Sustainable Practice for the Facilities Manager

Citation

Tucker, M. (2007), "Sustainable Practice for the Facilities Manager", Journal of Facilities Management, Vol. 5 No. 3, pp. 215-217. https://doi.org/10.1108/14725960710775090

The concept of sustainable development is not a new phenomenon, gradually evolving from a conceptual background into practical thinking, with the emergence of the Bruntland Commission's A Common Future in 1987 providing the first definitive understanding of sustainable development as it “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability for future generations to meet their own needs”. Although this definition is fairly dated, it has retained its pertinence, and in the present global business market, sustainable development is unavoidable in order to ensure long‐term improvement economically, environmentally, and socially.

Buildings are pivotal to business success, and in particular, the operational management of their facilities. Within the context of facilities management (FM), although “the incorporation of sustainable development in the day‐to‐day functions is not new” one may contend that it has not always been at the forefront of FM strategy. However, it is certainly prevailing, and Sustainable Practice for the Facilities Manager is a testament to the increasing importance of sustainability within FM, providing a functional, concise, “hands‐on” insight into its' evolving role. Although primarily focused as a practical guide for facilities managers and practitioners alike, its vibrancy and depth firmly ensures its value within the academic arena.

Modest in its approach, the book does not try to cover “FM” and “sustainability” in any great detail, instead “it captures the salient points relevant to the incorporation of sustainability criteria within the lifecycle of buildings, with onus placed upon delivering an improved operational facility”. In effect it conveys a process‐map of the inclusion of sustainability policy and methodology, encompassing each stage of the building cycle through the initial briefing stages, to the design, construction, operation, and eventual refurbishment.

After providing a coherent overview of FM, including a fascinating insight into the current global disparities and increasing importance of outsourcing models, the linkage to sustainability is established. In particular, how companies have a “corporate responsibility” (CR) to provide a holistic balance of economic, environmental, and social drivers, going beyond the legal requirements into areas such as health and safety, equal opportunities, and community involvement to ensure this. CR is now a major focus for multi‐national companies, and we only have to look to our current news tabloids to reveal its importance, such as the emergence of Apple's plans to improve their recycling policy. Sustainability is strategic to FM as it is a key component in assisting continuous improvement and adding value to business operations, with buildings “at the forefront of an organisations persona”.

Highlighting the fact that by 2050, “a vast majority of buildings standing will be those operating today” it means we have strategic challenges, in which this book embraces, contending that FM needs to be more at “the front‐end” of capital decisions, involved at the very beginnings of the building life cycle in order to better manage the resulting sustainability impacts. “Sustainable business management” is a crucial element, discussing the practicalities of achieving “green service management” as the role of FM is “intrinsically linked to supplier management and control where most of service activities are performed and sustainability damage takes place”. Developing an effective procurement policy is therefore vital, clearly setting out a model procurement cycle to explain the process. An evaluation of “management systems” is also integral in order to measure, manage, and report on sustainability issues due to increasing pressure from tighter legislation.

These are not, however, just “flying statements” as the book consistently sets out strategies and processes to implement the practical operations needed. Each stage of the “facilities life cycle” and the “whole life value” of buildings and its operations are examined in greater detail, emphasising the importance of early FM involvement in order to achieve a “green building”. The theory to pursuing early FM involvement in management decisions is through the “sustainable construction potential” which is often high at the beginning of a project with flexibility to change decisions, then diminishing as the project progresses as commitment and costs are too far advanced. Finally the actual sustainable operations of a facility are discussed highlighting the practical methodologies involved in the “technical aspects” such as energy efficiency and maintenance; the “non‐technical aspects” such as the operations of waste and pollution; and the “occupant satisfaction” to ensure the facility is meeting demands and improving productivity.

The beauty of Sustainable Practice for the Facilities Manager is that it does exactly what it suggests, it provides practice, but it delivers it in a way that is apparent and logical. This is achieved by the wealth of effort to provide simple step‐by‐step guides, productive “what you need to know” sections, coherent checklists, and enlightening case studies. One of the books main attributes is its frequent use of “drivers” to emphasise what the best practice techniques, processes, and policies a facilities manager needs in order to implement and achieve added value through sustainability. The shear depth and enrichment of resources within the books content completes its unity. Rarely is there a page without an accompanied source, link, or case study, which is replicated with a section dedicated to a “list of web sites” structured into key themes for quick reference.

The books undoubted passion to enhance strategic FM through sustainable practice on reflection could seem idealistic at times, for example, the step‐by‐step guidance is fantastic in principle, but the actual implementation within the business pressure‐pot may tell another story. The main hindrance of the book will be where to begin. Will facilities managers use the book to fully implement their business life cycle process and thoroughly re‐vamp their FM service delivery? Or will the wealth of policy and practice act more commonly as a quick reference guide to refer to when called upon? One would hope a healthy juxtaposition of both, but as previously stated, sustainable development is not a new phenomenon, and its continuous improvement will be gradual. Therefore, its implementation into the development of FM, which is still relatively in its infancy, will certainly be a timely process.

This is however acknowledged that achieving sustainable practice effectively in FM will take considerable time, effort, and planning. Overall, the positive impacts and goals of this book undoubtedly outweigh its idealistic nature to deliver an encapsulating and refreshed vision of what the future of strategic FM should be striving for. And without the risk of being contradictory, is it wrong to have idealism, or more specifically, a utopian operational environment? I think not, it is merely another step closer in developing the level of sophistication and diversification needed in achieving total FM.