From Efficiency to Resilience: Strategic Tech Priorities for Facilities Managers

Over the last two decades, the FM industry has shifted from its traditional goals of regular maintenance chores and reducing utility costs. Today’s facility teams are now responsible for a host of new challenges, thanks to the widespread adoption of new technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI), Virtual Reality (VR), and Machine Learning (ML). As a result, companies are increasingly utilizing these new services to enhance the customer journey from initial awareness to long-term customer retention. These changes are driving the growing expectation that facilities managers make strategic, rather than just operational, tech decisions to address connectivity and data security concerns.

However, FM teams can leverage the same technologies to improve their service models while reducing future costs and increasing building longevity for clients. Many facility teams are using collected data from occupancy sensors to reduce energy consumption. However, these same sensors can be used to improve Preventive Maintenance (PM) and Predictive Maintenance (PdM) models to avoid unexpected disruptions, failures, or repairs while improving worker safety.

Due to the increasing demand for data collection, management, and transfer in the business environment, FM teams should consider the following five tech priorities for their clients in the built environment.

Five Strategic Tech Priorities for Facilities Managers

While the specific needs will vary based on the physical location and the tenant’s industry or service model, most FMs are now responsible for the following technology priorities.

Flexibility and Scalability

The importance of future flexibility and scalability concerns for the built environment cannot be overstated. Spaces that utilize modular components and systems can be easily modified as the tenant’s square footage needs change over time. While many workers have returned to the office, remote work and hybrid work models remain popular for attracting and retaining the best employees.

Infrastructure systems, such as power management and data cabling systems, should utilize modular components that provide quick and easy access to the components and connection points. Systems that are backward compatible can avoid premature obsolescence while simultaneously extending the property’s life cycle. Raised access flooring solutions, like the Gridd® Adaptive Cabling Distribution® System, create a less than 3” high airspace above the existing slab.

Data and power cables can then be moved into this new space, which requires removing a small section of the modular floor finish (typically carpet tiles) to gain quick access for future changes, upgrades, or reconfiguration needs. Unlike traditional cable trays hidden in the return air plenum above the ceiling, Gridd does not require the use of more expensive CMP (plenum-rated cable), which has 50% less plastic in the sheathing than less expensive CM-rated data cables.

Sustainability and Compliance Goals

While LEED and BREEAM compliance remains a voluntary option, over 500 US municipalities have implemented green building codes to construct environmentally responsible buildings. These new codes address energy conservation, water efficiency, and healthier indoor environments for new construction and remodeling projects. This improved efficiency creates immediate operational savings for property owners and facility teams.

The use of easily recycled materials such as steel, copper, and aluminum can help companies meet their ESG (Environmental, Societal, and Governance) goals while creating long-term value for stakeholders and investors. Gridd utilizes modular panels made from 100% U.S. Steel that meet the following.

• 2021, 2018, 2015, 2012, and 2009 International Building Code® (IBC)
• 2013 Abu Dhabi International Building Code (ADIBC)
• 2023 City of Los Angeles Building Code (LABC)
• 2022 California Building Code (CBC)
• Health Product Declaration (HPD v2.2)
• Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) System for objective third-party data verification
• Greenly Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for reducing greenhouse gas emissions
• Gridd is also GreenSpec-listed and BuildingGreen-approved

Workplace Continuity and Risk Mitigation

Workplace continuity and risk mitigation goals include ensuring business operations can continue during disruptions, minimizing the negative impact of threats, and reducing downtime and financial losses. Key goals involve creating comprehensive plans to identify, assess, and prioritize risks, developing strategies to minimize or avoid them, and ensuring critical functions can be recovered quickly during natural disasters or cyberattacks.

Cybersecurity in Connected Facilities

Involves protecting the physical systems and digital networks within modern buildings and industrial sites from cyber threats. These systems are crucial for monitoring and controlling the physical processes in a facility and typically include;

Building Management Systems (BMS): Used to control a facility’s automated functions, such as HVAC, lighting, and access control.

Industrial Control Systems (ICS): Regulate industrial operations in sectors like manufacturing, energy, and transportation. A subset of OT, ICS can include Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems and Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs).

Internet of Things (IoT) devices: This is a broad category of connected devices ranging from security cameras and sensors to smart thermostats. Strategic role of FM in coordinating with IT/security teams.

Data Integration and Analytics

Data integration and analytics is the process of combining data from multiple sources to create a unified, comprehensive dataset for analysis, reporting, and decision-making. Data integration overcomes the challenges of “siloed” data by extracting, transforming, and loading information from various systems into a central repository, such as a data warehouse or data lake. This enables more effective analytics, trend identification, and a complete view of operations.

The role of facilities managers will continue to evolve due to advancements in business technology, the adoption of green building codes, and the shift towards more sustainable materials. As a result, many facility managers now assist clients with strategies to effectively meet and exceed these new organizational goals and building requirements. Data collection, transfer, and storage will remain paramount as companies increasingly rely on technology to enhance the customer journey from awareness to long-term retention. Technology upgrades can be both expensive and time-consuming, which is why a cabling solution that provides easy access and long-term durability is critical for future-ready commercial spaces. To learn more about how Gridd can address your strategic tech priorities, contact a Gridd Advisor.