CONCEPT PAPER FACILITIES MANAGEMENT MODEL
SHANTA PROPERTIES LIMITED
BY
SHABBIR AHSAN
INTRODUCTION 1.
Population boom, urban-centric immigration and rapid depletion of land
helped the rise of the Real Estate (RE) Sector to a gigantic proportion. However, the speed of growth of RE has not been equally harmonized by the standard of after sales service which has ushered a question; “Are RE companies more focused on their profit rather than on their customer’s satisfaction? Do they really mean when they promise a peaceful living just to lure potential clients?” The rouge state of aftersales service has depleted the confidence of the customers who are more wellinformed, decisive and aware than ever before. This offers a challenge—a challenge, if rightly handled can open an untapped potential in the RE Sector. 2.
Facility Management (FM) system is a proven and cost effective service in
vogue in the developed countries of the world. It takes care of the day-to-day running of a facility as well as provides continuous short and long term services so that occupants’ living and working conditions are optimized. It provides the customers with a satisfied living while at the same time enhance the image of the RE company resulting in further sales and business opportunities. 3.
The idea of FM in Bangladesh is unique and still left to be discovered. This
paper is written to outline a conceptual framework to illustrate how the service might be professionally managed and offered with the ultimate aim of establishing FM into a separate business entity. AIM 4.
To outline a possible framework for FM service system with the ultimate view
to establishing itself into a separate strategic business unit. FACILITIES MANAGEMENT (FM) 5.
Definition.
FM is a field devoted to maintain and care of residential and
commercial facilities to ensure functionality of the building environment and proper operation to create an optimal, safe and cost effective environment for the occupants to function.
6.
The Contents of FM.
The following services encompass the domain of
FM: a.
Utilities Plumbing. water supply, sewage Electricity (Generator, lights, fans etc) Lift Car Parking Gas supply Telephone Cleaning service, waste management and pest control Reception and help desk
b.
Infrastructural Wall (Exterior and interior) Paint Glass faรงade Doors and windows Cabinet
c.
Safety and Security Access control and monitoring (including theft and burglary) Fire safety Manned guard/CCTV Earthquake preparedness Nuisance control
d.
Recreational Swimming pool Garden Convention center/ common room/ community space Cable TV/Internet Gaming room
7.
FM Service Model.
FM service model can be of various types and
combination. The main five types of model, with their pros and cons are described below. a.
In House Total FM.
In this model, the RE company in question has a
workforce of related trades (electrician, mason, plumber, security guards etc) in its payroll. Projects are clustered into zones and the company appoints a supervisor for each zone and provides group of workforce under his control who provides FM service to customers. The customer group pays directly to the company. Major repairs and services are provided from the headquarters/ central pool. A deviation of this model could be outsourcing highly technical services (lift, swimming pool maintenance etc) only while retaining the rest under own control.
SHANTA PROPOERTIES LTD
IN HOUSE COMPLETE SERVICE WORK FORCE
PROJECT 1
b.
PROJECT 2
Individual Outsourcing Contracts.
PROJECT 3
PLUMBING ELCTRICITY SECURITY POOL MASON ETC
PROJECT 4
In this model, the RE company
contracts individual service providers/persons to provide related services. The company appoints supervisor for a zone who, in turn coordinates individual service providers for their services. For example, the company appoints individual electrical, plumbing, lift, security service providers for Gulshan zone whose services are coordinated by the zone supervisor. Besides the supervisor, the company has none of the tradesmen in its payroll. The customer group pays directly to the company who, in turn, pay the service providers.
SHANTA PROPOERTIES LTD
SHANTA FM CELL
c.
SECURITY
ELECTRICITY
PLUMBING
POOL
PROJECT 1
PROJECT 2
PROJECT 3
PROJECT 3
Outsourcing to FM Agents.
In this model, the company contracts an
FM Agent (individual or company) for FM services. The agent in turn contracts various service providers (electrical, plumbing etc) for providing FM service to a specific zone or a project. The agent doesn’t have the tradesmen under its payroll. The company pays the agent for the service plus an agent fee who, in turn, pays the individual service providers. The onus of management and execution of the services lie wholly with the agent. However, the company may specify the service of particular service provider (for example Group 4 for security service). SHANTA PROPOERTIES LTD
FM AGENT
SECURITY
ELECTRICITY
PLUMBING
POOL
PROJECT 1
PROJECT 2
PROJECT 3
PROJECT 3
d.
Total Outsourcing.
Here, the RE company contracts a full-fledged FM
company who has a group of tradesmen/ technicians under its payroll. The complete responsibility of FM shifts to the outsourced company who are paid for their services by the RE company. Although the RE company will dictate the level of service and performance standard and assess their output, it has no say in selecting individual service providers.
SHANTA PROPOERTIES LTD
TOTAL OUTSOURCING
PROJECT 1
e.
PROJECT 2
Blended FM Service.
PROJECT 3
PLUMBING ELCTRICITY SECURITY POOL MASON ETC
PROJECT 4
This is in fact a mix of everything stated
above. For example a RE company outsource some services to professional service providers (G4 for security, Otis for lift repair), it provides few services by in-house expertise (Architects for interior decoration consultancy), it also opts for hiring an agent to provide the rest (cleaning service, swimming pool maintenance etc). All the services are coordinated by a zone supervisor who is an employee of the RE company. Zone supervisors are centrally managed from the headquarters. 8.
Comparative Analysis of Various FM Models.
The
FM
service
models illustrated above have their intrinsic pros and cons that merit discussion.
Factors
In House
Outsourcing
-
Contracts +
++
Administrative Load Short Term Cost
Expertise/ Specialists Service Control on Performance
FM Agent
Total
Blended
++
Outsourcing +
++
+
+
++
Very High
High
Moderate
Low
High
Very High
Moderate
High
Very High
+
Long Term Cost
Low
Moderate
High
Very High
Long Term Implication
Dev SBU
Dev SBU
Low Potential
Low Potential
Coordination Load
Moderate
High
High
High
Conflicting Interest
Low
Low
High
Very High
Moderate
Note: + + = attribute most likely to be satisfied; + = may be satisfied; − = unlikely to be satisfied.
Given above, this paper suggests executing pilot projects keeping in mind the practicability, financial consideration and future growth of FM business. PROVISION OF FM SERVICE 9.
FM services may be categorized as follows: a.
Proactive/Preventive Maintenance. Routine and periodic maintenance,
irrespective of the owners/ tenants request for it will be carried out. (1)
Routine Maintenance.
As per agreement, the agent or the
FM service provider will carryout routine maintenance and inspection of various facility details like garden, security guards, cleanliness etc. The RE company will carryout impromptu inspection to ensure service level. (2)
Periodic Maintenance.
The agent or FM service provider
will carry out periodic inspection of facility details like quarterly pool maintenance,
half-yearly
lift
maintenance,
yearly
generator
user
activated
maintenance etc. b.
Reactive Maintenance/ Inspection. These
are
maintenance/ inspection. These will only be carried out on the request of the user (for example fixing a broken toilet or light bulb; cleaning clogged sewerage system; assistance in shifting household properties etc). These requests may be collected at the call center/ service center (established zone or building wise) where operators or customer care personnel will direct the requests for service to appropriate agencies/ technicians. Each call should be logged for further queries and financial purposes. Emergency situation like fire, earthquake, public nuisance etc will have their own reporting procedure.
MONITORING AND REVIEW 10.
The service monitoring is essential for proper compliance of the agreed level
of terms and conditions. The monitoring may be in the following form: a.
Impromptu Inspection.
FM
compliance
officers
may
carryout
inspection of a facility without intimation. They will inspect all or part of facility and check against a service checklist. Their recommendations and reviews may be reflected on the grading of the service provider and subsequently on his remuneration and future contract potential. b.
Customer Survey.
This may either be impromptu or may be done at
periodic intervals. A group of randomly selected customers (tenants/ owners) may be given a set of questionnaire to fill and provide comments. c.
Complaint/Suggestions Register.
A register should be opened where
complaints/suggestions may be logged by the occupants of the facility for later enquiry and resolve. d.
Home Owner’s Association Meeting.
Periodic meeting with Home
Owners Association may be held to get a firsthand impression about the service. e.
Periodic Presentation.
Service
providers
may
be
asked
to
arrange for periodic presentation where various service related information will be provided, status discussed and review of future matters agreed upon.
FM CHECK LIST 11.
The FM checklist will help in many ways. It will assist workers/technicians to
know what is expected of them. It will help service providers to streamline their service. It will also help RE companies to assess the quality of the service. A checklist can never be exhaustive and requires a continuous process to build. However, a suggested group of checklist, which will be agreed both by RE company and the
service providers/contractors is appended as Annex A. TRAINING OF FACILITY SUPERVISORS 12. MONEY MATTERS 13.
who pays for what and how much?
CONCLUSIONS 14.
FM is NOT a cost rather it is an ability to add value to the core business. It is
also NOT a maintenance function but a complete discipline a business opportunity in its own right. A comprehensive FM strategy needs long term planning, testing and learning to grow itself into a profit-making and customer satisfying business venture. Since this service is yet to be institutionalized in our country where RE sector is one of the most prolific sectors in urban areas, it is envisaged that focusing and investing on this venture would yield comprehensive financially returns and help achieve a brand status for the organization.