FMJ.CO.UK TECHNOLOGY FOCUS
MAY 2020 33
felt that it was a part of FM’s future and
that it would be valuable in freeing FM
resources.
TECHNOLOGY WITH IMPACT
Following the country’s pledge to cut
emissions as part of the Paris Agreement
on climate change and ongoing pressure
for organisations to work towards carbon
neutrality, it’s not surprising that energy
management was the trend that the
majority (69 per cent) felt would have the
most impact over the next 12 months. In
fact, for the first time, budgetary pressure
was not the most voted for key challenge (57
per cent), as this was also topped by energy
management (61 per cent). The technology
trend in second place was internet of things
(IoT) / sensors / smart buildings at 47 per
cent - jumping up from 33 per cent of the
votes in Service Works Global’s 2018 FM
survey.
The falling price of sensors and the growth
in the consumer market (for example in
wearables, Bluetooth trackers and home
security) has meant they have become
more accessible and low risk for FM, and
are invaluable in both gathering data and
helping to control the environment. For
example, when integrated with CAFM
so ware, a sensor detecting abnormal
vibrations on an asset will send an alert
which automatically creates a job and
notifies the most suitable operative through
a mobile app.
Interestingly, the third most voted
technology was around workplace wellness,
tying into the rise of sensors and smart
buildings and their roles in improving
employee health and productivity – but also
no doubt due to the COVID-19 pandemic
sweeping the globe at the time of this
survey. One respondent felt the crisis
would mark a permanent change to the FM
profession, changing how workplaces are
run in the future and cause organisations,
once again, to re-evaluate the use of service
providers; deciding whether it’s preferable
to rely on external specialist resources, or
to manage services in-house for tighter
control.
BUILDING LIFECYCLE DATA
Building information modelling (BIM) was
considered by 35 per cent of respondents to
be a significant technology trend over the
next 12 months, and 19 per cent stated they
were already using BIM. Service providers
working on public or private sector projects
were leading the way, representing 57 per
cent of these BIM users. While 38 per cent
of the total stated they were using BIM as a
compulsory requirement, 52 per cent felt
it made the FM function more e icient,
providing easy access to accurate data
and helping to understand the facility
space. Of those not using BIM currently,
14 per cent were actively planning to use
it in the future. One of the main barriers
to adoption is said to be the cost and
time taken to adopt the system, but
only nine per cent felt that BIM
research and implementation
would take up too much
of their time. The
training aspect of
taking on a new
system was not
reported as an
issue.
As integration
remains a key
priority for FM,
both in terms of
a trend and the
growing percentage of
those using integrated
CAFM so ware, the reliance
on accurate data is clear. BIM
provides just this, allowing the
user to see the location of assets and
corresponding details including work
history, measurements of areas and details
about any building aspect (such as type of
material used in a wall and the pipework
within). We will see the use of BIM
continue to increase as more turn towards
a data-driven FM strategy.
LEADING THE FUTURE
The results of this year’s survey have
revealed that in order to progress in a
competitive marketplace, data-led decision
making is essential - when paired with a
highly skilled FM team.
The industry has become more reliant
on so ware like CAFM to collect, manage
and analyse this data, and this in
turn has paved the way for new
services like BIM and IoT, for
which some companies have
created new data-specific
job roles. While this
provides the necessary
insight and e iciency to
Interestingly, the third most voted
technology was around workplace
wellness, tying into the rise of sensors and
smart buildings and their roles in improving
employee health and productivity – but
also no doubt due to the COVID-19
drive positive business
change, it does pose the
challenge of ensuring
a balance between
technical IT skills and
trade skills like electrical,
carpentry and plumbing to
ensure the work gets done, and
to a high standard. In this rapidly
pandemic sweeping the globe at
the time of this survey.”
evolving industry, we must be careful
not to lose sight of the profession’s roots
as we look forward to what FM could be
achieving with new technology and systems
in the near future.
A full UK report, including comparison with
the Australia, will be published shortly.
Email info@swg.com to request your copy.
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