COMMENT
ON YOUR BIKE
Andrew Brown argues that a key way for FMs to embrace sustainability
is to encourage people to ride their bike to work
One of the common themes in FM right
now is responsibility. There is widespread
acknowledgement – of a climate emergency,
which clearly indicates we need to mix
responsible business ethics with a moral duty to
combat the threats to flora, fauna and our planet.
Unless you’re a government then the answers are
to take small steps. One small step is to embrace
active travel – especially consider how the humble
bicycle might impact FM.
The data from Transport for London and cycling
lobby groups point to more people choosing
to ride a bike to work – particularly in London.
Developers and owner occupiers – many of whom
are FM clients – are reacting to this. Commenting
on the 2017 BCO report, The Market Cycle (by Neil
Webster of Remit), Richard Kauntze, Chief Executive
of the British Council for O‹ ices, said: “One of the
key findings of the research is that, compared to
five years ago, cycling provision is increasingly
becoming accepted as an integral component of
Grade A o‹ ice specification. As cycling continues to
grow in popularity, workplaces now need to provide
facilities which can cope with rising demand, and
technology is likely to play a significant role in
addressing this. UK businesses must also ensure that
their service provision for cyclists meets the evolving
expectations of today’s worker. In the same way
that reception spaces in many o‹ ice buildings are
beginning to resemble concierge desks, showering
and changing facilities are taking inspiration from
high-end gyms. To encourage more employees to
cycle to work, this level of attention to detail will be
as important as the providing the basics.”
14 JULY 2019
Neil Webster pointed out that as cycling continues
to rise in popularity the most pressing issue for
businesses will be finding the space for bikes, lockers
and storage. He argued in 2017 that the focus needs
to be on the quality of the facilities o‹ ered, not just
the quantity. Alongside safe storage and showers,
there is a clear demand for towels, hairdryers
and complimentary toiletries. This kind of service
provision may not just encourage existing employees
to cycle to work, it could also act as a market
di‹ erentiator for prospective employees, and even
have a positive impact on lettability.
Doesn’t that sound like a business opportunity
for FMs? Especially now everyone in FM is falling
over themselves to reinforce the link between
facilities and workplace. However, the standout
providers of these solutions are not FMs. They are
specialists like Five at Heart who deliver exactly the
services Kauntze and Webster suggest but direct
to developers and owner occupiers such as Evans
Randall, Fore Partnership, Lasalle Investment and
M&G Real Estate.
Isn’t it time that the facilities sector took the lead
and was in the driving seat (sorry, saddle) of this
trend? Shouldn’t FMs and workplace managers be
encouraging occupiers and end users to adopt an
active route to work? Isn’t that a moral and ethical
responsibility? Až er all, if the end of route facilities
being designed and installed by specialists are
adding to the value of the property asset, shouldn’t
the FM team responsible for the management take a
lead on the whole idea in the first place?
That bicycle might have gone, passed by like a
peloton of riders, but what about adopting the
bicycle for operational work? How radical is that?
Innovative? Yes. Feasible – well, let’s look.
FedEx, DHL and other delivery organisations – let’s
not focus on Deliveroo right now – are all using cargo
bikes for the last mile of their deliveries. Co-op,
the Royal Mail and the NHS (for blood supplies)
are adopting e-cargo bikes. The Department of
Transport has provided a £2m fund to encourage
their uptake.
So, deliveries and movement of goods – yes.
What about o‹ ice moves? Would that work? In
May, Sustrans, the UK sustainable transport charity
completed an o‹ ice move entirely by bicycle. No
vans. They hired PedalMe, the electric cargo bike
company to move their 53 London based employees
and a 117kg printer, 100 storage boxes, 50 crates full
of IT equipment, three cupboards and two smoothie
bikes. The relocation was from Farringdon to Tower
Hamlet – around three miles in total. That’s one task
that FM companies could do right there – delivered
by bike.
Benjamin Knowles, Director at PedalMe argues that
the high-tech e-assist cargo bikes and trailers piloted
by highly trained sta‹ allows them to out-compete
motor vehicles in London. He says that “Our
competitor analysis shows that we’re significantly
cheaper than alternatives for large deliveries up to
150kg, which can be moved by our bikes without
trailers (allowing them to maximise their speed
advantage). Where we’ve done big moves before,
we’ve come out at less than half the nearest quote -
because we can get our vehicles closer to the pickup
or drop o‹ building, can move similar amounts to a
van with our special trailers, and we can get to the
drop-o‹ quicker. Our purpose is not to provide just a
CSR bump - but to o‹ er a more practical alternative
to motor vehicles that are hopelessly poorly adapted
to use in cities.”
This is not just PR either. The numbers tell a
story. PedalMe has gone from two employees to
forty in 24-months of growth. There’s research that
claims e-cargo bikes could replace some 20 per
cent of all delivery vans currently operating in large
cities. Academics from Amsterdam and Rotterdam
Universities spent two years working with freight
companies, municipalities and other experts to
compile the 121-page City Logistic: Light and Electric
report. This argued that cities are being strangled
by trucks and vans. In the UK, van tra‹ ic has grown
by 71 per cent over the last 20 years, compared to
growth of 13 per cent for cars.
So, are any facilities service companies looking
into this at all? How many white vans are their being
driven around our cities by FMs as they undertake
planned and reactive maintenance? If it is planned,
could it not be scheduled in such a way to mitigate
the use of a vehicle and potentially swap some of the
tasks to a lighter, cleaner, greener bicycle? How hard
can it be? Think di‹ erently. Just ride the bike.
This opinion piece is dedicated to the memory of
Richard Byatt, a keen cyclist and advocate of green
solutions and never afraid to challenge convention.
ADVICE & OPINION