Delaware Hall Renovation Throws Off Campus Clocks

February 10, 2009 by Douglas Gamble

Renovations at Delaware Hall are responsible for inaccuracy in clocks around campus. The master clock, which controls the estimated 275 clocks on campus, has been shut down and restarted at various times due to renovations in its home, Delaware Hall.
 
Because of this, clocks all around campus show the wrong time, while some even appear broken. The renovations, which plan on moving the Department of Public Safety from Union Hall to Delaware Hall, have caused the master clock to stop functioning. The renovations will potentially be finished by this summer, at which point the master clock will be up and running.
 
“It’s basically just a construction issue”, says Physical Plant Administrator Steve Coleman, “when it (the master clock) is up and running, we will address the clocks that aren’t working.”
 
Fixing the master clock will allow the maintenance team to differentiate between the clocks that are out of service due to the master clock, and those that are simply no longer working. Clocks that no longer work will potentially be replaced by digital clocks.
 
The campus clocks can be powered by either battery or electricity. This means that anything from power outages to battery failures can throw off clocks, and may even put a clock out of service permanently.
 
In October of 2007 the campus clocks were recalibrated, but problems easily could have arisen since then. Until the master clock has been moved, there is no way of telling.
 
“The sooner the clocks are fixed, the better.” says Columbus State student Garret Hutson. “Hall clocks are essential to people with busy schedules, and we (the students) pay tuition for a reason. If we pay for classes, we want to get to them on time. What does it say about the college, if none of the hall clocks work?”
 
This is not the first time hall clocks have become incorrect. An “AQIP Quick Fixes” list, published on January 15, 2007, cited correcting the clocks first on its list of proposed fixes. The list was published by the Physical Plant, which is in charge of campus maintenance, in response to a list of complaints.