutes the second key responsibility of the head of the Strategy and Asset Management Department and his team. And the list of data to be managed is extensive. In addition to the data already mentioned, this includes: data related to land (parcels), properties, occupancy terms, operating costs, energy status and environmental performance, the condition of buildings, their regulatory status (safety commissions, technical inspections, etc.), accessibility, and security (intrusion, attacks).
“All this information allows us to compile reports, provide the data needed for decision-making, and respond to inquiries from the ministry in order to secure funding for building renovations and safety upgrades,” explains Philippe Simonin. This data is of interest not only to the various university departments with which the service collaborates but also to its external partners, such as the Ministry of Higher Education and Research, the Ministry of Ecological Transition, and the State Real Estate Directorate…
All these collaborations reflect the diversity of tasks inherent in this role. “My tasks can range from lifting a cast-iron manhole cover to see what utility lines run beneath it, to creating 2D or 3D plans, and managing databases and information related to infrastructure.” ” And when asked to reflect on a memorable moment in his career, Philippe Simonin tells us about an encounter with a stuffed fox. Proof, if any were needed, that the University’s heritage holds many surprises.