Intro to EFR Series: The Future

The Intersection of IT and Facilities

Looking ahead, the future of facilities management and EFR adoption will create an overlap between the IT and Facility departments in most buildings. If it hasn’t started happening to you yet, it will soon.

​Recently, Gordon Miller, Facility Director of Central Valley School District in New York was asked what he thought the biggest change in the industry would be over the next ten years. His answer: “I think you are going to see technology overlap with facilities, totally. Tech director and facility director are going towards the same role. Tech is going to drive facilities completely.” Some of the main advancements have come with building automation and IP (internet protocol) connected devices, commonly referred to as the “Internet of Things” or IoT. IoT is important because as more devices are connected and speaking to each other, your capabilities of managing buildings remotely increases. However, you also have a new tech skill set required to manage those devices. Electronic facility records become a shared responsibility and that database is equally important for IT and Facilities to track, update and log any work, parts, information, passwords, etc. that are required to keep everything running smoothly. “Building mechanics will be required to be system specialists,” remarks Joe Magliocca, Director Facilities at Elmira City School District, “Additionally, I think that IoT will improve our preventative maintenance and predictive maintenance practices. I envision IoT providing analytics about systems before critical failure occurs.”

Here are some of the examples we are already seeing today

• With the adoption of more and more IP connected devices, facility and IT departments are already working together to create a cohesive environment.
• HVAC equipment is beginning to live on the IP network.

• Often, facilities manage security systems. This used to be analog cameras and hardwired trigger relays to release doors/intercoms. Now that everything is migrating to IP connections, the roles and responsibilities become shared in some cases.
• Facilities may be the one relocating “tech” assets, having them tracked on one platform allows for data to be easily kept up to date. These include things like smart boards, cameras and PCs.

There is often a divide that is found between IT and Facilities. In order to run buildings of the future, this divide will need to be broken down because of the advancement of IP connected equipment. Helping both sides understand what the other does and how it impacts their side of the business quickly helps everyone understand the importance of a unified approach.

EXAMPLES OF FUTURE USE CASES

Business Benefits
An accurate Electronic Facility Records Management System (EFRMS) brings value to every AMEP and Technology building system at your facilities. It also helps you become a better manager and resource. Below are just a few of the business benefits and capabilities facility managers realize once an EFRMS is in place.

• Analyze data related to efficiency of staff, building costs by facility, asset type and specific instance of an asset.
• Use historical data to see in to the future and proactively plan for outcomes vs reacting to events
• Better budget and plan for future tasks and projects
• Benchmark facility and staff performance against peer group
• Improve information flow and communications with staff, management peers and administration
• Hold vendors more accountable
• Improve vendor efficiency on site with access to better information

Workflow # 1 - AMEP Building Systems

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​1. An electronic Work Order is received by a district maintenance technician to diagnose an issue with an Air Handling Unit (AHU) at one of the school buildings.
2. The technician accesses EFR data about the AHU to check its exact location, make and model, and common replacement parts before leaving the office.
3. The common parts are picked up from inventory and the technician proceeds to the school building (with a tablet in their toolkit).
4. On the roof at the AHU, the technician takes a photo of the QR Code with the tablet to access a schematic drawing of the HVAC system of that building.
5. Using the schematics and other EFR data, the technician is able to quickly diagnose and repair the issue using the replacement part picked up at the office
6. The technician updates the electronic work order to a completed status and adds notes (including parts used) and a photo.

Workflow # 2 - IT Support Ticket

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1. An electronic IT support ticket is received by a district IT technician to diagnose an issue with a wireless access point in a portion of the school building.
2. The technician accesses the EFR data about the wireless network and connected access points to check their locations, make and model, and common replacement parts before leaving the office.
3. The common parts are picked up from inventory and the technician proceeds to the school building (with a tablet in their toolkit).
4. In the affected building area, the technician takes a photo of a QR code of the wireless network server to access IP addresses and other related data for the wireless access point.
5. Using the schematics and other EFR data, the technician is able to quickly diagnose the problematic WAP, replace and test it.
6. The technician updates the support ticket to a completed status and adds notes about the WAP, including serial number and date of installation.

ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES
Here are additional examples of how an EFRMS can be used in your school buildings to improve operations based on collected and catalogued asset data.

Aggregated Data
​The final piece of the puzzle after school districts have implemented EFR Management Systems is the use of anonymized aggregated data that districts can report back to their local regions or states. This big data can help with advocacy for funding as well as better planning for funding on capital projects across your region. We have found that in some areas, local district funding and resource centers are eager to have more facility data on the districts they serve in their area. This can result in subsidies from them to purchase an EFRMS for your district.

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To learn more about EFR, download our EFR Guide today.