6 April 2017 | Jamie Harris
There is a growing demand for facilities-based data, which is "critical" to operations and investment decisions, according to a recent survey.
A report from Building Operating Management magazine, based in the U.S., and Dude Solutions, titled How Facility Data Drives Performance and Investments, has highlighted that facilities managers are finding their efforts "constrained by outdated systems", and that they require more empirical evidence to increase investment in capital and operating budgets.
The report includes a survey of 533 facilities and building managers in November 2016, conducted by Building Operating Management magazine.
The survey found that two thirds of respondents said that the demand for operations or maintenance data analysis and reporting had increased over the last 12 months, while just 1 per cent reported no change in demand.
Nearly all respondents (96 per cent) said that having access to historic performance data on equipment on site would be valuable to them, with a third saying that the information would be "very valuable".
Respondents also lamented a lack of knowledge from their superiors; only 11 per cents of FMs surveyed said their superiors fully understood the complexity and volume of their work.
This becomes a problem when FMs without access to strong empirical data look to secure additional funding, says the report.
One in five respondents said that reliance on data and reporting to justify additional funding for resources was "critical", while a further 70 per cent suggested that the use of data was at lease somewhat important.