The document discusses the importance of technology in facilities management (FM), emphasizing efficient collaboration, automated monitoring, and improved communication among participants. It highlights challenges in integrating various FM platforms and the evolution of web applications, cloud computing, and the emerging semantic web. The document also touches upon the future of collaborative applications and the potential of the semantic web in enhancing data classification and user engagement.

1. Omer Dawelbeit, iNetria Ltd.
omer.dawelbeit@inetria.co.uk
Ltd. © 2010
http://www.inetria.co.uk/

2. Why use Technology in FM
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Efficient collaboration between the participants in the FM
function.
Automated facility monitoring.
More efficient space utilization.
Improved project planning.
Fast and accurate reporting.
Streamlined and improved processes.
Improved disaster planning capabilities.
Data standardization across the organisation.
Integration with existing systems and processes.

3. What is collaboration technology
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A combination of technologies that
together create a single shared interface
between two or more interested individuals
(people), enabling them to participate in a
creative process in which they share their
collective skills, expertise, understanding of
knowledge (information), and thereby
jointly deliver the best solution that meets
their common goal(s). [Wilkinson 2005]

4. The need for FM collaboration
technology
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Information sharing is not easy without the technology.
Adapted from [Wilkinson 2005]

5. The need for FM collaboration
technology
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The technology offers a more efficient and less complex
way to manage communications.
Adapted from [Wilkinson 2005]

6. Total Facilities Management IS
Platforms
The Challenges
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Difficulty of integrating FM IS platforms with existing
enterprise (finance systems) and other intelligent
facilities systems.
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The complexity of developing an FM IS system that
interfaces with diverse systems such as:
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Computer Aided Facilities Management (CAFM)
systems.
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Computer Aided Design (CAD) systems.
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Building Information Models (BIM).
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Computerized Maintenance Management System.

7. Total Facilities Management IS
Platforms
The Challenges
 Collaborators represent fundamentally different
professions who hold different goals, objectives, and
even beliefs.
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Difficulty of supporting data exchange, information
sharing and interoperability between the various
contractors and participants in the FM function.
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Not all the FM requirements can be incorporated in one
platform.
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Majority of FM software providers are not keeping pace
with the latest technologies.

8. The enabler for collaboration & Integration
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The Internet is a worldwide, publicly accessible series of interconnected
computer networks that transmit data by packet switching using the
Internet Protocol (IP).
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It is a "network of networks" that consists of millions of smaller domestic,
academic, business, and government networks.
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Carry various information and services, such as electronic mail, online
chat, file transfer, videos, voice, web pages and other resources of the
World Wide Web (WWW).
The Internet
Source The Opte project http://www.opte.org/maps/
The Internet
Source http://www.telegeography.com

9. The Internet Evolution
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Applications
Hosting
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10. Standalone Applications
No or very limited
Collaboration or Integration
Capability

11. Client-Server Applications

12. Client-Server Applications
Advantages:
 Thick client user interface provides the richness, interactivity and
responsiveness required by the users
 Fast access to the applications as they are available on the local
machine
 Users can still continue to use the applications even if there is an
outage on the network
Disadvantages
 Cost involved in developing applications that work on different OS
(Operating Systems) and hardware.
 Cost involved in maintaining the distributed applications and rolling
out patches & updates.

13. Web Applications

14. Web Applications
Advantages:
 Access to the framework can be done using any PC with a web
browser and Internet / Intranet access. It is even possible to access
the framework using PDAs or mobile devices from sites.
 Web application is lightweight rich, responsive and interactive.
 No updates or software installs are required on the client PCs
 Maintaining the application server and the user interface is easy as
it is centralized.
Disadvantages:
 Centralised web / application server means any outages will impact
all users, however this can be overcome with a backup server,
which comes to action if the main server goes down

15. Web 2.0
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Web 2.0 is the network as platform,
spanning all connected devices; Web
2.0 applications are those that make
the most of the intrinsic advantages
of that platform: delivering software
as a continually-updated service that
gets better the more people use it,
consuming and remixing data from
multiple sources, including individual
users, while providing their own data
and services in a form that allows
remixing by others, creating network
effects through an "architecture of
participation," and going beyond the
page metaphor of Web 1.0 to deliver
rich user experiences.[O'Reilly
2005]
Source http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2.0

16. Duality of the Web
Source: http://www.jjg.net/ia/
Jesse James Garrett

17. Rich Internet Applications (RIAs)
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RIAs were born out of Web 2.0 concepts and the
evolution of traditional Web applications.
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RIAs are web applications that have the features and
functionality of traditional desktop applications.
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RIAs typically run in a web browser, or do not require
software installation
Source [Dawelbeit 2008]
Source [http://www.fsi.co.uk/digital-dashboard-mid-32.html]

18. Types of RIAs

19. Ajax Based RIAs
Ajax (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) isn’t a technology.
It’s really several technologies, each flourishing in its own right,
coming together in powerful new ways. Ajax incorporates
DHTML, XHTML, CSS, JavaScript, DOM

20. Advantages of RIAs
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Usability – Rich GUI
Flexibility – MDI Multi-tasking
Interactivity – Instant feedback
Offline mode support.
Responsiveness – Timely response to
user’s actions
• 0.1 second is about the limit for having the user feel that the system is reacting
instantaneously
• 1.0 second is about the limit for the user's flow of thought to stay uninterrupted
• 10 seconds is about the limit for keeping the user's attention focused on the
dialogue.

21. Internet Hosting & Computing
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Shared and dedicated server hosting have been around
since the late 1990s.
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Software as a service (SaaS) a model of software
deployment whereby a provider licenses an application
to customers for use as a service on demand has
emerged and gained momentum in 2001.
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Cloud Computing a style of computing in which
dynamically scalable and often virtualised resources are
provided as a service over the Internet has emerged in
2008.
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Cloud Computing utilizes many concepts such as SaaS,
virtual and utility computing and seems to be the future.
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Provider include Amazon Web Service, Google App
Engine, Microsoft Azure, SalesForce.com.

22. Internet Connectivity
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Internet connectivity and infrastructure have greatly
evolved in the past few years from narrow band
dial up access to fixed and mobile broadband
access.
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IPv6, Gigabit Ethernet (LAN), fibre optics and radio
telecoms (WAN) have advanced greatly.
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Consumer and business Internet access has
moved towards broadband connectivity
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In the UK the following speeds are available to both
businesses and consumers:
•
Cable Broadband through Cable TV – up to
20Mbit/s
•
DSL through phone line – up to 24Mbit/s
•
Mobile broadband through 3G – up to 7.2Mbit/s

23. Technology Hype Cycle
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New technologies are over hyped by the media and
businesses.
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A hype cycle is a graphic representation of the maturity,
adoption and business application of specific
technologies.
Source http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hype_cycle

24. Technology Hype Cycle - 2006
Source http://www.gartner.com/

25. Technology Hype Cycle - 2007
Source http://www.gartner.com/

26. Technology Hype Cycle - 2008
Source http://www.gartner.com/

27. Technology Hype Cycle - 2009
Source http://www.gartner.com/

28. The Future
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Semantic Web (sometimes referred to as Web 3.0) the
meaning of data can be discovered by computers. This
envisaged data web would allow software (e.g.
intelligent agents) to find, process and associate data
from across the web to accomplish user goals.
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The Semantic Web offers new opportunities for the
next generation of collaborative applications: it provides
a novel means to classify information items i.e. by
means of ontologies which formally represent the
consensual understanding of the application users
w.r.t. a particular domain of interest. Taking advantage
of this technology, the first promising implementations
of Semantic Web-based collaboration platforms such
as Semantic Web portals, semantic Wikis and blogs, to
name only a few, have been proposed. [http://stoc.agnbi.de/]

29. References

Atkin, B. & Brooks, A. (2009). Total Facilities Management. 3rd ed.
Blackwell Publishing.

Dawelbeit, O. (2008). Development of Rich Internet Application for
Office Management System. MSc Dissertation at University of
Reading. URL:
http://dawelbeit.info/development-of-rich-internet-application-for-office-man
http://dawelbeit.info/development-of-rich-internet-application-for-office-ma
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Garrett, J. J. (2002). The Elements of User Experience: User
Centered Design for the Web. New Riders Press.
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Sun, M. & Howard, R. (2004). Understanding I.T. in Construction.
Spon Press, Taylor & Francis.
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Wilkinson, P. (2005). Construction Collaboration Technologies the
Extranet Evolution. Taylor & Francis.

30. Thank you for listening
Questions??