Building Information Modeling (BIM) is a digital representation of the physical and functional characteristics of a building that allows for more efficient and effective facilities management. BIM enables facilities managers to:
- Improve Collaboration: BIM provides a centralized platform for all stakeholders to access, collaborate, and share information about the building, reducing errors and delays in decision-making processes.
- Enhance Maintenance Planning: BIM provides detailed information about a building’s components and systems, allowing facilities managers to plan and execute maintenance activities more effectively and efficiently.
- Streamline Asset Management: BIM enables facilities managers to track and manage assets throughout their lifecycle, including maintenance schedules, repair history, and replacement costs, improving the overall efficiency of asset management.
- Enhance Energy Efficiency: BIM enables facilities managers to analyze and optimize a building’s energy consumption, reducing energy costs and carbon footprint.
- Facilitate Data Analytics: BIM provides facilities managers with valuable data and insights, enabling them to make data-driven decisions and improve the overall performance of the building.
How Does BIM Benefit Facility Managers?
BIM is a technologically advanced move towards building maintenance and thus it has the potential of serving a company’s facility maintenance initiatives in many beneficial ways. Since BIM is a holistic approach towards building design, construction and maintenance, it can be used as an end-to-end tool by design and FM consultants and the information from BIM can be useful in decision-making. Here’s a look at some of the prominent ways in which BIM can benefit facility maintenance solutions:
- BIM Saves on Cost, Efforts and Time: Like any other department, facility management too is concerned with cost-effectiveness, optimized time management and streamlining of the efforts. BIM can be effective on all three fronts. Instead of having to record and maintain information in silos, BIM keeps all information of a building’s complete lifecycle in one location. This can help in reducing efforts and costs. It is also convenient for facility managers to refer to information in a single tool in order to take insightful decisions regarding building management, repairs and maintenance.
- BIM Facilitates Preventative Maintenance: Preventive or proactive maintenance is an integral part of facility management. By entering the information pertaining to building’s structures (wall, floor, ceiling etc.), facilities (electrical wiring, plumbing, equipment etc.) and periodic maintenance schedules, BIM can help facility managers in scheduling preventative maintenance. Based on the need for repair, expiry of warranty or replacement requirements (this information can be gathered from BIM), facility managers can take necessary actions in advance.
- BIM Reduces Safety Risks and Chances of Unfortunate Incidents: Building and asset maintenance comes with the possibility of safety incidents. It is one of the crucial jobs of facility managers to ensure safety of building and its occupants. With BIM, the risks of safety-related incidents can be greatly reduced as the BIM information will enable FM department to take proactive actions. Faulty equipment can be repaired beforehand, leakages can be fixed in advance, electrical fittings can be checked regularly, and all the assets can be maintained properly as upkeep is facilitated well in advance with BIM.
- Continuous Tracking of Energy Usage: Usage of energy creates environmental impact and these days, companies are looking at ways to reduce their building’s environmental footprint. With BIM, this goal of sustainability can be greatly supported as BIM helps in continuously tracking the energy usage, water consumption and use of non-renewable resources. This tracking will give facility managers an idea as to whether there is any wastage of resources taking place. Based on BIM data, leaders can also decide on replacing conventional resources with renewable energy resources for greater sustainability.
In conclusion, the use of BIM in facilities management can improve the efficiency, reliability, and sustainability of building operations, while reducing costs and promoting better decision-making.
ISO 41001:2018 Facility Management System — Three years on — Problem solved or just another standard?In late 2018, the long-awaited International Standard Organization published ISO 41001:2018 — Facility Management system — Requirements with guidance for use.
Some two and a half years later, we look at whether it has been a success story or whether it has failed to live up to its pre-launch expectation.IntroductionThe questions I will answer are:Should we pursue ISO 41001 and become certified?What is the certification process and the stages involved?What are the benefits of certification and will it add value?
In Part 1, dated June 2019, I looked at early indicators of how the standard was received by the profession and industry, less than a year after it was launched.
At the time, I experienced varying opinions from around the Globe.
It was evident however that the ‘FM Mature’ countries were not adopting the standard as quickly as its pre-launch expectation suggested.
There were numerous reasons for this, mainly due to a) a lack of awareness of the standard; or b) organisations were already certified to any one of several other associated ISO Management System Standards (MSS), notably ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 and that until they felt a need or were being persuaded that ISO 41001 was a must, they would refrain for the time being.
