2013-02-14 FMW

THE MAGAZINE FOR THE BRITISH INSTITUTE OF FACILITIES MANAGEMENT | 14 FEBRUARY 2013

FMWorld www.fm-world.co.uk

CLEANING CONTRACTS:

Squeezed profit margins are forcing the sector to get creative

NATURAL SELECTION Nurturing the Royal Parks’ requirement for grounds maintenance

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VOL 10 ISSUE 3 14 FEBRUARY 2013

CONTENTS

9 | RIBA Future Trends survey

18 | Royal Parks

12 | Business in Focus

NEWS

MONITOR

FEATURES

6 Proposals to transform unused office space into housing 7 FM World launches Salary Survey 2013 and calls for participants 8 Project of the fortnight: Southwark’s council’s new campus 9 Think Tank: are the new standards important for facilities managers?

10 Business news: Graeme Davies explains the profits and pitfalls of globalised FM operations 11 Mitie’s FM division reports from organic growth in 2012 12 Chair of ‘Hi-Rig’ discusses the aims of the skyscraper FM interest group 13 A report on a recent FM conference held in Malaysia

26 Legal Update: Gareth Matthews on dismissal disputes 27 Court Report: Matthew Stanton discusses Rylands v Fletcher 28 How To: Instil your team with passion, argues Tom Robinson 30 Technical: Harry Dewick-Eisele describes composite extinguishers 31 What’s in it for me: Public speaking demystified, by the BIFM’s Beth Goodyear 32 Insight: Market intelligence 33 Technical: Closed loop paper systems could save trees – and money

OPINION 16 Perspective of a facilities manager: John Bowen considers whether FM is adapting to market conditions 17 Five minutes with Stephen Roots, FM with MAG property 42 No Two Days

20 | Cleaning Contracts

18

Royal Parks: Martin Read takes a walk on the wild side at Richmond and Bushy Parks, finding out about a beautiful and unique grounds maintenance requirement

20

Cleaning Contracts: As profit margins are squeezed, cleaning professionals are under pressure to deliver value, finds Nick Martindale

REGULARS 34 37 38 39 42

BIFM news Diary of events People & jobs Products Appointments

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Selected forthcoming features in FM World: Need evidence to support your FM project?

28th March issue: Ergonomics 23rd May issue: Catering Contract Management 6th June issue: Building Management Systems

Magenta are experts in facilities management surveys and research.

20th June issue: ThinkFM report 4th July issue: Third Spaces 16th August issue: HVAC innovations 5th September issue: Carbon Footprint

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We have something of interest for all advertisers.

For a full 2013 features list visit:

www.fm-world.co.uk/about-us or contact norbert.camenzuli@redactive.co.uk / 020 7880 7551 richard.york@redactive.co.uk / 020 7880 7608 Features are subject to change - please contact the editor for further details. FM World welcomes contributions and ideas for articles. Send a short synopsis to Martin Read at martin.read@fm-world.co.uk.

Please note that we reserve the right to edit copy submitted for publication in the magazine.

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Redactive Publishing Ltd 17 Britton Street, London EC1M 5TP 020 7880 6200 www.fm-world.co.uk EDITORIAL Tel: 020 7880 6229 email: editorial@fm-world.co.uk editor: Martin Read ⁄ news editor: David Arminas ⁄ sub editor: James Richards ⁄ editorial assistant: James Harris ⁄ art director: Mark Parry ⁄ art editor: Daniel Swainsbury picture editor: Sam Kesteven

MARTIN READ EDITOR COMMENT

LEADER

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Average net circulation 11,513 (Jul 11 – Jun 12) FM World magazine is produced using paper derived from sustainable sources; the ink used is vegetable based; 85 per cent of other solvents used in the production process are recycled © FM World is published on behalf of the British Institute of Facilities Management (BIFM)

by Redactive Publishing Ltd (RPL), 17 Britton St, London EC1M 5TP. This magazine aims to include a broad range of opinion about FM business and professional issues and articles do not necessarily reflect the views of the BIFM nor should such opinions be relied upon as statements of fact. All rights reserved. This publication may not be reproduced, transmitted or stored in any print or electronic format, including but not limited to any online service, any database or any part of the internet, or in any other format in whole or in part in any media whatsoever, without the prior written permission of the publisher. While all due care is taken in writing and producing this magazine, neither BIFM nor RPL accept any liability for the accuracy of the contents or any opinions expressed herein. Printed by Pensord ISSN 1743 8845

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ow much of your time is spent on ‘strategic FM’ activity? Given that so many facilities managers complain about being a slave to their operational prisons, unable to step back and plan ahead, it sounds like a very pertinent question. But it can only be useful if we’ve adequately defined the parameters of an FM’s strategic role. And that’s a much trickier thing to pull off.

An alarm bell goes off in my head whenever a presenter has to explain the word in question with a slide that shows its dictionary definition. It suggests that while we may all be talking about the same topic, we’re coming at it from different angles.

So it is with ‘strategy’. We could be talking about the strategy needed to integrate FM into the wider organisation, or whether the FM function has its own strategy, or how FM feeds into an organisational strategy, or global asset management strategy...

How about the question of whether facilities management is accepted as a strategic tool by organisations? Ask three people and you’ll get three different answers.

There is a danger that in speaking so frequently about achieving FM’s rightful status, we devalue certain words through their constant repetition. All this synergising, leveraging and, yes, strategising could be making the eyes of those we need to convince glaze over.

FM is not unique in this. Click on any piece of industry news and there’s a good chance the ’S’ word will turn up somewhere in the story. Just this morning I’ve read about how “the strategic management of health resources across the East of England has failed”. And in the same piece: “MPs said there had been a ‘complete lack of strategic oversight’ of NHS services in the region.” Take the word ‘strategic’ out of both sentences and guess what? They still mean exactly what they were written to mean. Nothing is gained from the use of the word ‘strategic’.

True, other sectors suffer from this use – and abuse – of language. Yet we in FM, may be disproportionately affected by it. There’s no question at all that FM needs to shout about its successes, particularly when those successes see FM accepted as the department of organisational empowerment it aims to be recognised as.

But communicating this shouldn’t involve plundering a buzzword dictionary, it should be a question reporting the simple common sense. Rather than talk about the strategies, let’s talk about the bald, fundamental business logic of the work being undertaken. How embarrassing and just plain backward it would be to not integrate FM into corporate decision making, whatever the project.

Right now, many companies are doing fantastic work restructuring their FM departments, aligning with other corporate real estate functions and working alongside IT and HR in projects that show just how FM can shine. Shouldn’t we just concentrate on the basic facts of these stories, rather than complicating them through use of weasel-word adjectives that only serve to confuse the message?

Anyway, now I’ve got that off my chest, I’m off to the kitchen to implement my hot liquid consumption strategy: it’s time to leverage a beverage.

H

“Rather than talk about the strategies, let’s talk about the bald, fundamental business logic of the work being undertaken”

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PROPERTY

SHUTTERSTOCK

Office space to offer new homes bonanza Up to 100,000 new homes in England could be created under new government plans to convert office blocks into flats.

Planning minister Nick Boles is due to unveil proposals this month to change current planning laws, allowing office blocks to be converted without seeking permission from councils. This could mean as many as 40,000 homes could be developed in London and the south-east of England alone.

A spokesman for the Department for Communities and Local Government said: “We are currently looking to make it easier to convert empty and under-used commercial space into residential use. This will provide new homes, help regenerate urban areas and boost local town centres.”

The demand for office space, particularly in London, is low, despite a number of recently completed office tower blocks.

A notable example is the Shard, which opened in July 2012, with 26 floors of vacant office space.

However, property agent DTZ revealed in October 2012 that planning permissions for office to residential conversions were on a continuous upward curve.

Adam Pyrke, head of London planning for property adviser Colliers International, told the London Evening Standard newspaper: “There are hundreds of office buildings – mostly small scale – all over London that are suitable for conversion and could add a lot of residential. Each one would probably only provide a handful of units, but it is 06 | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | FM WORLD

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incremental. The planning system has failed to provide enough housing.”

The announcement follows the recent finding that the UK needs 230,000 new houses built every year to keep up with an expanding population and to support the job market.

In its report Cities Outlook 2013, independent research institute Centre for Cities found the country is currently 100,000 homes short of this target each year.

There is some opposition to the proposed plans, though, particularly in boroughs within central London that maintain

policies resisting loss of office space.

And Mark Cosh, director at property services provider SitexOrbis, has highlighted another factor in getting vacant office space back in use.

He is backing an Early Day Motion in parliament to make squatting in commercial premises a criminal offence. This follows a change in the law in September

2012, which made squatting in residential properties a criminal offence, but kept squatting in commercial buildings a civil matter.

“A recent survey of facilities managers that we conducted revealed that 30 per cent of FM professionals expect an increase in squatters targeting their properties, with 27 per cent saying that they had been targeted by squatters over the past two years,” said Cosh.

Research councils take on £4 billion spend The Research Councils UK Shared Services Centre (RCUK SSC) is to manage £4 billion of government spend on construction, research and facilities management projects as part of an agreement with the Government Procurement Service (GPS).

GPS expects to make annual savings of 10 per cent through this use of category management and consolidation of spend.

Nicola Dunne, chief procurement officer at RCUK, told Supply Management magazine: “We are bringing the capacity of the workforce operating a commercial share [managing procurement activity] into the centre, which is key to tackling the country’s deficit problem.”

The RCUK SSC and GPS are

also working together to provide strategic procurement support for government departments to assist in the delivery of high value or complex procurements.

Dunne, who currently heads up a team of 70, added she might have to expand her team to take on the extra volume of work.

The move is part of recommendations proposed by the Public Expenditure Efficiency and Reform Group in December 2011. These include centralising procurement of common goods and services, delivering sustainable savings through aggregation of spend within appropriate centres of excellence, and developing a more efficient and transparent procurement service to better manage spend.

David Shields, GPS managing director, said in a statement: “This agreement demonstrates our shared commitment to working in partnership to deliver costsavings that benefit the whole of the public sector. This is an important step in the delivery of both the procurement and civil service reform programme, which supports the drive to channel spend though aggregated arrangements to increase savings.

It will also help streamline procurement resource across government, improving efficiency.”

This item was first published online

by FM World’s sister title, Supply Management - the magazine of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply (CIPS) www.fm-world.co.uk

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NEWS

BRIEFS BIFM in southern Ireland

SHUTTERSTOCK

FM World seeks Salary Survey participants FM World is seeking participants for its annual salary survey, with BIFM members and website visitors invited to take part in this important annual research project.

The 10-minute questionnaire asks about salary, bonuses and benefits, as well as the issues that matter most to FMs in the development of their careers. Last year, we discovered that more FMs were beginning to enter the sector from an engineering rather than an office administration background, and that there had been a significant year-on-year increase in the number of respondents boasting BIFM qualifications.

Issues such as job location and career progression prospects were becoming gradually more important in relation to overall salary package.

We were also able to report an increase in the number of women entering the profession, and a gradual erosion of the amount of time that FMs spent with a single company before moving on. That said, we also reported an increase in the amount of time that in-house FMs were staying with their existing employer.

As for salaries themselves, increases in the 2012 survey compared to 2011 were more likely

to be in the 1 to 2 per cent bracket when compared to previous years, if indeed any increase was registered at all.

The figures reflected the overall economic environment and supported a trend established in 2008.

As an incentive for readers to participate and help us maintain this important work, those who take part will be entered into a free draw to win £250. The name of the winner will be published in April.

To take part in the FM World Salary Survey 2013, visit tinyurl.com/ fmsalarysurvey2013

PLANNING

SHUTTERSTOCK

‘Organisational design’ boost for FM Organisational design – the structuring of processes and reporting relationships within organisations – could help raise the profile of facilities management, claims a chartered surveyor with specialist knowledge of the FM sector.

Speaking at the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)’s strategic FM conference in London, Dr Connel Bottom said that awareness of organisational design as a strategic issue was rising among chief executives and finance directors, and that facilities management could have a lot to gain from embracing it.

“I see organisational design as a great enabler,” said Bottom. www.fm-world.co.uk

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“It’s about standardising and simplification of processes. Any decision to cut costs cannot generate lasting efficiencies if it is not tied to organisational design.”

Bottom, who is assistant director, corporate finance real-estate advisory at PricewaterhouseCoopers, suggested that organisational design necessitates collaboration between departments, focusing first on the organisation’s customer offering and then assessing and adapting established processes to fit the need.

“A lot of organisations have gone through their first round of cost savings and are now reaching the stage where they need to do

more. In my view, the only way is through reorganisation and corporate services transformation.

FM has got to be a part of this.”

“I think FM must embrace organisational change,” said Bottom. “This transformation agenda is going to hit, and a lot of organisations are going to go through it.”

Bottom also expressed his concern that in many organisations, FM was too easily sidelined by being forced to report in to other departments, using the example of a company where property and FM were managed by the director of IT. “The ramification is that FM is not bring managed as effectively as it could be,” suggested Bottom.

The BIFM’s Ireland region is establishing a new southern branch, the first BIFM regional branch situated outside of the UK. BIFM chief executive Gareth Tancred made the announcement at a recent event arranged by the Portobello Institute, a BIFM recognised centre, held at CBRE’s offices in Dublin.

The southern branch will form part of the BIFM Ireland region, which has over 240 active members. The Ireland region will serve as the over-arching region, with a northern and southern branch structure established within it.

CIOB sets up FM group The Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) has established a facilities management group.

In a statement the CIOB said that it is “keen to promote excellence in the management of facilities”. A working group of members has been established to “deliver set aims and objectives and the development of a strategic plan”.

The CIOB cited the fast growth of the sector, the government’s adoption of the ‘soft landings’ and the importance of FM as a “key element in building information modelling (BIM)” as the main reasons for its move.

G4S and Locog in talks Security firm G4S and the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (Locog) are reportedly close to agreeing a compensation deal for the breach of its security contract last summer.

In the deal worth £284 million, G4S were expected to provide security for over 100 Olympic sites.

At least £50 million is expected in a compensation deal to cover the extra police officers and members of the armed forces, which were drafted in as replacement security guards.

G4S was paid a £57 million management fee as part of the deal. The agreement is expected to be completed in the next two weeks.

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PROJECT OF THE

FORTNIGHT NEWS BULLETIN

Website to sell government buildings launched Government property available to rent or buy is now available to view online. Find Me Some Government Space, launched in January, is expected to make the selling and renting process more efficient.

The government has opened up more than 300 properties available to rent and approximately 900 available to buy in the UK, as part of its cost-cutting measures. Property available includes an old magistrates court in Retford and an old battle hospital in Reading.

Chloe Smith, Minister for Political and Constitutional Reform, said: “Not only will this website help to save government money, but we will see new opportunities, jobs and growth in local economies as new life is brought into empty, unused properties.”

Shepherd FM sets up graduate scheme Southwark Mayor Althea Smith (left) and Cllr Peter John unveil the plaque

Southwark develops new office ‘campus’ Southwark Council has opened its new central, more energy-efficient and up-to-date office in Queens Road, Peckham.

The project was part of an overall office accommodation strategy laid out by the London borough that it hopes will generate around £50 million in capital for the council to reinvest in services.

The new building is the first of three offices the council plans to open in the heart of the borough, which will eventually house up to 600 council officers including frontline housing, community wardens, environmental health, and adult social care staff.

Moving staff to the Queens Road buildings will allow the council to free up 27 properties for disposal and regeneration projects.

The overall accommodation strategy, which includes the council’s move to its main offices in Tooley Street, is set to free up 45 properties in total.

The new office is part of a proposed campus of three offices at Queens Road. Two of the buildings have been unoccupied since their construction in 2009 and the third is the ground floor of a block of flats on Lugard Road.

Works on the refitting of the Lugard Road property started in November, with the final phase of works on the smaller office building following on this year. The main contractors for this work are Mott Macdonald, Morgan Sindall and AMA. At the official opening ceremony, leader of the council Cllr Peter John was joined by Southwark’s Mayor, Cllr Althea Smith, to unveil a plaque commemorating the occasion.

John, said: “Our new Queens Road office demonstrates our commitment to providing the best working environment for our staff to allow them to work together to support residents and make Southwark a place where everyone can thrive.

“It also gives us a significant presence in the heart of the borough and allows us to free-up several older, less suitable properties for regeneration.”

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FM service provider Shepherd FM has introduced a graduate training programme that individuals can apply to join at any stage throughout the year. The scheme’s first graduate, Shaz Yusufi, joined last month.

Yusufi, a business graduate from the University of Hertfordshire, is working within Shepherd FM’s helpdesk at the start of a two-year programme. He will work across a number of service areas within the business, gaining experience with a variety of customers and markets, securing an understanding of total FM as well as Shepherd FM’s service philosophy. At the end of the two-year programme, Yusufi, as with other graduates on the scheme, will gain a BIFM qualification and a “key role” within the business.

“Launching our graduate programme is another logical step in our quest to discover special talent,” said Noel Clancy, the company’s chief executive.

“This is by no means the only entry ticket into our business. It does however open a new, exciting resource pool for Shepherd FM and I expect great results over the coming years.”

Social media moves up corporate agenda A social media and marketing expert has suggested that corporate social media activity, once the preserve of marketing departments, is now being taken more seriously by senior directors at FM providers and client organisations alike.

Speaking at the FM Forum at Stansted Airport at the end of last month, Katie King of PR and social media agency Zoodikers told an audience of FMs and service providers that social media is now “part of a bigger process of business transformation in which social media platforms will become new office productivity tools, overtaking email”.

Kings explained that a regular social media presence would help in a firm’s quest for prospective clients, but warned against assuming that measuring the success of such campaigns was a short-term activity.

“You don’t win orders just because you’ve got great presence,” said King. “But, gradually, co-ordinated activity across platforms such as Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook works as a ‘warm door opener’, making it easier to have informed conversations with prospective commercial partners.”

FMs take on growing role in CSR reporting Facilities managers are responsible for at least 50 per cent of the activities that make up an organisation’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting, according to a leading compliance expert.

Speaking at last month’s FM Forum event at Stansted Airport, Greg Davies, head of service development at Assurity Consulting, said: “If you exclude those organisations in education and finance, most of the compliance issues faced by a typical company are managed by the FM. “50 per cent of CSR reporting is into areas for which you are responsible and I think that this is a massive opportunity for the sector.” www.fm-world.co.uk

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THINK TANK

WE ASKED 100 FMS… Are FM standards important to you? Judging from our latest poll, opinion on the matter is divided

SHUTTERSTOCK

Almost half of facilities managers say that they have never had to deal with standards, according to FM World’ latest poll.

Many expressed a scepticism towards the ‘true purpose’ of the flurry of recently introduced standards, suggesting there was confusion about who would benefit from their use.

Others told us that working towards standards just wasn’t an important topic for them. Said one: “I would like to say we are planning to work with standards, but they just don’t come up in any discussion with FM leaders in client or service provider roles.”

Another respondent flagged up the cost of the standards.

“Individual BIFM members are

not going to buy those lightly”, he said. Another respondent agreed, questioning how effectively the idea of working to standards could be sold to directors.

Geographical problems, said another respondent, cause a gap between existing standards from around the world and devalue ‘local’ variants. “Longer term, we need global advice on adopting and adjusting standards for each global region,” he suggested.

But not everyone was as negative. “One of the best things with an FM standard is that it gives a clear process for how you implement an agreement,” was one response, echoed by another who suggested that standards will ultimately provide a platform from

Planning to work with one or more of these standards 18%

Yes, we are already using at least one of these standards 22%

They just don’t affect us 18%

No, we’ve never had to deal with any of them 42%

which the industry could prove its greater added value to customers.

It was all a matter of practical application for one respondent: “FM standards will only be widely used if they provide a tangible benefit across the industry.”

Finally, there was a call for a wider consensus on the issue. Said one: “We can certainly develop and improve on the current standards, but that requires the whole industry – occupiers, FMs and service providers alike – to contribute to the discussion.”

“Performance benchmarking is

Recently introduced standards ● BS EN 15221-7 Performance Benchmarking ● BS EN 15221-6 Space Measurement ● BS EN 15221-5 Standards for Benchmarking ● BS EN 15221-4 ● BS 8572 – Procurement of Facilities Services ● BS8210 – Guide to FM Management

something people talk about but seldom do, because of an ‘apples and oranges’ comparison,” said one.

“I am not sure that ‘BS EN 152215 Standards for Benchmarking’ would overcome that.”

RIBA survey reveals cautious optimism

Tancred: IT shows how FM can break through

Results from the latest Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA)’s Future Trends survey suggest that architects are adopting a more positive stance on commercial developments in 2013.

The monthly survey monitors business and employment trends affecting the architecture profession.

Results from December 2012 indicated a stable market for architects’ services but few signs of growth. However, architects’ practices in London, the South of England, the Midlands, East Anglia, the West and Wales reported optimism about their projected workloads – although those in Scotland and Northern Ireland remained cautious.

RIBA’s director of practice, Adrian Dobson, commented: “The upward movements in two key sectors (commercial and private housing)

The chief executive of the BIFM has said the the FM sector can follow IT’s lead in gaining a wider strategic role within organisations,.

Speaking at an event put on by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), Gareth Tancred told an audience of senior estates and facilities professionals that the IT function had faced similar issues to those now faced by FM in proving its strategic value within an organisation.

Today, job titles such as ‘chief information officer’ were testimony to IT’s subsequent success in making its case.

In a wide-ranging discussion on the issues surrounding FM’s strategic input, Tancred pointed out that FMs would struggle to break away from operational pressures in the current economic conditions.

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represent a very positive trend for the profession and the wider industry. They are the sectors most likely to provide an early indication of any emerging sustainable growth in the UK construction industry.”

The survey also suggested that architects were increasingly involved in refurbishment and adaptive re-use projects, an effect of the current economic climate.

“We can’t get away from fact that there is huge pressure on the bottom line,” said Tancred.

“Organisations are under constant pressure to get a return for their shareholders, and earnings per share is a key metric in any PLC.” What was required, said Tancred, was for FMs to find ways of proposing solutions to the kind of problems bound to become strategically important in the years ahead. Citing the carbon agenda and energy management, Tancred said: “FMs have to find strategic solutions to these issues and make those known to their boards so that they don’t face those same issues down the track.”

Tancred’s comments came during a panel session held by RICS to discuss issues raised in its report on FM, Raising the Bar, which was published late last year.

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ANALYSIS

Global markets: profit and peril for FM firms GRAEME DAVIES newsdesk@fm-world.co.uk

In an increasingly globalised economy, the consensus is that companies in the service industries, such as facilities management, will benefit from increasing their reach.

In doing so, they will expand, serving customers across numerous countries and even continents.

A prime example of this in the FM industry was the recent deal signed between global banking giant HSBC – which is so widespread it calls itself ‘the world’s local bank’ – and property services provider Jones Lang LaSalle. The deal, described by

some commentators as one of the biggest property management deals of all time, makes Jones Lang LaSalle the property services provider of choice for HSBC across its global portfolio. In return for a reported £800 million, Jones Lang LaSalle will be expected to deliver non-core real estate services across 11,000 locations worldwide and will take on hundreds of staff dedicated to this contract alone.

Recent research shows the sheer size of the potential market for providers of integrated FM services. Last month, Frost & Sullivan’s report on the global integrated FM market found the

sector recorded revenues of $64.2 billion (£40.8 billion) in 2011.

This figure is expected to surge to $96.2 billion (£61.2 billion) by 2017.

Even at this level, this would only represent around 15 per cent of the wider global FM market by 2017, with stronger penetration in the developed markets of the US and Europe, suggesting that, as emerging markets mature further, opportunities will continue to grow on a similar trajectory for those businesses that are able to offer a truly global service.

But even the larger players won’t necessarily get an easy ride.

The nature of outsourced services means that clients are always trying to reduce costs. Providers have to find increasing economies within their own operations to maintain margins. And in markets such as Europe and the US, the competition is fierce and margins slim. Economies of scale can help in such a situation, especially if

Contract wins

NEW BUSINESS Public service provider Amey has secured a three-year contract extension with Buckinghamshire County Council to operate its school buses and adult transport services.

The deal sees Amey continue to provide transport services for 16,000 school children and 1,200 adults throughout the county.

Buckinghamshire County Council said the contract was extended due to the efficiency savings delivered, estimated to be worth £4 million per annum.

Nottinghamshire County Council has selected Serco as its preferred bidder to operate the National Water 10 | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | FM WORLD

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Sports Centre in Nottingham. Serco proposes to enhance facilities on the site, which will include the construction of a larger community gym, a refurbished main building, campsite improvements and the construction of a high ropes course.

Global bank HSBC has picked Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) as its sole global outsourcing provider of integrated FM services. JLL will manage the contract through its own technology platform, which has been designed to allow HSBC to manage, compare and benchmark performance across its global portfolio (see above).

OCS is to continue providing catering, cleaning, portering, switchboard, reception, security, and washroom services to the Central and North West London (CNWL) NHS Foundation Trust. The extension to the contract will run from May 2013 to May 2015 and is valued at more than £13 million.

Retirement housing provider Hanover has awarded Caterplus Services and Elior UK catering contracts worth £25 million. The five-year deals, which spans across 50 of its sites, will begin in April 2013. Caterplus will be responsible for Hanover’s north region, while Elior will continue to cater for its south and west regions.

Churchill Services is teaming up with Capita to provide soft FM services to over 100 properties in the support services group’s estate. Churchill will be responsible for a range of services, including cleaning, waste management and pest control to properties across the south of England.

central costs are spread over a wide base. But there is always the risk that a company will chase a contract it cannot profitably deliver – witness the reputational hit that global guarding operator G4S took over the Olympic security contract debacle last year.

But one trend continues inexorably: ever-larger contracts provided by a global elite with the financial and operational muscle to compete. This sets a significant challenge for businesses trying to break out of their domestic markets and go international as they face being priced out by bigger rivals if they go it alone.

This could encourage consolidation among the midlevel FM players looking to make the step up on to a bigger stage.

G4S contemplated doing something similar when it launched its bid to buy ISS in 2011, but this European landgrab ended in failure.

UK companies such as Interserve, Serco, Capita and Balfour Beatty have all expanded overseas through acquisitions in recent years, albeit on a less ambitious scale then G4S. The latter’s £5.2 billion tilt at ISS was eventually derailed by investor disquiet over such a hefty acquisition at an economically uncertain time. In future, this trend could see more deals in emerging markets, as established FM players from the developed markets look to push beyond their existing competitive markets and grab market share elsewhere.

Indeed, a report by Catalyst Corporate Finance last year suggested the global FM market is entering a ‘fourth wave’ of consolidation as players look to add new services and geographies to existing operations.

Graeme Davies writes for Investors Chronicle

www.fm-world.co.uk

07/02/2013 12:18

SHUTTERSTOCK

Mitie goes from strength to strength Mitie’s FM division has announced strong organic growth in its latest interim statement.

At the end of the second quarter of the financial year 2012/2013 (30 September 2012), 98 per cent of budgeted revenues for the financial year had been acquired. The company has reported strong growth, with expectations of continued growth into Q4, thanks to a series of contract wins and extensions.

In January 2013, Mitie secured a £30 million repairs deal with Hammersmith and Fulham council in London, while in November 2012, it won two FM contracts worth over £200 million

BUSINESS BRIEFS Balfour considers FM sale

Hammersmith Bridge, London

over £100 million in October 2012. It is expected to generate an end-of-year revenue of £93 million, with £10 million operating profit.

A statement from the service provider says it is expected that its contracts in more volatile markets will continue to be affected by “weak economic conditions”.

The continued growth follows on from a positive half-year report, which saw an increase of nearly 30 per cent in Mitie’s operating profit for the half-year 2012 over the same period the previous year, in the six months ending 30 September 2012.

in total, with Golding Homes housing association in Kent and BSkyB. In addition, Mitie was appointed by housing group A2Dominion to deliver reactive maintenance for nearly 20,000 properties across the south of England, in a 10-year, £94 million deal.

It has also secured a three-year waste management deal at Bedford College, and is to provide security and car park management services at University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust.

Mitie’s progress has been boosted by the acquisition of home care provider Enara for

The deal between G4S and three home counties police forces to outsource a range of services will now not take place.

The police and crime commissioner for Hertfordshire, David Lloyd, had said in a statement that the strategic alliance between the police forces of Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire had ended negotiations with the service provider G4S. The deal would have seen 1,100 job roles in HR, IT and finance transferred to G4S. However, Lloyd now says that the G4S framework contract, based on the contractor’s existing arrangement with Lincolnshire Police, has now been judged www.fm-world.co.uk

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PA

Police pull out of G4S office services deal

unsuitable for the ‘unique position’ of the three forces.

In the same statement, the police and crime commissioner for Bedfordshire, Olly Martins, commented: “I am pleased that following the evaluation and subsequent discussions, the three Police and Crime Commissioners have ended up in agreement with

a shared view that this contract does not deliver what we need.”

For its part, G4S says that it its proposals would have “guaranteed savings of over £100 million over the next 10 years, allowing them to meet the financial challenge of the Comprehensive Spending Review without compromising on efficiency or public safety.”

Kim Challis, chief executive of G4S government and outsourcing solutions, said that the contractor’s arrangement with Lincolnshire Police had, in less than a year, “seen us deliver savings in running costs of around 16 per cent”.

In November 2012, G4S was cut from a Ministry of Justice shortlist for running three prisons.

Infrastructure services group Balfour Beatty has stated that it is ‘exploring strategic options’ regarding its UK facilities management business, amid speculation of the business’ future.

A report in the Financial Times has indicated that the group is looking to sell the FM arm, Balfour Beatty WorkPlace.

The sale price could be up to £250 million, claims the report that also says that Citigroup has been appointed to advise on the sale.

Voith buys ThyssenKrupp Technical services provider Voith Industrial Services has acquired ThyssenKrupp Services.

ThyssenKrupp’s UK business, based in Coventry, provides technical cleaning and services to customers including Jaguar Land Rover, BMW and Ford.

Warwick-based Voith has a variety of automotive customers, including General Motors, Getrag Ford Transmissions, Jaguar Land Rover, BP Castrol and Case New Holland. It provides facilities management, technical cleaning, wheel and tyre assembly, and managed processes.

PHS acquires Phoenix Shredding business PHS Datashred has acquired Exeterbased Phoenix Shredding.

The acquisition follows PHS’ purchase of Shred Easy in 2011.

Anthony Pearlgood, commercial director of PHS Datashred, said: “We can now offer customers in Exeter and Devon a more flexible range of services including both on- and off-site shredding, recycling and waste disposal services and offer a national network.”

FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 11

07/02/2013 12:18

FM BUSINESS IN FOCUS

THE ISSUE

THE INTERVIEWEE

Steve Neville (above); The Shard (right)

SHUTTERSTOCK

The growing number of high-rise, multi-occupancy towers in the City of London are bringing forth unique facilities challenges

Steve Neville OBE MBIFM, chair of the recently formed Hi-Rig (High Rise Interactive Group)

Heads in the clouds Place a visitor from the 1980s into London’s Square Mile today and they would be astonished at the vista: large, gleaming towers in an unmatched variety of shapes and sizes that dominate the skyline.

Despite the Pinnacle Tower’s troubles, the City’s skyline is continuing to evolve. Soon, new buildings at 122 Leadenhall Street (the ‘Cheesegrater’) and 20 Fenchurch Street (the ‘WalkieTalkie’) will also be occupied.

These new towers bring with them a unique set of FM challenges that a new group – the High-Rise Interactive Group (Hi-Rig) – intends to address. The group comprises senior estate personnel from London Bridge Quarter, The Shard, Canary Wharf, Heron Tower, Tower 42, Broadgate Estates, 30 St Mary Axe, and Land Securities. The group will share best practice and professional knowledge governing the management of high rise, multi-occupancy buildings.

The group’s chairman is Steve Neville, co-founder of the City Livery of Worshipful Company of Security Professionals and Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Firefighters. Neville 12 | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | FM WORLD

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says that the immediate aims of the group are to engage with London’s police and fire brigade, co-ordinating contingency plans in case of mass evacuation or other emergencies.

The assistant commissioners of both the London Fire Brigade and the City of London Police advised on the group’s formation and will be contributing to its future direction.

“The task of managing the new icons of the London skyline is extremely demanding,” says Neville. “It’s led to the creation of a new breed of super-estate director and facilities manager.

These men and women represent the upper echelon of their profession and are called upon to make critical decisions on everything from water purification to full-scale mass evacuation.

“Hi-Rig now exists to provide a forum for these professionals to share their knowledge and

to discuss shared approaches to the challenges that come with managing these buildings.”

“There’s been such a surge of new high-rise construction,” says Neville, “and each building is so different in design and structure from the next.

“Take the Shard, for example.

If it evacuates, then the local community will be flooded with people very quickly. So we need to engage with our local communities as well, not just the blue light services.”

“It means that the estate managers and FMs of these iconic buildings are dealing with a range of new user groups. Take, for example, the fact that these working environments routinely appear as film and entertainment backdrops. So in addition to running the rest of the building, the facilities managers now have to cope with film crews as well.”

With the opening of the Shard’s viewing galleries and amenities, such as restaurants at the top of the towers, the need to deal with the general public as a regular user-group has emerged.

“We are currently debating the extent to which these buildings are becoming tourist attractions and what that means to the managers who run them,” says

“In addition to running the rest of the building, facilities managers now have to cope with film crews as well”

Neville. “In many buildings, managers are dealing with tenants, private residents and retailers – but increasingly, if you look at examples such as the Shard, they need to deal with tourists as well.”

The group is to hold closed breakfast meetings, inviting representatives from existing tourist attractions such as the BT Tower and the London Eye. The group already includes a representative from Canary Wharf.

“We can learn from all of these people,” says Neville. At the time of interviewing, the group was planning further meetings with City of London police to talk about strategies and contingency plans.

Perhaps, crucially, members of the group will share in the knowledge gained from evacuation trials in individual buildings.

Because of their involvement in Hi-Rig, the London Fire Brigade and City of London Police will also be involved. This adds to the sum of knowledge gained by the support services at trial evacuations of London tube stations, for example.

The group is small, currently comprising eight members.

But Hi-Rig was not set up to do anything other than share critical information.

“We wanted quality, not quantity,” said Neville. “This is a group of quality people working together to share experiences.”

So there it is: an informationsharing group of high-rise tower managers that’s keeping its feet on the ground. www.fm-world.co.uk

07/02/2013 14:29

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17/5/11 17:08:21 FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 13

05/02/2013 14:01

FM EVENT

VIEW FROM THE EAST

xxx

A conference in Malaysia provided the setting for UK facilities manager Mark Whittaker to give a speech about his experiences and insights on the industry “Malaysia is truly Asia rolled into one”. This was how the government housing minister for the Pahang region officially opened the Regional Construction Week Conference 2012, organised by the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) of Malaysia in the city of Kuantan in November last year.

The CIDB is a Malaysian government body, which was set up in 1994. Since then, it has aimed to take a proactive role in promoting quality, productivity and best practice in the Malaysian property and construction industry.

Each year, the CIDB organises a national conference and this year it was the turn of the state capital of the Pahang region, Kuantan – Malaysia’s ninth largest city – to host the event.

FM in Malaysia is still in its infancy, and fragmented, according to research by Nazali Mohd Noor, senior lecturer in property and facilities management at Liverpool John Moores University. Other reports point to a lack of integration between control systems in buildings and generally a lack of uniformity, integration and coherence in asset management practices.

Also the importance of FM in the building life-cycle is not fully understood and was one of the reasons for its prominence at the RCW 2012 conference.

In his opening address, the government minister expressed a

great deal of affection for the UK. He had studied at both Glasgow and Loughborough Universities.

Next to the main conference room was an exhibition hall, which the government minister officially opened and then toured.

Among the stands was the CIDB ‘safety walk-through’, there to promote the adoption of robust health and safety procedures. The consequences of poor health and safety were graphically illustrated by some gruesome photographic evidence, which, it has to be said, would most likely not be displayed at a similar conference in the UK! The second day of the conference was devoted to facilities management and the audience of approximately 120 were mainly from a contracting background.

Conversations that morning had a reoccurring theme, namely that building owners and users see FM as an expenditure that needs to be minimised and are yet to fully grasp the importance and added value that a facilities management strategy can bring. As one of the University of Malaya students had tweeted earlier in the day, “building owners prefer to cure rather than prevent”.

Delegates and officials at the CIDB event; the Sultan Ahmad Shah Convention Centre; speaker Mark Whittaker (clockwise from left)

Several speakers during the day were at pains to clearly define ‘facilities management’ to the audience. All quoted the BIFM’s definition and the importance of an asset management strategy to a building’s life-cycle costs.

In his keynote speech, Mark Whittaker, business development manager for Integral UK, concentrated on how we define innovation in FM and what significant innovations we had seen over the past five years.

Having delivered a lecture to visiting University of Malay students in the UK, Whittaker had been invited to speak about the ‘role of innovation in facilities management in the property lifecycle and built environment” to the audience in Malaysia In his speech, Whittaker explained what he perceived to be some of the barriers Malaysian FM needed to overcome to create

“The consequences of poor health and safety were illustrated by some gruesome photographic evidence”

an environment where innovation can flourish. These included being less risk averse, avoiding government red tape, reducing the number of short-term contracts, avoiding price-led procurement and garnering support for FM at board level.

The remainder of the day concentrated on the need for Facilities Management in the life planning of buildings, the evolution of FM in Malaysia into a ‘return-on-investment approach’, and the need to change the current situation of a ‘first-class infrastructure, but third-class maintenance mentality’.

There was an overriding sense of passion and drive to push the FM agenda forward in Malaysia, as well as frustration at the current inertia and pace of change. FM This article was based on a report

by Mark Whittaker, and written with the assistance of Nazali Mohd Noor, senior lecturer at Liverpool John Moores University.

Mark Whittaker is business development manager for Integral UK and writes his own FM blog at www.whitbagsinfm@wordpress.com

14 | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | FM WORLD

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07/02/2013 11:51

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23/11/2012 12:13

The Leadership Challenge: Raising our game, making our case – realising our value

10 JUNE 2013, THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS, LONDON With sessions to advance skills and thinking, this is the facilities management conference to attend.

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FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 15

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05/02/2013 13:48

FM OPINION THE DIARY COLUMN JOHN BOWEN

“SINCE 2008, FM HAS HAD A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY TO RAISE ITS INFLUENCE AT BOARD LEVEL. BUT HAS ANYTHING BEEN ACHIEVED?”

University Local Estates Authority

John Bowen is an FM consultant

T HE TIMES THEY A R E A CH A N GI N ’

here seems to be a tectonic shift taking place in what end-users require from FM. John Bowen argues the industry must embrace change, rather than play catch up

T

Reports of recent high-street losses read like stories of a cataclysmic event. In reality, all we are seeing is a natural evolution: existence is a competition and always will be, regardless of attempts to ignore or change that fact.

All living organisms compete for space and the means to grow and reproduce. They all adapt and evolve to try and stay ahead of nature and their competitors.

Sometimes they don’t make it and become extinct. The same, of

NHS Trust

course, applies to commerce. The recent loss of Comet, Jessops, HMV and Blockbuster outlets follows on from many that have fallen before them, some of whom fell, in turn, because of competition from these latest casualties.

Within FM, we have seen a lot of change in terms of what our customers (or end-users) do and need. But are we meeting the challenge of changing our industry to suit the needs of the market?

I don’t think that we are because

I see too much of the same old thing. The specifications and ways of working are very reminiscent of the days when I used to tender M&E works back in 1979. Even some of the ‘new’ ideas that have featured in the press recently are things that my teams were doing 20 years ago.

They say that there is nothing new under the sun. To a degree, I believe innovation comes from using existing ideas in different ways. A couple of examples are the use of automotive refinishing techniques in building fabric maintenance and restoration, and the use of lean manufacturing principles in the ways that cleaners operate. I’ve seen both in the past couple of years and they stood out like beacons in comparison

to much of what’s out there.

Since 2008, FM has had a golden opportunity to raise its influence at senior and board levels, but has anything been achieved?

The doors are still open, so go and talk about sweating assets.

Talk to the operations and finance directors about improving employee satisfaction and reducing people turnover. Talk to the HR director and improve the asset value. Talk to the FD about what we can do for CSR. Talk to the marketing or corporate affairs director. Come on folks – this is a dynamic world full of change and FMs should be filling the vacuum.

Either let change happen to you, like those high-street names, or drive the change yourself.

BEST OF THE WEB Views and comments from across the web What are the top characteristics that make a great FM? (BIFM LinkedIn group) Raymond Langley: Lead from the front, have an inquisitive mind, have a positive attitude and be able to think outside the box. Age and experience also help.

Rob Kelly: You need the ability to create long-term sustainable relationships with all stakeholders, inside and outside the company, and you need the right balance of technical and relational 16 | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | FM WORLD

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leadership capabilities.

Michael Travers: A sense of humour, thick skin and broad shoulders.

Neil Tilley: Be doggedly passionate about everything, as everything, and anything could be your job!

Bill McHenry: Integrity, candour, and an overly communicative temperament. One should never forget the role is that of a business facilitator. We enable our customers to transact business in pleasant and cost-effective surroundings.

Dave Ion: Strong analytical skills, empathy and clear vision. These are the top three, but I agree with the others mentioned.

Research councils take on £4 billion government spend on FM projects – what will this mean for the industry? (see p6 for full story) (BIFM LinkedIn group) Tony Johnstone: The major FM providers will bid, the cheapest will get it – any local relationships built up by research stations will be destroyed.

Is FM a critical component in the armed forces?

(BIFM LinkedIn group) Paul Kreuz: Yes. The armed forces need all the background support they can get so that they can get on and do the job they are paid for.

Dave Thomas: Most, if not all, is now outsourced in one way or another, but it is still necessary.

Where does recycling rank on levels of importance in FM? (BIFM LinkedIn group)

Tim Kimber: Recycling should be driven to the maximum level practical within budget.

Caroline Williams: It will be interesting to see what impact the updated waste management regulations will have on FM. I’m not sure that awareness of the need to apply the waste hierarchy is particularly widespread, although it is a statutory requirement. However, as disposal costs increase, you would think it would force businesses to look for more cost effective routes, like recycling. www.fm-world.co.uk

07/02/2013 11:51

You can follow us at twitter.com/FM_World facebook.com/FMWorldMagazine

BEST OF THE

FMWORLD BLOGS Mother and home-work versus the ‘facilities manager’ Patricia Hay-Justice, Liz Kentish Coaching While I take a short breather over a cool glass of wine on a Sunday evening, I reflect on the previous week’s events in my role as a mother whose recent work-life was in facilities management.

In both roles I have facilitated my client, currently my partner (and service-user children), in focusing on the supportive functions in their lives. My work has without question freed my partner from the burden of how to maintain his Englishman’s Castle and enable him and my service-users to reach their true potential in their respective primary goals.

I provide total facilities management services to a household that is a hive of buzzing activity. This calls for a highly efficient functioning support structure. From a practical point of view it is my responsibility to ensure that the environment in which my client operates is optimally functional, aesthetically pleasing, clean and secure, comfortable, financially efficient and complies with current legislation.

The need to deal with change also comes into play. Over a period, I had noticed a significant increase in demand for both the desktop computer and desk space within the home at various times throughout the day. The existing setup has involved a combination of a basic metal table for a computer; the dining room table fulfilled a dual role (which included being used for eating) to that of a desk. Using the principal of ‘hot-desking’ I re-configure two rooms and successfully obtained funding for my fit-out project of one. My plans freed up space to include an aesthetically pleasing workstation (serving as an ergonomically functioning desk and computer station with additional storage capacity for stationary and files), all in an environment that facilitates focused thought.

Read the article in full at tinyurl.com/an4kytk

A new kind of leadership…

Lee Haury, reallygoodfmthinking.wordpress.com ‘Leadership’ is perhaps one of the most overused, if not ‘the’ most overused ‘management,’ word-speak of all time. Yet, are we really any wiser knowing what leadership actually is, what it involves and how best to go about it?

I’ve deliberately chosen a ‘Leadership,’ word cloud on my site to highlight the above point; trust, responsibility, interaction, democratic, develop, vision, style, relationship, path, attitude, power, positive, perform, courage, laissez-faire and belief… to name but sixteen.

What do these teach us? What value do they add to the process? How do they help us lead the most disparate of teams through the most complex change programmes?

At its simplest level, it can be strongly argued that, ‘management,’ is about getting things done through other people. It’s therefore about taking people with you, often during periods of change in order to effect improvements and the realisation of new benefits. So, based on the fact that we are all individual, and based on your experience, what would be the best way to reach out to people. What has experience taught you?

How do you lead people in your organisation?

For me, I think leadership is a simple as telling people that you like them, you value them and you need them. Why? Because anything that introduces a more human approach can’t ever be too far away from the truth. The rest will follow.

www.fm-world.co.uk

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FIVE MINUTES WITH NAME: Stephen Roots JOB TITLE: Head of FM, MAG Property and BIFM North region chair

What attracted me to Manchester Airports Group? The opportunity to work in a varied property portfolio including terminal buildings, offices, aircraft hangers, industrial units and to be involved in one of the largest development schemes in the North West with Airport City.

FM is changing. There’s more acceptance of the need to consider the whole life of a building rather than just the ease or cost of construction; that’s leading to more sustainable facilities.

Facilities management has probably the widest reach of any of the construction and property professions. It can make a massive difference to an organisation’s core activities.

I was a quantity surveyor at first. But then, while I was working at Atkins I became the North West England facilities manager working with the Employment Service. That led to working in an FM consultancy for a range of customers across the UK and the Middle East.

There is no single answer to the delivery of FM services. Each facility and the needs of the people it serves are different.

My career high-point to date has to be the opening night at the Echo Arena in Liverpool.

All of the FM contracts I had developed came together there for the first time. Being asked to be the BIFM North Region chair for a second term in 2012 has to be up there as well.

Our biggest challenge is getting clients to understand the benefits of ensuring that facilities management should be an integral part of the design team during a project.

I’ve become a bit of a plane spotter. You should see the view from the office window…

FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 17

07/02/2013 17:08

FM FEATURE ROYAL PARKS MARTIN READ

THE GREAT OUTDOORS In Richmond and Bushy parks, herds of deer literally do sweep majestically across the plains. For the Royal Parks that manage them and the contractors they use, these are beautifully exceptional workplaces – with a job requirement that changes along with the seasons themselves

18 | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | FM WORLD

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www.fm-world.co.uk

07/02/2013 16:39

RICHMOND AND BUSHY PARKS

Andy Hand and Sally Ducker (left); Richmond’s Pembroke Lodge (above)

ichmond Park in Surrey is a remarkable sight at the best of times and it’s all the more remarkable when you realise it is situated in Zone 4 on London Underground’s tube map. Once you enter its gates, the bustling capital seems a long way away, despite the 25,000 vehicles that traverse the park every day (indeed, when the gates are shut each FM night, the effect on the already QUICK FACTS over-stretched local roads is profound). It’s a glorious natural setting and one that presents the widest range of grounds maintenance challenges.

Richmond is the largest of Vehicles crossing London’s eight Royal Parks and Richmond Park the biggest enclosed space in daily the city. It is a National Nature Reserve, a European Special Area of Conservation and – since 1992 – a Site of Special Scientific Year Richmond Interest (SSSI). Richmond is also Park became a home to some 650 red and fallow site of special scientific interest deer, the husbandry of which has an ongoing impact on the grounds maintenance work.

Eight London sites comprise the Royal Parks and Fountains Deer living has been maintaining two of on Richmond Park them – Richmond and its near

25,000 1992 650 www.fm-world.co.uk

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R

neighbour, Bushy Park – since winning the work in 2006.

Fountains began in 1957 as a forestry management company, evolving into a local authority environmental services contractor.

It was part of the Connaught Group before that company collapsed and was bought from the administrators by OCS Group last year. The hope is that being part of OCS will stand Fountains in good stead when it seeks to retain the business on its re-tendering next year.

For this contract, Sally Ducker is the manager responsible for the Royal Parks business, with Andy Hand dedicated to activities in Richmond Park. In March, Hand will celebrate nine years in the role, having moved across from Sodexo.

Green and pleasant Over recent years, things have changed in both Richmond and Bushy Parks. Richmond used to have its own shepherd (with, naturally enough, a flock of sheep), while just recently the two shire horses that once helped in work such as log moving were retired and not replaced.

FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 19

07/02/2013 16:40

FM FEATURE ROYAL PARKS MARTIN READ

Red and Fallow deer, the famous residents of Richmond Park (left; below)

But while the Royal Parks may be adapting to economic conditions in some areas, much of the grounds work conducted here is essential to ensure the parks are fit for the visiting humans and resident wildlife.

The work varies with the seasons (see box) and involves activities as diverse as tree planting, ditch clearing, litter collection and road sweeping.

This activity is organised to a schedule agreed with, and routinely assessed by, the client.

Every Tuesday, Hand meets with Royal Parks’ personnel in Richmond’s Holly Lodge to discuss outstanding work.

The regularity of this meeting is critical to the smooth running of the contract, as so much can change from week to week.

Indeed it’s here, from Fountains’ perspective that the contract differs from the norm. For certain specialist horticultural work, Royal Parks prefers to take direct control of the activity – but still use Fountains’ staff. This means that the contractor is called upon frequently to provide individuals, at a range of different skill levels, for specialist work that The Royal Parks manage themselves. Despite this, Fountains remains responsible for the productivity and welfare of individuals on these jobs.

From tiny acorns It’s a requirement that puts a premium on regular communication between client and contractor, and it’s not the only one. The Royal Parks runs 20 | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | FM WORLD

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volunteer schemes for each of its parks, and the assistance these volunteers provide is often managed by Fountains.

The contractor is also a key element in the long-established apprenticeship scheme run by The Royal Parks that combines workplace training with study at the local Capel Manor Horticultural College. The scheme, which sees apprentices placed with Fountains for three years, is designed to equip apprentices for a range of careers in horticulture and open-space management. In some cases apprentices have gone on to join Fountains on a full-time basis.

This all adds up to a wide variety of work. Both parties must regularly decide on what jobs do and do not fit the original contract’s terms. The Isabella Plantation, for example, is an ornamental woodland garden situated in the centre of Richmond Park that requires specialist horticultural work.

Here, as elsewhere on the contract, one-off jobs and extras are frequently added as variation orders. It can be a challenge to calculate the length, and thus chargeable value, of this extra work.

And, of course, the weather can ruin the best laid plans.

When the snow and storms come, Hand keeps in daily communication with The Royal Parks, and jobs are frequently rescheduled.

As well as specialist horticultural activity, there’s the need to deal with the often

bizarre requirements of the many film crews that contract with the Royal Parks to use the parks as backdrops. Everything from period blockbusters to commercials are filmed (the Countryfile TV crew had been filming in Richmond the week prior to FM World’s visit), with Hand and his staff often called upon to help out.

“They do ask us to do some

One of several vehicles in use by the Fountains maintenance team (above); Workers keep up with the planting schedule (far right)

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07/02/2013 16:40

RICHMOND AND BUSHY PARKS

“For certain specialist horticultural work, Royal Parks prefers to take direct control of the activity – but still use Fountains’ staff” VARIETY SHOW

ALL YEAR GROUND The work carried out in Richmond and Bushy Parks could not be more varied: Seasonal activities (from winter to autumn) ● Tree planting ● Clearing of streams and reeds ● Erecting fencing and willow barriers (at the edges of rivers to create a refuge for wildlife) ● Planting ● Gritting ● Ditch-digging and clearance ● Maintaining compost stacks ● Assisting in the annual deer cull ● Cutting grass verges in the ornamental gardens (the deer take care of grass in the wider park)

really strange things,” says Hand, recalling some of the more unusual film crew requirements. “During the filming of the Sherlock Holmes film, we had to supply partially burnt logs for placing on the set. Then, because they hadn’t got exactly what they wanted from the filming, they took a photograph of it so it could be rebuilt indoors…”

The challenge of calculating the impact of this additional work is further complicated by such factors as the sheer length of time it can take to get from point to point across the parks (Richmond itself is seven miles in circumference with a 20mph speed limit).

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carried out by the contractor’s regular workforce. Occasionally specialist sub-contractors are utilized whose skills can be called upon when the need arises. With the former group, the good news is that the parks’ outstanding natural surroundings mean staff retention is better than average. However, making sure that specialists can be brought in when new jobs are required is more difficult to manage.

“There are plenty of people who have been here for many years,” says Ducker. “People who really love the nature side of it, they stay with us. We’ve got people who are very passionate about the wildlife and the nature, not just the horticulture.

Yes, people do leave, but in the main the people who stay recognise the need to be productive – there’s obviously a lot of manual work.”

Scarifying, spiking, feeding and generally maintaining fine turf ● Maintaining formal flower beds (mainly those in Pembroke Lodge) ● Cutting hay ● Leaf clearance in formal gardens ● Bracken rolling (to reduce the vitality of the bracken and thus stop it spreading) ●

Regular activities Sweeping of roads and car parks ● Collecting and disposing of any recyclable materials ● Maintaining the perimeter ‘Tamsin Trail’ designed for pedestrians and cyclists ● Maintaining the ‘deers’ leap’ (a strip of grass cut to give deer less reason to gather by roads) ● Replacing road posts ● Litter collection ● Checking that playground and pond equipment is in order ●

The Royal Parks takes a close interest in the people who work on their contracts. “When I came for an interview here, not only did I have an interview with the then-contractor, I also had a meeting with the Royal Parks officers. It’s all about keeping traditional skills alive – they want the people who work here to demonstrate their horticultural knowledge, so they were keen to find about my experience.

“Training is quite high on The Royal Parks’ agenda at the moment,” says Ducker. “It’s all about development of skills.

Horticultural training is their big driver currently, making sure that this knowledge continues and is passed on to new staff.”

According to Hand, “What they want is to keep the traditional skills alive. We’ve got all these people who have been there for years and, of course, they won’t be here forever. They want to make sure that people start their careers with a wider horticultural skill-set. They don’t just want managers who perhaps know how to use a hedge cutter, but don’t really know anything about plants.

All of which comes back to the apprenticeship scheme and, at the time of our visit, Fountains was close to taking on another apprentice as part of the programme. Last year, Fountains apprentice Robert Kirkham won The Royal Parks Guild’s First Year Apprentice Award for his contribution to horticulture within Richmond Park.

The multiplicity of jobs carried out here is one thing, but in the end it’s the sheer beauty of the parks that makes working on this contract so attractive. Says Ducker: “Once you’re here, it’s very hard to move on.”

As we pass a herd of grazing fallow deer, it’s quite easy to understand why. FM

FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 21

07/02/2013 16:41

FM FEATURE CONTRACT CLEANING NICK MARTINDALE

With margins in the sector tighter than ever, cleaning professionals are striving to think outside the box in terms of how to maximise value, explains Nick Martindale

CREATIVE

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CLEANING CONTRACTS

he current economic malaise shows little sign of abating. As a result, the pressure on organisations to cut costs will continue.

Cleaning services has, as an area, felt this squeeze over the past few years, with rates pushed to a point where they can go virtually no lower.

“It’s getting tougher and tougher,” says Bob Vincent, executive chairman of LCC Support Services and deputy chairman of the Cleaning and Support Services Association (CSSA). “People have been moaning about margins for years, but it’s really tight now. And customers still expect service delivery to be what they require; that’s down to the contractor to get right. Unless you’re really on the ball it’s hard to make a margin.”

The involvement of corporate procurement teams is making life even more challenging. Ray Rushworth, managing director of Incentive QAS’s cleaning services division, was until recently operations director at Carlisle Support Services. He says contracts arranged by centralised procurement teams often fail to take into account the precise requirements of operators on the ground. “There are often a lot of added-value things that staff do on-site, but when you’re looking at it from a purely centralised purchasing perspective, all those little things are lost and that can then cause friction,” he says.

In this landscape, both customers and suppliers alike are increasingly looking for alternative models to make contracts work. A common theme is for cleaning to be bundled together with other services, either as part of total FM contracts or less formal arrangements, allowing clients to drive economies of scale and contractors to reduce

IMAGES: SHUTTERSTOCK

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“The solution to the constant drive for lower costs, while meeting other objectives and maintaining standards, may require a fundamental overhaul of the industry” management costs, in particular.

“There’s definitely a consolidation in soft services so people are combining cleaning with catering and security,” says Andrew Sugars, group corporate development director at Servest. “It means we can deliver a more efficient solution, while still delivering the service expectations that they have, because we can take out cost.

But it’s horses for courses; even though we can deliver cleaning, catering and security, some will still want to talk to us about one of those.”

This, however, is having an impact on smaller and more specialist cleaning services providers. Vincent says that working for total FM firms, rather than directly for endclients, has been an emerging FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 23

07/02/2013 11:53

FM FEATURE CONTRACT CLEANING NICK MARTINDALE

route to market for his business over the past three years and he expects this to be more prevalent in the future.

But not everyone is entirely happy with this new model.

“It’s pushing a lot of businesses into what is almost a no-win position,” says Andrew Large, chief executive of the CSSA. “They are either forced to accept these sorts of sub-subcontracting relationships or to accept that they are no longer going to be able to deal with the big banks or the accountancy firms.”

Alongside this trend towards a greater degree of outsourcing can come difficult questions around the role of in-house facilities management teams and providers can sometimes find themselves initiating discussions around just what should be done in-house and what can be handed over to a total FM firm.

“Management salaries are going to be lower in a contractor than they are in a bank,” says Peter Goodliffe, business improvement director at OCS and chairman of the CSSA. “Then you add pension, holidays and benefits on top and it really adds up.

The only way you can tackle that is to have a more strategic discussion with the client, generally at board level.”

He also points to a further trend in contracting models, where a fixed price is agreed and the contractor can charge extra on top, depending on performance. “They can be more flexible, but there are pros and cons,” he says. “Some contractors want a fixed price for a given period of time; others want it going down year-on-year and that’s a challenge because in most cases you’re looking at a change in productivity or working practices. Either way, you’re looking to remove some element of the labour because that 24 | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | FM WORLD

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FM QUICK FACTS

£8.55 500,000

London Living Wage

Estimated number of illegal workers in the UK

normally represents between 70 and 80 per cent of the contract.”

At the same time as the downward pressure on rates, clients and contractors alike are having to wrestle with issues such as the London living wage, which currently stands at £8.55 an hour. Sugars says that expecting contractors to absorb this cost is unrealistic, so any decision would need to be taken by clients. In practice, though, this can be a catalyst for a wider review, resulting in more innovative ways of structuring contracts, which can be achieved at little or no cost to clients.

“We can afford to up rates to the London living wage, but we have to go in and do some interrogation around the specifications, methodologies, high occupancy areas and what the footfall looks like, so apply a bit of science to it,” he says.

“But when you’re paying that sort of money, you get longer service and more loyal people who will turn up to work and take more accountability.”

The uncertainty over potential changes to TUPE legislation is also causing concern in the industry and the government has recently announced a consultation on the issue.

Sofia Syed, a solicitor at Mundays LLP, says although the changes have not yet been defined, there is talk of repealing the amendments to the legislation that were introduced in 2006, under which any kind of change in the provision of a labourintensive service such as cleaning

would come under TUPE. Her advice for organisations entering into any kind of outsourcing arrangement is to keep an eye on the government’s proposed dates and negotiate the terms of any contract to ensure any liability in respect of the employees is minimised.

Providers already supplying a service in a long-term agreement may need to consider making provisions for redundancy costs if and when the service ends. “Review the terms of the outsourcing agreement and see if there is scope to re-negotiate the employee liability,” she suggests.

Major changes in this area, though, would be unwelcome, says Large. “Prior to 2006, there were arguments every time there was a service outsourcing as to whether or not TUPE applied.

That’s being held up as the future

“We can afford to up rates to the London living wage, but we have to go in and do some interrogation around the specifications” www.fm-world.co.uk

07/02/2013 14:39

CLEANING CONTRACTS

of the industry as well as the past,” he says. Contracts that involve an undertaking under TUPE can also be useful for service providers, he adds, as it guarantees a supply of labour from day one.

Other issues, too, are causing concern. The question of illegal employment is still a challenge for suppliers and customers, says Large, despite their best efforts to stay on top of it. “There are probably 500,000 illegal workers in the UK and it’s highly likely that contractors are all employing them somewhere,” he says. “They’re trying their level best not to, but the infrastructure that’s in place means it’s very unlikely that they won’t be caught out.”

Sugars, meanwhile, points to the ongoing introduction of autoenrolment of staff into pensions as a potential issue, particularly when pricing tenders. “There’s not enough historic data at the moment to say that, on average, in our industry there’s a 20 per cent or an 80 per cent uptake,” he says. “A lot of our people work part-time and won’t even qualify because there is a minimum earning level. But it’s something www.fm-world.co.uk

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we have to watch carefully.”

Labour costs present a further pressure on both suppliers and customers, suggests Large, with the UK unlikely to see another wave of immigration from overseas, such as those that have helped to keep wages low in the past.

Along with growing pressure around social sustainability, Large says, this is likely to lead to either upward pressure on rates, or force contractors to invest in new equipment to boost productivity. “At the moment, because wages are relatively low in the UK, investment in capital equipment is poor,” he says.

Ultimately, the solution to the constant drive for lower costs, while meeting other objectives and maintaining standards ,may require a fundamental overhaul of the industry, suggests Rushworth.

“If people want to offer the London living wage and give staff more salary, perks and pensions without increasing cost, they have to look at new ways, whether that’s bundling services, total FM or just re-engineering the methods that cleaners use,” he says. “We need to totally re-engineer the delivery model.” FM

CASE STUDY:

HIRE POWER or many cleaning contractors, purchasing and maintaining equipment can be expensive, and having large amounts of cash tied up in kit can be risky, especially when that kit can be left redundant if a large contract comes to an end.

It was this thinking – along with the attraction of avoiding obligations around portable appliance testing – that prompted Bob Vincent, executive chairman of LCC Support Services and deputy chairman of the Cleaning and Support Services Association, to explore the possibility of leasing cleaning machines, initially testing the concept with an established tool-hire firm.

“I really liked the model, but we’d just mobilised about £8 million worth of new business, so we had new leases on equipment that we were still paying for,” he says.

When he was approached by Industrial Cleaning Equipment (ICE), he challenged the business to come up with a solution. The result was that ICE bought LCC’s existing kit and put new equipment on every site, for which LCC pays a rental charge each month.

“It was tailor-made to fit my business,” says Vincent.

“The benefit is that we haven’t got the assets on our balance sheet and if we lose a contract, it takes it back.

It works very well.”

F

FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 25

07/02/2013 14:27

FM MONITOR GARETH MATTHEWS

LEGAL UPDATE

Gareth Matthews

is an associate at Eversheds LLP

PROTECTED CON V ER SAT I O N S A N D SET TLEM EN T AGR EEM EN T S

ew rules governing dismissal disputes N will soon come into force. Gareth Matthews explains that they place greater emphasis on avoiding a lengthy legal battle Since coming to power in May 2010, the coalition government has been on a mission to change existing employment laws, the aim being to give confidence back to business owners in the UK. The government sought to achieve this through the cutting of ‘red tape’, which it hoped would encourage business owners to take on new employees without fear of expensive obligations and legal liabilities.

One of the key proposals introduced in this regard was the concept of ‘protected conversations’, whereby discussions about an employee’s dismissal could not be used in subsequent legal proceedings.

This went hand in hand with the government’s aim of encouraging the use of “settlement agreements” to deal with employment disputes before litigation begins.

Settlement agreements A long-established method of settling employment disputes outside of legal proceedings (with which many employers and managers will be familiar) is under a ‘compromise agreement’. Under such agreements, employees usually waive their right to take legal action against the employer in return for a payment.

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become a very popular way of dealing with employment disputes, especially where employers are keen to avoid the expense or negative publicity associated with employment tribunal proceedings.

In light of their potential to save significant costs for employers and the tribunal system, by reducing the number of claims, the government wants to encourage the wider use of these agreements. Its first proposal to achieve this aim is to rebrand them as ‘settlement agreements’.

The change in name appears to simply be an attempt to make the agreements more appealing to employers or employees who may otherwise be discouraged by the idea of compromising.

While the template agreements produced by the government will be a useful starting point for employers, the process of settling employment disputes can still be complicated. Employers must ensure that any settlement agreements they enter cover all possible claims that the employee may have. Without access to HR or legal advice, some managers may find it difficult to identify all possible claims the employee may have, which, in the worst case, could leave an employer exposed to claims which it thought had been settled.

Protected conversations The government’s second proposal is to give employers greater freedom to pursue settlement

outside of legal proceedings, by ensuring that conversations about settlement cannot be used in evidence in any future claim brought by the employee. This would prevent any disadvantage being caused to an employer who has tried to deal with an employment problem by way of a settlement agreement.

To assist employers in entering into these conversations, the government proposes that ACAS (the independent service that deals with employment disputes) will publish template agreements, as well as guidance on how to financially value claims an employee may have.

The government’s proposals should increase employer confidence in the use of settlement agreements (and therefore at least partially achieve the government’s cost-saving aims).

However, the proposals will not offer blanket protection to employers as the protection will only apply in unfair dismissal disputes. This means any conversations about discrimination complaints, for example, would not be protected. It is also proposed that there will be no protection where an employer behaves improperly during such conversations.

It is not clear what constitutes ‘improper behaviour’, although the most likely allegation of improper behaviour may arise if an employer has said something discriminatory during one of these conversations, such as suggesting that an older employee should retire.

Managers should therefore be very careful when dealing with situations in which ‘protected characteristics’ such as age, race, sex or disability are involved. It may also be useful to take

detailed notes of conversations to defend any suggestion of improper behaviour.

The government plans to introduce these changes in summer 2013, although a precise date is not yet known.

The introduction of protected conversations should be welcomed as a positive step towards encouraging the wider resolution of disputes without recourse to legal proceedings. However, there are a number of exceptions to the protection, which arguably water down the proposals.

Lame duck proposals?

As explained above, the protection relates only to unfair dismissal claims. Therefore, conversations about automatically unfair dismissals (such as in relation to whistleblowing) or discrimination disputes will not be protected.

Protection will also be excluded where the employer has behaved ‘improperly’ during any such conversations, although there is no definition of what may constitute ‘improper’ behaviour.

There is, therefore, likely to be litigation about whether or not a particular conversation is, in fact, protected. This would obviously defeat the purpose for which the concept is proposed. Many smaller employers and some managers, who perhaps may operate without taking good legal advice, may therefore avoid relying on the protection altogether due to fear that they would fall foul of one of the exceptions. Some employers who do engage in such conversations may later face legal consequences because that conversation was not, in fact, protected. Again, this would defeat the aims identified by the government. FM www.fm-world.co.uk

07/02/2013 12:26

FM MONITOR MATTHEW STANTON

Court Report MARK STANNARD (T/A WYVERN TYRES) V ROBERT RAYMOND HARVEY GORE [2012] EWCA CIV 1248

Nuisance and Fire: the rule in Rylands v Fletcher THE ISSUE

For a person to be liable for damage caused to a neighbour’s land, there normally has to be negligence on their part that caused the damage.

However, the rule in Rylands v Fletcher (1868) provides that a defendant is liable for damage done to neighbouring land if: (i) the defendant brought on to his land something that is dangerous; (ii) the danger escaped from the defendant’s land to the claimant’s land; and (iii) the use to which the defendant had put his land was ‘non-natural’.

As no negligence is required on the part of the defendant, liability is strict.

“Non-natural” has been interpreted by the courts to mean something that is an extraordinary use of the land.

In the case of Stannard v Gore the court looked at the question of ‘non-natural use’ and whether Rylands v Fletcher applies where the dangerous ‘thing’ that escaped the land was fire.

BACKGROUND

Mark Stannard (trading as Wyvern Tyres) carried out the business of a motor vehicle tyre supplier and fitter in Hereford. On Stannard’s premises, there were six especially constructed racks for the storage of tyres, which Stannard had overloaded with tyres.

On 4 February 2008, a fire started on the premises due to an

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electrical fault. The fire reached such an intensity as to ignite a large stack of tyres. The fire spread, destroying neighbouring premises on the trading estate belonging to Robert Gore, a private individual.

Gore issued proceedings against Stannard on the basis of negligence and under the rule in Rylands v Fletcher. Gore’s arguments, in part, were that Stannard had failed to take adequate steps to prevent fire starting on his premises, such as installing a sprinkler system and storing the tyres with adequate measures in place to prevent them catching fire.

DECISION

Gore’s claim for negligence failed at first instance as the court found that Stannard had a defence under the Fires Prevention (Metropolis) Act 1774 because the fire was accidental and spread through no fault of Stannard’s.

However, the court found that the haphazard way in which the tyres were stored amounted to a non-natural use of the land.

According to expert evidence, while tyres in their normal state are not flammable, once a primary fire has developed, it can produce sufficient heat to ignite tyres, which can spread to neighbouring tyres rapidly and is difficult to put out.

The court concluded that tyres are “dangerous” and as their storage meant the use of the land was non-natural and the fire escaped, all of the requirements of Rylands v Fletcher had been

satisfied. As liability under Rylands v Fletcher is strict, this meant that Stannard was liable notwithstanding the absence of negligence.

RESPONSE

Stannard successfully argued that the County Court had erred in its application of Rylands v Fletcher to fire cases.

The Court of Appeal found that: (i) tyres, as such, are not exceptionally dangerous; (ii) the tyres did not escape, what escaped was the fire; and (iii) keeping a stock of tyres on the premises of a tyre-fitting business was not an extraordinary, unusual or nonnatural use of the land. Strict liability under Rylands v Fletcher was therefore not established.

The court noted that fire damage cases are likely to be very difficult to bring within Rylands v Fletcher because it is the ‘thing’ brought on to the land that must escape, not the fire that was started or increased by the ‘thing’.

Liability for fire damage under the rule may be limited to cases where the fire has been deliberately or negligently started and, in any event, starting a fire on one’s land may be an ordinary use of the land.

CONCLUSION

courts’ increasingly restrictive approach to the rule in Rylands v Fletcher, limiting it to the rare instances of isolated escapes, led to Lord Hoffman saying in Transco v Stockport MDC [2004]: “It is hard to

escape the conclusion that the intellectual effort devoted to the rule by judges and writers over many years has brought forth a mouse.” ● It is improbable now that someone can ever be liable under Rylands v Fletcher for damage caused by fire originating on their premises, unless the fire was started deliberately, such as where fire or sparks are an essential part of the dangerous thing kept on the defendant’s land. ● Even though liability for fire damage is unlikely to be established under Rylands v Fletcher, a landowner could still be liable for damage to neighbouring property caused by fire escaping their land if negligence on their part can be established. ● However, despite its limited use, the rule still exists so landowners should be cautious that their activities and things stored on their land are not likely to do damage to neighbouring property. A note of caution from the Court of Appeal: “Make sure you have insurance cover for losses occasioned by fire on your premises.”

● The

Matthew Stanton is an associate in Allen & Overy LLP’s real estate litigation team

FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 27

07/02/2013 11:54

FM MONITOR TOM ROBINSON

HOW TO…

Tom Robinson is training development manager at Mitie

IN STIL A SEN SE O F PA SS I O N I N YO UR T EA M

ith Valentine’s Day fresh in the air, passion is all around. But what about ‘passion’ in business? As Tom Robinson writes, it’s far from just a fluffy, nice-to-have idea

W

A recent Gallup study suggests that passionate, engaged teams have 18 per cent higher productivity, 27 per cent less absence and that their businesses have 62 per cent higher profitability. It may seem like a buzz word, but passion is critical to real-world business success.

But how can a variable like passion be injected into the workplace?

1⁄

Speak into the future

Looking at the general demographics and attitude of FM teams, passion may not be a word that first springs to mind. This does not count for everyone, but issues of motivation and low morale are commonplace. This year’s global study by Aon showed 48 per cent of the British workforce are ‘disengaged’, with fully 30 per cent marked as ‘destructive’ (employees that undermine or sabotage the company’s objectives).

Disengagement may occur due to a combination of factors (which could include the economy, personal circumstances, individual resilience levels or their manager’s leadership style).

People’s home lives and internal motivators differ, but there’s a clear way in which organisations can address what happens when people are actually at work.

Motivation, by definition,

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is providing people – literally – with a motive. It’s about having an intention, a destination.

Why would people get up in the morning? To work hard with no sense of contribution for a faceless organisation – or a compelling and meaningful purpose that they’re striving towards? People perform better when they know what they’re working towards and have a vested interest in achieving it.

In reality, this means leaders can instil a sense of pride and passion relatively simply, by not only creating a clear destination, but by regularly communicating it. Every meaningful communication with the team should be future-based, talking of furthering the journey to the end goal.

Above all, a leader’s language links together the two most fundamental of things – what people do and why they do it.

By ‘speaking into the future’, the team’s day-to-day actions are intrinsically linked to their worth and value as an employee – and, more importantly, as a person.

2⁄

Make people care

Humans are strange creatures. We have an in-built resistance to control. From our younger days as a child, right up to our current adult relationships, we’ve never taken kindly to being told what to do.

On the whole, people like to be able to direct their own lives

(within a reasonable framework, according to a clear set of selfgoverned principles). It’s probably fair to say that in our lives, if our every move was regulated, processed and pre-determined, we’d get quite frustrated.

Yet if this holds true outside of work, what happens when we get to work? Well, the same rules apply. If we’re told what to do and when to do it, it’s tough to be passionate. In fact, a lack of autonomy has a crushing effect on drive and passion.

Managers have to apply a set of principles and clear moral boundaries while, critically, allowing people self-direction and freedom to achieve their goals.

Hold people accountable for their own areas. Delegate responsibility – in fact give as much of it away as possible! The misconception is that giving away power and control makes you weaker.

However, giving away power does quite the opposite – it literally ‘empowers’ people. Empowerment creates an inner urge – and that inner urge creates passion (both at home and at work).

3⁄

Create the space for action

The third step is about sparking action. The sure fire way to start someone working hard is to give them a ‘stretch’ goal.

But beware! Goals that are too far either side of being a stretch can kill passion. Nothing is worse than feeling like you’re expected to deliver 10 hours of output from eight hours of pay, or to deliver a 20 per cent higher target when you know even 10 per cent is impossible.

On the other hand, you will also demean people when their work

is unchallenging. Knowing that you’re giving 50 per cent of your best, shuffling around in a cushy job is equivalent to ripping off the system. Many people will be fine with this, but those are the same people who are certain not to be passionate. Reasonable stretch goals give work to people that demands their best.

4⁄

Cheer your team on

The fourth area is praise. The previous three points set the context for work and start the journey; the final point ensures that it continues. Praise, crucially, is often misunderstood.

Praise and recognition is often directly linked to achievement of results. But when you’re watching your favourite sports team play, do you cheer their results only, or their progress? Of course, you cheer their progress. You want them to know that you’re supporting them, you’re committed and that they’ve just completed a really good pass.

As leaders, cheer relentlessly, cheer whenever anyone furthers your business goal (step 1), cheer people when they demonstrate a good attitude. Results do not create passion, passion creates results. In turn, passionate people have higher productivity, take less sick days, quit less often and interact better with clients.

With all the above in mind, what should be the primary function of management? Well, there’s a direct correlation between engagement and bottom-line profit, between a team’s passion and its output.

So there’s a real business case in saying that the main function of management is beautifully simple. It’s nothing more than to create a passionate team. FM www.fm-world.co.uk

07/02/2013 11:56

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05/02/2013 12:31

FM MONITOR HARRY DEWICK-EISELE

TECHNICAL

Harry DewickEisele is managing director of Safelincs

F IRE EXTIN G U I S H ER S

new breed of composite fire A extinguisher is poised to make an impact on facilities managers’ maintenance plans, explains Harry Dewick-Eisele Developments in fire extinguishers have tended to centre on the capability of the extinguishing agent or the suitability of a certain agent for a particular fire type. It’s less common to focus on the overall life-cycle cost of the equipment and a reassessment of the maintenance regime that such equipment warrants, but that is what a recently introduced product makes necessary.

The technological trend here is the greater availability at lower cost of a composite material – aramid – the use of which was once the preserve of Formula One car manufacturers seeking the ideal combination of light weight and durability.

Kevlar is the branded form of aramid that made its debut on the racing circuits in the 1980s, and it’s a material that, in a variety of forms, has since seen use as a surrounding for gas bottles and in bulletproof vests – examples that prove the material’s strength.

For use in a fire extinguisher unit, aramid fibre is spun around an inner three-layered composite container. The outer, UV-protective sleeve finishes off the cylinder. The unit described here is Britannia’s P50, which has been kitemarked to the EN3 standard.

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of the extinguishing agent inside the container. However, it makes up for the latter by significantly reducing the cost of – and requirement for – operational maintenance.

While these composite extinguishers can cost in the region of £80 up front, the use of aramid means that they do not require annual corrosion tests or five-yearly discharge testing.

This means a tested lifespan of 20 years, with a single maintenance requirement after 10 years.

So, with 10 years between servicing, and, assuming a 10-year lifespan, that £80 equates to £8 per unit, per year.

By comparison, while standard extinguishers can cost in the region of £20 per unit, they can incur an annual maintenance charge of around £15 – making for an overall cost of £170 over 10 years, or £17 a year.

This figure does not include the likely charge for refilling the unit, which is an otherwise standard requirement after five years.

Further food for thought is the actual designed lifespan of the aramid-bodied extinguisher – 20, not 10 years. Technically, all that’s required at the 10-year maintenance service is for the unit to be refilled before it then settles in for a further 10 years’ of use. Bring that figure into your overall life calculations and, of course, the costs drop further.

Knowing that a 10-year

lifespan was achievable for its composite extinguishers, the Britannia P50 units detailed here were filled with foams and powders of sufficient quality to survive the full ten-year span.

Similarly, the metal fittings used on the P50 are made of brass and stainless steel, which means that there is nothing in the extinguisher’s make-up that will rust or corrode – key to avoiding the requirement for annual corrosion tests.

Key considerations For facilities managers, the introduction of composite bodies for fire extinguishers brings with it a couple of important calculations.

Additional up-front expenditure is the key issue; despite a significant reduction in overall life-cycle cost, FMs and other budget holders will need to pay more than twice as much when initially specifying these extinguishers. It may prove difficult to convince clients and procurement departments, who are otherwise concentrating on their current year’s budget, or basing their cost calculations on three to four-year terms.

Yet with all technological

advances comes a point at which accepted wisdom is challenged, and composite-bodied fire extinguishers could be just such an advance.

It will be difficult to get out of the mindset of extinguishers being inspected by third parties on an annual basis and, on this latter point, the impact on thirdparty maintenance contractors will be significant, should the P50 kind of composite extinguisher become popular. If the need for annual maintenance of fire extinguishers comes down by a factor of 10, that could affect the business models of many service providers.

Is this so fanciful? If you can buy a car that has wheel bearings that last the lifetime of the car without maintenance, surely the same can apply to a fire extinguisher?

Composite extinguishers are now being deployed in some significant facilities – Kier has deployed them on its contract with Legal & General, for example. This new type of extinguisher casing has the potential to shake up the maintenance market. FM

£6,000 £5,000 £4,000 £3,000 £2,000 £1,000 £0 Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 Year 6 Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 Year 10 Predicted cumulative cost for service-free extinguishers Predicted cumulative cost for metal extinguishers www.fm-world.co.uk

07/02/2013 14:28

FM MONITOR BETH GOODYEAR

WHAT’S IN IT FOR ME? L EAR N IN G TO SP EA K I N P UBL I C

ome people dread speaking in public, but the reality is that it’s a becoming a larger part of the FM’s role. Here, the BIFM’s Beth Goodyear offers some invaluable advice

S

Having to stand up and speak in front of other people can be absolutely terrifying. The experience has been known to turn even the most experienced facilities professionals into nervous wrecks.

Most of us have been there: all the eyes in the room are on you, the only sound being that of your own voice. This feeling can be overwhelming.

The thing is, these days, almost every FM professional will, at some stage in their career, have to speak in front of a group. This could be informally in a team meeting, for a ‘toolbox’ talk, training session, project briefing or in a formal situation such as a meeting, presentation or even interview.

So it is essential to have the right skills and confidence to deliver the message professionally.

Also, we’ve all experienced that feeling when we watch somebody speaking in public and think: “I could never be as natural as that”, or “I’d be so nervous if that was me”. Well here’s a little secret: they used to feel exactly the same, the only difference is that they have taken the time to learn a few simple skills and then practised, practised, practised.

Of course, some people are more natural speakers than others. In my case, I was really shy and used to blush when called upon to do workplace inspections, let alone get up and talk in front of others!

The problem was, I wanted to do well in my career and was keen and ambitious so realised it was something I needed to overcome.

Fast forward 15 years and I am now a professional trainer and speaker, making a career speaking in front of others. I regularly run training courses teaching others presentation skills, sharing with them the tricks and tools I learned along the way.

Learning the ropes For me, the road to gaining confidence in public speaking started by looking at the trainers and public speakers I came across.

Whether they were good or bad, I made sure I paid attention to their style and technique and learned something from each of them.

I realised that confidence comes from not only knowing the material you are talking about, but more importantly, how you feel about yourself and how you deliver the material; after all, a skilled speaker can be given almost any subject and successfully bring it to life through their delivery.

Without exception, practice does make perfect – the more the better.

Speaking out loud when practising makes a massive difference. It enables you to hear your voice and to conquer any anxieties it may bring up. Practising different ways of delivering the material is also important. It lets you hear what sounds the best and practising in front of others (colleagues, children, friends), however embarrassing, is essential, as it’s better to make the mistakes in front of them than during the real thing.

Confidence comes from knowing the material you are delivering

inside out and back to front, but crucially, not word for word, unless, of course, it’s an occasion when that is necessary.

When people deliver material that they have memorised word for word, unless they are extremely skilled presenters, it can make for extremely painful viewing for the audience as the speaker often becomes so concentrated on remembering their material, they fail to engage with the audience.

Another critical factor is what you wear… it matters. Your outfit should reflect the person you want the audience to see, as they will make a snap judgement on who you are as soon as they see you (rightly or wrongly).

It’s also vitally important that the first impression is the right impression as you want them to listen to what you are speaking about and to respect you, and not be distracted by what you look like. The other key thing about your clothing is that you are comfortable and not wearing something ill-fitting that may distract you while speaking.

Ideally, wear something tried and tested – it’s not the time to road test something new unless you know it fits like a glove.

Preparation is key While practise is the key to success or failure, preparation is also essential, from making sure any technology you might be using works, such as laptops and projectors, and that you know the ‘tricks’ and shortcuts for navigating the software. Even the most experienced speakers can become flustered when problems occur.

Your preparation should ideally also include arriving early to set up and to give yourself time to

calm down and deal with any last minute nerves. Practise where you are going to sit or stand and decide where you feel most natural (everyone has a preference of standing on one side of the screen). If you are using a screen, make sure your chosen location doesn’t obscure anyone’s view of the screen.

When using hand-outs, be prepared and have everything ready. If using slides, sit in different audience positions and run through them to make sure text is legible.

You know you can When it comes to doing it for real, expect to be nervous, expect to think: “I can’t do this” because that’s how everyone feels initially. The point is, you know you can, as you have practised and practised. You know the material inside-out, you know how long it takes as you’ve timed yourself. You know the questions that might be asked and you’ve practised the answers you might give; you know you look the part as you’ve considered your outfit and practised delivering the presentation while wearing it; you know the technology works as you’ve tested everything.

Result: it’s fine, you can do it.

If you are in a role where it’s likely you’ll be asked to speak in public and want to improve your presentation skills, then there are lots of courses available to you from accredited ‘train the trainer’ courses to presentation skills courses, all of which are useful in helping to increase your confidence and skills.

Beth Goodyear, FMHS Consulting, is an independent FM consultant and trainer, who regularly delivers presentation skills for FM courses for BIFM Training.

See www.bifm-training.com

FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 31

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07/02/2013 14:30

FM FMMONITOR SUPPLEMENT MARKET CATERING INTELLIGENCE

BY NAME IN HERE

INSIGHT

The figures on this page have been compiled from several sources and are intended as a guide to trends. FM World declines any responsibility for the use of this information.

PUBLIC SECTOR PAY GAP

VAT rates: Standard rate – 20% (from 4 January 2011) Reduced rate – 5% Zero rate – this is not the same as exempt or outside the scope of VAT

7.3% MORE PER HOUR

Bank of England base rate: 0.5% as of 6 September 2012.

The previous change in bank rate was a reduction of 0.5 percentage points to 0.5% on 5 March 2009.

EMPLOYMENT

National Minimum Wage The following rates came into effect on 1 October 2012:

EARN MORE THAN THOSE IN SMALLER FIRMS IN 2011, EMPLOYEES IN LARGE FIRMS

EARNED 25% MORE THAN THOSE IN SMALL FIRMS (WITH OTHER INFLUENCES FACTORED IN)

94% OF EMPLOYEES IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR WORK IN LARGE ORGANISATIONS, COMPARED WITH

Source: Bank of England (bankofengland.co.uk)

Source: ONS (www.ons.gov.uk)

EMPLOYEES WORKING IN LARGE ORGANISATIONS (500+ EMPLOYEES)

(EXCLUDING OVERTIME) THAN THE PRIVATE SECTOR IN 2011.

Source: HM Treasury (hmrc.gov.uk)

Consumer Price Index (CPI) The rate of inflation remained unchanged for the third month in a row. The Consumer Prices Index (CPI) showed that prices increased by 2.7% in the year ending December 2012. This is the same annual rate as was seen the previous two months and continues the trend of, broadly, flat inflation that has been seen since Spring 2012.

ONE MAJOR FACTOR THAT CAN ACCOUNT FOR THIS IS THE SIZE OF THE ORGANISATION

IT HAS BEEN ESTIMATED THAT THE PUBLIC SECTOR EARNED

REGIONAL DIFFERENCES MUST ALSO BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT. NORTHERN IRELAND AND THE NORTH EAST OF ENGLAND SEES THE BIGGEST PUBLIC SECTOR PAY GAP OF AROUND

15%

49% IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR.

Source: ONS (www.ons.gov.uk)

GDP AND THE LABOUR MARKET

SPACE AND WATER HEATING

The UK space and water heating market has an estimated total value of £722 million at manufacturers’ selling prices in 2012. This market sector is part of a total UK heating market worth around £1.67 billion.

The UK space and water heating market has been volatile over the past five years. Influences on this market include the growing concerns about energy efficiency and the environment.

The outlook for the market in 2013 remains uncertain. Into the medium term, moderate annual growth rates of 2-3% are currently forecast to 2017.

Source: AMA Research (www.amaresearch.co.uk)

Category of worker

Hourly rate from 1 Oct 2012

Aged 21 and above

£6.19

Aged 18 to 20 inclusive

£4.98

Aged under 18 (but above compulsory school age)

£3.68

Apprentice rate, for apprentices under 19 or 19 or over and in the first year of their apprenticeship

£2.65

(£m) UK Space and Water Heating Market by Value 850 800 750 700 650 2008

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28%

AS OF EMPLOYEES WORK IN EITHER LONDON OR THE SOUTH EAST, THE PAY GAP IN THESE REGIONS HAS A LARGER IMPACT ON THE UK AVERAGE

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013 Est

2014 fcst

2015 fcst

GDP, employment and hours worked Index, Q1 2008 = 100 101 100 99 98 97 96 95

HOURS OUTPUT EMPLOYMENT, AGED 16+

94 93

2008 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 2009 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 2010 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 2011 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 2012 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4

ECONOMY

The UK economy contracted (0.3%) in the last quarter of 2012, after a small (0.9%) growth in Q3 2012. The services sector was flat and construction grew by just 0.3%, making no overall contribution to GDP growth.

In contrast, incomplete labour market figures for the last three months to November 2012 show that employment increased (90,000), unemployment fell (37,000) and work hours increased (7.8 million) compared to the previous three-month period.

Unemployment fell by 185,000 compared to the same period in 2011 – the largest fall since May 2001 – while over the past year, employment rose by 1.9%.

Source: www.ons.gov.uk www.fm-world.co.uk

07/02/2013 12:26

FM MONITOR RICHARD COSTIN

TECHNICAL ‘CLOSED LOOP’ DO CUM EN T M A NAGEM EN T

SHUTTERSTOCK

ichard Costin, managing director of R Banner Business Services, a UK supplier of office products and services, explains a new type of records management Even in these technologically advanced times, every business needs to archive data, records and papers. It’s estimated that 23 per cent of all office space is still devoted to the storage of paperwork.

Work space is money, and businesses want to clear out data to make way for essential office items and staff.

Storing records off-site means that space is maximised, rental costs are lower and staff are able to concentrate on core activities.

A new type of record management service, closed loop, allows businesses to store and archive data from ‘cradle to grave’, with the potential to convert records into recycled paper at the end of their lifecycle.

The system works by collecting waste paper, whether it is confidential, pre-shred or simply general waste paper, and turning it into recycled copier paper.

If shredding is required, an on- or off-site service can be provided. Once the waste paper is removed, it is taken to a paper mill where it is segregated and turned into pulp. The pulp is cleaned, without chemicals or bleach, pressed, dried and manufactured into paper.

Any waste created from the de-inking process is consumed for energy and burnt to produce a fuel source for the mill. The paper is www.fm-world.co.uk

33_Technical2.sr.indd 33

then delivered back to the client ready to be used and recycled again and again.

Paper can be recycled up to 22 times, if the recycled paper is combined with ‘virgin’ paper.

This is a technique that sustains the fibre pool for a longer period of time. The whole process is fully audited, and currently awaits patent approval.

Closing the loop This process is marketed as an audited recycling service that produces a ‘third generation’ of recycled paper – paper that has been manufactured and used numerous times.

It was originally developed in 2010 to meet the needs of organisations, including HMRC, that wanted to use paper originating from their own waste.

The service provides what is currently the only 100 per cent recycled paper produced in Europe.

It is currently used by McDonalds, Virgin Media and HMRC among others, who also take advantage of document destruction as part of the service.

At present, the total tonnage produced for the closed loop copier paper is around 604,000 boxes, of which 90 per cent is for central government.

Government departments monitor the use of this paper and providers of the service contribute management information to demonstrate the benefits of a closed loop system compared with other paper.

One issue with the service is that not all organisations are in a position to use it. For example, many businesses have existing contracts with facilities management companies or are stuck in PFI contracts.

These require a degree of ‘unpicking’ before waste paper can be diverted to a UK-based closed loop paper mill.

Closed loop copier paper can be cost-competitive with an equivalent virgin pulp product and 30 per cent less expensive than high-white recycled paper (depending on the fluctuating cost of waste paper).

However, at present, no facility exists in the UK to handle a ‘closed loop’ operation, meaning that paper must be shipped abroad for treatment.

Companies have been considering how to justify setting up a UK-based plant. The best solution is likely to involve locating such a facility next to or within

an existing industrial production facility with adequate power and water supply.

A fully equipped plant capable of producing 200,000 tonnes recycled fibre annually, and a 125,000 tonne paper mill would require an investment of approximately £100 million.

An investment of this nature would incur depreciation approximately over 30 years and allow a minimum 10-year full production cycle to calculate and deliver adequate levels of financial return. Such an investment would clearly require a long-term strategic view and commitment.

Records management at any level is designed to reduce costs and increase efficiency. A closed loop paper system can offer organisations a life-cycle service for all documents, files and records that makes commercial and environmental sense. FM

TREE-FRIENDLY To date, more than two million reams of closed loop paper has been produced. This equates to saving 86,000 trees; cutting 3,373 tonnes of CO2 emissions; a reduction in energy consumption of 40.6 million kilowatts, and a reduction in water consumption of 226 million litres.

These statistics come from the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, Heidelberg, Germany, whose independent study reviewed the various components of the papermaking process across both virgin and recycled pulp paper.

FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 33

07/02/2013 14:28

BIFM NEWS BIFM.ORG.UK

The Royal College of Physicians played host to Think FM in 2012 CONFERENCE

ThinkFM: book now Brought to you by the BIFM, in association with Workplace Law, the ThinkFM conference is now open for booking. As a BIFM member, you will qualify as an early-bird if you book before before 22 March.

ThinkFM 2013 will address ‘The Leadership Challenge – Raising our game, making our case – realising our value’. The conference will look at leadership from all angles: within your role, within the team, within effective facilities management and within business and the wider economy.

ThinkFM takes place on 10 June 2013 at The Royal College of Physicians in London, where delegates can take charge of their own agenda, creating their own programme from sessions that run concurrently in hubs.

Raising our game The talent hub is all about the development of individuals and teams – one not to miss for your personal and professional development. ● Performance: Making our case Here, issues upon which we are judged within our organisations will be examined, ensuring people in your organisation understand the true value you deliver. ● Relationships: Realising our value Sessions will be focused on how we communicate internally and externally – learn how s mall improvements can yield big dividends.

RAFAEL BASTOS

● Talent:

Why you should attend ThinkFM: 1. Get the latest techniques, tips and tools to manage your facilities effectively 2. Be equipped to raise your game and fast forward your personal and professional development.

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3. Be inspired by industry-leading speakers and your fellow FM professionals 4. Discover working solutions on topics as varied as harnessing talent, emerging technologies, FM strategy and building information modelling 5. Benefit from fantastic networking opportunities, with over 300 attendees and an early-evening drinks reception. i Book at www.thinkfm.com/ register and save as an early-bird – BIFM members pay just £295+VAT; non-members pay £345+VAT. After 22 March 2013 conference fees increase. Fees include the full conference programme and earlyevening drinks reception.

Learn more at www.thinkfm.com, call 08701 632 804 or email thinkfm2013@apex.co.uk

MEMBERSHIP

Volunteering Looking for a new challenge in 2013? Why not become a volunteer! Here Nick Fox, BIFM South West region secretary talks about his experience: “I remember it as if it was yesterday – sweaty hands, a galloping heart rate... Nervous and anxious about the day ahead, I entered the Hilton Bristol for my first quarterly training day experience in March 2011.

“I was immediately welcomed by the committee with a huge smile and open arms. I made a conscious effort to go and speak

to some other early arrivals who were having refreshments in the bar area. Striking up a conversation was difficult until I realised we were in the same position: first-time delegates who were just as anxious.

“After walking in to the conference suite and feeling completely overwhelmed by the whole occasion, the morning progressed and it was soon time for coffee. The thought of having to strike up conversation made me feel anxious, but on this occasion it was quite easy – I made small talk about the cakes for half the time (we’ve all been there, haven’t we).

“By the end of the day, I walked out of the hotel feeling very proud of what I’d achieved and felt 100 per cent more confident than I did when I walked in that morning. I was determined to go back for future training days.

“At the end of 2011, there was an opportunity to get involved with a local good cause, with money raised from the BIFM chairman’s raffle being donated to a local couple from Ilminster in Somerset who sadly had their garden plants and bird bath stolen. I jumped at the chance

to lead this as I live in that area and could easily arrange the procurement and delivery of some replacement items. It all went to plan, but sadly days before the delivery of the new plants the lady passed away (she had been battling cancer for a while). The husband did thank the BIFM for their support.

“In November 2011, the south west chairman, Gareth Andrews, advertised the secretary position to south west members and as soon as I saw it, I wanted it.

I contacted him and after a couple of conversations to appreciate what was involved, everything fell in to place and I have held the position since.

“I have found that being involved with the BIFM locally and nationally has helped me grow as an individual, meet new people, expanding my network of contacts and, importantly, improving my CPD. It has taught me a number of new skills that I didn’t have and I was fortunate to be given the opportunity to have some presentation and public speaking lessons, which has been fantastic.

“My employers are fully supportive and have commented on the effect that being involved with BIFM has had on me in my workplace. They feel that being at the forefront of what is happening in the industry is a real positive step for me as an individual and the company.

“Having now been involved for over a year, and observing how the events are planned, it is time for me to organise and host my first quarterly training day. In June, I will be hosting a training day for over 70 members of the BIFM south west region. The theme of the day is ‘employment

KEEP IN TOUCH » Network with the BIFM @ www.networkwithbifm.org.uk » Twitter @BIFM_UK » LinkedIn » facebook » YouTube » Flickr www.fm-world.co.uk

07/02/2013 11:58

Please send your news items to communications@bifm.org.uk or call 0845 058 1356

GUEST COMMENT B IF M AWAR DS 2 0 1 3

Every new year is an exciting time in business as organisations and teams return to work reinvigorated and determined to set new standards and achieve new goals.

The judging team for the BIFM Awards programme is no different and, as we embark on a new season, we are delighted to have set ourselves new targets and created and refined our judging categories. Perhaps most importantly, however, we’ve listened carefully to feedback to ensure we maximise value associated with entering the awards for all entrants.

We made a huge step forward in terms of the number of entries last year – with the highest ever number of submissions across the 11 awards categories. This was an extraordinary achievement encompassing entries from the very best organisations in FM, large and small.

In 2013, we want to exceed these entry numbers and will continue to try and raise the bar for industry excellence even higher. Subsequently, we have reviewed the categories to ensure that every leading organisation can take part and show how and why it excels.

This has included widening the criteria for the Customer Service category to focus on excellence rather than just innovation, and introducing a brand new category for individuals, teams or organisations that have had www.fm-world.co.uk

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a ‘Profound Impact’ on our industry over the past five years.

We have retained our core, most established categories alongside these changes.

This means the awards return this year fully refreshed. They will hopefully attract more diverse – although equally excellent – entrants from across our thriving industry.

In terms of giving feedback to entrants, we have also made some changes. To win an award – whether as a team member, a client representative or member of the leadership team – is extremely tough. Winners can be proud of this achievement, which provides a true demonstration of independently evaluated differentiation in a highly competitive market. However, it can mean that many first-class organisations and teams feel frustrated at falling just short of their goal.

Increasing feedback To address this, we plan to increase the level of interaction and feedback in this year’s judging process, enabling the journey to be valuable in team building and success recognition, rather than simply based on the final outcome.

We need to help entrants in their development as well as reinforcing the absolute achievement associated with becoming a finalist in October, perhaps securing a Highly

Commended Award should the entry not be the ultimate category winner.

The rigour of our expert judges has been the key to the development of our position so far and we are very proud that the BIFM Awards are a reference point for other awards programmes. All judges are volunteers, selected for their industry skills, experience and ability to contribute as part of the overall judging team of around 80 professionals. As such, their insight and ideas could be tapped more deeply.

The key changes this year will be to, first, raise the profile of the personal and direct feedback available from this group and, second, to place greater emphasis on the process and programme. This will enable teams to prepare, giving them the best chance to communicate their capabilities and experience.

We have always provided feedback, but to date this has generally been in response to an entrant’s request. This year, however, the lead judge will contact each entrant after the awards have been made to offer to discuss the relative strengths and weaknesses and enable teams to reflect in a more informed way on the results. To make this more immediate, I would encourage any entrants from 2012 who want to try and do better this year to start by seeking feedback on their last entry; we always maintain fully documented records of why decisions have been reached.

Earlier judging dates We will also be setting the judging dates earlier and will be even more clear about the overall process planned for each category. This will allow plenty of time for

Oliver Jones is chairman of the judges for the BIFM Awards

teams to book optimum dates from those offered by our awards team, and will ensure that all entrants understand the steps that will be taken and when towards being announced as a finalist. For example, after initial desk-based evaluation, award categories requiring site visits will typically have a primary judging round before a final, second judging site visit has been undertaken.

After this point, the decision on the published finalists will be announced. Each entrant will be made aware of how these steps or the relevant alternative steps will apply to their category and what dates will be adhered to after entries close on 26 April.

We hope these changes will allow us to continue to improve the experience and value of the awards. We are also certain that the competition will be strong as the best in FM seek to make their mark by putting themselves up for professional and rigorous assessment against their peers.

I would like to encourage all leading organisations to target an appropriate category and test themselves. We are looking forward to an exciting and challenging year. www.bifm.org.uk/awards2013 Oliver Jones is chairman of the M&A advisory company, Morphose Limited, and chief executive of international data centre developer and operator, Chayora Limited

FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 35

07/02/2013 11:58

BIFM NEWS BIFM.ORG.UK

law and people management’ and I look forward to updating you on how it went (only if it goes well!).

Even in my short tenure with the BIFM, I get the feeling that the institute is taking positive steps and, in my role, I am fortunate enough to meet some of the staff at HQ who are constantly making positive steps towards improving the institute and their members.

FM really is a people industry and I feel privileged to be involved with such a great institute and region. It’s true what people say: “You get out what you put in.” There’s no better profession to be in.

My advice: get involved if you can. You won’t regret it. i Learn more about volunteering by emailing membership@bifm.org.uk.

Learn more about all BIFM regions and groups at www.bifm.org.uk/ groups

CPD

Key points Reflecting back on what you have learned and achieved is just as important as looking to the future.

It is also an integral part of CPD and so, in the spirit of reflection, here are the five most important points that we covered in 2012: 1. Networking – Helps you gain first-hand industry news and knowledge, improves your visibility in the industry, demonstrates your commitment and interest and increases the likelihood of discovering unadvertised job roles. You already have a network, so think about how those you already know might be able to help you, as well as considering what new contacts you may need to get in touch with.

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keep up to date with industry developments. Sites such as Twitter and Facebook are good places to start. Also consider discussion boards and forums on the BIFM website.

3. Reading – There are tools that allow professionals to record what they read online as part of their compulsory annual hours of CPD. To do so, they answer a number of questions to test their understanding of an article. CPD trackers highlight the importance of reading as a way of keeping up to date. Plus, just because you haven’t been given specific questions doesn’t mean you can’t ask them of yourself.

4. Create your own luck – Don’t expect opportunities to drop into your lap. Richard Wiseman’s research into luck has shown that successful people are habitually attuned to seeing possibilities wherever they go and even consciously make an effort to alter their routines on the off-chance they’ll encounter something new. Be engaged and creative in your professional life, and doors will open.

5. Reflective learning – Ask yourself the question: “What did I get out of this?”. This does not necessarily have to refer to activities that were specifically related to CPD, but anything that you do in your working (or extraworking) life. By thinking about what you have learned from past activities, it is possible to apply new ideas and skills to what you will be doing in the future, while also identifying areas of your work that you need to spend more time developing. Keep a CPD journal if it helps. i Find out more on the C2 Career Consultancy at www.bifm.org.uk/ careersservice, call 020 7863 6060 or email bifm@careers.lon.ac.uk.

Prices start from £49.

BIFM TRAINING NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS: HOW WILL YOU TRAIN FOR SUCCESS IN 2013? he new year is always a time to sit back and reflect: what’s changed in the past 12 months and where should we be heading next?

The current tough operating conditions continue to make any form of medium-and long-term planning very challenging, but some issues remain constantly high on the FM agenda. Improving customer focus and service skills, and making a significant contribution to the corporate sustainability agendas are just some of the areas that demand management attention.

Training to equip staff for new responsibilities, handling evolving needs and dealing with complex and demanding issues in these kinds of areas is often at the heart of the change management strategy.

Getting the basics right is clearly important, but many organisations now find they need to take their teams further, working to grow their talent and extend capabilities and confidence. This is where some well-focused, tailored development can be hugely beneficial, such as we regularly find in our customised client programmes. The recent customer service project for Skandia is a case in point, and features in a new case study on our website at tinyurl.com/brckwl2 Here, the emphasis has been on working with individuals and teams to unlock potential through a focus on attitudes and behaviours, which can make a profound difference both to customer interactions and collaboration across the FM team.

Changing cultures and behaviour also lies at the heart of other key FM challenges, including helping to build successful relationships with service partners and embedding new practices in energy management and sustainability. By developing a closer understanding of company cultures and values as well as individual attitudes and behaviours, it’s possible to improve communications, build mutual understanding and, in some cases, transform relationships where there have previously been problems.

Although resources for learning and development are being increasingly squeezed, it’s more important than ever to invest in the people who underpin the FM operation. The key is to target priorities closely and, as ever, put resources into the areas likely to yield the greatest impact.

T

Jane Bell is a consultant specialising in professional development in the FM sector.

To read more about our targeted in-house programmes in customer service, talent management and succession planning, client and service provider relationships and energy management/sustainability, please visit our website at tinyurl.com/cecf6ke

www.fm-world.co.uk

07/02/2013 11:58

FM DIARY INTERNATIONAL EVENTS 2-4 April | IFMA Facility Fusion conference & expo A high-level facilities management education, leadership training, industry-specific best-practice, and all-inclusive expo.

Venue: JW Marriott, Los Angeles, United States Contact: www.ifmafacilityfusion.org 15–17 May | BCO Conference A full programme of plenary sessions, seminars, tours and social events, including talks on: changing culture to maximise value; innovation in austerity; survival of the fittest: lessons from other countries; and building information modelling (BIM).

Venue: Hotel Meliá Castilla, Madrid, Spain Contact: www.bcoconference.org.uk 27 June | World FM Day 2013 A global FM initiative to celebrate the importance of the FM profession, raising the industry’s profile worldwide. This will be the fifth annual World FM Day. Visit the FM World website for last year’s highlights Venue: Various global events.

Contact: www.globalfm.org 2-4 October | IFMA World Workplace conference & expo The largest annual conference for FM. Exhibitors, discussions and networking.

Venue: Philadelphia, US Contact: www.worldworkplace.org INDUSTRY EVENTS 5-7 March | Ecobuild 2013 This is the world’s biggest event for sustainable design, construction and the built environment. It has 57,956 visiting professionals and leading companies, including BT, Carillion, Crossrail and Tesco.

Venue: ExCeL, London Contact: Email gary.williams@ ubm.com or visit www.ecobuild.co.uk 8-9 May | Green Build Expo Green Build Expo focuses primarily on professionals working in the volume housing and non-domestic building sectors. It is also known as the biggest sustainable building and refurbishment event in the northern parts of the UK. Green www.fm-world.co.uk

37_Diary.sr.indd 39

Send details of your event to editorial@fm–world.co.uk or call 020 7880 6229

Build Expo has expanded its focus to wider construction sectors, which include hotel and leisure, retail and offices, as energy saving and refurbishment have impacts on these areas, too.

Venue: Manchester Central Convention Complex Contact: www.greenbuildexpo.co.uk

brings together the leaders of our sector with the winners, finalists and high-profile guest presenters to celebrate excellence in FM. Venue: Grosvenor House Hotel, London Contact: communications@bifm. org.uk or call 0845 058 1356

14-16 May | Facilities Show Organised in association with the British Institute of Facilities Management, the Facilities Show has established itself as the leading meeting place for the industry. Free education and CPD content, with hundreds of suppliers and exhibitors in this three-day event.

Venue: NEC, Birmingham Contact: www.facilitiesshow.com

5 March | FM in unusual environments Sponsored by Servest Multi Service Group Venue: Freemasons’ Hall, 60 Great Queen Street, London WC2B 5AZ Contact: cathy.hayward@ magentaassociates.co.uk

10 June | ThinkFM 2013 The leadership challenge.

ThinkFM is a day of learning, debate, interaction and networking, brought to you in association with Workplace Law. Delegates will take away new ideas to make a difference to their organisations.

Venue: Royal College of Physicians, London Contact: gary.williams@ubm.com or visit www.thinkfm.com 24-25 June | 33rd Facilities Management Forum In this ever-changing environment, all companies need to source sustainable FM services, products and solution providers that offer the best value for money. At the forum, you can find them quickly and efficiently.

This event is specifically organised for FM directors and managers who are directly involved in the procurement of FM services.

Venue: Heythrop Park, Oxfordshire Contact: Robert Wye at r.wye@forumevents.co.uk or call 01992 374 100 14 October | BIFM Awards 2013 The BIFM Awards is the most influential networking event within the UK’s FM calendar and gives national recognition to the leaders in our profession. The BIFM Awards are designed to celebrate the increasingly strategic profile of FM by highlighting the key role it plays in the success of public and private sector organisations.

The night of the awards ceremony

flexible and responsive framework.

Attendees will also be shown a case study of a well-executed golden hour.

Venue: TBC Contact: Michael Kenny at mkenny@fesfm.co.uk SOUTH REGION

LONDON REGION

The BIFM London region holds its monthly CPD events on the first Tuesday of every month.

Contact: For details of forthcoming topics, visit www.bifm.org.uk/bifm/ groups/regions/london/events NORTH REGION 22 February | Breakfast event Sponsored by Barbour. The event will focus on vacant property management, following the recent law change in September 2012.

There will also be a presentation from asbestos management company Ensafe.

Venue: Warrington Business School, Winwick Road, Warrington Contact: Justin Lawson at jucko1@ gmail.com, call 07976 882 008, or visit tinyurl.com/bgbaryv

28 February | E-commerce debate Champions will state their cases, followed by an audience.

Food is provided, and there are opportunities to network with other members in the region.

Venue: The Debating Hall, Chichester Council offices Contact: raychiverton@btconnect. com SOUTH WEST REGION 15 March | QTD – churn, office removals and relocation Speakers to be confirmed, followed by an afternoon interactive workshop.

Venue: Bristol Hilton Hotel Contact: beth.goodyear@ fmhsconsulting.co.uk 14 June | QTD – employment law and people management Confirmed speakers so far include FM coach Liz Kentish, Tony Cooper from ACAS and Alan Bradshaw, who specialises in Stress Management.

Venue: Bristol Hilton Hotel Contact: Email Nick Fox at foxer11@hotmail.co.uk

SCOTLAND REGION

BIFM SIG EVENTS

19 March | Managing vacant property Managing vacant property, from commercial offices to empty pubs and restuarants is becoming a key area of concern for facilities professionals, with almost 15 per cent of all retail units being empty.

Sponsored by SitexOrbis.

Venue: TBC Contact: Michael Kenny at mkenny@fesfm.co.uk

19 February | Sustainability SIG – tour of Siemens Crystal building Site visit of the Crystal, which opened in September 2012.

The visit consists of a behindthe-scenes tour, explaining its operation in practice. Sponsored

by Assurity Consulting and Sodexo.

Venue: The Crystal, Royal Victoria Docks, London Contact: Lucy Black at lucy@ bigpondconsulting.com

23 April | Critical activities for incident management – the ‘golden hour’ The actions of the incident management team during the hour immediately following an incident influences everything that is to come. In this seminar, the critical aspects of a ‘golden hour’ will be identified, with information on how to structure them into a

28 February | Volunteering Following the success of the Olympics and Paralympics, this event looks at volunteering, covering the experiences of some of the gamesmakers. Includes an overview of being a BIFM volunteer, outlining possible volunteering opportunities.

Venue: TBC – central London Contact: simonaspinall@c22.co.uk FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 37

07/02/2013 11:59

FM PEOPLE MOVERS & SHAKERS

BEHIND

THE JOB What attracted you to the job?

At the time of searching the job market for a suitable position, I simply fell in love with this world, as I thrive on being busy and this role suits me perfectly.

If you could change one thing about the industry, what would it be?

I’d like to teach people how important we are in the world and what a great job all the staff do on a daily basis. Sadly, this too often goes unnoticed.

NAME: Jamie Sparks JOB TITLE: Service manager ORGANISATION: Hounslow Civic Centre JOB DESCRIPTION: To oversee around 200 members of staff, and ensure high standards of cleanliness throughout the building.

The role also involves managing events, including weddings and conferences.

Which “FM myth” would you most like to end?

That cleaning simply involves just a ‘mop and bucket’.

The industry has come a long way from those days and has become more professional with clients expecting a well-managed cleaning service with the use of innovative materials, equipment and processes.

How do you think facilities management has changed in the past five years?

It’s become more demanding over the past year or so, as people want more and more for their money – you have to have expertise in a wide range of services.

And how will it change in the next five years? I would expect – and hope – to see a sustainable living wage for cleaners and a continued investment in new technologies. By concentrating on advanced processes and machinery, efficiency can be increased so that everyone is a winner.

ON THE

MOVE Changing jobs?

Tell us about your new role and responsibilities.

Contact Jamie Harris Jamie.Harris@fm-world.co.uk

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Phil Smith (right) has joined food service provider Aramark as director of operations for the North West.

Smith has joined Aramark from contract caterer Sodexo, and he will be responsible for a number of business, industry, education, judicial and healthcare contracts. In addition to holding various positions at Sodexo, Smith was previously at Catering Academy. In October 2012, Aramark appointed James Dallas and Glyn Ingram as directors of operations for the East Midlands and North East respectively.

Any interesting tales to tell?

Having to oversee the clean-up operation after one of the wedding guests over indulged in a chocolate fountain at a reception taking place at the civic offices.

There was a lot of mess, but it’s all in a day’s work!

If I wasn’t in FM, I’d probably be...

I’m afraid it would definitely involve tools of some sort. We use an amazing bit of kit that makes the carpet look so good. If I wasn’t in facilities management I would probably set-up my own business cleaning carpets both for homes and businesses. I guess you could say that I’m well and truly married to my job.

What single piece of advice would you give to a young facilities manager starting out?

Always treat people how they should be treated, and be honest to others – people are not machines.

I think it’s essential to actively encourage staff to air any concerns and then to deal with them immediately.

Try to keep everyone happy by supporting your team and in return they will do the same for you.

Do your friends understand what facilities management is?

I don’t think they’re quite sure. People always sound impressed when I tell them that I’m a service manager, but tend to switch off when I refer to the ‘wow’ factor associated with cleaning carpets with multi-pro and extraction!

Oliver Jones (right), chairman of the BIFM Awards, has joined datacentre design organisation Keysource as a non-executive director. Jones founded and established both Symonds FM and Citex Group.

Mitie has appointed catering specialist Denise Arthur to its catering business. Arthur will be based in Ireland, where the service provider will be aiming to expand its specialist capability. Prior to joining Mitie, Arthur was responsible for leading a team in the design, development, staffing and

mobilisation of the main media centre at the Olympic Park in Stratford, serving 28,000 people per day during the Games.

Macro has appointed Chris Bond (above) as associate director for its consultancy team in the UAE. A chartered engineer with experience in asset and facilities management, Bond has previously worked for Davis Langdon, wasl asset management group and Serco in the Middle East. In his new role, he will be delivering strategic solutions in FM service performance management and supply chain management.

www.fm-world.co.uk

06/02/2013 16:18

FM NEWS

Call Richard York on 020 7880 8543 or email richard.york@fm-world.co.uk For full media information take a look at www.fm-world.co.uk/mediapack

FM innovations ▼ Take control with just one Clik A new business management tool is now available from specialist software developer Clik to help facilities managers service clients more efficiently.

Clik Service v4 provides a complete overview of every aspect of your business. It gives instant access to information, from initial sales enquiries to final invoices, tracking customer contact, jobs, contracts, purchases and equipment. It’s designed to increase productivity and improve customer service.

Clik Service is already used across the UK. This new version includes a host of new features to improve business efficiency, including a project function, Google Maps and a scheduling tool.

Clik Service v4 is intuitive to use and integrates with leading applications.

W: www.cliksoftware.com

▲ Optimum clinches Telecity contract

▲ Kimberly-Clark lauches new products Kimberly-Clark Professional has taken The Healthy Workplace Project up a gear by launching two innovative new products to help customers create ‘Exceptional Workplaces’.

The Scott XL rolled hand towel comprises 7,080 sheets, being 18 per cent longer than the longest hand towel previously available from Kimberly-Clark Professional, which was 300 metres. This increased length means it is significantly longer-lasting than other rolled hand towels on the market.

A self-presenting hand towel made from high performance Airflex fabric, it is soft, strong and highly absorbent, providing the washroom user with an effective and comfortable hand-drying experience.

Also, the new Aquarius range of ultra-hygienic hand wash and paper towel dispensers for washrooms have exceptional levels of hygiene.

Optimum Group Services is pleased to announce that it has secured a three-year extension to its existing TelecityGroup contract covering 10 UK data centres, including its newest state-ofthe-art facility in West London, due to the great work the team has delivered over the past two years.

The contract covers all aspects of M&E and fabric tasks. Since appointment, Optimum has reduced major areas of risk though its unique risk management techniques, delivered significant reductions in energy costs and delivered all major projects in a complex live data centre environment. www.optiplc.com/

▼ No more lost building documents

▲ Avica expands Tunbridge Wells site Avica UK, the fast-growing, independent janitorial, education and catering supplies company, has embarked on a major expansion programme across its three branches following exceptional business growth over the past year.

The Watford warehouse and headquarters was the first to be upgraded and expanded, doubling in size, allowing for increased stock and many new lines being available, taking it close to its goal of delivering 100 per cent of orders complete. The fleet of delivery vehicles has also doubled, allowing all orders placed by 5pm to be supplied on the next working day.

Avica’s managing director Jeremy Thorn said: “We are planning to move our Northampton branch into a bigger purpose built warehouse this year.”

T: 01923 210 009 W: www.avica-uk.com.

www.fm-world.co.uk

39_Products.sr.indd 39

We developed e-bims because a facilities management company required building information to be updated, stored and maintained in a centralised, accessible location. We have now launched the e-bims service nationwide as it has become invaluable to our existing clients.

E-bims is a service to provide a secure on-line searchable central database for all of your buildings’ critical documentation and ensure your information is kept up-to-date. E-bims uses powerful OCR engines to scan and read files, including rastered PDFs, which enables the documents to be fully searchable.

E-bims is an affordable, exciting new tool for facilities managers to retrieve their building documents through simple yet powerful search combinations.

E: richard.davey@e-bims.co.uk W: www.e-bims.co.uk

▲ AutoCAD training for FM Cadcoaching specialises in AutoCAD training and support, mainly in the construction and facilities management sectors.

Cadcoaching is able to help with relevant AutoCAD training of facilities staff and set-up of CAD standards. AutoCAD has emerged as a popular tool in facilities management over the past decade and advantages can be gained through accurate record keeping and asset management on CAD floor plans.

Courses are suitably customised to help even the most basic of users start using the programme with confidence. Companies whose facilities staff we’ve trained include; Unison, Coca-Cola, Chaucer Insurance, Burberry and The British Museum.

We’re happy to undertake work across the UK. W: www.cadcoaching.co.uk FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 39

07/02/2013 14:50

APPOINTMENTS for more information email jobs@fm-world.co.uk

Estates Director London Salary £60,000 + Benefits Highgate School was established in 1565 by a Royal Charter of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the First. Today the School is a flourishing coeducational independent school, governed by a single charitable Foundation. There are currently some 1,460 pupils in the Foundation and the School employs approximately 400 teaching and support staff. The School is situated in one of the most attractive and sought after areas of North London, only a short journey from Central London and adjacent to Hampstead Heath. Highgate School has an extensive estate, comprising buildings of various age and styles, including Victorian buildings with listed building status and an outdoor centre located in Snowdonia.

The Position • You will be tasked with managing and improving this extensive estate and all the facilities on which the running of the school depends.

• The role requires a proactive, flexible manager with significant experience coordinating and prioritising a number of projects and other ongoing day-to-day matters, working closely with the internal professional team and all external stakeholders.

• Responsibilities include: Strategy and Planning, Line Management and Operational Delivery, Budget Management, Leadership, Energy Management, Development and Project Management, Compliance.

Highgate School is committed to the safeguarding and welfare of children and applicants must be willing to undergo child protection screening appropriate to this post, including checks with past employers and the Criminal Records Bureau.

For more information contact Richard Parrett on +44 (0) 20 7318 5869 or rparrett@macdonaldandcompany.com quoting 89541.

All applications will be treated in confidence. Direct applications will be forwarded to Macdonald & Company. Closing date 1st March 2013.

The Individual • Good undergraduate Degree or equivalent.

• Recognised qualification in property, estates or facilities • management.

• Extensive experience of managing multi-disciplined operational • teams.

• Extensive experience of budget management and reporting.

• Excellent leadership skills and proven ability to establish • effective communication within teams.

• High level strategic planning and organisational skills.

• Ability to build strong relationships with key staff across • the Foundation.

• Recognised qualification in Health & Safety.

LED Lighting Solutions the

natural choice in FM recruitment

Sales Manager Based South UK Salary £30,000 plus car allowance and commission.

This is a superb opportunity for a Sales Manager to join a well respected and very successful LED Lighting Company based in Southampton, selling LED lighting solutions to leading UK FM companies.

Candidates must....

•

Have a working knowledge of the key players in the FM Market

•

Have experience in selling lighting products

•

Have a successful career track record

If you would like to be considered for this position please send your application and CV to Calvin@visionaccendo.com quoting FM LOB Sales in the subject header. All applications will be treated in the strictest conÀdence.

To find out how you can benefit from working with Eden Brown, contact us today on 0845 4 505 202. www.edenbrown.com

40 | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | FM WORLD

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07/02/2013 16:49

APPOINTMENTS www.nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk

Croydon Health Services, NHS Trust seeking enthusiastic and professional persons to join the senior estates team to ensure construction and engineering works are carried out to the Trust standards and speciƤcations.

This is an exciting opportunity for those looking to further their career development in 2013 and to work in an integrated Health Care Organisation with a highly professional E&F team.

HEAD OF ESTATES Ref - FMW/199-M3395RB1 £43,202 - £50,972 inclusive per annum

ESTATES MAINTENANCE MANAGER Ref – FMW/199-M3394RB £29,357 - £38,540 inclusive per annum

We are seeking a highly competent Head of Estates to provide eơective, professional leadership and direction for the management of Estates services in Croydon Health Services NHS Trust.

You will be responsible to ensure the Estates services meet the requirements of both the integrated care organisation and the wider NHS agenda. You will have the ability to incorporate operational and strategic activity, sustainable development and carbon reduction strategies.

You will lead on the development of the Estates Strategy, and will, through management overview and scrutiny ensure compliance to statutory and legislative requirements, alongside managing the estates team.

Are you looking for an exciting opportunity.

The Trust is seeking an enthusiastic and motivated individual with the relevant technical qualiƤcations and experience in NHS Engineering or a related building services engineering environment. We are seeking an individual with the ability to communicate eơectively with a range of technical, clinical and management staơ.

You will need to demonstrate a high level of interpersonal and team working skills.

You will be reporting to the Estates Manager, ensuring safe and eƥcient day to day management of the estate and engineering infrastructure; maintaining compliance with statutory and NHS technical standards and managing and prioritising PPM and reactive workloads for the in house team and contractors.

We oơer 27 days annual leave, plus 8 days banks holiday, on-call, automatic membership of the NHS Pension Scheme (unless you choose to opt out) plus a range of other beneƤts including, onsite gym, training, occupational health services, and study leave for sponsored courses.

For a detailed job description, person speciƤcation and to apply please go to www.croydonhealthservices.nhs.uk quoting the appropriate reference number above.

Or you can e-mail Michael Parkhill, General Manager Estates & Capital Planning at michael.parkhill@croydonhealth.nhs.uk for further information.

CroydonHC QPV.indd 1

NHS Lothian is Scotland’s second largest health board and serves a population of approximately 800,000 people living in Edinburgh and the Lothians. We are continually investing in and upgrading our estate to ensure we provide patients with the highest possible standards of care. We have an exciting programme of major developments and are looking to recruit two experienced and resourceful team players who will be able to work with clinicians, contractors and stakeholders to help lead the delivery of these significant projects.

Project Director – Major Hub Initiative Developments Band 8D - £65,270 - £80,810 You will lead the elements of our investment programme being delivered through the hub South East Scotland Ltd – a joint venture company which involves public sector organisations working collaboratively and in partnership with a private sector development partner. These revenue-funded capital projects include a new East Lothian Community Hospital and the re-development of the Royal Edinburgh Hospital Campus.

You will manage the NHS Lothian and stakeholder engagement and project resources including hub South East Scotland Ltd and be responsible for ensuring project delivery within the agreed scope, quality, time and costs. An excellent project leader with partnership contracts and PPP experience, you will be able to demonstrate skills in developing value for money business cases and project delivery.

Contracts Manager – RHSC and DCN/RIE Band 8C - £54,454 - £67,134 As part of the team working to re-provide Edinburgh’s Royal Hospital for Sick Children (RHSC) and Department of Clinical Neurosciences (DCN) on the site of the existing Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh (RIE), you will work with our NPD and PFI partners to establish contracts, maintain good working relationships and ensure objectives are met.

You will be responsible for developing, negotiating and managing the operational works programme and facilities management contracts for the project, the existing RIE and any other new schemes on the RIE campus. You will be able to demonstrate the skills and experience required to develop the performance, finance, payment and contract management systems that are essential in ensuring that NPD/PFI contracts are delivered within cost, time and quality parameters and that risks are effectively managed.

Apply on-line www.jobs.scot.nhs.uk Closing date for both posts: 25 February 2013.

07/02/2013 10:40

West Midlands Opportunities Senior Facilities Manager Birmingham • £30,000-£35,000 + car A Senior Facilities Manager is required to bring their expertise to a large private practice to work within the Birmingham team. Ideally, you will have experience of operating in an FM function of a managing agent and you will be comfortable with managing a multi-site portfolio. NEBOSH or IOSH certification is an essential requirement of this post, along with BIFM membership. This rewarding role involves the management of hard and soft services provision and requires an individual with excellent client management and tenant liaison skills.

You will be an effective manager of external service providers with excellent knowledge of health and safety compliance and experience of managing service charge budgets.

Ref: RC207901

Operations Support Officer West Midlands • £25,000 Our client seeks an Operations Support Officer to assist in the day-to-day running of a large entertainment centre in the West Midlands. The role will form an integral part of the management team and you will be involved with the management of service contractors, ensuring health and safety and statutory compliance across the site. You will also handle the operational management of on-site events throughout the year as well as taking on duty management responsibilities. This opportunity would suit an individual who can effectively interact with customers from a wide demographic range, as you will be expected to engage with both tenants and members of the public.

Ref: RC1259880

Offices globally www.cobaltrecruitment.com Please apply for any of the above roles by emailing apply@cobaltrecruitment.com or call 020 7478 2500 to speak with Ryan Coombs quoting the relevant reference number.

jobs.fm-world.co.uk

FM New appoints140213a.indd 41

The power of people

FM WORLD | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | 41

07/02/2013 16:48

FINAL WORD NOTES FROM AROUND THE WORLD OF FM

NO 2

DAYS

THE SAME LOW-LIGHTS OF THE SPORTING CALENDAR

SHUTTERSTOCK

OUT WITH A BANG Keeping morale high in the office can be tricky at times. Plenty of issues stir up debate – what temperature to set the air conditioning unit, how to keep computer monitors out of the glaring sunlight, whether to offer free fruit or free chocolate as little incentives.

But when Edward Sobolewski, an accounts controller at market research company Frost and Sullivan in Oxford, was frustrated at not receiving a pay increase, few would have expected such a retaliation.

In court, he admitted to causing over £30,000 worth of damage to the company's computer systems, in a three-year revenge ploy. CCTV cameras – installed to catch who or what was causing the damage – caught Sobolewski in the act.

He was using the cleaning spray Cillit Bang in the company's server room on a regular basis, pouring the noxious fluid onto important computer systems.

Sobolewski was jailed for eight months and ordered to pay £10,000 in compensation to his former employer.

The 'revenge attack' can cause serious damage to an organisation's assets. Although this behaviour cannot be justified, it will make HR departments think twice about how they approach the thorny issue of redundancy discussion.

In the last issue of FM World, we commented on some of the facilities issues that Premier League football teams were experiencing at their stadiums. Lighting failures were not among the list of problems.

They may have crept up the list however, thanks to two power cuts at major sports stadiums over the same weekend. Firstly, at Fulham FC's Craven Cottage in London, famed for its old wooden seats and hosting an actual cottage in the corner of the stadium, the stadium's floodlights went out, completely submerging the ground in darkness, apart from the electronic advertising hoardings. Stadiums will have back up

generators on stand by in case of these situations.

Despite this, it took ten minutes for the issue to be rectified. Thankfully, those poor players were able to return to their changing rooms, rather than waiting on the pitch in darkness. The issue was put down to a power cut to the main floodlights.

As if that wasn't enough sporting excitement for one weekend, Sunday evening saw The New Orleans Superdome plunge into darkness during the Superbowl American football match between the Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers.

A power surge was the cause of the "outage", causing half the lights in the stadium to fail. In such a high-profile game, it's likeasking what would happen if everyone went and boiled their kettle during half time at the World Cup final.

In this case, the break in this game lasted 34 minutes. Whatever scheduled testing and maintenance engineers undertake, there are some outside influences that are impossible to control.

At least the caterers were able to take in some more revenue while everyone was waiting around…

THREE'S A CROWD – UNLESS… In World War II, you could be killed for it. Today, just how easily you find collaborating with the enemy could be critical to your bottom line.

Increasingly, organisations are asking individual FM contractors to collaborate together on their joint client's estate. At a recent conference we heard from those who've been on both sides

discussing the realities of persuading two organisations who in most other instances would battle against each other to share information.

The response? In fact, if both contracting organisations can genuinely gain financially from the way the deal is structured, such arrangements can work. Otherwise, they can be a recipe for disaster.

"You want to get a reputation for promoting and rewarding best value. You need to have an ethos of genuine partnership" Julian Robinson, director of facilities at the London School of Economics and Political Science, explains why he ensured his cleaning contractors pay the London Living Wage

IN THE NEXT ISSUE OUT 28 FEBRUARY

FEATURE – BARS IN OFFICES: WHAT FMS NEED TO KNOW /// REPORT – BIFM LEADERSHIP FORUM ON EMERGING TRENDS IN FM /// HISTORY OF FM: THE PROCORD TEAM CONSIDER THE EARLY DAYS /// REPORT – WORKPLACE FUTURES /// THERMAL DESTRATIFICATION /// GAIN-SHARE CONTRACTS // ALL THE LATEST NEWS AND BUSINESS ANALYSIS

42 | 14 FEBRUARY 2013 | FM WORLD

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BIFM Awards: Entries now open E X C E L L E N C E . I N N O VAT I O N . I N S P I R AT I O N .

The only way to be recognised as a leading facilities management professional, team, organisation or project, is by entering.

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ENTRIES CLOSE 26 APRIL 2013 (FM OF THE YEAR CLOSES 28 JUNE 2013)

FMW.14.02.13.043.indd 38

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