"Where's my asset?" is like "Where's Waldo?"
I actually used this comparison in one of my presentation at SAP Thailand a few months ago (not quite sure if the Thai audience actually understood what I was trying to compare).
With Enterprise Asset Management (EAM), finding, tracing or tracking your assets is a common painpoint. The root cause of this problem comes from the model of "run-to-failure" asset management which is not a very effective technique if compared to the proposed "Asset Lifecycle Management".
The Asset Lifecycle Management looks at managing assets across facilities, plants, branches etc throughout the lifecycle starting from planning, procurement, deployment, accounting, maintenance up to retirement. This method improves utilization, performance and asset life as well as the ability to track and trace asset location, historical data and status.
Simple "run-to-failure" asset management is simply not enough, we must manage the whole lifecycle in order to reduce capital cost and improve return on assets and most of all to efficiently support primary business activities.
Shivek Sachdev - Consultant
Thai Informatic Systems (TIS)
shivek@tis.co.th
http://www.thaifacility.com
Friday, October 2, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
Technology and Change Management in Facility Management
"They say that time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself" - Andy Warhol
That's right! It's time to discuss change management in Facility Management
10 years ago facility management is all about engineers in uniform with a hefty toolbox in one hand and a yellow cap in another. I don't really know why but I can somehow relate this to someone working in a mine (perhaps because of the yellow cap). But the point is FM 10 years ago is "nobody".
However that's all history.
FM is now "somebody" or even better "somebody important".
Facility Management is no longer viewed as engineering and operation. FM today is all about corporate strategy and how best to support the firm's direction, decisions and business continuity. Facility Management is the underlying art/discipline of service delivery aiming to support and improve core business efficiency.
All of a sudden everyone is looking at you!
More responsibilities, an increase in workload, investments and people are now judging you (ROI, KPI and all the other fancy 3 letters acronyms).
These are some of the key reasons why people turn to technology for help. One of the classical key findings of adapting technology with facility management is the comparison between USA and Japan.
USA is quicker in accepting and implementing technological solutions in facility management while Japan on the other hand is better in utilizing it (smart buildings etc.) despite being a bit slower in endorsing technology applications for FM.
FM Solutions SHOULD/MUST be integrated with corporate financial management system e.g. SAP or other ERP systems in order to leverage organization's existing investments.
And I conclude this article with a diagram which paints a perfect picture of how corporate facility management can be integrated with financial management system.
Enjoy!
Shivek Sachdev - Consultant
Thai Informatic Systems (TIS)
shivek@tis.co.th
shivek@thaifacility.com
http://www.thaifacility.com
(Source: Teicholz, Eric and Ikeda, Takehiko. Facility Management Technology: Lessons from the U.S. and Japan. New York: John Wiley & Sons.)
That's right! It's time to discuss change management in Facility Management
10 years ago facility management is all about engineers in uniform with a hefty toolbox in one hand and a yellow cap in another. I don't really know why but I can somehow relate this to someone working in a mine (perhaps because of the yellow cap). But the point is FM 10 years ago is "nobody".
However that's all history.
FM is now "somebody" or even better "somebody important".
Facility Management is no longer viewed as engineering and operation. FM today is all about corporate strategy and how best to support the firm's direction, decisions and business continuity. Facility Management is the underlying art/discipline of service delivery aiming to support and improve core business efficiency.
All of a sudden everyone is looking at you!
More responsibilities, an increase in workload, investments and people are now judging you (ROI, KPI and all the other fancy 3 letters acronyms).
These are some of the key reasons why people turn to technology for help. One of the classical key findings of adapting technology with facility management is the comparison between USA and Japan.
USA is quicker in accepting and implementing technological solutions in facility management while Japan on the other hand is better in utilizing it (smart buildings etc.) despite being a bit slower in endorsing technology applications for FM.
FM Solutions SHOULD/MUST be integrated with corporate financial management system e.g. SAP or other ERP systems in order to leverage organization's existing investments.
And I conclude this article with a diagram which paints a perfect picture of how corporate facility management can be integrated with financial management system.
Enjoy!
Shivek Sachdev - Consultant
Thai Informatic Systems (TIS)
shivek@tis.co.th
shivek@thaifacility.com
http://www.thaifacility.com
(Source: Teicholz, Eric and Ikeda, Takehiko. Facility Management Technology: Lessons from the U.S. and Japan. New York: John Wiley & Sons.)
Monday, August 24, 2009
Facility Management: Definition
We start off by defining "Facility Management"
- something which I should have done earlier but didn't...
Facility Management is a separate discipline devoted to the maintenance and care of large commercial facilities such as hospitals, hotels, complexes, office buildings etc. The term facility management itself can be applied in almost every industry ranging from government, banking, hospitality, health care etc (check out our site for specific industry focus).
Facility Management is composed of
- People
- Place
- Process
- Technology
I like to refer to this as the "Four Pillars of Facility Management" but frankly speaking, most of the things we refer to nowadays run on these four core pillars.
Let's talk a bit about the functions of facility management by referring to the survey carried out by the International Facility Management Association (IFMA) which tries to pinpoint the importance of each of the functions associated with Facility Management.
It is pretty obvious that maintenance and operation management is given the highest priority followed by budgeting and cost accounting and so on. Another key observation is that Property Management is listed as part of Facility Management, personally I quite agree with this.
That's it for this post, next up I shall be discussing facility management with regards to the issue of change management and technology.
Shivek Sachdev
Consultant – Thai Informatic Systems Co.,Ltd.
shivek@tis.co.th;
087-322-3353
- something which I should have done earlier but didn't...
Facility Management is a separate discipline devoted to the maintenance and care of large commercial facilities such as hospitals, hotels, complexes, office buildings etc. The term facility management itself can be applied in almost every industry ranging from government, banking, hospitality, health care etc (check out our site for specific industry focus).
Facility Management is composed of
- People
- Place
- Process
- Technology
I like to refer to this as the "Four Pillars of Facility Management" but frankly speaking, most of the things we refer to nowadays run on these four core pillars.
Let's talk a bit about the functions of facility management by referring to the survey carried out by the International Facility Management Association (IFMA) which tries to pinpoint the importance of each of the functions associated with Facility Management.
It is pretty obvious that maintenance and operation management is given the highest priority followed by budgeting and cost accounting and so on. Another key observation is that Property Management is listed as part of Facility Management, personally I quite agree with this.
That's it for this post, next up I shall be discussing facility management with regards to the issue of change management and technology.
Shivek Sachdev
Consultant – Thai Informatic Systems Co.,Ltd.
shivek@tis.co.th;
087-322-3353
Friday, August 21, 2009
Facility Management: The New Frontier (Series)
A lot of people have been talking about doing things the right way, sticking to the standards or following industry proven best practices. The same can be applied with facility management.
In the “Facility Management: The New Frontier” series, I intend to highlight the definition of facility management, the concept of change and technology, asset lifecycle management, service management (not to be confused with IT service management), risk and preventive maintenance and lastly continuous process improvement.
More information will be made available in this series.
To find out more visit: www.thaifacility.com.
Shivek Sachdev
Consultant – Thai Informatic Systems Co.,Ltd.
shivek@tis.co.th;
087-322-3353
In the “Facility Management: The New Frontier” series, I intend to highlight the definition of facility management, the concept of change and technology, asset lifecycle management, service management (not to be confused with IT service management), risk and preventive maintenance and lastly continuous process improvement.
More information will be made available in this series.
To find out more visit: www.thaifacility.com.
Shivek Sachdev
Consultant – Thai Informatic Systems Co.,Ltd.
shivek@tis.co.th;
087-322-3353
Saturday, May 30, 2009
The Fine Line between Risk Management and Preventive Maintenance (Part 2 of 2)
*Make sure you read part 1 of this article first, scroll down for Part 1!
Now for the moment of truth, let me add to it a zest of Risk Management to the above example on car maintenance.
Risk identification process is represented by the definition of car maintenance. By not performing car maintenance we face risks concerning safety, drivability and longevity as stated above. Risks can also be found within the process of preventive maintenance itself. There’s potential in creating defects or human errors of various types while performing inspection and testing.
Determination of risk appetite is based on the amount of risk exposure, or potential adverse impact from an event, that we are willing to accept. In this case, we ask:
Can you afford to be late for work/meeting if your car happens to breakdown?
Can your wife take care of the family while you’re in the hospital recovering from an accident caused faulty ABS?
We can also classify our risk, in this case avoid performing car maintenance is a major financial and environmental (if you really care for the world!) risks.
Risk ranking is done based on priority followed by determination of actions which can be taken in order to mitigate and minimize the risks. For example, regular inspection of brake pad and testing of ABS are essential actions to be performed.
Lastly, we must maintain to monitor the performance and conditions of our car, with the help of auto-service checkup reports etc. as part of risk monitoring and reporting while maintaining continuous improvement in the process of preventive maintenance. So as the number of trips and distance traveled per trip per day increases, we must also make modifications to our maintenance plans and schedule. (I’m talking about the science of Planning and Scheduling!)
Enjoy reading,
Shivek Sachdev, Consultant
Thai Informatic Systems Co., Ltd. (TIS)
Now for the moment of truth, let me add to it a zest of Risk Management to the above example on car maintenance.
Risk identification process is represented by the definition of car maintenance. By not performing car maintenance we face risks concerning safety, drivability and longevity as stated above. Risks can also be found within the process of preventive maintenance itself. There’s potential in creating defects or human errors of various types while performing inspection and testing.
Determination of risk appetite is based on the amount of risk exposure, or potential adverse impact from an event, that we are willing to accept. In this case, we ask:
Can you afford to be late for work/meeting if your car happens to breakdown?
Can your wife take care of the family while you’re in the hospital recovering from an accident caused faulty ABS?
We can also classify our risk, in this case avoid performing car maintenance is a major financial and environmental (if you really care for the world!) risks.
Risk ranking is done based on priority followed by determination of actions which can be taken in order to mitigate and minimize the risks. For example, regular inspection of brake pad and testing of ABS are essential actions to be performed.
Lastly, we must maintain to monitor the performance and conditions of our car, with the help of auto-service checkup reports etc. as part of risk monitoring and reporting while maintaining continuous improvement in the process of preventive maintenance. So as the number of trips and distance traveled per trip per day increases, we must also make modifications to our maintenance plans and schedule. (I’m talking about the science of Planning and Scheduling!)
Enjoy reading,
Shivek Sachdev, Consultant
Thai Informatic Systems Co., Ltd. (TIS)
Friday, May 29, 2009
The Fine Line between Risk Management and Preventive Maintenance (Part 1 of 2)
A few of my partners, clients and regular blog visitors have been asking me about the diagram I recently published on my blog. Why is the arrow labeled “Risk Management” pointing towards “Preventive Maintenance”? So I’ve decided to take this opportunity to publicly answer this question through my usual Friday afternoon blog.
To be really honest with you, there’s actually a fine line between risk management and preventive maintenance. I assume most of my readers are responsible drivers and therefore would like refer to a simple analogy based on the concept of car maintenance.
Car maintenance requires regular inspection and testing of car conditions to ensure safety, drivability and longevity (I know there’s more to it but I’m not really a car person). The question to when and how depends largely on the type and the current condition of the car. I’m sure most of your service engineers would recommend regular maintenances as per the scheduled intervals described in your manuals.
Before I carry on, let me review the concepts of Risk Management for our non-risk readers/takers. In a nutshell Risk Management is defined by the following procedures:
- Identification of risk based on likelihood and severity
- Determination of risk appetite
- Classify risk into 5 main categories (strategic, operational, financial, compliance, environmental)
- Ranking of risks based on impact and other criterions
- Defining appropriate actions for minimize/mitigate risks
- Task action (as defined)
- Regular monitoring and reporting
- Continuous improvement based on feedback (The concept of closed-loop management)
To be really honest with you, there’s actually a fine line between risk management and preventive maintenance. I assume most of my readers are responsible drivers and therefore would like refer to a simple analogy based on the concept of car maintenance.
Car maintenance requires regular inspection and testing of car conditions to ensure safety, drivability and longevity (I know there’s more to it but I’m not really a car person). The question to when and how depends largely on the type and the current condition of the car. I’m sure most of your service engineers would recommend regular maintenances as per the scheduled intervals described in your manuals.
Before I carry on, let me review the concepts of Risk Management for our non-risk readers/takers. In a nutshell Risk Management is defined by the following procedures:
- Identification of risk based on likelihood and severity
- Determination of risk appetite
- Classify risk into 5 main categories (strategic, operational, financial, compliance, environmental)
- Ranking of risks based on impact and other criterions
- Defining appropriate actions for minimize/mitigate risks
- Task action (as defined)
- Regular monitoring and reporting
- Continuous improvement based on feedback (The concept of closed-loop management)
Be sure to read Part 2 of this article for the moment of truth!
Shivek Sachdev, Consultant
Thai Informatic Systems Co., Ltd. (TIS)
Thai Informatic Systems Co., Ltd. (TIS)
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
TIS Facility Management Solution
“Facilities management is the integration of processes within an organization to maintain and develop agreed services which support and improve the effectiveness of its primary activities”.
The software delivers effective management of assets to better align with primary business strategies and objectives.
TIS Facility Management Solution ensures efficiency in the execution of crucial maintenance and asset lifecycle management tasks within an organization in order to support and improve the productivity of key infrastructure operations.
It helps mitigate risks, increases serviceability and productivity while gaining a better control of your assets.
The system consists of five main modules –
- Service Maintenance Management (SM)
- Preventive Maintenance Management (PM)
- Asset Lifecycle Management (AL)
- Facility Manager’s Diary (FMD)
- Billing and Accounts Receivables
It also has a optional Interface Module (IM) for achieving seamless integration with IBM DB2 based legacy systems, SAP ERP (R/3), SAP Business One (B1 running on IBM DB2), JD Edwards and other reputable software solutions.
TIS Facility Management Solution can help organization improve ROI by ensuring:
- extended life span and usability of assets
- the ability to plan and schedule preventive maintenance on time
- reduction in repair and maintenance related costs
- improve overall facility tenant satisfaction
- transparency and control from the start of operation and right on until the end of operation and retirement of assets
- lower total cost of ownership (TCO)
- Reduce Mean Time Between Failure of Equipment (MTBF)
Featured Modules:
Service Maintenance Management (SM) – provides an effective way to manage the service lifecycle and achieve higher tenant satisfaction. With a robust document workflow engine, you can expect a smooth transition from request initiation up to service order and finally invoice creation. Detail service history of every asset/equipment is maintained.
Preventive Maintenance Management (PM) – revolutionize plain-old facility management with technology. The ability to plan, schedule and execute preventive maintenance on time is the first step towards asset value preservation and effective cost/risk management.
Asset Lifecycle Management (AL) – is the core pillar of facility management. Asset Lifecycle Management allows asset registration and computation of depreciation to be done accurately. This module is fully compatible with the barcode system.
Facility Manager’s Diary (FMD) – leverage and capitalizes on the power of Microsoft Office Outlook. Facility managers can schedule, access and manage day-to-day tasks instantaneously through the familiar Outlook interface.
Interface Module (IM) – an optional Interface Module (IM) for achieving seamless integration with legacy systems, SAP ERP (R/3), SAP Business One (B1), Oracle JD Edwards (JDE) and other reputable software solutions.
Target Facilities:
- Banks
- Large Office Complexes
- Commercial Buildings
- Hotels and Convention Centers
- Large Schools and Colleges
- Hospitals
… runs on TIS Facility Management Solution
TIS Facility Management Solution serves: building, asset and facility managers/engineers/technician across all industries such as
- Banking & Finance
- Commercial Buildings
- Facilities and Estate Fields
- Hospitality
- Industrial Parks & Buildings
- Medical Care
- Plants & Factories
- Residential Buildings
Contacts
Sham Sachdev
Managing Director – Thai Informatic Systems Co.,Ltd.
tis@usa.net; sham@tis.co.th;
081-450-5255
Shivek Sachdev
Consultant – Thai Informatic Systems Co.,Ltd.
shivek@tis.co.th;
087-322-3353
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