DCAS Employees Playing a Unique Role in City Government
DCAS is a unique agency because we touch every aspect of New York City government. One of the roles DCAS plays is handling citywide procurement. But, we not only buy many of the goods and services used by City agencies, we also have a Bureau of Quality Assurance that does quality assurance testing to make sure we get what we pay for. That's where Fuel Supervisor Jose Cajas comes in. Jose is responsible for inspecting the fuel used for City vehicles like fire trucks, police cars, and even the Staten Island Ferry. Our latest employee profile video highlights Jose and the work he does to keep our city moving. Make sure you check it out!
Thinking about what outfits to break out for the spring season? Well, that may be ambitious thinking given the temperatures outside. At the very least, the sun is out later thanks to daylight savings time. While your iPhone clock updates automatically, that can't be said for the antique clocks at City Hall. That's why DCAS employs the City of New York's Clockmaster Marvin Schneider, the caretaker for antique clocks and clocktowers across city government. Pix11 recently profiled Marvin during the lead-up to daylight saving time. Check out the segment to learn about Marvin and the unique role he plays in city government.
Read more below about these and other recent happenings at DCAS.
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The Backbone of City Government Employee Profile: Jose Cajas |
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DCAS helps make city government work for all New Yorkers. We play a variety of roles that support government operations. With all that we do, you could call our agency the backbone of city government.
DCAS is responsible for purchasing and inspecting the fuel used for city vehicles like fire trucks, police cars, sanitation trucks and much more. Within the Office of Citywide Procurement, the role of the Bureau of Quality Assurance is to make sure the fuel we buy meets the City's standards. That's where Fuel Supervisor Jose Cajas comes in.
Jose supervises a team of inspectors, but fuel inspections isn't their only responsibility. Over the past two years, Jose and his team have inspected millions of dollars worth of personal protective equipment in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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An Inside Look at the Work of the City's Clockmaster |
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After convincing City Hall officials to allow him to fix a broken clock in a city building, former Mayor David Dinkins appointed Marvin Schneider as the City's clockmaster.
As the agency that touches every aspect of New York City government, it really is no surprise that the City's clockmaster is also a DCAS employee. Learn more about how Marvin ensures our City's antique clocks are working and ready for daylight savings time in this story by Pix11 News.
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Women's History Month 2022 |
Women's History Month is a time for us to take a step back and reflect on the progress we've made towards equality and fairness for all. We've come a long way, but there is still more work to be done.
As we continue to make progress, it is important to recognize those who've gone above and beyond in their efforts and achievements. Throughout March, we highlighted DCAS women who've stood by our city during difficult times and who help make our agency successful.
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DCAS Helps City Open First Net-zero Energy Library
Thanks to a partnership with DCAS, New York Public Library's newest branch is the first to have solar panels provide nearly 100% of the energy it uses.
The New York Public Library branch in Charleston, Staten Island was designed to be energy efficient, featuring an array of solar panels on its roof that will provide nearly 100% of the energy used throughout the entire year. Learn more about this collaboration in 6sqft's story.
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DCAS Fleet Systems Completes Interface with DSNY SMART |
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DCAS Fleet Management runs the citywide Fleet Management System, NYC Fleet Focus. This system is used to track and monitor fleet assets, work orders, auto parts, and vehicle crashes for all agencies. One of our largest clients is the New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY), with nearly 6,000 fleet assets, including garbage trucks and sweepers. DSNY employs the SMART system, which stands for Sanitation Management Analysis and Resource Tracking.
DCAS's Fleet Systems Unit worked with DSNY to create an interface that enables NYC Fleet Focus to update SMART constantly on the status of repair and work orders for DSNY's fleet units, help schedule preventative maintenance, and keep fleet units in reliable and safe condition. Thanks to Fleet Deputy Chief Eric Richardson and DCAS Director of Fleet Systems Daniel Shinn-Krantz for taking on this challenging and important two year project.
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Improving Our Building Operations With Statistical Analysis |
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DCAS Facilities Management manages, operates, and maintains 55 City-owned buildings throughout the five boroughs. The Facilities Management Data & Analytics team, comprised of Director of Data Michelle Robles and Data Analyst Amber Kelly, provides statistical analysis, data management, and reporting to support and help improve operations in our buildings.
The unit manages ARCHIBUS, the computerized maintenance management system used by our building tenants to submit requests for maintenance and repairs. Thanks to Michelle and Amber's work assisting in improvements to the ARCHIBUS system, multiple enhancements have been launched that help ensure our agency can perform maintenance and repairs as efficiently as possible.
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Supporting the City's Space Needs |
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The DCAS Real Estate Services Planning and Dispositions (P+D) team provides critical functions for DCAS’s operation, such as oversight of the City’s real estate portfolio, property research and analysis, and guidance on land use matters. In addition, Asset Planning is tasked with evaluating the City-owned property portfolio and identifying opportunities for productive re-use of City-owned land through a variety of methods, including the creation of a concessions program.
Kudos to the P+D team for their hard work, dedication, thoughtfulness, and exhaustive approach to support the City's complicated real estate needs. Team members include Joe Valentino, Martin O'Hara, Sheryl O'Neal, Andre Hibbert, Harry Doobay, Pauline Francis, Harriet Bazemore, Jesenia Gaton, Rosalie Cuomo, Callista Nazaire, Kyle Daniels, Chris Grove, Kerry Lowe, Abigail Rider, Nicole Pavez, Jonathan Kraft, and Evan Tuten.
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Overseeing a Program That Saves Lives |
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As the director of citywide programs, Jenny Zhang oversees several programs including the NYC Employee Blood Program. As a one-person team, Jenny oversaw the collection of 280 pints of blood from City employees between March 8 – March 11, 2022. One pint of blood helps save three lives, and the 280 pints of blood donated by City employees in March 2022 will help save approximately 840 lives. Jenny's commitment to the programs she oversees and the NYC Employee Blood Program in particular is unwavering. Thank you, Jenny in managing the NYC Employee Blood Program and helping to save the lives of many New Yorkers!
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Race Equity Initiative March Learn Series
Every month, as part of DCAS's Race Equity Initiative (REI), resources like articles, tools, books, and digital content are posted to the REI blog so DCAS staff can grow and learn about racial bias, equity, and related issues in personal and professional settings.
The REI blog is mobile friendly and staff can leave comments, likes, and even share posts with colleagues.
Check out the March edition on the blog, and if you are interested in submitting a recommendation for a future REI learning series, please fill out our REI survey.
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DCAS Launches Installation of 200 New Electric Vehicle Fast Chargers
Currently, the City's fleet operates 103 fast chargers for electric vehicles at 12 City agencies. In March, DCAS received the green light to begin installing 200 additional fast chargers.
This installation is part of the City's long term plan to have 1,776 electric vehicle fast chargers operational by 2030 as the City transitions to a fully electric vehicle fleet.
At the end of this project, 15 city agencies will be operating fast electric vehicle chargers. To learn more about DCAS's efforts to electrify the City's vehicle fleet, check out this story by Government Fleet.
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DCAS Citywide Learning & Development is the central source of training within city government for managerial, clerical, professional, and technical employees. Our DCAS Citywide Training Center offers agencies a full range of courses, workshops and seminars to meet the training and professional development needs of City employees at all levels.
- Technology skills.
- Personal development.
- Management & supervision.
- Professional practices.
- Executive development.
- Certification & credit bearing.
- NYC agency specific.
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DCAS provides shared services to support the operations of New York City government. What are those services? How does DCAS work with other City agencies? The Inside Citywide podcast aims to answer these questions and many more by providing listeners with a behind-the-scenes look at New York City government, how it works, and the public servants who make it happen.
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From 3/24/2022
Way back during the presidency of Ulysses S. Grant, along came a humble municipal newspaper called The City Record. This beacon of nyc gov't transparency is still published by DCAS to this day. Check out this deep dive by the New York Times.
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From 3/25/2022
as he urged Albany to pass local control for traffic safety. In our role managing the @nycgov vehicle fleet, we have invested in technology and employee training to prevent collisions and keep people safe. Learn more on the Office of the Mayor site.
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