The (OS1) Users Symposium was organized in 2002 to assist in benchmarking best practices for The Boeing Company’s effort to qualify for the Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award. The Boeing Company subsequently earned in the Baldrige Award in 2003, following an extensive survey of custodial operations at organizations considered “best of class” including; General Electric, The Tennessee Valley Authority and ConocoPhillips. After surveying these and other organizations, The Boeing Company decided to benchmark best practices in cleaning against organizations using the ManageMen, Inc. Operating System One, commonly called (OS1).

The Boeing Company selected the original benchmarking group and invited them to Seattle to meet and share data with Boeing’s Shared Services Group (SSG) which operated the cleaning operations. The group named this event the (OS1)^® Users Symposium. A special facility tour was also part of the symposium as well at Boeing the facilities in Everett, Washington. The symposium group was treated to a firsthand inspection of the ongoing implementation of the (OS1) cleaning process in the largest building in the world (according to the Guinness Book of World Records). The tour was of the 98 acre Boeing Everett, Washington 747 manufacturing plant by Sr. Manager James Simmons, Project Planner Brian Hussey and the Boeing (OS1) Transition Team. The original group of symposium participants included; The University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Sandia National Labs div Lockheed Martin, The University of New Mexico, The University of Texas at Austin, The Delta Center,  Sodexho Marriott, Professional Janitorial Services, GMI Building Services, Goodwill Industries, the State of Washington, Yale University, ManageMen, and The Boeing Company. These organizations provided support, presentations of best practices and data they were willing to share with the group. Since that time the (OS1) Users Symposium has become the premiere organization dedicated to cleaning industry science for facility management organizations.

Following this first symposium, the participants decided to continue meeting annually to share data and pursue best practices and a quest for the “one best way.”  The following year the (OS1) Users Symposium was sponsored by the University of Texas at Austin under the direction of Ernest Hunter, Director of Physical Plant. In 2004, The University of Massachusetts at Amherst sponsored the event under the direction of Ashoke Ganguli, Director of Auxiliary Services. After the 2005 Symposium in San Diego, that was hosted by GMI under the direction of Paul Condie and Larry Abrams, it was decided that the event was too large to be sponsored by any one organization. The (OS1) Users Symposium group formed a non-profit organization to advance their objectives. In 2008, the group adopted the name the Simon Institute. The institute is an independent group of facility cleaning organizations devoted to advancing the professionalism of the cleaning industry through the continuation of benchmarking best practices, safety studies and applied science studies.

In 2009 Dr. Jeff Campbell, Chair of the Brigham Young University, Facility Management Department, began forming an advisory Think Tank to support the Simon Institute. The Think Tank’s mission is to advance the applied science of cleaning for health. Dr. Campbell is serving as the academic advisor to the Simon Institute research group which is being directed from his office at BYU. Dr. Campbell is currently drafting the charter and bylaws and defining each member’s role. Initially, the Simon Institute Think Tank group will utilize a closed web site for sharing the growing research library. The group plans conferences quarterly and presenting papers annually.

The 9th Annual (OS1) Users Symposium

Embassy Suites Portland-Downtown

July 18-20, 2010