Reputation of iconic buildings in UAE under threat

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•  Building owners urged to sit up and take notice of Facilities Management’s role in prolonging a building’s life cycle and reducing management costs 

Public and private property owners and developers have been urged to realise that the UAE’s Facilities Management sector can soften the impact of an economic recession and help preserve the region’s global reputation for iconic buildings that attract tourists and business.
 
According to Stan Mitchell, the keynote speaker at this year’s Property & FM Conference and Workshop, Dubai, FM can help organisations rationalise and introduce necessary efficiencies as well as plan buildings that can be better managed throughout their life cycle.
 
“FM should be raising the awareness of what facilities management really is – as opposed to facilities services. By doing so, business and commerce – and not to mention government - will sit up and take note,” said Mitchell, who is CEO of Key Facilities Management International and Founding Chairman, Global Facility Management Association.
 
“The facilities management sector has a huge part to play not just in supporting real estate developers improve their lot, but also in assisting the UAE as a whole to recover and re-establish its reputation as a destination of choice,” he added.
 
The Property & FM conference is part of FM Expo, the Middle East’s leading facilities management event. The exhibition takes place at the Dubai International Exhibition and Convention Centre on 24-26 May 2009 while the Property & FM conference and workshop runs concurrently at the Al Murooj Rotana Hotel, Dubai.
 
Mitchell believes that FM should thrive in a recession as its core business - the ongoing management of the property asset overhead - is where real savings can usually be made. 
 
But he warned that there was a danger of FM not delivering on its potential of driving down building operations costs. Given the region’s development of iconic real estate, that could be disastrous.
 
“What would it be saying to the world if many of these iconic structures are not managed properly and the whole life cost becomes the benchmark on how not to do it?” he said.
 
Mitchell’s keynote address will question whether FM is ready and sufficiently professional to influence the boardroom, discussing FM’s contribution to the bottom line, the importance of performance measurement and FM’s role in corporate responsibility.
 
The FM Conference is being chaired by Mick Dalton, General Manager at Abu Dhabi-based Marafeq Facilities Management. The event has attracted 22 regional and international speakers including Dilip Khatwani, CEO, Reliance Facilities Management, UAE, Mohamed Habbal, Facilities Manager, Nakheel, UAE, Dr. Sadek Owainati, Founder, Emirates Green Building Council, UAE, Jim Whittaker, President, Facility Engineering Association and Mario Seneviratne, Director, Green Technologies FZCO, UAE and Board Member, World Green Building Council.
 
Louisa Theobald, Group Exhibitions Director of Streamline Marketing Group, organisers of FM Expo and the Property & FM Conference, said that sustainability, human resources, and cost issues will be discussed.
 
“These are all vital issues considering the growth in FM and the need to make the market aware of the benefits that can accrue from well-run FM,” she said.
 
Adding value in a cost-cutting climate is also in focus, as is risk assessment and management, best procurement practices and the growing need to be able to offer an integrated FM offering.
 
Platinum sponsor for the FM Expo 2009 event is Etisalat Facilities Management, which is also supporting the conference.    
 
For more on FM Expo please visit www.fm-expo.com
 

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