SUMMER MAINTENANCE HOW FM CAN BE A
DRIVER FOR CHANGE All this could seem academic to FM professionals, but arguably, it’s the assets that already exist where the biggest gains can be made. A useful parallel can be drawn with reducing our national energy consumption. Developers of new builds will contribute through better design, but the real prize is ensuring our current stock of properties is retrofitted to be better insulated or use lower energy lighting and appliances. The exact same is true when creating more valuable and effective landscapes and facilities managers will be key to driving this change.
It all starts with a shift towards a more strategic view of green spaces as assets that can deliver opportunities to your organisation or clients’ businesses. Can the green spaces you are responsible for help support wider CSR objectives, environmental policy, or make a business more attractive to customers or employees? Asking such questions is all part of a process that is key to rethinking how you use and maintain landscapes. However, for many organisations this process represents a real break from business as usual.
UNDERSTANDING THE COST OF GREEN
INFRASTRUCTURE Naturally, the immediate question is whether a more ambitious approach will inevitably cost more to achieve. You may think that an enriched landscape will also come with a premium price tag, but often this is more a question of priority than budget.
For example, landscapes that improve biodiversity can be implemented with no increased budget or investment and can actually be delivered at no added cost through a design-by-maintenance regime, followed over an agreed period of time. When carrying out an assessment of your site, consider if there are areas that are less used. These can be repurposed to provide a real opportunity for wildlife havens such as urban woodlands, offering
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far greater visual interest while also encouraging biodiversity. Such areas require some investment to plant initially, but compared to a lawn than needs frequent visits to mow, particularly at this time of year, ultimately require far less ongoing intensive maintenance – hence, swapping one for the other can be cost neutral.
“GREEN SPACES
CAN AND SHOULD BE UNDERSTOOD AS AN ASSET THAT CAN
DELIVER VALUE.” IS IT TIME FOR
REGIME CHANGE? Part of the challenge of using green spaces strategically is often down to the arrangements in place for grounds maintenance, which are too often (excuse the pun) bogged down in following established practices and service regimes. This often starts with the contracts and KPIs given to grounds maintenance contractors. Simply put, whether you’re reviewing a long standing contract or change it regularly, recycling and updating the same set of requirements can lead you to miss out on opportunities to add value and gain more control.
Effective contracts and KPIs not only enable quality standards to be measured and managed, but also let Facilities Managers drive forward strategies and allocate resources accordingly. A crucial component of both of these is the grounds maintenance service specifications that set out the services required from contractors. Input specifications are most commonly used for grounds maintenance and often present a schedule of tasks, a set number of visits and fixed methodologies dictating what, when and how service is delivered.
This input-based approach is great during the procurement process as it makes it simple to compare contractors on a like-for- like basis. Yet when it comes to delivering on strategic objectives such as developing multifunctional, sustainable landscapes, working to inputs can create a barrier to success – services may be delivered to rule irrespective of whether the end result is achieved. Input-based specifications carry a danger of landscaping being reduced to a quantitative exercise that discourages suppliers from being more consultative and creative and in taking an active role in achieving broader business objectives.
Hence, when pursuing a green infrastructure strategy, it is worth considering an output-based approach that focuses on what you want to achieve. Take time to work with stakeholders within the organisation to develop the strategy and vision and use these to define output-based specification. For example, this could involve engaging with HR or with CSR committees to better understand any business objectives than could be supported. If employee health and wellbeing is a priority, then a desired output could be the creation of green gyms or quiet refuge and restorative areas. This focus on outputs and objectives also empowers contractors to think outside of the box and exercise their expertise whilst adopting more innovative approaches that work better for all parties involved.
TAKE TIME
TO TAKE STOCK Consulting within your organisation or client organisation is key to developing an effective green infrastructure strategy and landscape management plan. Summer presents the ideal opportunity for this as green spaces see the heaviest use at this time. Plans developed over the summer can also be implemented during winter months, which is the optimum time for jobs such as native tree and shrub planting and preparing grounds for wild flower seeding or turfing.
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