In today’s fast-paced logistics landscape, warehouse efficiency reigns supreme. With rising customer demands for faster delivery times and increased product volume, warehouse operations need a well-oiled machine to function seamlessly. This is where Integrated Facilities Management (IFM) steps in as a game-changer.

The Intricacies of Warehouse Management

Warehouses are complex ecosystems juggling a multitude of tasks.  Housekeeping plays a critical role. A clean and organized warehouse minimizes product damage, improves worker safety, and streamlines picking and packing processes. HVAC systems are another crucial element. Maintaining optimal temperatures ensures product integrity, particularly for temperature-sensitive goods. A malfunctioning HVAC system can lead to spoilage and significant financial losses. Regular pest control is equally important. Rodents and insects can damage inventory and contaminate products, posing health risks and regulatory concerns.

The Fragile Chain: Where Traditional Management Falls Short

Traditionally, warehouses manage these crucial aspects through individual contractors. However, this fragmented approach has its limitations.

. Communication Silos: Disparate teams may struggle to communicate effectively, leading to delays and inefficiencies.

. Data Disconnect: Scattered data from different service providers makes it difficult to identify trends, optimize operations, and make informed decisions.

. Increased Costs: Managing multiple contracts can be cumbersome and potentially more expensive than a consolidated approach.

The Power of Integration: How IFM Optimizes Warehouses

IFM offers a holistic solution by integrating all facility management services under one roof. Here’s how it empowers warehouses:

. Streamlined Operations: An IFM provider coordinates all services, ensuring seamless workflow and improved efficiency.

. Enhanced Communication: A single point of contact simplifies communication, eliminating delays and ensuring everyone is on the same page.

. Data-Driven Decisions: Integrated software platforms generate valuable data on all aspects of facility management. Warehouses can leverage this data to identify areas for improvement and make data-driven decisions to optimize operations and resource allocation.

. Cost Savings: Negotiating a single contract with an IFM provider can often lead to cost savings compared to managing multiple individual contracts.

. Reduced Risk: A comprehensive preventive maintenance program minimizes the risk of HVAC breakdowns or pest infestations, protecting inventory and minimizing downtime.

Beyond the Basics: Additional Benefits of IFM

IFM offers a wider range of benefits that cater to the evolving needs of modern warehouses:

. Sustainability Initiatives: IFM providers can implement sustainable practices such as energy-efficient lighting systems and waste management solutions, contributing to a greener warehouse operation.

. Safety and Compliance: IFM ensures adherence to safety regulations and compliance standards. This reduces the risk of accidents and hefty fines.

. Employee Well-being: A clean, safe, and well-maintained warehouse environment fosters a positive working environment and improves employee morale.

. Scalability: IFM solutions are scalable to accommodate changing warehouse needs. As your warehouse expands or contracts, the IFM provider can adjust services accordingly.

Conclusion: The Future is Integrated

In today’s competitive warehousing landscape, efficiency is paramount. Integrated Facilities Management offers a holistic approach that streamlines operations, optimizes costs, and minimizes risks. By integrating all aspects of facility management under a single umbrella, IFM empowers warehouses to achieve peak performance and ensure a future of smooth and efficient operations.

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Facility Managers are extensively aware of the complications that may arise in a system while the necessity to address these faults is always important. A handful of information is usually not enough to identify these challenges and provide quick remedy on the cause of concern especially when the scenario encompasses safety and security concerns for children at schools.

Considering the précis, this article details the most recurring challenges faced by the facility management services staff at schools and how they overcome these obstacles on a daily basis.

The emergency maintenance

The biggest challenge faced by facility managers is being able to fight an emergency situation successfully in addition to pulling everyone safely out of it. Integrated facility management service managers at schools must plan for emergency services that may pose risk to the building occupants. These emergency services include a well devised plan for responding to climatic occurrences such as natural disasters – earthquakes, floods or internal disasters like fire outbreak, shooting etc. There must also be additional methods taken against disruption of services e.g. electricity breakdown, water leakage etc.

While emergency situations come unannounced at schools where children may be unaware of how to respond to them, facility managers must take active action in providing periodic trainings to all children and school staff members that shall clearly elucidate how to battle the précis without getting hurt and surviving the calamity.

The pre-planned routine maintenance

The pre planned routine shall be undertaken periodically i.e. daily, fortnightly, monthly, quarterly, bi-annually or annually. The school management should comply with the schedule on a regular basis to prevent equipment and facility breakdown. Some examples of pre-planned routine maintenance can be read below:

●  The cleaning staff must perform their daily cleaning routine throughout the school facilities.

●  The grounds care or gardeners are responsible for managing the cleaning, leaves collection, drain cleaning, landscaping up-keeping of the lawns and hedges of the institutions.

●  Maintenance employees must undertake regular maintenance inspections, fix-up broken furniture, equipment or damaged doors and even repainting the buildings etc.

●  Professional security staff must be recruited to patrol the campus from time-to-time on vandalism of the institutions’ assets, protect students from various hazards or gang fights and random security checks to avoid prohibited items and unauthorized people from entering the premises.

The predictive maintenance

In addition to the general maintenance that follows immediately after an emergency has occurred, there is also the predictive maintenance that must be adhered to. This category of trouble-shooting maintenance system relies on the study of forecasting techniques and pre-emptive behaviour analysis of the building maintenance system. Data from the maintenance services is collated and undergoes statistical analysis in order to provide comprehensive forecasting and pre-empting events that could occur under a certain set of permutations and combinations.

Controlling costs

Facility managers are commonly pressured into giving more output with less resources which is intended to save the company’s finances and deal with budget constraints. Although finding resourceful ways to reduce costs while maintaining operational efficiency is not a straightforward task concerning educational institutions like schools, therefore it requires in depth inspections of the ongoing operations like the school’s inventory, staff uniform etc and a multitude of factors that can be taken into consideration. These factors comprise of managing inventory, and negotiating prices with suppliers, performing energy audits to identify possible energy wastes that can be eliminated in the school facilities or also by investing in technology that will help schools you save money in the long run.

Managing expectations

Managing a school’s demands and expectations is a challenge by its own virtue. With a multitude of children from different classes residing together, meeting expectations means the experience was positive and the service given was excellent. It is therefore important that facility managers are aware of the outcomes expected by schools (and how their communication is influencing those expectations) so that they can do everything possible under their management and provide suitable services that they’ll consider to be positive for both the firms and individuals.

Managing failures efficiently

An efficient approach to repairing faulty machineries and tools is imperative for good management as clients are increasingly demanding reduced failure repair times especially where one is dealing with a more sensitive span of audience lie children. Facility management service personnel cannot compromise on their operation speed because of broken equipments, which piles the pressure on them as a manager.

A wise investment into a management system that centralizes information, monitors daily performance, fosters communication and helps one keep track of repair times, is something that FM service providers should primarily focus on if they want to keep up with the competition. This will not only reduce the turnaround time capacity of the facility staff but also benefit the service user in terms of vouching for the quality services provided.

Managing time

A facility manager juggles with meetings, answering calls, writing emails, budgeting, coordinating one or multiple teams, performing audits, negotiating with suppliers or maybe even attending conferences and fairs to grow as a professional. With all of this, as well as lots of unplanned occurrences happening every day, it’s safe to say that facility managers don’t have it easy when it comes to time management.

A Computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) can be extremely helpful for managing and prioritizing tasks as schools, as well as for managing multiple clients, buildings and locations easily.

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Facility management has become a vital component of adding to organizations’ efficiency. The process helps in ensuring that all aspects of a company’s building and equipments work well and support the daily operations that are carried out in a framework on a regular basis.

Innovations and advancements in facility management services have given birth to using advanced techniques that run these daily operations. Today, there are numerous ways facility management can turn your office into a smart workplace.

Let’s take a look at them and find out How?

Use of Data to Enhance Efficiency

Plenty of building problems can be resolved with the help of big data. Facility management companies can incorporate smart meters and IT networks to enhance decision making, track breakdowns, and support research. This will add to speedy resolutions and efficient tracking of processes all in real time.

Automated HVAC Systems

Facility management services also integrate digital air ventilation, heating, and HVAC systems with softwares and auto controls. Sensors track and optimize air temperature to meet the occupants’ standards.

These systems also allow automatic air regulation and switch on/off the relative devices to limit the energy use. The introduction of these tremendously innovative technologies have changed the face of temperature regulation in addition to saving energy in an extremely efficient manner.

IoT for Updates and Maintenance

Integrated facility management services allow for integrating IoT and smart work places. Previously tracking equipment performance was manual that required manpower with incessant supervision. Technicians used to do periodic checks regularly, which were sometimes off the schedule.

IoT allows for prompt updates, as machines get connected to smart phones without much human intervention required for performance monitoring. These updates enable maintenance before breakdowns, thus countering idle time.

Integrated Facility Management

Integrated facility management services have their independent benefits, and it’s an incredible way of achieving a smart office. The method puts all facility management services under the role of experts that not only help with monitoring the processes with a hawk eye vision, but also add observations that take these processes to another tangent.

Integrated facility management streamlines decision making and building efficiency. Independent facility managers save businesses the stress of facility managers, allowing them to focus on more critical aspects of the company.

Modernized Business Systems and Structures

Integrated facility management allows the building access to first-rate systems and equipment to help simplify business procedures. The systems include first-class security systems and advanced equipment for the disabled. Which means, the systems are user friendly and are easily approachable in case of exigencies.

Facility management also allows for advanced cleaning methods to save time and reduce employee interruption.

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The post IOT and the future of Facility Management first appeared on Facility Management Company.

Rainwater harvesting is crucial for all homeowners. Days when people harvested water only for countering drought no longer exists. For an effective facility management plan, it is prudent to ensure your home’s safety from the effects of excessive water hazards like flooding and erosion. Besides, your home requires a non-stop supply of water for carrying out a plethora of domestic chores which can otherwise be managed more efficiently if only a few precautionary measures are taken.

If you own residential rental units, controlling water use, and protecting your property from water damage can be a big task. You’re safer when you procure facility management services which help you identify the possible buckets of conservation.

By harvesting rainwater, you can reduce your utility bills, forego the cost of bottled water, and use natural and safer water for everyday use. For people who live in low rainfall areas, harvesting water is their best opportunity to preserve water.

If you’re building a new home, an integrated facility management company can help you plan for any rain eventuality. Such a company will advise you on the best ways to maximize rainwater harvesting and protect your home.

Techniques for Harvesting Rain Water

Affordable rainwater collection techniques mean anyone can harvest rainwater right from their homes. You can collect rainwater from the rooftops and runoffs. Rooftop water is less contaminated and more appropriate for domestic use.

How to Collect Water from the Rooftops

You can collect rainwater from the rooftops by capturing it with gutters. The method is suitable for concrete and iron-roofed houses. The captured water then flows to water tanks, underground reservoirs, or the garden areas where it adds to the purpose more effectively.

Water collection efficiency is high when you use gutters. You can install gutters after or during the construction of your home.

Integrated facility management services allow for total incorporation of water and energy backups. Prospective homeowners can seek the services of a facility management company for an extensive water management plan.

A water management plan can allow homeowners to build reliable rainwater harvesting systems that can sustain the effects of extreme rainfalls and floods.

An efficient rooftop water collection system prevents water from flowing into storm drains and sewers, thus vital for a home homestead.

Use of Barrels

Use of barrels and cisterns is the most common method of collecting rooftop water. The technique suits areas with reliable rainfall patterns, and it is easy to implement.

Dry System/ Use of Large Water Tanks

Dry system technique involves placing large water tanks next to your house. The tanks collect water from the gutters during rains, and the method is useful for homes that consume large amounts of water.

Wet System/ Underground Reservoirs

Facility management companies recommend the wet system for its reliability. With the method, rainwater collects from several rooftops and flows to underground reservoirs. Piped connections supply the water to your house like regular tap water.

In an era like today, it is imperative that we use natural resources to carry out our daily routines. The best way forward shall be to walk hand in hand with the environment and constantly keep coming up with new ways to live a lifestyle that is eco friendly and makes for a better tomorrow.

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The need for efficiency in the Facility Management industry has resulted in innovations and search for new ways of delivering integrated facility management services. There have always been challenges in facility management like lack of ample data collection systems which have further made it difficult for facility managers to monitor equipment performance.

Over the years, facility managers have also had to contend with inefficient equipment maintenance. As a result, they do not serve clients as expected. Outdated equipments and technologies not only affect their service delivery but are also a risk to their safety.

With the upcoming innovations, the facility management industry should grow in leaps and bounds.

What Innovations Should Facility Managers Await?

Monitoring Drones

Drone technology has influenced surveillance, disasters tracking, film, and real estate industries. With the many demands of integrated facility management services, it is time the facility management industry incorporated drones to speed up building monitoring and inspection.

Technicians in the facility management companies put their lives at risk to inspect high areas of buildings. The old-fashioned way of conducting inspections and maintenance is risky and cumbersome. Using drones will simplify the whole process and enhance service delivery to clients.

Robotics to Streamline Facility Management

Maintenance and cleaning of inaccessible building areas is difficult. Facility management companies incur massive costs hiring scaffolds and other equipment to clean buildings thoroughly.

Robotics technology is growing at a fast rate, and so far, their impact has been credible in the cleaning industry. In homes, we have seen robotic vacuum cleaners and robotic pool cleaners, but with AI, expect more intelligent robots that can access edgy areas of buildings. Smart robots will clean, repair, and assess the state of structures.

Data for Seamless Integrated Facility Management

Clients in integrated facility management benefit a lot from cost savings. But sometimes they compromise efficiency at the expense of cutting costs.

Facility Management Companies offering integrated facility management services will benefit tremendously from innovations in smart technologies and cloud computing.

The technologies will furnish facility managers with real-time data for quick decision making and handling of emergencies. Right from their phones, the managers will know which section and which equipment in a client’s building has malfunctioned.

Internet of Things to Revolutionize Facility Management

Facility management companies should look forward to an increasing number of smart homes and smart equipment.

Homeowners and facility managers will control the equipment remotely, and the machine will send data to facility managers whenever there is a sign of breakdown. Efficient communication systems and smart kits will enable facility managers to rectify arising equipment problems fast.

Global innovations in the field of facility management have elevated the operations in the integrated facility management industry. This has made framework operations more efficient and less clustered where as the turnaround time for the same has also been increased magnanimously.

With the advent of new technologies, facility management services are sure to touch new heights and leave a mark on the sands of time while making significant contributions in the deriving the success of businesses.

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Regardless of how well managed an office is, there will always be issues. Therefore, it is important for those responsible for facility management to understand and anticipate the issues that could affect operations and how these issues should be dealt with, making this article an invaluable resource.

Shortage of office supplies

A lack of or shortage of office supplies is one of the most common problems that facility workers have to face. The problem often leads to lower work efficiency, stress, lower employee morale and affects their overall workplace satisfaction. Supplies include everything from tissue paper to whiteboards and it is always the little things that are often forgotten.

The best solution is introducing integrated facility management services through which you can introduce management services such as facility management software. The software can keep a record of the supply orders and facility managers can keep a record of what needs to be ordered before the supplies are depleted.

Data loss

The loss of important data can be a serious problem that slows down all office operations and affects both employee and customer satisfaction. Data loss is usually attributed to security issues, poor management and equipment failure.

To solve the issue, the business should invest significantly in cybersecurity measures, which prevent hacking, virus intrusions, and other security issues. Additionally, you should make use of facility management services to ensure that the data is accounted for at all times by a centralized group. This also helps avoid confusion and delays where the facility workers don’t know where to report in case of data loss. Equipment maintenance and replacement also fall under the category of facility management services.

Thermal Discomfort

Thermal discomfort is a problem that is often downplayed as being trivial. Nevertheless, employees who experience thermal discomfort have lower work efficiency and work satisfaction. Thermal discomfort can even lead to increased health problems in the workplace, especially in summer and winter when the temperatures are extreme.

To solve this issue, facility management should introduce a request management system. Thanks to this system, the managers can identify the needs of all the employees and choose to invest in systems that allow for zoned temperature control. With the proper facility management systems in place, employees can work in an environment where the temperature is controlled to the optimum. It is the responsibility of the integrated facility management to recommend the installation of temperature control systems and handle their maintenance and calibration.

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Integrated facility management responsibilities tend to be varied. However, in general, facility management services basically involve the process of supervising and managing all or some of the operations and upkeep of community infrastructure, facilities, as well as buildings on behalf of property owners.

For facility managers to handle their responsibilities properly, a diverse skill set is required. The clients, themselves, must also share necessary information with their facility management provider for all round seamlessness to be experienced.

Facility managers must be able to gather information and use it for spotting infrastructure problems or maintaining the facilities they are in charge of. Not only does this ensure that the managers have knowledge that will impact the bigger picture, but it will also boost efficiency.

5 things your facility management should know for residential maintenance

1. How integrated facility management services fit into your organization’s objectives

Facility managers must figure out how their services fit into making a facility or an organization more successful as a whole. Facility managers must understand the things needed by your organization such as reduced operational cost, efficient and clean workspaces and so on so that the right caliber of service can be provided.

2. How to develop a plan that will work for your organization

The right facility manager for your organization must be able to formulate a plan that is custom to your facility or business. The best facility managers know that they must manage a schedule that allows them to stay ahead of problems, as well as equipment and systems that require constant maintenance to avoid inconveniences from occurring.

3. How to anticipate and solve upcoming problems

In facility management, problems are bound to arise every now and then and it is up to the facility manager to anticipate some issues as well as formulate fast-acting solutions to these problems. Facility managers must be flexible otherwise, they would be unable to prioritize what needs fixing with flexibility.

4. Information regarding local regulations affecting your facility

Facility managers are supposed to report directly to the owners of the facilities or to businessowners that own commercial companies. Aside from this, facility managers also take a lot of direction from government regulators, whether at a local, state or federal level. The laws and regulations created by government regulators must be adhered to at all times especially where the management of a building in a high-risk industry is concerned.

5. The latest trends in facility management

Just like any sector in these contemporary times, facility management is also impacted greatly by incoming trends and new technologies. Facility managers must be able to keep up with constant changes so as to offer efficient services. Thanks to new technology, automation is now possible, which had increased the ability for managers to control equipment and buildings remotely asa result of the Internet of Things.

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Facility management today appears to be completely different compared to what it was several years ago. As workplaces continue to shift and as employers continue providing an agile work environment for their workers, the role of facility management in the modern workplace has continued to become enhanced.

Today, the emphasis has been placed on managing customer and employee experiences as much as the facilities themselves. Traditionally involved in providing services such as housekeeping to a wide range of workplaces whether malls, office buildings or hospitals, facility management companies now offer a whole host of value-added services aimed at improving service delivery, productivity levels, collaboration, as well as the sense of community at the workplace.

Facility management services and the providers that offer the service are constantly growing, innovating and transforming to make sure that they remain competitive in an ever-changing business environment. To help you keep up with imminent changes in the industry, here are new working procedures that have been introduced by facility management in 2019:

Data analytics

Data analytics will continue to be vital for business efficiency, sustainability, and energy savings. Data is useful as it helps businesses measure the whatthe main drivers of performance are and the links that exist between facilities and the people that visit or work in these facilities. Data can be used by an organization to streamline their operations so that compliance to obligations such as workplace safety and energy conservation is observed.

Artificial intelligence will shape workplaces

With artificial intelligence permeating almost all sectors of daily living, facility managers can leverage AI to improve the services offered. Facility management services can utilize AI to provide their customers with sustainable solutions so that high expenditure and heavy maintenance can be regulated with ease.

Outsourcing

While facility management services are something that most business owners always opt to outsource, the reason for outsourcing these services will change drastically in 2019. Rather than outsource facility management for purposes of reducing expenses, businesses will instead choose this route in order to give facility management teams the change to concentrate on more strategic initiatives that will be focused on enhancing the user experience, as well as customer and employee satisfaction.

Emphasis on employee health and wellbeing

More and more organizations are adopting health and wellness programs at their workplaces. As such, facility managers now realize the value of creating a stable and comfortable work environment that focuses on not just increased efficiency and output, but also on employee satisfaction and health.

The post New working procedures that are introduced by facility management in 2019 first appeared on Facility Management Company.

The world is thriving, so should we. Not only by means of developing into a worldwide spark, but also by means of managing the resulting streams of fire falling behind on the planet.

It is true to the nature of waste (produced by an array of functional buildings), that its management becomes inevitable, facing which, corporates employ a ton of practices to reduce and manage the same at their best. However, the sloping graphs have only shown a considerable change where the aim was a magnanimous impact in the waste reduction process. Studies reveal that the most usable ventures into such businesses could be the easiest waste reduction practices to follow, some of which are even employed at home resulting in a well orchestrated and healthy environment.

Hence to give into the environment, here are some easy techniques to follow at work places that will ensure efficient waste management in buildings, as the business world slowly thrives towards a more environment friendly approach!

REUSABLE TABLEWARE IN THE CAFETERIA

The most common source of waste is the single-use tablewares. Instead of providing disposable tableware one must encourage employees to bring their own mugs, cups, plates and flatware, that can be re used, or you may also supply reusable tableware which can be washed on-site.

SEGREGATE AND RECYCLE

The facility management services employ waste recycling practices in buildings by placing bins in the work area that clearly distinguish between the wet waste, solid waste and e-waste can push the disposal process forward and make it much easier for the building maintenance services to process recycling these waste further.

GENERATE A WASTE ASSSESSMENT REPORT

To best understand the opportunities for waste reduction and cost savings at your work place, conduct a waste assessment, understanding the following:

What type of trash do we generate, and how do we dispose it?

Are there any items in the trash that could be source reduced, reused or recycled?

Are our trash containers the right size and do they get collected at periodic intervals?

EDIT ON COMPUTERS BEFORE PRINTING

This move will help eliminate the count of draft copies to be printed. If you still think printing drafts is a necessity, print them on rough paper sheets that would otherwise be dumped, while you can also store office files digitally.

PURCHASING PRODUCTS WITH LESS PACKAGING

Consider purchasing products that have less packaging on them or that have no packaging at all. Request that your office deliveries be shipped in returnable containers which if required, can be returned to the supplier in the same packets. Additionally, reduce the usage of items that can otherwise be substituted with an alternative, e.g.:

Avoid paper towels – use a hand drier instead

Ditch the post it notes – use scrap paper instead

Use Refillable ink cartridges and reduce the packing disposal

CONSIDER STAFF SCHEDULES

If you set a few days in a month to allow employees to work from home, you can reduce the total amount of waste generated for those days while also lowering your carbon footprint.

USE AUTOMATIC SWITCHES IN OFFICES

This implies you won’t drain unnecessary electricity and bulbs will consume less energy, resulting in not having to replace them as often as usual.

USE PAPER WISELY

Try to create a policy to buy only chlorine-free paper with a high percentage of recycled content.

CONSIDER OFFICE SHARING

If you have a count of employees that don’t use the office regularly, consider assigning them an office space, based on a defined schedule, which will save you on utilities, equipments, furniture and a lot more.

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