Download a printer-friendly
Acrobat
file of the current newsletter
President's View
WORLD CLASS CONFERENCES ON THE AGENDA
As I write this, some of our Members will be heading off to San Diego and World Workplace. Hong Kong is usually well represented and this year, we will have 2 Board Members present: our Director of Communications, Tony Garland, and Immediate Past President, Jon Seller, both of whom will be there to accept the our 2 Awards of Excellence which were announced in our last newsletter.
Our annual conference is also taking place in Hong Kong this month, which is followed by a 2 nd day being held in Chongqing . Both of these events are co-organized with HKIFM and I am confident that both will be noteworthy conferences in their own right.
We have listened to your feedback from last year's conference and this year's program sees more time for speaker's presentations and more time for networking.
If you have not registered for either or both, please be sure to do so as soon as possible to get your place.
Last month also saw our first educational event of the new Board year. The breakfast seminar was over-subscribed and we had to turn away registrations. The Chapter also recorded a noteworthy 3% in growth last month which we hope is the reversal of a decline we have seen over the past year. In due course we will be embarking upon a membership drive.
I firmly believe that we have a superb product to offer local FM professionals - recognized by IFMA HQ in our 2 Awards of Excellence - and I would encourage any reader of the newsletter to explore the benefits of Chapter Membership if you are not already a Member. Members may also wish to consider recommending colleagues to the Chapter.
I look forward to seeing many of you at the Hong Kong conference for what I am sure will be another fantastic learning and networking opportunity.
You will be aware from last month's newsletter that we have won the IFMA Award of Excellence for the publication. Whilst gratified and very pleased to receive the award, we still have many things to do to improve the service we offer our readers.
One of these is to develop more input from all of you out there in "FM land" so that you can tell others what's happening in your world.
We want you to tell us anything you believe will be of interest to newsletter readers. Provided we do not consider it libelous and likely to get your Chapter into trouble we will publish with your accreditation or as an anonymous comment (provided you include your name and address when sending to us).
To get the interaction going, we would like to offer an incentive to whet your appetite. Send us a short comment on an example of good or bad FM. For the first 5 comments published each month we will credit the sender with a $50 discount on a network meeting. That's nearly 20% off the price of a networking lunch and over 60% of the price of a networking breakfast. We will run this feature for a number of months, depending on enthusiasm generated. You are not limited to a single entry but can make as many entries each month as you like. You will only be awarded one discount credit in one month and you can only use one credit for a single network meeting.
Look around Hong Kong and you will see buildings - many of them. Look closer and you will see that, in the main, they are dirty. Not really surprising as we have a particularly dirty atmospheric environment and plenty of rain to wash out the dirt from the atmosphere - and on to our buildings.
Now imagine a surface that does not allow the dirt to stay, where water is immediately repelled, taking with it any dirt. How different would our city look with all the buildings clean and shiny bright?
The technical terms for these properties are "hydrophilic - having a tendency to be wetted by water; and "hydrophobic" - having a tendency to repel water.
Superhydrophobicity is a material property which allows the material to be extremely repellent to water-based fluids, beyond even that of a freshly waxed car. Some existing coatings provide this property already, for instance Pilkington's Activ glass has a special nano coating making it superhydrophobic - water and dirt simply slide off.
Engineers at General Electric have achieved the same effect to an ordinary plastic material - Lexan - essentially by roughing the surface in a special way. Lexan is a ubiquitous and inexpensive thermoplastic used for a used in products ranging from CDs and DVDs to automotive headlamps, food storage containers, and common household appliances. It could also be adapted for building cladding systems, where the new property would make the cladding essentially self-cleaning.
Normally Lexan is a hydrophilic material, but by applying a special chemical treatment to the surface turns it superhydrophobic. Whilst hydrophobic materials have been turned superhydrophobic before, this is thought to be the first time a normally hydrophilic material has been changed to mimic hydrophobic material.
The idea was inspired by the leaves of the lotus plant, which is naturally superhydrophobic. Microscopic inspection of lotus leaves revealed their nanocrystalline wax structure. The lotus leaf surface has cells 5-10 micrometers wide, on top of which are tiny wax crystals that are tens of nanometers wide. On a lotus leaf, water beads look almost like perfect spheres. By mimicking the structure found on the leaf, similar properties for Lexan were developed.
So when are we likely to see all Hong Kong 's building bright and clean? Don't hold your breath! The technology is at least 5 years from manufacture and is likely to appear in many other forms before being considered for building cladding. And clearly, whilst the refresh rate for Hong Kong buildings is generally greater than most other cities, it will be many years before existing buildings are changed for newer self-cleaning materials.
However, it is worth considering what other uses this technology could be put to in the FM field? Thermoplastic floor tiles would be easier to clean - but would they stand up the wear & tear; toilet and bathroom superhydrophobic finishes would ensure much better hygiene; kitchen surfaces with a superhydrophobic finish would again be much more hygienic.
FMers should use emerging technology to start thinking "what if?" and then start pushing manufacturers to consider our needs. No one else has the same understanding of our problems to be able to identify the changes that would be significant in our world. If we don't do who will?
This article has been written with material from Technology Review and The Economist.
In July this year Richard Hui was awarded the Hong Kong Chapter of IFMA post-graduate Scholarship. Richard has kindly provided us with an example of why he won the award. Below we reproduce an essay on Strategic Asset Management, submitted as part of his course work. Please note that this is a formal essay designed to show the writer's ability to research a topic and write about it, and is therefore not written in the form of our normal articles.
1.0 Asset Management Process
Stewart (1999) has stated that an asset management process is a planning process which level of service should be determined in the first instance. Levels of service must be developed for the maintenance of the assets, their use and performance. It can define:
The minimum levels of service will include statutory obligations, operational standards and prevention of deterioration. To address the increasing user requirements, the future business and operational needs of the business are considered. In addition, gap analysis is critical that performance gaps in existing business environment can be defined and reacted. Generally speaking, the strategic asset management planning process is going through three stages, from strategic planning to tactical planning and ultimately to the operational planning. In the following paragraphs, the characteristics of each planning stages will be described and the main components of each asset planning process will also be illustrated.
2.0 Strategic Planning
In order to achieve an effective asset management, clear, measurable and agreed outcomes for daily operational activities, the long-term investment objectives should be identified. The two key stakeholders for a facility are the owner and the user with each having their own objectives. It is a long term planning process which includes the strategic planning process and service level review process, with the objective to provide a framework of overall future expenditure over the next 10 to 25 years. It translates customer demands and/or expectations into service needs. On the other hand, it assesses the optimum life cycle strategies properly and it may also be treated as life cycle planning of all the elements in its assets. A rational financial plan evolves and provides for periodic flow of funds over the anticipated life of the element in accordance with the business plan.
3.0 Tactical Planning
After the strategic planning process, with particular focus on the long term issues. There is also a need to carefully design a detailed maintenance plan to deal with operational issues with well defined tactics. It is the process to translate broad strategic goals and plans into specific goals and objectives relevant to particular task force or department of the organization. It involves the development of separate maintenance sub plans. An asset management plan may also be regarded as one type of tactical plan for implementing strategic goals set up from the strategic planning process in relation to physical asset. In this stage, both asset and non-asset solutions would be considered, which may be referred as the integrative function of asset management as mentioned in the earlier part of this paper. An asset management plan usually integrates with other plans such as customer service plan, human resource plan, financial plan and marketing plan to develop specific tactic for the development of operational plans in the next stage.
4.0 Operational Planning
Lowe (2000) has stipulated that careful consideration of the process of day to day operation of a facility is essential such that these activities are targets with detailed action plans designed to achieve the strategic objectives. These plans typically provide firm direction as an annual plan or five year plans in the expenditure budget. It emphasizes on the practical activities instead of visionary elements. For instance, energy consumption is generally considered as a major cost driver in the operation of a facility. If energy conservation is a mission statement being defined during the strategic planning process, replacement of traditional T8 fluorescent tube with T5 tubes including electronic ballast may be treated as an operational plan to achieve the long term strategy set up in the business plan. In other words, we may treat the operational planning as the implementation of asset management solutions identified in the previous stages.
REFERENCE
Lowe, G. (2000). An Innovative Approach to Risk in Asset Management, AMQ International: Strategic Asset Management , Issue 47 Oct., 20.
Stewart, W. (1999). Strategic Asset Management:- Committing to the Cost of Owning Buildings , Opus.
Woodhouse, J. (1997). What is Asset Management? Maintenance & Asset Management , Vol.12, No.5, pp. 26-28.
Contributed by Richard Hui
Snapshots in Shanghai, Summer 2006
It was extremely hot in Shanghai this summer when I was there and the temperature was over 35 degree Celsius for most of the time in August. Despite the hot weather, my instincts told me to go out to look at the buildings, meet the local people and feel the momentum of the market in the city.
It was their cool architecture kept my spirit up high. Here are some snapshots to share with you. So refreshing when I found this cocoon at a crossroad junction. It exceeded my imagination when I got closer to it.
Inside the cocoon is the flyover for vehicles and underneath is a circular pathway for passengers coming to and fro four main roads. Isn't it an innovative use of space?
The pathway is neat and tidy, utilizing natural light and ventilation. First insight to me was operational convenience, easier repairs and maintenance and energy saving. There are also advertising panels, further lightening up the place and at the same time generating business opportunities.
The open space in the centre is ideal for community functions. LED lights are installed around the cocoon making it look like a spaceship at night. This landmark brings an analogy of a blooming society and synergy of human intelligence and technology. People appreciate.
The Shanghai South Railway Station has recently come into operation. A combination of ancient aesthetics and modern architectural design. Probably hosting the future Maglev Train to Hangzhou from here. Can you see a shadow of Beijing 's Temple of Heaven ?
The Interview
We continue our series of interviews with people within the FM industry by interviewing Bella Chan , Customer Services Manager at the Facilities Management Division of Pacific Century Premium Developments Limited ('PCPD-FM') .
The people covered by this section of the newsletter will vary, from senior and well-known members of the industry to graduates just starting in the industry. The intention is to provide information on a cross-section of the industry covering how they first became involved in the industry, what they do, how they relax etc. The interviews are conducted and reported by Santa Raymond for the Hong Kong Chapter of IFMA.
Q.
What do you consider describes the job you do?
A.
I manage cleaning services contracts for all of our clients, and catering services at staff canteens . I also oversee all aspects of customer service s , mainly in relat ion to the s ervices supervised and managed under PCPD-FM. Customer interfaces include - but are not limited to - all staff working for our clients, and the general public whom our clients serve.
On portfolio size, i f you take one of the clients that PCPD-FM manages - PCCW for example - there are more than a hundred exchanges (and some of them have floors that serve as o ffices). Recently there has been an initiative on energy conservation in office areas , and it is my job to liaise with various business units , ensuring they know what is happening, so that expectations can be managed.
Q.
What is your background?
A.
When I was fifteen, I left Hong Kong and immigrated to Canada with my family. I spent eight years in the Toronto area, first at high school, and then at university - where I majored in statistics.
In 199 6, having got my bachelor degree I came back and worked as a P roperty O fficer in the Property Management Department at Collier s Jardine ( now ISS Eastpoint ) . Later I joined the Corporate Facility Management unit at Jones Lang La S alle, and that's when I first touched base with actual day-to-day Facilities Management operations, and got to understand more of what Facilities Management really is.
Then it was back to Collier s Jardine as Assistant Facilities Manager for Dairy Farms Property Portfolio, and later the onsite Manager for then newly built Australian International School in Kowloon Tong.
In 2001 I decided to become an entrepreneur , and work for myself. Those two years not only gave me many priceless life lessons, but also clarified what I was actually looking for in my career. So in 2004 I decided to join Cushman and Wakefield as Customer Relations M anager , responsible for providing corporate residential services. After a year my role changed to O perations M anager , supporting the onsite teams to provide Facilities Management services to various corporate clients in Asia Pacific. With all the offices in Asia Pacific and the US , communications are kept functioning well using technologies such as conference calls, e-mail s, web m eetings and web trainings.
Q.
Why did you apply for your current job?
A.
With the involvement that I had with last year's IFMA Conference, I met up with lots of new people in the Facilities Management industry . I was then invited to join the Communications Committee , and got to know Tony Garland - e ditor of this newsletter - who's now my boss. During one committee's meeting h e mentioned about looking for someone to fill a vacant position at PCPD-FM, and wanting to see if I'd be interested.
After I read the job description, I realised that the opportunity was not only interesting but also quite challenging. I t'd be a whole new working experience for me, and in a totally different stream too - t elecom services . Besides, it would pa y better !
Q.
What are your current key projects?
A.
I cannot single out a particular project that is 'key' , because t here are lot s of continuous issues, equally crucial towards many ongoing tasks, which are handled day in and day out. Phone calls are made every day to liaise with regional colleagues and contractors . Every month, purchase orders for all cleaning-related works require my checking and authorization before issuing. Fortunately I am very detail-oriented and actually quite enjoy the processes .
Q.
What do you see as the future for FM?
A.
I think this industry has emerged with a much clearer and professional image in the past five years, though I'd say it might take another five to ten years to have it widely recognized generally. People still confuse FM with PM, but with the courses now being offered a t City U and PolyU , y oungsters have the channel s to understand the difference.
Corporations that have acquired FM Services are starting to see the benefit , and they realize that they do need the services, whether it's being fully outsourced or partially in-house. Full outsourcing isn't necessarily the best thing, so in-house Facilities Managers (Office Managers), are in high demands nowadays.
It may be difficult for Hong Kong to push forward with FM, as many of the Corporations locate their headquarters in other parts of Asia Pacific.
Q.
What do you do to relax?
A.
Watching TV , going out with friends for dinner and drinks ; Travelling around the world for good food and good weather - I love to be tanned !
Q.
If you didn't work with facilities what would you like to do?
A.
Probably something like event organizer / management, because it deals with lots of people from different industries - and sounds interesting!!
.jpg){kind=small}
