Continued
In our previous article which you can find here https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/art-ifm-gold-bricks-fms/?published=t, we explored the IFM model, the current market situation and the IFM place in today’s business world.
In Part 2, we would like to go a little further and give you an overview of the IFM structure, service delivery methods, and IFM Industry development.
What is the IFM structure?
Before we exploit a little further, let us remind why IFM in the first place?
The key takeaways are that the IFM offers guaranteed savings, one single contract for all the services, one single point of contact for all inquiries / requests, long term contract, guaranteed quality through KPI’s, vendor consolidation, and so on.
Basically, whatever non-core functions are out there, they can and will be directly performed by the IFM service provider. Although the structure may differ from one service provider to another, certain compositions are the same and fundamental to the IFM approach. When we talk about these compositions, we have in mind all these services needed for an enterprise to perform their activities normally (e.g. engineering, asset maintenance, cleaning, catering, etc.) The above SOW (Scope of Work) services are very fundamental to; understand client needs, prepare the overall proposal including pricing, delivery method, service scope, compliance with all rules and regulations, etc.
To understand the client needs, we first must understand the client current facility services. First, we review what we call hard services (services that are directly related to the fabric of the building itself, i.e. engineering, asset maintenance, HVAC, plumbing etc.) In order to correctly understand the site assets and come up with the best effective pricing and delivery solutions, we need the asset list to be precise like type, number, manufacturer, warranty date, service data, etc. Once we are in possess of the asset list, we can then prepare the new cost, frequency, onsite resources, time, etc. for the contract duration.
When it comes to what we call soft services (services related to the pleasantness of the workplace; i.e cleaning, catering, reception etc.), they are very much sought by the client. Nothing can operate if we do not offer these services in tandem with the hard and all other services. These services are labor intensive, cost intensive and somehow complex to manage. Nevertheless, through the IFM model, clients can rest assured that sites are kept clean, personnel are having access to healthy food & beverages, sites are properly secured 24/7, trees and flowers taken care, pest control performed regularly, help desk is in place meeting and greeting everyone, and so on.
What else can the IFM service provider do to assist client’s needs?
Vendor management, projects, MAC (Move, Add and Change) projects, lifecycle management are other major parts on this process. Being an IFM service provider means supply chain scale. An IFM player provides services to various clients. Most of these services required are the same for different industries. By consolidating all these vendors and using economy of scale, the IFM service provider can achieve that much needed savings for the client.
Projects represent a crucial engine growth for the IFM. Performing various projects ranging from repairing or replacing critical equipment to redesigning and offering workspace solutions within the cost and quality agreed is part of the IFM common service delivery. All the services described above together with the overall IFM model, are fundamental to the client strategy of shifting the non-core functions to us.
How are the IFM service providers keeping up to date with the latest developments?
We all know that AI, IoT, etc. are and or will play a critical part in all aspects of our life. The IFM industry is not exceptional. We have seen a drastic increase in use of the technology to improve quality, efficiency and drive the costs down. In line with these developments, at Gold Bricks FMS, we are effectively developing technologies like drones, sensors, robots, etc. to great benefit. Some of the models we have come up with are introducing usage-based model, rather than fixed ones. It means that we can see and analyze number of visitors or personnel passing through or using certain areas. This way we can adjust the H/C according to the usage area at that particular time and day.
Lastly, once we have done all the work in terms of preparing the pricing based on SOW, asset list, baseline, size, locations, etc. One thing to remember is that all the above are valid as long as there is a proper compliance in place for delivering the required services. The IFM service providers make sure that they are aware of all the rules and regulations (external & internal ones), keep themselves up to date with any new developments, they have the right accredited skills and certificate compliance in place and so on.
Only then, we can say that the proposal is complete.
The Art of IFM Part 3 is coming soon…
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