Dive Brief:
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Eight-five percent of facility mangers in the U.K. want to be more integrated in the construction process, according to a survey conducted by U.K. Construction Week and the British Institute of Facilities Management.
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Only 15 percent of facility managers surveyed reported being involved in the construction process.
- Six in 10 respondents said they don't currently use BIM, although three-quarters acknowledged the software's potential for incorporating facilities management. More than half of those surveyed felt the pressure of job shortages on productivity, and cited the resulting stress as a deterrent to learning new technologies.
Dive Insight:
A shortage of qualified facilities management professionals is being felt in the U.S., too, mirroring the broader trend in the construction industry. Meanwhile, those same workers continue to desire a more involved roll in construction processes, and major initiatives for 2016 and 2017 by the Building Owners & Managers Association (BOMA) focus on energy efficiency, benchmarking, and data collection — topics that require the input of facilities management pros.
Virtual reality (VR) holds promise as one avenue to get facilities managers more integrated in the design-build process. Allowing users to conceptualize properties, buildings and systems without experience translating a blueprint or even BIM, AEC firms are leveraging VR to get facility mangers' feedback on a project's design before construction begins.
BIM is another opportunity for facilities managers to become integrated in the design and construction workflow. A July report from the Timetric Construction Intelligence Center found that cost-savings and efficiency are the primary drivers of the technology's use worldwide. As has been the case with sustainable building strategies and programs, governments have been the first to implement BIM mandates. Beginning earlier this year, the U.K. required the use of BIM on government projects. In September, Russia announced similar plans, while BIM requirements in the U.S. aren't widespread and instead come from specific government agencies, including the General Services Administration and Department of Veterans Affairs.