FACILITIES MANAGEMENT JOURNAL JOBS
FM CAREERS - CAREER LADDER / COMPLIANCE
Name: Guy Revell
Current role:
Commercial Manager
Born: Windsor
Lives: Birmingham
FMJ chats to a facilities
professional about how
they got into the sector and
takes a look at their career
path. This month we talk
to Guy Revell, Commercial
Manager at Bruntwood
How did you progress through the
profession to your current role?
As Bruntwood’s investment ambitions for
Birmingham have grown, my Director’s role
has expanded quite substantially and my
role has increased in scope to assist them.
My role has progressed, I have become
as embedded in the market as possible,
trying to understand where it is going, and
taking responsibility for gathering market
intelligence.
Do you have any qualifications or
training in FM and related areas such as
health and safety? And how have you
benefited from them?
We have regular training on health and
safety, risk – especially around hosting
events at our buildings. We’ve recently had
some Terrorism Training which despite the
slight misnomer was on what to do in the
event of di erent kinds of attacks on di erent
buildings, which was incredibly interesting,
and could save a lot of lives.
What is your greatest contribution to
the FM sector, or your current role?
I think being an active and well-known
representative for Bruntwood and our values
in the market has been a major contribution,
expanding Bruntwood’s volunteering days
scheme and to o er CSR and volunteering
opportunities to professional services
firms, where their sta get to network
with other professionals and help some
fantastic causes. I was particularly pleased to
source property professionals to volunteer
throughout a full week-long access to
employment programme that Capital &
Centric brought to the city for the first time.
What personal qualities do you think
are needed for a successful career in FM?
I think being reasonably personable and
very patient are two key qualities – a lot of
FM interactions with clients are going to be
because something has gone wrong and
you’re the point of contact to sort it out.
Being resourceful and proactive are probably
two qualities that are required for success
in any area – and not losing momentum on
your own professional development.
What would make the biggest
di erence to the FM sector? And how
could that be achieved?
Having more commonly adopted standards,
or at the least best practice and non-custom
APIs that cover a majority of FM technologies
so data on building use can be gathered
and analysed on a much larger scale. But
to do that you’d need adoption of those
technologies to be even higher, and to pay
for itself on lower-value buildings who might
not normally see ROI for them. Some kind
of tax relief that’s easily accessible for using
a technology that meets an agreed industry
standard, without having to have a building
re-rated – perhaps a registered installer
scheme – could go a long way towards that.
What advice would you give to young
people coming into the profession now?
Get as involved as you can in anything
industry – or professional sector – related,
it’s given me the opportunity to gain
experience I wouldn’t get within my role.
Get di erent perspectives and the benefit
of other people’s expertise on issues facing
the industry. Having a good mentor or two
to give a di erent perspective can also be
invaluable.
What are your long-term goals for the
next seven to ten years?
In ten years’ time I hope to be in a leadership
position, and one where I can help to
promote both the property sector and the
region. I’d also really like to grow my fledgling
CSR initiative, especially with charities
who work around access to meaningful
employment, to the point we are the
CSR partner of choice for the city’s firms.
Birmingham has benefited from so much
economic growth and inward investment,
but these benefits have been massively
skewed towards the a luent city centre.
It’s been incredibly heartening to see how
many firms and professionals care about
redressing that balance.
What do you predict could be the
main changes to the FM sector over the
next few years?
The proliferation of so many di erent new
technologies really seems to have passed
the adoption rate tipping point, driven
in part by 4G coverage and devices. Now
everyone has a phone with access to an app
store and all the CRM/Database information
is stored in the cloud, it’s no wonder that
across all aspects of the FM and wider Built
Environment sector we’ve got so much more
- and better - data to hand, and that’s only
set to improve with the 5G trial in the West
Midlands. 5G and Smart Building technology
are set to transform FM completely.
What are the greatest challenges of
working in FM?
Undoubtedly the number of moving parts,
stakeholders, and parties involved in
much of it. Trying to align new tenants and
customers, contractors, solicitors, surveyors
and the nearly-inevitable issues that come
up isn’t always the smoothest process!
COMPLIANCE
ENGINEERING
Companies can achieve greater e iciencies and
control by planning statutory compliance alongside
maintenance visits says Tim Beardsmore from electrical
safety testing specialists Calbarrie Compliance Services
All electrical systems deteriorate due to factors such as
damage, wear, tear, corrosion, excessive electrical loading,
ageing and environmental influences. Planned preventative
maintenance and regular testing will dramatically improve
the performance, reliability and lifespan of these critical
systems. Powering down of systems and equipment,
however, can be a concern for many businesses.
As compliance and maintenance processes involve a likely
disruption to operations it is pertinent to carry them out at
the same time and companies can benefit from the interdependence
between the two. If a company is fully aware
of their asset condition and compliance status, they can
address any potential problems before they become serious,
resulting in improved business continuity, fewer breakdowns
and a reduction in costs.
In an environment under pressure to reduce costs but
maintain service levels across complex integrated services
collaboration and innovation are key. Techniques such as
dynamic scheduling, pre-start site surveys and clear lines
of communication between key contacts can help FMs
maximise on the natural synergies between complementary
services.
Companies can dedicate a week when all statutory
compliance and maintenance visits take place combining
the deadlines of the client, the FM and the contractor.
E iciencies can be achieved from engineers attending
site at the same time and receiving the site induction
together. Engineers delivering di erent services can work
alongside each other whilst the power is o speeding up the
maintenance and compliance processes and allowing critical
systems such as electrical, fire safety, UPS and data to be
tested at the same time.
Pre-start surveys and meetings will help identify any
scheduling specifics such as the requirement for evening or
weekend working and health and safety risks posed by the
site that require specialist training or personal protective
equipment. Some public-facing companies prefer to opt
for testing out of hours, helping them to remain operational
whilst also reducing the risk of injury to members of the
public and their employees.
Service focus such as greater control of remote workers
and dedicated facilities teams will facilitate high operating
standards to be achieved, and with careful planning
and collaboration between FM, contractor and site
representatives any disruption in service during maintenance
should be avoided. Furthermore, this streamlining of
processes can also provide the confidence for the client
that critical systems remain safe and compliant whilst the
common objectives to improve performance, increase
control and reduce costs are achieved.
www.calbarrie.com
58 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2019
/www.calbarrie.com