Horizontal property management systems allow the application of technology to optimize operational processes of co-ownership management, generating consolidated information in real time to carry out planning and timely decision making.
By Santiago Jaramillo Hincapié
How much space will you need and how much will it cost you? is the question that according to the company Archibus pursues all property managers when they plan the space needs of their organizations and estimate future costs. For this reason, computer applications that record the historical use of space and its costs provide objective data that greatly help to make reliable forecasts about future needs.
In the same way, they allow budgetary control and monitoring, in addition to carrying out projects of strategic planning, expansion, modernization and consolidation in a more efficient and economical way.
Another benefit that Archibus describes is that they allow detailed information and executive reports to be available at all times (dashboards, thematic maps, tables of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), etc.), which helps in the control and monitoring of the state of the real estate portfolio, in addition to enabling a well-informed decision making. With this, the constant alignment of real estate resources with the objectives of the organization that owns the property is ensured.
On the other hand, and as Anny Rubio, commercial manager of Pixis Consultoría, warns, a comprehensive horizontal property management system must include "Facilities Management" functionalities, such as the control of the assets of the co-properties and the traceability of their resumes.
Jorge Espinoza Bisbal, head of general services at the San Ignacio de Loyola University in Peru, indicates that "this type of tools deliver added value to the management of the properties, allowing more efficiency in daily activities and planning."
For his part, Álvaro Feuerman, head of infrastructure and services of the Argentine newspaper La Nación, in the province of Buenos Aires, emphasizes that "the administration of a building must include the operation, preventive and corrective maintenance, the administration of space, projects, reforms, works and relocations, the management of infrastructure and support services, the relationship with users, the management of payments for each of the corresponding services, the rational use of energy, actions related to the care of the environment, and others".
He added that "this implies a complex management, with the coordination of many simultaneous activities and resources. Therefore, it is essential to have a software that allows you to systematically perform everything that can be systematized."
Efficient management software
According to the commercial manager of Pixis Consultoría there are several characteristics that a management software must have to be considered efficient and functional in the administration of a building.
Among them, our guest pointed out seven key points:
1. Be a Web platform.
2. Be parameterizable according to the operating model of each project.
3 Have a friendly and intuitive interface.
4. Ensure the availability of information in real time.
5. Manage different user profiles according to the role of each of them.
6.Allow integration with existing corporate systems in companies.
7.Generate and manage information products such as: Maintenance reports, supplier control, portfolio reports, generation of indicators, dissemination of information, monitoring of budget execution, advertising guidelines, among others.
From the other side of the coin, that of the user, the head of infrastructure and services of the Argentine newspaper La Nación listed four aspects that he considers the most significant:
1. Make it easy to learn and operate.
2. That allows to manage all the activities belonging to the scope of the Facility Management, including the operation, maintenance, the various services, contracting, and obviously the specific terrain of the Property Management or the administration of the building or property.
3. That allows to issue clear, simple reports, adjustable to different needs, by item, by term, by resources and others.
4. That it is possible to access it via the web.
For his part, the head of general services of the San Ignacio de Loyola University of Peru pondered as essential requirements: functionality, reliability and security. He also stressed that "an aid of this type must have reports and indicators according to the needs of the user, virtual access that allows the user to access the Internet from a PC or tablet, as well as a good storage capacity."
Implementation and use
Anny Rubio ponders that for a successful implementation of a horizontal property management system it is required as a starting point to find users consumers of technology and, subsequently, perform a detailed analysis of requirements that will be the basis for the parameterization of the software. "It is equally important to socialize the project with each and every one of the future users of the system," he says.
Feuerman, for his part, points out as vital "that the operation has a sufficient scale, in size and complexity, so that its acquisition is justified." Meanwhile, Espinoza Bisbal highlights as necessary "to have the scope and information always available".
Moving on to the topic of recommendations that could be made so that users and / or integrators of this type of systems obtain optimal results when implementing these products in their projects, our guest of Pixis Consultoría explains that it is always important to look for solutions that adapt to the processes of each project and not pretend to change the operating model of the co-properties to adjust to rigid systems.
For his part, the head of infrastructure and services of the Argentine newspaper La Nación shows that it is impajaritable "to consider in advance the purchase of the necessary hardware and software, the hiring and advance training of the personnel that will operate it."
In the same way, the Head of General Services at San Ignacio de Loyola University, states as essential "to listen to the needs of both parties and be highly ordered in the implementation according to the previously established schedule."
Moving on to what are the main risks or problems that must currently be faced in Latin America in terms of implementation of this type of systems and what is the best way to counteract them, Anny Rubio indicates that from his point of view, more than risks to implement information systems, this sector is facing a cultural issue that does not give due value to the application of technology in management. of information.
"There are paradigms around the management of information in the Cloud and the use of virtual media as secure, efficient and effective communication mechanisms. The best way to counteract them is to make the decision to change schemes, disseminate and socialize the use of technology in processes such as co-ownership management and asset management," explains Rubio.
On the other hand, Espinoza Bisbal highlights four critical points in this regard: "Implementing a software that did not have a well-evaluated scope, making constant modifications as soon as the installation is carried out, lack of knowledge and training and the fear of breaking paradigms."
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Currently, horizontal property management activities are carried out in a large percentage empirically, with manual procedures that generate a series of reprocesses for the management of information and lack of opportunity in the dissemination of it.
The implementation of information management systems entails a series of added values that are not easily perceived and that have an impact on aspects such as the environment (zero paper), and in the case of cities as complex as many of the Latin American ones and their mobility problem, unnecessary displacements can be eliminated with the use of functionalities such as online payments, virtual procedures and real-time communications.
Expressly with what has to do with innovation or trends in this area, and the new proposals or technological developments that are expected to be introduced soon to the regional market, Anny Rubio concludes that to the extent that you have maturity in the adoption of technology in a project or property you can include RFID identification solutions for asset management, as well as generating automatic predictive maintenance routines, implementing energy efficiency programs and generating management schemes oriented to the concept of intelligent buildings, which is the trend to which we must aim.
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