News

Following successful participation at the annual FM Expo in Dubai, Service Works Global is delighted to announce that the company will be strengthening its market presence in the UAE over the coming months. The 2008 exhibition provided an unrivalled opportunity to showcase the market leading Facilities and Performance Management software, QFM, to one of the world’s most sophisticated and fastest growing regional markets.

“The facilities management industry within the UAE is experiencing rapid growth, with significant investment being undertaken to effectively maintain and manage the built environment,” commented Gary Watkins, Managing Director of Service Works Global commented. “At SWG, we are acutely aware of increasing demand from the local market for the integration of facilities management and technology, in order to deliver strategic facilities management tools.” There is a growing industry consensus that the demand for facilities management will eventually surpass Dubai’s construction boom as organisations recognise the need to parallel commercial development with efficient asset and service management.

SWG is very conscious of Dubai’s intentions to be regarded as the foremost environmentally sustainable business hub; a change in political and social attitudes towards the environment which is fully aligned with Service Works Global’s product development plans. Gary Watkins explains: “At SWG we strongly believe that the concept of ‘sustainable facilities management’ pertains not only to operational continuity and efficiency but to how a business impacts on its employees and the local environment. We are continuing to develop products that deliver not only operational streamlining and cost consolidation opportunities to our clients but also enable them to conform to tightening environmental legislation and attitudes.”

FM Expo provided Service Works Global with numerous networking opportunities and as a result, we are actively engaged in positive dialogue with individuals from some of Dubai’s most prominent and fastest growing businesses. Jonathan Tyler, Professional Services Director at SWG, delivered a keynote presentation focussing on the integration of technology within facilities management. The presentation also provided insight into how QFM software can streamline operations and generate sustainable reductions in operational costs for businesses.

Gary Watkins concludes: “FM Expo rewarded us with solid exposure to the market and we received strong interest in our products. We are very keen to strengthen our ties with organisations based in the UAE and will be participating in future events in the region as we continue to pursue our international growth strategy.”

The International Facility Management Association (IFMA) is pleased to announce its 2008-2009 board of directors, which will begin its term July 1. Helena Ohlsson, CFM, director at London-based Service Works Global, has been appointed to this year’s board.

“I am very excited to learn more about IFMA and hope to bring a fresh pair of eyes and some new topics to the table,” said Ohlsson. “It is also a great opportunity to become familiar with new cultures and more of the amazing individuals that are engaged in the development of the facility management profession.”

Ohlsson is a trained architect with more than 12 years of experience in architecture and facility management. She has been involved with some of the most prestigious accounts in the portfolio of Skanska and Johnson Controls Inc., working with companies such as BP, Cisco, BBC and Ericsson. Using her background in architecture and facility management, Ohlsson worked on the creation of a European strategy for the Johnson Controls Inc. consulting team.

Her responsibilities at Service Works Global — a facility management software company — include managing large multinational facility management clients and developing the business throughout Europe.

Ohlsson is a Certified Facility Manager® and a member of IFMA, EuroFM and NordicFM. She has served as a board member of the Swedish Chapter of IFMA since 1999 and was president from 2002-2005. Ohlsson is also a board member for EuroFM as chair of the Practice Network Group representing 35 national associations and corporate associates in 17 countries.

“Over the past years, IFMA has developed toward becoming a truly global association,” Ohlsson said. “This is a great opportunity for me to contribute to this progress and share my knowledge and experience from the European FM and the European IFMA chapters.”

IFMA is the world’s largest and most widely recognized international association for professional facility managers, supporting more than 19,000 members in 60 countries. The association’s members, represented in 125 chapters and 15 councils worldwide, manage more than 37 billion square feet of property and annually purchase more than US$100 billion in products and services. Formed in 1980, IFMA certifies facility managers, conducts research, provides educational programs, recognizes facility management certificate programs and produces World Workplace, the world’s largest facility management conference and exposition. For more information, visit the IFMA press room or www.ifma.org.

Facilities management software specialist Service Works Global has confirmed that its involvement at this year's Facilities Show will focus on the integration of Computer Aided Facilities Management (CAFM) with other technologies, and on the changing ways in which software is delivered via mobile technology and as an online service. The show will also provide an opportunity for visitors to discuss how these emerging and linked technologies are changing the way software is impacting the FM market.

"Typically software providers have focussed on the features of products at the expense of how they are used and delivered," comments Service Works Global's Managing Director, Gary Watkins. "Our approach this year will be to look at how those features are be applied in practice and how CAFM can integrate with other systems to deliver the benefits of strategic facilities management tools. In addition, we will also look at the global innovations in terms of how software is delivered to the FM marketplace, via handheld technology and the move towards delivering software online as a service. Both issues are not only topical but are two of the most important contemporary opportunities for facilities managers."

Exhibiting on stand C30 at the show, which takes place at NEC Birmingham from 13th to 15th March, Service Works Global will be demonstrating the full scope of modern CAFM applications.

Further information about the event can be found at http://www.thefacilitiesshow.com/

The Emerging Market for Networked Applications

This is how it begins. At the end of September 2007, Microsoft announced its plans for something called Microsoft Office Live Workspace, a new service that will allow files to be shared online by combining Microsoft Office with a web based application. In doing so, Microsoft had revealed what it believed to be the future of technology, a vision of the future which relied on the convergence of desktop based software with online applications, a hybrid offering the best of both.

As is often the case, other firms such were also announcing the development of their own ideas based on the same principles. For example Google last year launched a product called Gears that allows developers to create web based applications that can be used offline. Google already offers Google Docs, an online word processor.

The impact of this new thinking will be profound. The past has been dominated by software that limits applications and information to a single desktop as well as limiting the number of people who have access to that information. The future will be profoundly different, marked by applications that take the best features of both desktop and web based software, opening information and applications up to a wider audience and tailoring software to individual needs.

This vision of the future is already apparent, but not only for giants like Microsoft and Google. Computer Aided Facilities Management systems that offer the same convergence of web based applications already exist; and others are evolving all the time.

Crucially, facilities management is one of the professions most likely to benefit from the new thinking because it often relies on the management of remote teams, frequently operating across a number of sites and is not inherently a deskbound job. Not only that, it also makes information accessible across the organisation, offering up crucial FM information at board level, informing strategic decisions and increasing the profile of the facilities manager within the organisation.

There are several web based CAFM applications in use that facilities managers can take advantage of. And one emerging idea that may transfer the way CAFM is used. Of the current applications, one of the most important technologies allows access to CAFM applications over the web via a secure login usually over a company network. This can be incredibly useful in a facilities management operation because it allows employees, many of whom may be remote on-site and working across a diverse, geographically disparate estate, access to information that otherwise would be restricted to a hard drive or server.

This can be especially useful when used in conjunction with handheld or mobile technology which allows instant access to information on asset management, work schedules, surveys, inspections and the tracking of jobs and employees. Such systems can also be integrated with GPS technology to add another level of sophistication.

The immediate benefits of such systems are very apparent. They are not only flexible in terms of how, when and where they are used, they are attractive in terms of scalability (the ability to embrace changing requirements in real time) and are also ideal for the integration of third parties into their reporting and management systems. On top of that, there are clear economies of scale in their use. The more people that use them, the better.

Even at this operational level there is invariably a measurable business case for the application of web based software. But where they really come into their own is their ability to generate information that is instantly and easily measured and understood by a wider audience. It is one of the most common frustrations for facilities managers that they do not have a greater say at board level about strategic decision making on issues that affect them, so the use of web based CAFM applications to generate information about the ways FM can add to the organisation’s bottom line can be vital in making their voices heard.

That is all existing technology, albeit that it keeps getting more sophisticated. However, there is one new area of development that is set to transform the way CAFM applications are procured and used and it too borrows from trends in the wider technology marketplace.

Software as a Service (SaaS) describes an emerging way of procuring software which relies on acquiring it over the internet rather than as a desktop application. Customers do not buy software to own but pay for the use of it. It is particularly attractive for buyers of certain types of business software such as CAFM because by its very nature complex business software tends to feature a wide range of applications and modules that may be of more or less use to a specific user. It improves levels of scalability, is inherently flexible, tailored to the needs of a specific organisation and offers the opportunity to control costs because users buy only what they need.

Over time, the current dominance of desktop-only applications, or even predominantly desktop-based apps, will decrease. We shouldn’t expect desktop applications to completely disappear in the very near future. But we should expect to quickly see the widespread use of hybrids which exploit the best features of web based and desktop applications.

Following a year of sustained growth and product development, facilities management software specialist Service Works Global has announced a major appointment to its team, with the appointment of Helena Ohlsson as Head of Service Works International. Helena has extensive knowledge of both the FM sector and other disciplines relating to the design and management of the built environment, and will play a key role in the firm’s ongoing expansion in the global FM marketplace.

Helena has an MSc in Architecture and a Diploma in Facilities Management and brings ten years of experience in the architecture and facilities management sectors to Service Works. She has a proven track record of managing complex projects involving numerous stakeholders. In her most recent role with Johnson Controls, Helena was Principal Consultant working on benchmarking studies and strategic facilities management projects in the Global Workplace Solutions division. Her role involved work with existing corporate clients as well as developing new business. Helena is a board member of leading industry bodies including EuroFM and IFMA Sweden.

Commenting on the appointment of Helena, Managing Director Gary Watkins said: "Helena's knowledge and experience of the international FM marketplace reinforces Service Works Global’s commitment to serving our clients throughout the world. We are delighted to welcome her onboard."