CAFM & IT


THE NEXT STEP Protex AI evaluates the promise of a new era for technology – one shaped by artificial intelligence.


Facilities managers benefit from the software solutions that information technology can deliver to successfully co-ordinate the many demands presented by the physical workspace and the people and the work they undertake.


Computer Aided Facility Management, or CAFM for short, is integral to the strategic picture, handing FMs with the tools to plan, execute and monitor the entire suite of business or organisational activities. Whether this is reactive and planned preventative maintenance, space and movement management, asset management, operational facility services, room reservations or any other customer services, CAFM software is indispensable to overall performance.


Not only does it arm the Facilities Manager with accurate data insights so they are better positioned strategically to manage challenging compliance and safety requirements, but it can also reduce organisational costs by improving their operational decision-making.


But CAFM is only the first step on a ladder that is moving businesses upwards to a very exciting future. Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to be truly transformative in the facility management space not least because the data-driven insights it offers have a far greater breadth of potential applications.


Indeed, AI’s strength is in its ability to improve business predictions and therefore enhance strategic decision- making, an asset that cannot be overstated at a time when businesses face soaring energy costs and are grappling with a myriad of pressures from labour shortages to disrupted supply chains.


Of course, it is understandable that in such challenging times businesses will want to reassess their priorities, but making decisions that compromise worker safety cannot be one of them.


Here CAFM and increasingly AI can provide the safeguards that businesses need. At a time when economic uncertainties are leading businesses to pause and take stock, the critical insights these software solutions offer will enable managers to run efficient operations and, if need be, with more autonomous systems.


When accidents do happen, not only do they disrupt business operations – both in terms of costly downtime and employees taking time off work – but if the business is found to be at


26 | TOMORROW’S FM


fault, there can be substantial prosecution costs to incur, not to mention damage to corporate reputation.


The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) statistics for Great Britain indicate that more than a 1 million workers are injured or made ill by their work each year.


The HSE’s cost model estimates, for example, that for every non-fatal injury case, the financial cost for employers when workers are absent for seven or more days equates to £5,800. The figure is £9,000 for employees who are absent for seven or more days due to ill-health.


Although many businesses are being proactive and have taken advantage of AI insights to improve efficiencies across the wider business – stock level management and replenishment are two that spring to mind – more often than not, the approach to managing safety remains far too reactive. Facilities management is no exception.


However, businesses cannot afford to be so complacent and put themselves at risk. They really should be taking a more proactive approach to safety and prevent injuries and ill-health from occurring in the first place.


For those more far-sighted businesses, AI technology is recognised as an important tool that can inform decision making on health and safety practices and drive up standards.


By proactively monitoring how workers interact in the workspace, FMs can identify potential risks early on and act on this critical intelligence to put in place measures that reduce the likelihood of future incidents, thereby creating more efficient and safer business operations.


A couple of good practical examples provide an illustration of how AI can minimise future risks. One is monitoring how workers don personal protective equipment to check that they are using it correctly and where this is not the case acting on the intelligence to change behaviour.


Another is collecting critical data on how workers undertake manual handling activities to identify potentially poor posture that could result in musculoskeletal disorders further down the line.


For those businesses that haven’t already explored AI solutions, this enabling technology can be integrated seamlessly into existing software, providing an extra layer of protection and critical insights for FMs to act upon, helping to foster a safer work culture.


www.protex.ai twitter.com/TomorrowsFM


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