The implementation of IoT (Internet of Things) in FM has brought about a rampant change in the FM industry. Fady Morkos, general manager for business growth at AG Facilities Solutions, says that IoT is providing “the missing live data feed from the ground operations to the service provider or the facility manager”. He says: “In the FM industry, we are dealing with hundreds of thousands of assets across different locations and remote areas; the challenges are different when you manage one site. It’s extremely manual at the moment, when it comes to data capture of the assets.” IoT helps in streamlining this data feed, Morkos reveals. Through IoTs there is continuous data feed from the sites being received into one platform. This will give facilities managers an opportunity to become more proactive and predictive when it comes to building maintenance. He adds: “With the use of AI and machine learning you can even take it further, where you can start to work on developing a digital twin where we can receive all this data without the need of sending your team. So it’s going to give you the option of receiving multiple data feeds on your dashboard, and this gives you the chance to optimise the service.”
Morkos is responsible for business development, technical innovation, and new business incubators at AG Facilities Solutions. He has previously worked as the head of systems and governance at Cushman and Wakefield Australia and executed multiple FM consultancy roles within the GCC.
Talking specifically on the use of IoT in this part of the word, Morkos says that there are a lot of pilot projects, which is using IoT solutions but the industry is still not tapping into the full potential of using IoT and digital twin at the moment. He says: “There is the pressure of cost cutting and high competition between service providers. It is not giving enough room for IoTs to be implemented. I think it’s the right time for companies to integrate IoT solutions and rely more on IoTs.”
The other challenge is for IoTs to make sense there should be longevity in contracts. The amount of data gathered should be based on around 5 to 10 years. Only then certain analysis or assumptions can be made and solutions can be offered accordingly. For example, a typical contract is for three years where the first day of service is spent collecting data and by the time you are actually able to use that data the contract goes into a renewal mode. Then, the onus of data goes from one party to another.
Moreover, the cost of labour is low which deters clients from adopting IoTs. Morkos says: “I think the mindset has to change. Clients or building owners should know that that IoT should be part of integrated service delivery. And that it improves the value of the property in the long run. It also reduces reliance on manpower. Even if labour or manpower costs are much lower especially in this region, in terms of value, IoTs should be seriously considered as well.”
“There is the pressure of cost cutting and high competition between service providers. It is not giving enough room for IoTs to be implemented.”
Fady Morkos, general manager for business growth at AG Facilities Solutions.
Morkos believes there is a lot of ground work to be done to educate clients that using IoT and AI reduces costs. This means not only looking at fixed costs, but also trying to propose IoT as a kind of alternative solution to traditional FM service. He elaborates: “To do this, you have to do a lot of work with tech companies to develop solutions feasible for clients. So that’s what we’re doing at AG Facilities Solutions. We are trying to work with everyone within the market and trying to find the most feasible solution and the best value for money. We try to absorb this cost and deliver to the client as a part of the solution. The Capex might be higher but when you look at the entire lifecycle of your project the expense should be low. I think that’s what the FM service providers can do from their side.”
Finally, energy is reasonably priced and available in this region, which is a major part of being sustainable. The cost of IoT devices or the entire implementation of the devices including the software modules may not be cost beneficial to clients. This needs to change.
However, Morkos believes that the UAE is going in the direction of digitalisation of the infrastructure. Digitalising most of the infrastructure and developing a kind of an open source digital twin, will help a developer to go and log into the government portal and view all the asset details such as the sizes of the pipes or the capacity of the power lines in that area.
He says: “It helps the developer rely more on IoT.” He adds that utilising IoT in maintenance or cleaning, will be more effective through government regulations. “For example, for fire extinguisher inspections, instead of just having a traditional technician or inspector to go every month or every three months to check things, you only need IoT sensors which can send continuous messages and tell you what’s the anomaly. Once failure is detected on the dashboard, this should be acceptable, similar to the traditional monthly inspection report. That’s where people should start to think about investing in IoTs. So the government needs to put pressure on people so that there will be more adoption.”
Morkos concludes by saying that we need to start looking at the entire lifecycle of buildings. He says: “Instead of just following what the clients ask of us, FM services providers must educate them and become subject matter experts. We should be able to tell clients that we are the ones who can enhance the value of their property, and preserve the value of their assets. They should be able to trust us!”