Get to know F&S: Jeff Avramenko 

“All of our clients are relying on us to keep them comfortable,” says Jeff Avramenko, lead hand of Building Operations with the University of Toronto’s Facilities & Services.

The power engineer—who is originally from Alberta—joined F&S in 2011, overseeing the maintenance of heating, cooling, ventilation, and air quality on campus.  

“With the campus footprint being so spread out, there’s an advantage of getting my daily exercise or steps in working from building to building,” Avramenko says. “The only downside is I can only be in one place at one time so have to prioritize occupants needs.” 

 Avramenko describes his promotion to lead hand as a “natural progression.” As lead hand, he trains and supervises a team of building operators who conduct mechanical equipment repairs and maintenance on campus. While there may be some fresh faces in his new role, U of T’s high standards surrounding thermal comfort haven’t changed, Avramenko shares. 

 According to Avramenko, these high U of T standards have been applied to a “constant revolving door of projects” in the past few years. 

With the pandemic having increased remote work, the Building Operations team has “taken advantage of the vacancy on campus to go full throttle on new projects.”  

One of the most fulfilling aspects of Avramenko’s job is working on heritage buildings like Hart House and University College.  

“While they’re maintaining the historical exteriors, the interiors are getting totally rehauled for modern-day comfort,” Avramenko says.  

Whether it’s installing contemporary ventilation control, a brand-new chiller system, or improved boilers, Avramenko is always on the look-out for a task that needs his assistance.  

“If the workload is too much for one individual, we share it,” Avramenko says of the teamwork.  

These tasks are now regulated under F&S’s new asset management system, a system which Avramenko helped beta test over the last year. The modern software organizes every task into a central hub.  

 Clients create service orders that Avramenko can delegate with a click of his mouse, factoring in estimated workload, urgency, and client needs.  

 “It just makes everything easier,” he says.  

 In his free time, Avramenko restores retro 80’s arcade games, recalling his childhood days spent finding and returning shopping carts for quarters to feed into the local pinball machine. He relates his hobby to his work with F&S, restoring the interiors of century-old buildings.  

 “It’s all about taking new technology and mixing it in with the old.”