MK Electric sets great store by its new App
MK Electric – the UK’s leading manufacturer of wiring devices and accessories – is delivering yet another first for the electrical specification sector with the launch of its own App for the iPhone, iTouch and iPad. It is designed to make full specification information accessible at all times, so doing away with the need for laptops or the ‘big book’.
As a result, installers and specifiers will now be able to access literature such as the MK Specification Guide on the move, making hundreds of pages of detailed product information available on these popular mobile devices. As with other iPhone apps, the MK App has full touch- screen functionality so that users can enlarge pages up to 200% with a tap, ‘pinch’ the image to zoom to any desired level from 1%-200% and ‘flip’ from page to page by wiping a finger across the screen. Users can also view pages in either portrait or landscape format, depending on how the device is held. The MK Electric App will initially enable
users to locate electrical
wholesalers or stockists by GPS, when it will list
branches and their distance from the user in miles. It is easily
downloaded via
the iTunes App store and is free. Updates will automatically be notified to users who can then accept the upgrade and download it via the App store.
Navigating the ‘book’ is simple, as instructions at the beginning make clear: users can go to any page directly by entering a page number on the alphanumeric keypad, touching a thumbnail of the required page or entering a search term.
Users can share this App with others in three ways – emailing it or posting it onto
either a Twitter or Facebook page. The new App is part of Honeywell ED&S’ policy of moving to digital formats. They are faster to update and more accessible to customers as well as being sustainable as they require no paper, ink or logistics. And it is a move that’s proving popular. For instance MK Electric’s online version of the Specification Guide has been downloaded 7000 times since its launch. MK Electric intends to add further technical books to the App library over the course of the year.
www.mkelectric.co.uk
RICS and public sector property
Efficiency savings through the effective management of public sector property have been a central part of the Government’s approach to reducing the budget deficit. Lord Carter’s report last year identified potential savings of £5bn running costs per year for the next 10 years and £20bn income from disposals in the same period. RICS believe that major, sustainable cost savings from public sector property can only come through a properly coordinated strategic plan, rather than purely short term cuts. Lead-in times in property can be substantial and a “slash and burn” approach with fire sales and axing maintenance budgets will not deliver real value.
Facilities managers in the public sector will be on the frontline of this work and RICS is aiming to help improve professional skills and standards in the sector to ensure value for money. RICS members are responsible for managing and operating the public sector estate working for a range of organisations including central government departments, local authorities and bodies including Defence Estates and NHS Trusts. As a result they will be central to helping the
10 feature :: building & refurbishment Government make savings.
Underpinning the drive to make more efficient use of public sector property will be the development and recognition of professional property management skills at strategic and operational levels. As the Audit Commission report Room for Improvement of June last year put it: “getting financial benefit from ‘lean’ property holdings depends on people and information. Not spending in these areas is a false economy.”
RICS is already working with Government to ensure that this key component of success is given appropriate priority, through access to guidance, training and qualifications. Central to this approach are RICS guidelines on Public Sector Asset Management which set out the key steps and techniques involved in
developing good asset management strategies. As an organisation we are also promoting the role of professionals in the sector through sponsorship of the Property Week Public Property Summit and our Professionalising FM campaign. As the focus of public sector efficiency savings shifts to property, it will be essential that sensible decisions are taken looking at the full impact of any changes. Property professionals will be central to this process and will be best placed to make the tough decisions that will inevitably be facing the sector over the coming months and years. It is only by taking this professional approach that there will be long term savings from public sector property not the short term cuts to certain budgets which could lead to extra costs in the future.
www.rics.org/bfm
Building & Facilities Management – November 2010
Building & Refurbishment
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