Table of contents for August - September 2016 in Facility Management

While the facility management industry has not been a major victim of Australia’s sluggish economic performance in recent years, neither has it been exempt from the change in conditions. As other industries around the country, such as mining, oil and gas, and manufacturing, have been severely impacted by a downturn in their markets, this has caused a flow-on effect for some facility management disciplines. Workers who prospered in mining or oil and gas over the past decade are now turning to areas of facility management for employment opportunities as prospects in their former industries have dried up. In this issue’s lead feature Hays Recruitment outlines that this has resulted in FM employers seizing control. Recruiters are now being more selective when sourcing employees and when offering salaries, which have shown…

Lumens camera improves picture quality Lumens has added its first 4k ultra high definition pan, tilt, zoom (PTZ) camera – the VC-A70H – to its range of optical solutions. Designed to be one of the most intuitive solutions from Lumens, the VC-A70H has up to 128 user-defined pre-set modes, ensuring it is compatible in virtually any environment. The versatile PTZ camera delivers a level of picture quality suitable for a wide range of applications, including boardroom videoconferencing, lecture hall presentations and live event broadcasting. The VC-A70H has the ability to pan from 170 degrees to 170 degrees, as well as a tilting angle up to 90 degrees and down to -30 degrees. www.lumens.com.tw Save time, money and space with NHP’s switched neutral RCBO NHP’s range of earth leakage solutions has…

Wireless locks continue to be one of the fastest growing segments of the electronic access control industry. Australia, along with the US, France, Germany, the UK, China and Japan, has emerged as a major growth market for wireless locks in recent years. Given the critical advantages wireless technology has over both mechanical locks and wired access control, it is expected that the Australian market will continue its steady move towards wireless alternatives in the coming years. The data in ASSA ABLOY’s 2016 Wireless Access Control Market survey, developed in conjunction with IFSEC Global, backs up this expectation. In the 2014 survey, it was reported that 23 percent of businesses used a fully wireless or hybrid wired/wireless system for access control. Fast-forward two years and that figure has risen to 29…

To keep pace with today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, leading organisations are implementing digital strategies, processes and solutions to remain relevant and deliver the best solutions for the workplace. Organisations today need to look beyond the implementation of digital solutions to achieve greater productivity and utilise digital solutions as a means to manage practices, such as Workplace Health and Safety (WHS), to ensure proper compliance processes are being met. MANAGING WHO IS ON YOUR PREMISES IS MORE THAN JUST TAKING ATTENDANCE WHS legislation in Australia has serious penalties for non-compliance but in the event of an emergency, those penalties are nothing compared to the risk you can carry if you aren’t sure who is in your building or where they are. Ensuring the safety of your staff, contractors and visitors…

Our future generations are destined to grow up in a society that benefits from a high level of digital mobility supported by modern day technologies. So it is only natural that schools and universities are developing into facilities that provide a more mobile environment than in the past. Tech company Aruba is involved in seamless technology use and facilitation of learning and teaching across a variety of educational facilities around Australia and the world. The company’s solution, which is implemented in primary and secondary schools as well as universities, provides seamless mobility-defined network and wireless outcomes. Increasing mobility at schools and universities continues to be a common demand at educational facilities, which are looking to utilise the capabilities of digital technologies to create this environment, according to Mark Verbloot (pictured),…

In the classic Sinatra song, love and marriage go together like a horse and carriage. So why, might you ask, have professional standards in the built environment not always been seen together with facilities management? A recent global collaboration is looking to set that record straight. Professional qualifications, in any industry or profession, are what separate serious practitioners from the rest. Professional qualifications denote rigour and commitment; they demonstrate the willingness of the professional to submit themselves to ongoing training and professional development. And, for chartered surveyors in the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), it means regulation of membership against the highest professional standards. Earlier this year, RICS signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the International Facilities Management Association (IFMA), enabling the transformation of the US$1 trillion facilities management…

Over the last five years, nearly every single Australian workplace has experienced change at some level. Whether that’s a merger, new CEO or executive team, different business model, updated premises or even redundancies. Yet, according to a 2014 Towers Watson study, Australian employees are tired of change and want clear direction and leadership from their managers. The fallout has been a lack of trust in leadership. Blame it on our convict past or a lack of employee resilience, we need strong leaders who tell the truth and can navigate employees successfully towards a new vision. WHY INCREASING TRUST IS CRITICAL TO CHANGE Our ability to commit to change is based on our belief that we can trust the leader or organisation to do the right thing by us and not…

DEFINITIONS BUILDING AND FACILITIES MANAGEMENT SYSTEM Web-based maintenance management applications. BUILDING INFORMATION MODELLING (BIM) SOFTWARE BIM is the process of generating and managing building data. COMPUTERISED MAINTENANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (CMMS) Used to monitor equipment performance and enhance the efficiency of maintenance operations. ENTERPRISE ASSET MANAGEMENT (EAM) SYSTEM Enables holistic control and optimisation of enterprise assets. ENTERPRISE RESOURCE PLANNING (ERP) SOFTWARE Manages business processes and automates back office functions. INTEGRATED WORKPLACE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (IWMS) Solutions that span the life cycle of facilities asset management. PROCUREMENT SOFTWARE SOLUTION Automates the purchasing and inventory processes. Integrated Workplace Management Systems (IWMS) FM Innovations www.fminnovations.com.au 03 9600 1646 FM Innovations (FMI) is the only Australian owned software company to take your FM and property management objectives and tailor a software system that measurably helps you…

A skills shortage continues to intensify in Australia’s facility management industry despite an increase in job vacancies in the first half of 2016, according to recruitment company, Hays. In its 2016 facilities management salary guide, Hays reports that business activity and headcounts in the industry are rising. Despite this recruitment trend, however, Hays states that it is not translating into a wide-ranging salary increases for Australia’s FM professionals. That is unless the FM professional has the niche, technical skills that are currently in high demand throughout the industry. Austin Blackburne, Hays Facilities Management regional director, says demand for ‘highly-skilled FM professionals’ continues to grow, and it is these people who are also securing high salaries or wage increases. “We are seeing demand mostly in the technical FM space. FM managers…

Australia had 18 registered WELL projects up to June 2016, according to the International WELL Building Institute. While many of the Australian developments are listed as private, a few of the known registered WELL projects include: 50 Martin Place – Sydney, New South Wales This Heritage-listed building, constructed between 1925 and 1928, has been transformed into a state-of-the-art commercial workspace over 11 floors. The project involved a refurbishment of building services and systems, fitout of the interiors, widening of the existing atrium, and construction of a two-storey glassdomed roof and glass shuttle lifts. 480 Queen Street – Brisbane, Queensland This building includes a food and beverage precinct, a nature based in-building parkland and a rooftop entertaining area. 480 Queen Street provides 600 bike spaces, 500 lockers and 45 male and…

Digital technology continues to transform the elevator and escalator industry in both manufacturing and in the way that maintenance services are organised. Recent advancements in technology have led to improved reliability, better performance, greater sustainability, superior scheduling methods and more intelligent equipment. Now, digital technology is raising the bar even higher and Schindler Lifts Australia is committed to being at the forefront of this revolution. By harnessing the capabilities of leading digital technologies, Schindler Lifts is enhancing the reliability, speed and safety performance across a wide range of product offerings. The industry has undergone widespread transformation in tandem with digital technologies that significantly increase mobility and enable communication with clients and equipment 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Servicing elevators and escalators has certainly come a long way…

Commercial property owners in Australia can capitalise further on building technologies and energy efficiency opportunities despite the country already being one of the most evolved markets in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region, according to United Technologies Corp (UTC) Climate, Controls and Security APAC president, Gaurang Pandya. UTC Climate, Controls and Security, a provider of HVAC (heating, ventilation and air-conditioning) and refrigeration systems, building controls and automation, and fire and security systems, continues to expand its offering in the APAC region to be part of this regional opportunity. In Australia, the company recently consolidated its position by acquiring the commercial HVAC product sales and commercial service divisions of AHI-Carrier Ltd, a UTC joint venture in Australia. In terms of the development of sustainable and highperforming buildings, Pandya describes Australia as one…

Mirvac Group, with joint owner AMP Capital, opened one of Australia’s newest smart buildings at 200 George Street in Sydney during June. Home to Mirvac and Ernst & Young’s (EY) new Sydney headquarters, and named EY Centre, the office building was constructed to embrace industry-leading design, technology and sustainability features. So what does it take to be part of the new breed of smart buildings in Australia? Standing at 37 storeys, the tower offers a net lettable area of approximately 39,200 square metres of premium grade office space, with a closed cavity façade featuring timber blinds that give the building a distinctive appearance. According to Mirvac, plans to activate the ground floor plane and surrounding laneways with diverse, food and beverage outlets, public art and leisure spaces will deliver a…

It’s not carbon taxes but peak demand that has caused electricity tariffs to increase. Politically, the electrical transmission and distribution sector has been accused of ‘gold plating’ – without recognition that without the ‘gold plating’ power quality would deteriorate. And now you’re paying for it; however, a power quality check-up can materially reduce your electricity bill. Saving on energy we all understand – limit the kilowatt-hours and lower the electricity cost. The means for reducing consumption have been well documented. No rocket science is involved – LED lighting, people movement detectors, building management systems (BMS), reducing stand-by power and engineering examples like make-up air in HVAC (heating, ventilation and air-conditioning), preventive maintenance on compressors, condensers and more all help. So let’s assume all the above measures have been undertaken or…

The mind uses the body as a vehicle for communication, and our posture is an extension of that communication. Posture is not just confined to how we sit at our desks; posture relates to our body language and how we communicate with ourselves and with others. As our mind and body are inherently linked, we can also use our bodies to connect with our mind. We can tell if someone is listening by assessing his or her body language and posture. For example: ● Are they facing you? ● Do they have eye contact? ● Are their arms relaxed or crossed? All of these tiny clues tell us what frame of mind people are in through subconsciously assessing each other’s body language, thus their posture. If you find that you…

The University of Sydney’s IEQ (Indoor Environmental Quality) lab, in partnership with several major corporations, is rolling out new technology that will track indoor climates in a survey of Australian workplaces. Today, we spend more than 90 percent of our lives indoors, so monitoring our indoor climate is possibly more important than monitoring the outdoor climate, says researcher Professor Richard de Dear, who is director of the IEQ Lab, part of the University’s Faculty of Architecture, Design and Planning. According to de Dear, no one has been able to capture holistic IEQ data with one piece of technology and make sense of the science, until now. The prototype for the technology, called SAMBA (Sentient Ambient Monitoring of Buildings in Australia), was developed by University of Sydney PhD student Tom Parkinson…

Australian company First Contact is turning front-of-house services into an integral part of how a facility is managed by taking principles from the hospitality industry into commercial building environments. Since 2009 the Melbourne-based company has challenged traditional models of corporate reception and concierge services in commercial buildings by introducing five-star hotel services into premium office facilities. First Contact now provides executive hospitality services to clients in a diverse range of industries, including banking, insurance, mining, and oil and gas, in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth. Chief executive officer Paul Schmeja says the company’s business model harnesses the secret to keeping corporate tenants happy by applying the well-established service principles of hospitality into these environments. “It’s a well-known fact in the world of luxury hotels that the most influential person for…

World FM Day, which took place during July, represents a focal point for the global facilities management community to come together. Instigated by Global FM, World FM Day recognises “the vital work that facilities management professionals and the facilities management industry contribute to business worldwide”. Among other messages, the promotional information uses the term ‘community’ in relation to the FM profession. For one day every year, this event brings the global FM community together to share knowledge, ideas and trends with the ultimate objective of raising the profile of the profession. Although the event is to be commended, it raises the question of what occurs during the other 364 days of the year. Certainly, there are other regional and local events, such as annual conferences, occasional industry lunches and various…

More travellers are looking for sustainability credentials when they book their hotel accommodation. TripAdvisor’s global travellers survey, TripBarometer, reveals that 79 percent of travellers place importance on properties implementing eco-friendly practices1. Once they arrive, however, guests’ comfort is a top priority for hotel operators, especially for ensuring repeat visits. On average, guests remain outside of their rooms for long durations. When comfort parameters are not adjusted during these periods, considerable amounts of energy are wasted. Guest room energy consumption accounts for between 40 and 80 percent of energy use within the hospitality industry, which could be as much as 80 kilowatts of energy per room per day for a luxury guestroom. For facility managers, the challenge is that hotel guests and staff don’t have visibility to nor are they directly…

As UTC Climate, Controls and Security expands in Australia, APAC president Gaurang Pandya says the company is confident of replicating its achievements on building projects from elsewhere in the APAC region. Pandya believes this will be possible if awareness of the level of savings that can be achieved grows. UTC Climate, Controls and Security has worked with many clients in the APAC region that have not only ‘gone green’, but also made significant cost cuts at their buildings. For example, the Furama City Centre Hotel in Singapore underwent green retrofitting with energy efficient chillers and saw its system efficiency improve from a fair to an excellent level, resulting in annual savings of US$238,000 a year. This represented a 36 percent energy saving in the chiller plant system, about 16 percent…

An occupant’s expectations within a building or facility have a significant impact on their overall experience. For example, if the hot water in the shower is operating as it should, nobody complains and it is simply business as usual. However, an unexpected experience caused by the plumbing system can have a significant impact on the continuity of any business. The operation of any plumbing system within a building generally goes unnoticed, almost taken for granted – at least the majority of the time. A recurring overflowing toilet, shower running out of hot water or poor water pressure can all influence how well a building or facility performs. In the majority of cases, these occurrences can be prevented. However, unwelcome noise within the facility’s plumbing system is construed as a nuisance.…

Aligning and delivering facilities and property outcomes with organisational strategic priorities continues to be a challenge for the industry. This includes trying to engage with enterprise leaders to understand and prioritise property as being a strategic enabler for success while their attention is focused on numerous other competing business decisions. Being able to convince these leaders that facilities decisions, while being perceived as non-core to the business processes, are complex needs a different approach. By its nature, property usually results in long-term commitments and lumpy capital commitments, with significant gestation periods. The next challenge for the industry is to ensure that the facilities management capabilities are aligned to organisational requirements and able to deliver the facilities outcomes needed to support the business strategy. Barry Varcoe is a leader in business…

Harry Scott is desperate – another bad day in a stressful week. “I know it looks awful, but I’m on it, really I am…” “That’s just it Harry, I don’t think you are. The stains are getting worse and on all the floors. Really Harry, the fitout is brand new,” says John, Harry’s client. “I’ll speak to the cleaners again but…” Harry hesitates, not wanting to mention the monthly deep-clean budget has been used up on the issue. “No matter, leave it with me please.” “OK. Brief me tomorrow morning when we meet,” John responds, before hanging up. Harry’s mobile lands on his paperwork, scattering it across his desk and unearthing his unfinished business plan. He stares at it – it is a week late. Harry walks out of his…