Trends In Focus For FM Industry In 2021

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Deepak Shanbagh, CEO, PSIPL As an outcome of the pandemic,2020 has been the year of healthcare crisis which paved way to improvise the wellness quotient of the real estate assets. For this, the facility management workforce became the frontline warriors ensuing to maintain sanity of the workplace. Hospitals became the first line of service during the advent of the pandemic: Even though the pandemic was in fury and economic operations had halted owing to the lockdown, the hospitals continued to provide medical services to the Covid patients in the country. In order to maintain the operability of the hospitals, the facility management workforce continued to perform the following task. Since people were forced to spend 90% of the time in their homes, the FM services at residential complexes saw an unprecedented stress in terms of continuity of services while manpower availability was scanty. These societies explored options of allowing manpower to be stationed at site and explored for new avenues to mitigate the infection. Disinfection saw a record growth which tapered as unlock began. As the hospitals got stretched due to infection surge, few residential sites put up equipment to manage patients with mild to moderate symptoms through oxygenated beds with in the complex. With the unlocking of the economy, small office workspaces, branches for a multilocation essential service and manufacturing assembly lines became the prime service renderers of the facilities management services. The task bestowed upon the facility managers were to ensure COVID-preparedness, train the workforce to follow protocols, create sanitization schedules in the space to make it conducive to initiate operations. Technological advancement Automation and scalability are critical for facility management firms to be able to provide effective service to their clients. Technology adoption will see much faster adaptation. People are now fine to have critical discussions and even decision on a virtual mode. Technology will become pivotal for sustainability and reliance of any business across all segments. Transforming organizational culture Organization to move to an outcome-based arrangement with its employees as remote working becomes part of the new normal. Client motivation and sense of belonging will be challenged as more and more people spend less time in office. Wellbeing &flexibility becomes the core of employee retention beyond than just renumerations. Leveraging technology to ensure remote visibility, control and feedback mechanism. Solutions to have special focus on contact less technology. Similar to PSIPL face based attendance system, under usage at all large sites since last few years. Focus on eco-friendly applications Companies will look to engage with FM partners that provide sustainable equipment and solutions which will help in reducing the carbon footprint. The past year has led everyone to increase emphasis on being environment-friendly. TCO (total cost of ownership) to become a more common aspect for asset selection which shall also capture its impact on environment as a critical factor Importance of Safety Managers Safety managers are a crucial part of modern facility management operations. They are responsible to execute and plan health and safety measures for employees to prevent hazards and injuries. Regular training, raising awareness on the need of safety, and providing the right tools and equipment are a part of his key responsibility areas. This profile will gain increased prominence in the coming year.