Universities today face several risks that go beyond academics. From aging infrastructure, extreme weather to safety incidents and compliance challenges, campuses are highly vulnerable to physical and operational risks.
Recent years have highlighted the need for proactive planning in higher education. Failures of deferred maintenance have caused building closures, disrupted classes and even endangered students. Reports from 2021 show that U.S. colleges and universities collectively face more than $112 billion in deferred maintenance costs, a high number that highlights the vulnerability of campus infrastructure.
At the same time, universities are experiencing the impact of climate change. There are high chances of extreme weather such as floods, hurricanes and wildfires that pose significant risks to campus operations. The University of Iowa, for example, faced nearly $750 million in damages from flooding in 2008, an event that essentially reshaped the way many institutions think about long-term facilities risk management.
What is Asset Management in Higher Education, and Why Does it Matter?
The risks facing universities today fall into two broad categories:
Physical risks:
- Building deterioration
- Equipment failure
- Safety hazards
- Disaster recovery; an example of this is water damage. This is one of the most common facility losses in higher education, with HVAC and plumbing failures accounting for nearly 47% of claims.
Operational risks:
- Poor data visibility
- Compliance failures
- Liability issues
This combination makes higher education asset management critical to keeping campus safe and sustainable.
Common Gaps in Campus Risk Management
Even when colleges and universities recognize the need to modernize, there are challenges that stand in the way. One of the largest is siloed information. Facilities, IT as well as administrative teams often operate on separate systems, which makes it difficult to get a true campus-wide view of risks. Decisions are often delayed or made with incomplete information, leaving key issues overlooked due to a lack of shared data.
Outdated asset records and a history of reactive maintenance are also issues universities and colleges face. Many campuses struggle to track the current condition of their buildings, utilities, and equipment, which makes it almost impossible to plan for capital renewal or prioritize investments effectively. Instead of being able to address problems early, teams are forced to respond after a failure has already caused damage or impacted student safety.
Limited resources can compound these issues. Tight budget constraints mean maintenance is often deferred, so proactive risk strategies are put on hold while immediate operational needs take priority. Beyond the physical stakes, institutions face reputational harm and liability. A major facilities failure can erode trust with students, families, faculty as well as donors. That’s why a modern approach to university risk management is essential – it’s anchored to integrated asset management practices that protect people, infrastructure and credibility.
How Modern Asset Management Mitigates Risk
Modern asset management gives universities a way to shift from reactive problem-solving to proactive risk strategies. By using asset management software, higher education institutions gain a complete and secure view of their infrastructure while also improving accuracy and eliminating time-consuming manual entry errors.
Key benefits include:
- Improved Asset Visibility and Data Accuracy
- Manage all assets from one database
- Eliminate time-consuming, error-prone manual data entry
- Gain a secure, campus-wide view of infrastructure conditions
- Smarter Long-Term Planning with Lifecycle and Risk Modeling
- Forecast when assets will need repair or replacement
- Estimate future costs for better budget planning
- Reduce surprises and extend asset life through strategic planning
- Campus-Wide Risk Awareness Through GIS Mapping Tools
- Combine GIS data with asset condition reports
- Visualize risk and maintenance needs
- Strengthen emergency preparedness and capital project planning
- Analyze performance trends across assets
- Transition to preventative maintenance
- Lower total cost of ownership and increase asset resilience
Protecting Physical Assets
Protecting an institution’s physical environment starts with knowing where the greatest risks are. Not every building or piece of infrastructure carries the same weight. Some facilities house critical research whereas others serve as social hubs for thousands of staff and students daily. Identifying high-risk infrastructure allows teams to focus on what is high priority, ensuring that limited resources are invested where failure would be most costly.
Planning for disaster resilience and emergency response is equally important. Extreme weather, fires or system outages can disrupt campus life in an instant. Having a clear map of the campus’s assets makes it easier to plan accordingly before unexpected disasters that way services are restored quickly. Modern asset management allows teams to visualize risks across the entire campus, create emergency scenario plans, and coordinate resources effectively.
Compliance, safety inspections, and regular condition assessments help reduce liability while reinforcing trust. Students, faculty as well as donors expect universities to provide safe, reliable environments. By tracking every inspection and maintenance record, institutions can demonstrate due diligence, avoid regulatory penalties and maintain themselves during periods of disruption.
Steps to Enhancing Risk Management for Universities
Universities don’t need large budgets to start improving risk management. Here are a few steps institutions can take to move toward proactive, campus-wide asset management:
- Create a campus-wide asset inventory: Establish a clear picture of buildings, utilities, and equipment to uncover vulnerabilities and outdated records.
- Prioritize the top 10 high-risk assets: Focus on the most critical infrastructure to prevent costly failures and ensure safety.
- Shift to preventative maintenance: Extend asset life, reduce downtime and avoid emergency repairs with proactive scheduling.
- Integrate IT and facilities data: Provide administrators across departments with a unified view of risks and resources in one shared database, enabling smarter, data-driven decisions.
Building a Safer, Smarter Campus
Risk management isn’t just about prevention—it’s about resilience and long term sustainability. With billions of dollars lost in deferred maintenance and intensifying climate risks, higher education institutions need a durable model for protecting people and infrastructure. An integrated asset management platform can provide this, safeguarding people, infrastructure and reputation for the long haul.
Want to see how PSD Citywide helps universities reduce risk and protect their most valuable assets? Let’s talk!
