Starting a Real Estate Career

Applied Research

Applied Research strives to:

• Generate recommendations to improve PBS operations, strategies, and policies
• Lead research to formulate strategic use of new and existing technologies to advance the PBS mission

We have seven active projects in two key research areas:

• Adopt sustainability practices and high performance building strategies
• Improve workplace effectiveness

Security

The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Federal Protective Service (FPS) provides law enforcement and security services to over one million tenants and daily visitors to federally owned and leased facilities nationwide. The FPS has established itself as the center of expertise for physical security operations. From the installation of alarm systems, x-rays, magnetometers and entry control systems, to monitoring those systems 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, providing uniformed police response and investigative follow-up, the FPS is organized to protect and serve. The provision of contract security guard services, crime prevention seminars tailored to individual agency and employee needs, facility security surveys, and integrating intelligence gathering and sharing.

For more information, click on the links below.

• U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement website (ICE). ICE is the investigative arm of the Border and Transportation Security Directorate (BTS), the operational directorate within the DHS tasked with securing the nation’s borders and safeguarding its transportation infrastructure.
• FPS Security Services
• Code Adam Alert Program

Commissioning

Total Building Commissioning is the Public Buildings Service process for quality assurance in new construction and facility modernization.

It is the process for achieving, validating and documenting that the performance of the total building and its systems meet the design needs and requirements of the owner.

Workspace Delivery

As the federal government's premier acquisition and workplace solution agency, GSA is committed to designing and delivering workplaces that maximize your long-term economic and strategic value. GSA's Workspace Requirements Development Process (RDP) provides tools, guidance and consultant help that goes beyond delivering traditional office design. Current workplaces are often a poor fit for changes made to organization, initiatives, technologies and staff. Traditional workplace planning that focuses on data does not solve problems that ultimately benefit the organization. RDP is a process that GSA uses to understand the customer's business, employee work patterns, constraints, and mission before the design process begins.

RDP deploys innovative tools and methods to learn an organization's mission, goals and workplace needs before attempting to design for it. RDP is analogous to a tailor who creates a good fit through accurate measurement. The tools are scaled to the level of employee engagement that the client organization deems appropriate and can be designed to be minimally intrusive as the client goes about its mission. As a result, RDP is a customer-driven process which adds real value to real estate.

Governmentwide Real Property Information Sharing (GRPIS) Program

The GRPIS program’s purpose is to encourage and facilitate the sharing of real property information among federal agencies so that better asset management decisions can be made. The program encourages the formation of real property councils within major federal communities nationwide. Active GRPIS councils are centered in Puget Sound, WA; South Florida; Arizona; New Mexico; Kansas City, KS/MO; the Front Range of Colorado; Atlanta, GA; the San Francisco Bay Area; and Portland, OR

GRPIS participants are working level federal real property professionals, including realty specialists, community planners, facility managers, interior designers, contracting officers, and other interested people.

The GRPIS program provides:

• A common sense strategy for improving real property management.
• A means to develop an informal, yet defined, network of federal real property colleagues in the local community.
• A collaborative community-based approach to problem solving and promoting improved uses of resources where participation can lead to tangible results.
• A process to identify and share “Best Practices” and to recognize innovative approaches/solutions to real property issues.

The GRPIS Team conducts one-on-one site visits with the local federal real property professionals to introduce the GRPIS program and to facilitate the establishment of a local GRPIS council. Once established, the GRPIS Team supports the local councils by facilitating the sharing of real property information and providing planning and administrative support for council meetings. It also supports a ListServ email service that provides participants with frequent updates on real property issues, training opportunities, information sources, and meeting announcements.

Spatial Data Management

GSA's Public Buildings Service (PBS) is mandated by Congress to charge rent to tenants occupying space in owned and leased buildings.

The Spatial Data Management (SDM) Program is GSA’s national effort to create, update, and maintain its spatial data and associated Computer Aided Design (CAD) floor plans to accurately reflect the national federally owned inventory.

SDM CAD floor plans are the basis for the assignment data and square footage information that GSA uses for tenant rent bills. The creation and maintenance of drawings supports accurate rent bills for customer agencies.

The SDM program also aids in the performance and utilization of each asset while identifying the most efficient and cost-effective way to house federal employees.

The GSA Office of Portfolio Management provides national program support to the regional SDM programs through:

• Implementing the PBS Business Space Assignment Policy
• Maintaining SDM National Business Process Flows
• Coordinating significant SDM projects

Regional SDM programs reinforce efficient management of GSA’s real estate portfolio. Asset managers, realty specialists, and property managers must have accurate inventory and assignment information through the regional SDM programs. The SDM drawings produced under the national program provide a graphic record of the GSA building inventory and can also be used as a planning tool and reference for building projects.