The Physical Plant Department (1954- ) functions to coordinate the building and grounds maintenance of Brigham Young University.

The Physical Plant Department, previously the Department of Buildings and Grounds, was established in 1954. The Physical Plant functions under the Physical Facilities Division and is responsible for maintaining university utilities, overseeing engineering and construction, maintaining the grounds, maintaining the buildings (including custodial services), overseeing transportation services, and administering to campus projects. Directors of the department have included Leland M. Perry (1954-1957), Sam F. Brewster (1957-1974), Fred A. Schwendiman (1974), Harold J. Anderson (1979-1986), Douglas Christensen (1986-1990), and Scott Briggs (1990- ).

Lorenzo Snow Young (1894-1968) was a Mormon architect in Utah.

Lorenzo Snow Young was born on November 16, 1894 in Salt Lake City, Utah to Brigham Morris Young and Celestia Armeda Snow. He was also known as Bing, named after the family dog. Young dropped out of high school as a teen to work for the Oregon Short Line Railroad, where he trained as a draftsman. He later returned to school, graduating from LDS High School in 1917. The following year he joined the United States Army, and served as a communications runner in France. In 1919 Young was discharged from the Army and decided to travel to New York to study architecture at the Pratt Institute. He then continued his studies at Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, graduating from the latter in 1923. Amid his studies he returned briefly to Utah to marry Catherine Aleine Margetts on September 17, 1920. They eventually had four children. After completing his architecture degree, Young worked briefly in Philadelphia before relocating to Utah. He was initially employed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but later started a professional practice with Edward O. Anderson. In 1936 Arnold Ehlers joined the firm, and a year later Anderson departed. Over the course of his career he designed Kingsbury Hall on the University of Utah campus, the J. Reuben Clark Jr. Library, and other notable public buildings across Utah. During World War II he joined the Army, serving between 1943 and 1946. He was stationed at Utah's Fort Douglas, and was also in charge of determining the costs of converting military buildings to civilian uses in the western region. Young died unexpectedly on March 26, 1968 in Salt Lake City, Utah following back surgery.

The Department of Buildings and Grounds (1947-1954) coordinated the maintenance of Brigham Young University campus buildings and grounds.

The Department of Buildings and Grounds was established in 1947 under superintendent Leland M. Perry and became the Physical Plant Department in 1954. Various supervisors reported to the superintendence who reported to a vice president of the University. The department was responsible for the following: installations, alterations, and maintenance of the campus communications systems, such as telephones, fire alarms, and the distribution of campus mail; custodial work in all campus buildings; landscaping, care, and maintenance of all grounds, vacant lots, and other property owned by the University, including parking and campus police; maintenance, operation, alterations, and repair of all plumbing, heating, ventilating, and electrical systems on University property; mechanical shops operated by the University; carpenter shop and mill operated by the University (this did not include academic shops); maintenance, repair, alterations, and up-keep of all University-owned buildings; all new construction on University-owned property; a central warehouse and receiving department for the University; engineering, design, and survey or inspection work pertaining to maintenance of new construction; perpetual inventory of all furniture and equipment of the University; custody, maintenance, and repair of all automotive and other mechanical equipment of the University; central key register and control for the entire University; management and operation of Wymount Village. In 1954 the Department of Buildings and Grounds was renamed the Physical Plant Department.