PFMA History

PFMA was formally organized in 1953 as the Pennsylvania Association of Institutional Engineers or PAIE. Thomas Kneen, Engineer-in Charge and Professor Elmer Queer of the Penn State Advisory Service formed the organization along with the Welfare Department, the Health Department, the Department of Public Instruction (State Normal Schools and other schools) and the Department of Justice.

The first meeting of the organization appears to have actually occurred in 1952 with an Engineer’s Conference in State College. The “Award Banquet for Institutional Engineers and Laundrymen” was held in the basement of the Presbyterian Church on Beaver Avenue in State College. The conferences were centered on the institutional power plants. Penn State would go to each power plant across the state throughout the year and grade the plant not only on production efficiency, but the cooperation, teamwork, and attitude of everyone from “the front office all the way down to the ash puller.” Institutions that received a 90% or higher ranking received Honor Roll status. Eric Walker, founder of ARL, friend of Dwight Eisenhower, Dean of the College of Engineering and later Penn State President attended that banquet. These awards continued into the 1960’s.

For the first 22 years, the conferences were held at Penn State, first at the Nittany Lion Inn, then at the Keller Conference Center. In 1969, Governor Raymond Shafer attended the conference and presented the Engineer of the Year award to Horace Mann of the State Farm Show Building. In 1975, the conference was first held away from Penn State at Split Rock in the Poconos. For many years thereafter it was to be held in a four year rotation as follow: eastern PA, Penn State, western PA, Penn State.

In 1993, the name of the organization was changed to the Pennsylvania Facilities Managers Association (PFMA). The term facilities manager was incorporated to better reflect the current terminology of the profession.

Since 2003, the conferences have been held at Ft. Indiantown Gap. The DMVA has been gracious in allowing PFMA to hold its conferences at their facilities enabling PFMA to minimize costs in holding this important annual event.

For more than a half century, PFMA has promoted education, communication and cooperation of facilities personnel throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.