THE NEXT GENERATION OF FACILITY MANAGEMENT

REAL ESTATE

GOOD FACILITY MANAGEMENT CONSIDERABLY LOWERS COSTS AND SAVES ENERGY

What is the range of FM services, to which extent is this multidisciplinary occupation developed in our market and how it can be upgraded, all this is explained to us by Vladimir Baić, Managing Director of IREP&WEST Facility Management sector for Serbia

By:

PETRA VASILJEVIĆ

Photo:

IREP&WEST

Vladimir Baić, Managing Director of IREP&WEST Facility Management sector for Serbia

I

t is of crucial importance for every commercial, public or industrial facility to be regularly maintained so that the work space used by employees can function smoothly. At the same time, the owner must always take into consideration the cost optimization. Both these aspects fall under Facility Management services (FM). Although FM services are finding their way to our market, many facility owners are still not aware of all advantages of a professional FM and latest FM solutions which have been implemented across the world for some time now.

IREP&WEST’s Belgrade office has recently made new FM solutions available in Serbia. The partner firm was created by merging the International Real Estate Partners (IREP) company which has been present in the real estate and FM market of 50 countries on 6 contitnents, with the Serbian West Properties (WP), a leader among the local real estate brokerage agencies. By joining their forces and experience, IREP with its global coverage, and WP as an expert for the local and regional market, they will offer a complete portfolio of services in the Balkans real estate sector, with a particular focus on the strategical development of FM services in Serbia. We are discussing the importance of FM services with Vladimir Baić, Managing Director of IREP&WEST Facility Management sector for Serbia, as well as the level of the FM services currently available in our market and novel solutions offered by their company.

UPON COMPLETION OF THE FACILITY ORGANISATION ANALYSIS, WE OFFER A SUGGESTION FOR AN IMPROVED FACILITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM, WHICH GUARANTEES REDUCTION OF FACILITY COSTS UP TO 25 %

How would you define the Facility Management concept used today around the world and here locally? How is FM different from what was for decades locally referred to as the „maintenance services“?

— We can define Facility Management as a process of delivering all necessary services to the users of a facility or a real estate, with an aim to fulfill their diverse needs. A more formal definition is offered by IFMA (International Facility Management Association) - “a profession that encompasses multiple disciplines to ensure functionality, comfort, safety and efficiency of the built environment by integrating people, place, process and technology.” Of course, this primarily implies the management of the facilities, equipment, and all necessary types of maintenance. Locally, FM is still regarded in the same way as before - as nothing more than maintenance, in terms of sanitation and technical maintenance. Only recently, both in Serbia and the region, we are witnessing a growing awareness of the difference between the two concepts – the role of maintenance is to make sure that everything in a facility functions perfectly, while the Facility Management implies a broad concept of managing a facility on a long-term basis. The management and FM function optimization processes are interlinked, improving the quality of services, with continuous focus on cost rationalization, while keeping in mind the energy efficiency and sustainable development.

According to European standards FM allegedly covers as many as 80 services and processes. What are these? — Services offered and provided by Facility Managers cover all services which may be needed by the user of the facility. The first thing that comes to mind are cleaning services, technical maintenance and security services. However, since the development of the Facility Management concept, types and the range of the services are continuously expanding to cover new areas.

Main functions of the Facility Management are: • Operational management of the building – implies activities necessary for the functioning and maintenance of the facility. Some of these are maintenance of heating, ventilation and air conditioning system and electric equipment, watersupply system and the building management system. • Grounds management – lanes, pathways, lighting, greenery and grass areas. • Planning – means longterm planning in the context of the Facility Management in order to save the appearance of the facility and improve its functionality. • Sustainability – stands for creating and preserving conditions which provide the balance between economic, social and environmental requirements of present and future generations. • Project Management – implies initiating, planning, controlling and completing team works with an aim to achieve specific goals and predefined criteria. • Space planning – ensures an optimal and most efficient arrangement and use of space. • Workplace strategy – harmonizes FM processes with the working environment to enable the achievement of goals. • Real estate management – managing rel estate acquisition, sale, lease and development.

If we were to analyse each of the above categories in details, I’m sure we would exceed 100 and not just 80 activities formally covered by the Facility Management field.

To which extent is FM as a multidisciplinary approach present in our market? Do the owners of industrial, public and commercial facilities have an awareness of its significance, and what is the level of the FM services provided in Serbia today? — When it comes to market coverage with basic FM services the situation here is relatively satisfactory. However, many owners of industrial, public and commercial facilities are often not aware of the importance of the FM multidisciplinary approach, which provides IREP&WEST with an opportunity to up-

By implementing CAFM software, we can reduce facility management costs of up to 25% grade the quality of FM services in the local market. As a part of the global IREP network, we are in a position to bring added value to our clients’ businesses by applying the latest FM solutions. That is why we aim to make our clients familiar with them, because by applying novel solutions they can considerably improve working efficiency and rationalise their costs.

What are the advantages of FM solutions brought by IREP&WEST, and what does their practical implementation look like?

— Along with the Open Book Policy we consistently apply in our business practices and client approach, we start with an analysis of FM needs and the functioning of the existing FM services of our future clients. Our aim is to identify the opportunities for the optimization and upgrading, as well as saving opportunities, whether related to the organisational process or the energy efficiency. In practice, this strategy leads to building trust between IREP&WEST and the client because the model applied firmly connects the goals of the FM function and those of the facility owner. We always work openly and transparently, and it is in our interest to ensure optimal savings and efficiency to our clients, because it implies that we are doing our business successfully.

Who are your potential customers and how does your FM solution save time, energy and money for the real estate owners?

— Every potential user of FM services is our prospective client. We offer solutions tailored according to specific needs of our clients, continuously carrying out activities directed at cost saving, but ensuring that they do not result in diminishing the quality of services provided. These savings can be significant, which is exactly what prompted a very succesful expansion of IREP at the global level.

When it comes to specific estimations of cost savings, according to IREP’s experience, they may amount to 10 – 25 % compared to previous facility costs. What provides an additional advantage is that, upon completion of the facility organisation analysis, IREP offers a suggestion for an improved facility management system, which guarantees reduction of facility costs, while taking on the risks of these cost reductions. In practice this means that the facility owner pays reduced amounts for the costs from the very beginning, regardless whether IREP&WEST was successful at cost reduction or not. Still, I would like to emphasise that to date, IREP has always been successful in providing or even significantly surpassing agreed cost savings.

Where in the world is your FM software applied?

— International Real Estate Partners is doing business in more than 50 countries all over the world, and this number is growing. All our clients have the opportunity to make use of the significant advantages provided by our CAFM software, in line with their needs and desires. We have satisfied customers all over the world and on different continents, which is yet another evidence that our business model is successful.

Due to the complexity of this discipline, there are very few companies in our market who avail of inhouse FM services. Instead, they hire outsourced teams for this purpose. Do we have enough professional FM teams in the market?

— In the local FM market there is a shortage of the quality personel to join the FM teams. This creates another opportunity for the IREP&WEST company to play a significant role in the local and regional market, because our workforce of over 1,500 experienced employees all over the world represents an invaluable source of expert and innovative knowledge in the Facility Management field. This allows us to recruit and train a high quality FM team with an advanced client approach in every new market we enter.