Expert Voice

EAST-O Holdings

The future of Asset Management

MIDDLE EAST Uros Trojanovic, divisional CEO of EAST-O Holdings, shares with Big Project ME how the company is powering digital transformation across the Eltizam Group and beyond

Why is digitalisation the future for Asset Management? Digitalisation is the future for Asset Management for two main reasons:

Technology extends the human ability and allows us to do things that we normally cannot.

Applying the right technology can provide important insight that can greatly benefit any building manager.

For example, technology can tell you about the unsafe levels of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) or Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the air, it can confirm if a vehicle is permitted to enter a vicinity or not just by reading the license plate, it can recognise human faces to allow entry to facilities and it can help with much more.

Moreover, effectively utilising technology will greatly enhance efficiency across all operations of the built environment. Technology does not tire, and it does not work 9 to 5, which means residents/end-users can receive instant services 24/7 from anywhere around the world without having to interact with other people or visit any office.

Through the right technology, managers will not need an army of cashiers to process thousands of payments a day, in fact, they will not even need a single cashier.

This results in substantial value for both building managers and end-users.

What is EAST-O Holdings’ mandate from Eltizam for the digitalisation of its services? Chris Roberts, Group CEO of Eltizam, had a vision that the cost of managing and maintaining buildings can be drastically reduced through investing in the right technology. He envisioned the concept of “conscious buildings”,

as he calls them, which are buildings that tell you when they need to be maintained or when things are wrong.

In 2018 we embarked on a digital transformation journey across Eltizam’s business entities, which has resulted in the conception of a myriad of digital platforms, Robotic Process Automation (RPA), enhanced processes, an analytics lab and lots of Research and Development(R&D) in the areas of energy management, air quality and building security.

What results have you seen from the implementation/ merging of technology with Asset Management services? The implementation of technology has helped achieve numerous visible results, perhaps the most notable would be the following:

Firstly, it gave way for unprecedented understanding of portfolio trends, such as, the changing trends in payment channel usage, the top challenges voiced by end-users in each building/ city/country and how different amenities are being used by residents.

Moreover, it led to changes in customer habits, as end-users/residents are now more inclined to pay through online portals rather than using the traditional way of sending bank transfers. It also resulted in happier customers overall, since residents no longer need to use plastic access cards to enter and exit parking lots.

Lastly, it helped place greater focus on occupants’ wellness and wellbeing, through the implementation of technologies like air quality sensors which notify building managers when safety limits are exceeded.

What are some of the concepts being developed by EAST-O Holdings to merge technology with asset management services?

The Smart Building Lab at EAST-O is continuously at work, engaged in developing new solutions that add value through merging technology with asset management services.

Currently, the team is occupied with trialing several projects in the areas of energy measurement and

Unprecedented understanding

Technology has given EAST-O Holdings an understanding of what clients want, Trojanovic says.

2020

PropEzy proptech platform developed

reporting and camera-powered access solutions for people and vehicles.

Our software development team is also busy developing new products specifically for maintenance management, as well as some niche industry applications such as real estate valuations and more.

What are the company’s plans for the future in order to improve its offerings? Since 2020, the team at EAST-O Holdings has invested in collaborative efforts around the clock towards designing and building the core of

Effectively utilising technology will greatly enhance efficiency across all operations of the built environment. Technology does not tire, and it does not work 9 to 5, which means residents/end users can receive instant services 24/7”

the PropEzy proptech platform.

Moving forward, we seek to leverage the team’s expertise and extensive knowledge in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and systems integration to pack in additional value into the existing platform and line of products to achieve a suite of enhanced features for property, community and building managers that we believe is unmatched not just regionally, but globally as well.

We are equipped with a passionate and driven team of proptech experts who are all highly motivated to achieve that challenge and propel us to new heights.