Locked facilities, eating ban in lecture halls and inspections, this was the decision after a House Management meeting in Maskinhuset in February. Thanks to the student representatives the decision was altered.
Industrial Economy and Mechanical Engineering are the two programs which have a majority of their classes in Maskinhuset. They, together with other courses, have approximately 1200 students on location daily. The building has a management consisting of department heads and student representatives from the Industrial Economy and the Mechanical Engineering sections.
They make decisions regarding everything in the building to improve it for students. As demanded by the department heads, a decision was made to restrict students’ possibilities to access the facilities after scheduled hours and prohibiting eating in the building, except for in the café and the foyer.
Furthermore, they introduced daily inspections by Securitas guards, to make sure students did not eat in the lecture halls. Suddenly, students had nowhere to eat their brought lunch, and after 17 PM it was not possible to study in the facilities.
“We wanted to introduce stricter rules during a short trial period, but we have changed that now”, says head of House Management, Bengt Sundén.
Letter to House Management
But the student representatives in House Management protested against the new decision. They wrote a letter to House Management, urging them to lift the decision. After being pushed by the student representatives, this decision was revised, locking facilities after 21 PM on weekdays and keeping them open longer during exam periods.
Inspections have also become notably less frequent. The last few weeks they have only occurred sporadically. Bengt Sundén is positive about the changes that have been made in the original decision. He thinks that the most important thing right now is to focus on the future. Svante Nyman, section head at the I-section and student representative in House Management, agrees. He thinks the solution to the littering and lack of space problems is cooperation.
“We have started to work together better in House Management to reach a solution that is beneficial for both parties”, Svante Nyman says.
Take measures
Last week at the House Management meeting, the decision was made to take measures in order to make it easier for students to clean up after themselves after eating. Furthermore, this fall, it will be made possible to eat in designated study areas.
“Detergents will be made more accessible and recycling will be made easier”, says Bengt Sundén, and he thinks this will lead to easier upkeep of the building.
Self-responsibility
The student representatives are positive regarding the latest decisions. They also believe that the students can solve the littering problem themselves by taking responsibility for the environment they work in. Although they would have wished for more cleaning staff, the current economic situation does not allow that.
“House Management works under tough conditions and that makes cooperation all the more important when it comes to the best solutions”, Svante Nyman, head of the I-section and student representative in House Management, thinks.
Article: Rebecca Bornlid Lesseur
Translation: Elise Petersson
