University of Iowa Physical Plant

About University of Iowa

The University of Iowa, founded in 1847 in Iowa City, is the oldest public university in Iowa and the flagship institution of the Iowa Board of Regents system. The Physical Plant — known at various times as Facilities Management, University Facilities, or Physical Plant Services — ran the operational infrastructure of the campus for more than a century.

Physical Plant responsibilities included:

• Construction, maintenance, renovation, and repair of dozens of campus buildings
• Heating and cooling systems across central campus and the medical campus
• Plumbing, electrical systems, and mechanical infrastructure
• Steam distribution networks and central heating systems
• Operations at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC) and surrounding medical campus

At peak employment, the Physical Plant used hundreds of skilled tradespeople, including members of Iowa union locals such as Asbestos Workers Local 12, IBEW Local 347, Pipefitters Local 33, and Boilermakers Local 83. Workers in these unions may have faced occupational asbestos exposure during decades of campus operations.

Because of the university’s age, the scale of its infrastructure, and the decades during which its core buildings were constructed and renovated, former Physical Plant workers may have been exposed to asbestos-containing materials throughout their careers.

Central Steam Heating Systems

Large universities operated central steam plants that pushed high-pressure steam through underground tunnel networks to heat campus buildings. Every steam pipe, valve, fitting, and boiler required insulation. Asbestos-containing materials were standard for these applications. The University of Iowa’s steam tunnel network connected dozens of buildings and allegedly represented one of the primary occupational exposure sources for maintenance workers, including members of Pipefitters Local 33 and Asbestos Workers Local 12.

Fireproofing Requirements

Public institutions with large student populations were required to meet stringent fire codes. Spray-applied asbestos-containing fireproofing materials — including spray-applied fireproofing, manufactured by — were routinely applied to structural steel members in buildings constructed between approximately 1958 and 1973. These materials remained in campus buildings for decades and were reportedly disturbed repeatedly during renovation and maintenance work.

Hospital and Healthcare Facilities

The University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics is one of the largest university-based hospital complexes in the country. Its mechanical systems — HVAC, plumbing, steam sterilization, and specialized medical equipment — required extensive insulation. Asbestos-containing materials were allegedly used throughout those systems.

Laboratories and Specialized Buildings

Science and engineering laboratories used asbestos-containing bench tops, laboratory equipment, and safety materials. These buildings also required extensive steam and hot water systems, with asbestos-containing pipe insulation and thermal insulation materials reportedly installed throughout.

Aging Building Stock

Physical Plant workers were regularly called into older structures that had never been abated. In those buildings, decades-old asbestos-containing materials often deteriorated, releasing fibers into work areas.