Robert E. McMains, a veteran in managing institutional facilities, has been named University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) chief facilities officer; he will assume this position on June 17, 2013.
Positions McMains has held at both Purdue University and Emory University heavily mirror the position he assumes at UAB, overseeing maintenance of buildings and grounds, environmental health and safety, physical and capital planning, construction, and university sustainability, as well as steam plant operation.
“I am very pleased that Mr. McMains will be joining us,” said UAB Vice President of Finance and Administration Richard Margison. “His experience will serve us well in his task of managing UAB’s large, complex educational, healthcare and research plant.”
Currently serving as the vice president, physical facilities for Purdue, McMains’ career highlights also include serving as associate vice president, facilities management at Emory and associate executive director, facilities management at Illinois State University. In the years prior,, McMains served as an operational business manager at Illinois State, as well as a financial controller within the facilities construction/materials industry.
“I am honored and excited to join UAB at a time of unprecedented growth,” McMains said. “I have been pleased to learn about the impact UAB has in the local economy and around the world, and I am thrilled to be calling Birmingham and this great campus home.”
McMains holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Eastern Illinois University. He has served as a board member for the Association of Physical Plant Administrators, board member and president of the Southeastern Regional Association of Physical Plant Administrators, as well as a member of the U.S. Green Building Council and the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.