With the pandemic and forced work from home scenarios most of the companies have realised the need to adapt to the ‘New Normal’. Social distancing requirements has forced companies to lower the real estate efficiencies (requiring higher space / employee) resulting in increasing input costs. It is, therefore, imperative that facility managers gear up to the changing needs of the workforce and cater to quick employee access to workspace and services to enhance productivity. With employee’ reluctance to return to work, there is a need to optimize real estate operational costs.
With the advent of Cloud Computing one has innumerable options to adopt newer IoT and AI / ML based technologies, which, in the long run, would help improve operational cost and efficiencies. This, however, requires the companies to have a paradigm shift from the conventional approach of low-cost manpower-based operations. It is even more important, considering the political environment, for example, should the new labour code / wage bill be introduced, coupled with periodic wage revisions, the labour costs would only skyrocket with inefficient labour productivity, increasing the operational spend. There is always the challenge of availability of skilled workforce and high attrition.
While one believes that technology implementation comes at a high initial investment, companies should consider long term contracts, taking advantage of equated monthly payment options, to accrue the benefits of technology implementation.
Investment in technology certainly provides long term gains such as:
- Eliminates dependency on manpower and its inherent deficiencies & increasing costs.
- Accurate and continuous data collection and monitoring.
- Data helps in analysing trends allowing for better planning and investment.
- Predict / identify costly breakdown and avoid business impact / disruption, costly rectifications with unplanned spends.
- Understand / extend equipment lifecycle helping in deferred capital investments.
- Better planning of spares, optimizing holding costs & avoidance of business interruptions.
- Avoidance of leaks as in case of attendance and employee transport
- Accurate billing and avoidance of corresponding paperwork and avoidance administrative manpower and related errors. Better financial controls.
While there have been quite a few technology providers, we see lot of players are getting into the market realizing the potential. Companies should take advantage of the various options. If one has to go by the development in the mobile phone industry (its availability, acceptance and costs) and net banking, with time and competition, technology can only get cheaper, flexible and more user friendly.
What is available?
Return to work:
- Visitor Management / Employee Entry Options: Facial recognition, temperature monitoring. UV ovens for sanitization.
- Space management: Hotel Desking, pre booking, contact tracing etc.
- Touchless options for temperature monitoring, sanitization, lift operations, etc.
- Camera based Continuous Temperature Monitoring, crowd temperature monitoring
- IAQ options: UV retrofits in the AHUs, continuous IAQ monitoring.
- Need based sanitization / cleaning based on seat / meeting room occupancy.
- Social distance monitoring, crowding alerts.
- Touchless hand sanitizer dispensers
Operational:
- Space Management: With and without sensors. Hotel desking
- Facial recognition & attendance, visitor management, meeting room bookings.
- Paperless checklists. Operational Parameter monitoring.
- Maintenance Planning & Scheduling
- Data logging, inventory monitoring.
- Equipment Condition monitoring, Digital Twins.
- Switchless operations for lighting & HVAC optimization, based on occupancy, ambient condition including lighting.
- Continuous IAQ monitoring with HVAC controls.
- Need based cleaning based on foot fall, odour and wet floor conditions.
- Cafeteria: Avoid Queuing, pre-orders, touchless deliveries.
- Various sensor-based operations monitoring
- Parking management.
- Comprehensive Transport solutions including routing & billing. Of course, with women safety features.
- Robotic & mechanized cleaning. Smart clean technologies.
- Security: Guard Tour monitoring patrolling, rail mounted cameras, eliminating patrolling guards on huge properties, number plate recognitions, etc.
