IREM goes to the Poles.

Property and asset managers in Poland learned the do's and don'ts of dealing with terrorism and other disasters, American-style, during recent one-day seminars in Warsaw and Poznan presented by the Chicago-based Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM[R]) and the organization's Polish chapter.

The seminars were led by Richard Muhlebach, CPM[R], a past IREM president and major editorial contributor to the IREM-produced books titled "Preparing for Terrorism: A Property Manager's Guide" and "Before Disaster Strikes: Developing an Emergency Procedures Manual."

Attendees included managers of multifamily apartments, public and assisted housing, office buildings, shopping centers and industrial facilities. They included managers at all levels--site managers, property managers, asset managers, and management company executives.

According to Muhlebach, even before the tragedy of 9/11, IREM took the lead in educating its 16,000 members and other property managers about the realities of all types of local and national emergencies and how best to protect buildings and their occupants.

"To our knowledge," said Muhlebach, "these were the first such seminars held in Poland and they were extraordinarily well received. Moreover, because local police and fire department officials considered them to be so valuable, they designated representatives from their respective departments to serve as guest speakers."