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FMstudy reveals competency critical to retaining contracts


CheckMarket Survey Solutions investigated requirementswhen outsourcing facilities services, which functions are outsourced themost, and the biggest challenges involved.


When choosing a new provider for outsourced fa- cilitiesmanagement, 65%of FMmanagers feel it is im- portant to have one organi- sationmanaging all the different elements of service provision. There is a growing trend towards this ‘total fa- cilitiesmanagement’model rather than the use of indi- vidual service providers. The independent re-


search* conducted on behalf of facilities services special- ist, Grosvenor Services, in- vestigated requirements when outsourcing facilities services, which functions are outsourced themost, and the biggest challenges in- volved.


Key findings


When asked to rate top re- quirements in their choice of provider, on a scale of im- portance themain factors were: • 84%professionalismof on-site staff. • 81%responsiveness of management to issues as they arise. • 71%value formoney and accurate reporting. When asked which facilities services they outsource, 47% said all cleaning require- ments, 37%said they out- sourced all their facilities management requirements, and 27%of facilitiesman- agers said landscaping.


Areas for improvement which providers need to con- sider, according to facilities managers, include: • Easier access tomanage- ment: facilitiesmanagers don’t want to have to contact several different people to find the person who can help with an issue. They need a single point of contact at ac- countmanagement level. • The knowledge and ability of staff: they want staff to understand the nuances of their business and to do the job properly and consis- tently. • Provision of electronic data entry and real-time reports: facilitiesmanagers want to limit the amount of physical paper flow and need real- time reports tomake in- formed decisions. • Consistentlymaintaining agreed standards: facilities managers require the serv- ice level that has been agreed on paper to be con- sistently achieved.


Perceptions of themove towards total FMproviders


One of themain benefits of using a single provider for all FMneeds is seen to be ease ofmanagement, with a single contact for everything, reductions in documentation and a single invoice all con- sidered important. However, somemanagers still have hesitations, citing concerns


around a possible lack of specialist staff and in- creased costs. BernardMcCauley, group


managing director at Grosvenor Services, said: “We are seeing increasing demand for a total facilities management service, which we already deliver tomany of our clients. However, this research also shows that, whether clients choose a single provider ormultiple providers, they still need the highest levels of support and commitment. Providers also need to ensure that they de- liver consistently excellent standards in every service area, while providing an ac- cessiblemanagement team and transparent reporting - anything lessmay result in a loss of client confidence, and business.” Froma sample frame of


300 respondents, 30 FM managers working in com- panies with over 100 em- ployees were interviewed by telephone. Respondents op- erated in themanufacturing, finance, insurance, real es- tate, engineering, construc- tion, leisure, healthcare, retail, and wholesalemar- kets. www.grosvenorservices.com


*The survey was conducted by CheckMarket Survey So- lutions. The FMmanagers surveyed were not clients of Grosvenor Services.


Carpet Cleaners Carnival 2014


The National Carpet Cleaners Association (NCCA) recently held its fourth Carpet Cleaners Carnival atWicksteed Park in Kettering, Northamptonshire. Launched in 2011, and held annu- ally since, the Carpet Cleaners Carnival (CCC) is a family friendly event, providing carpet cleaners with an opportunity to take a break fromwork while remaining fully up to date with the industry. The Carnival was again pleased to support Kirsty’s Kids. NCCAmember John Bryden, who


runs the charity in honour of his daughter Kirsty and her work to help sick and underprivi- leged children, wrote to express his gratitude for the assistance he received in fundraising and says that with the various activities throughout the day, including an auction and a raffle, he was able to raise £814.17.


6 l C&M l NOVEMBER 2014 l www.cleaninghub.net


Wastemanagement


recycling division launched Independent best-practice benchmarking specialist i- Clean has expanded its effi- ciency reviews to include wastemanagement tomeet the broader needs of its cus- tomer base. The service of- fers best-practice expertise and support to help facilities and estatesmanagersmove their organisation higher up the waste hierarchy, from zero tolerance to landfill through tomaking waste an asset of their business. Paul Taylor, who will head-


ganisation significant sav- ings, and greatly enhance their green-credentials.” Mike Boxall, i-Cleanman-


up the department, said: “Waste is too often an over- looked and undervalued re- source when in fact, a good sustainable wastemanage- ment plan canmake any or-


aging director, added: “We see waste as a natural fit to our reviews.We already fol- low waste through an organi- sation to the back-door. It makes perfect sense to take this several steps further, ensuring organisations are meeting their legal obliga- tions andminimising, reusing, recycling, and re- selling asmuch of their waste as possible.” Tomark the wasteman-


agement launch, i-Clean is offering free initial assess- ments to all sectors. www.i-clean.info/waste


Cleaning company founder’s book launch


When faced with a life changing situation almost 40 years ago, Christine Beedle founded Monthind Clean. As a new genera- tion of directors takeover the company, Beedle, who was awarded an MBE for services to the cleaning industry, has launched her first book. ‘The Essex scrubber - keeping it clean’ is a tongue in cheek


read representative of some of the colourful characters Lex- den based Beedle found herself dealing with in the early years of the company’s formation. Her story unfolds as she embarks on her cleaning career, just after her first husband was diag- nosed with a terminal illness. Beedle relives the trials and tribulations of her early days as a naive cleaner to becoming head of the East Anglian commercial contract cleaning com- pany, which now employs almost 1000 staff. From winning her first contract with Willis Corroon in Ipswich, Beedle and her team went on to look after the premises of some of the re- gion’s most prestigious clients including Eastern Electricity, AXA Insurance, British Telecom, Securicor Omega, MSC Ship- ping, and Mecca Leisure. In 2000, with a turnover of £3.5 million, Christine Beedle sold


the business to Tony Clarke, who is now on the verge of retire- ment, leaving Monthind Clean in the capable hands of opera- tions director, Simon Biggs, and finance director, Tony Felgate. Simon Biggs said: “An Essex Scrubber is a testament to


Christine’s unrelenting enthusiasm for one of life’s least glam- orous careers. Through adversity and difficult times she re- tained her class, dignity and sense of humour, and we are very proud to be continuing the legacy of the company in footsteps that are difficult to follow. We wish Christine the best of luck with the sales of her book and look forward to reading the next two she is in the progress of penning.” Proceeds from the sale of the book are being donated to


Colchester Rotary to support local charities. The book can be purchased at Red Lion Books in Colchester or by going to: www.theessexscrubber.co.uk


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