COVER STORY


used, and the falling price of this equipment means it is becoming more accessible. Large-scale, purpose-built facilities like the Edge in Amsterdam have pioneered this technology, installing a digital ceiling of 28,000 sensors that monitor motion, light, temperature, humidity and infrared. Data can be collected on occupancy and activity patterns, and resources like energy and manpower (such as cleaners) can be reduced in areas of limited traffic. Sensors can be installed on a smaller scale in office space, on desks or even on assets to provide building users with a wealth of information accessible from a computer or smartphone.


Through an app, the user can identify an available hot desk and reserve it, find resources around the building, such as printers or coffee machines, or even control the lighting in their meeting room. The fluidity expected of this modern workplace means that the emphasis on maintenance must be proactive rather than reactive in order to provide a seamless service. Sensors can be used next to assets like boilers or air conditioning units in order to collect performance data and create an alert when a potential problem is identified. By integrating this data with a CAFM system such as Service Works’ QFM, the most suitable engineer will be automatically called out (identified through integrated resourcing functionality) and the necessary parts and asset location listed on the system, accessible via a mobile app. In this way, problems can be rectified before breakage and the data captured across all assets provides a mine of information on which to base future decision making.


INTEGRATION AND


AUTOMATION According to Service Works’ FM Software Survey 2016 in the UK and in 2017 across Asia Pacific, FMs are finding great value in integrating their CAFM (Computer Aided Facilities Management) software systems with other applications to create a best-of- breed, fully-functional, enterprise-wide solution. Budget was revealed to be


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a main concern in both surveys, but the results show that organisations are using FM software to generate cost efficiencies by integrating with BMS (Building Management Systems) and finance software such as Sage and SAP. Through this integration, the CAFM software can automatically raise jobs and tell engineers when the BMS provides notification of maintenance or service requirements, enabling cost savings to be made as preventative maintenance is only performed when necessary. As the job creation is automated, response times are reduced, increasing efficiency and customer satisfaction.


In this way, FM has lost some processes to machine-to-machine interaction, but the benefits gained are great; potential asset problems are identified and dealt with before breakdown occurs, reducing downtime and customer inconvenience; calls to help desk can be reduced, allowing staff to focus on managing contracts and ensuring task completion in line with SLAs; and robotic porterage in healthcare, for example, means AGVs or Automatic Guided Vehicles (such as at the newly built Royal Adelaide Hospital in Australia) can


deliver fresh bed linen to patient rooms once the room has been identified as vacant. An alert is then automatically sent to a housekeeper to prepare the room so time is not wasted waiting for or collecting linen, and rooms are made available more quickly. Where porterage in this case has been replaced by an AGV, patients benefit from a more efficient discharge transportation service and personal care.


While sensational headlines are predicting 5million job losses to automation and robotics by 2020 across every country, this rapid progression in technology is ultimately improving service and reducing costs and the FM industry must continue to evolve in order to take maximum advantage of this.


Learn more about how CAFM can transform your organisation by requesting our complimentary white paper ‘Integrating CAFM With Other Organisational Systems’ or ‘Mobile Technology – A Global Facilities Trend’ by calling 020 8877 4080 or emailing info@swg.com with your name and contact details.


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