Facilities management creating a buzz for 2016

The UK’s national facilities event, Facilities Management 2016, will be returning to the NEC on 22-24 March, with new educational content, an expanded show floor and a host of leading speakers.

Daniel Gray, Facilities Management event manager, said: “We received great feedback last year and couldn’t be happier with how the 2016 show is shaping up. This will be Facilities Management’s third year and it’s really important to us that we keep the momentum up and continue to exceed the high expectations of our visitors and exhibitors. We have revamped our conference programme, making it much more specific and focused on the critical needs of FM professionals working in all areas, including the public sector and more.”

New for 2016, show organiser, Easyfairs has commissioned Magenta Associates, a specialist communications, public relations and content agency for the built environment sector, to develop and manage the seminar programme. Visitors will be presented with over 25 educational sessions focusing on the 2016 themes - People, Politics and Policy. The content will be specifically designed to appeal to facilities professionals across all sectors including manufacturing, facilities management services, education and of course, healthcare and local government.

Gray comments on this new partnership, saying: “I am thrilled that Magenta Associates is working with us to create a world-class seminar programme. The show is part of an increasingly fast moving sector and therefore our content has to keep pace. Magenta has in-depth industry knowledge and an excellent network of contacts which will enable us to provide our visitors with the ultimate show experience.”
People, Politics and Policy

Within the ‘people’ strand of talks, Julie Kortens, senior business executive at Channel 4, and BIFM chairman, will discuss ‘how to build a personal brand’. Tim Oldman from the Leesman Index will also give his presentation ‘productivity is the holy grail for FMs but are they doing enough to create the right environments for people?’

The second theme will explore the common political trends affecting organisations within facilities management and will begin with a live panel debate exploring ‘What is vested outsourcing and what potential does it have in the FM sector?’ Panellists include Julie Jackson, head of Re-Engineering at OCS, Scott Newland, chief operating officer at European Customer Synergy and Dave Wilson, FM consultant. The head of Facilities Management at Birmingham Heartlands Hospital will talk about how they have changed their systems and processes to cope with suspected Ebola cases, and other infectious diseases.

With policies, such as new legislation, potentially having widespread implications, this part of the programme will look at the impact major policies are having on organisations and clients. This will kick off with a live panel debate from service providers, clients and consultants who will explore ‘the introduction of the Living Wage and Travel to Work time: what impact is this having on FM service providers and their clients?’ Panellists will include Guy Pakenham, Managing Director at Cordant Cleaning and Phil Smith, Corporate Relationship Director at Facilicom UK and a founding member of the Living Wage Recognised Service Providers’ Leadership team.

Greg Davies from Assurity Consulting will give a legislation update from the past year and look into the future as he explains what facilities managers need to know. Also presenting will be Dave Whittle, chief executive officer at Positive Response Communications who will discuss ‘managing lone workers in retail and other environments’.

Exhibitors
Facilities Management 2016 will once again welcome back some of the biggest names from the industry, alongside a host of exciting new additions. Exhibitors already on board include Angel Springs, Gritting.com, Tradepoint and many more.

As always innovation will be at the core of the show. For instance, Nationwide Hygiene Group will be showcasing its new washroom range, which offers a complete washroom solution from fragrance, hand and surface solutions, through to washroom paper and chemicals. The innovations include ‘Green Air’ non-aerosol fragrance units, deluxe 2 ply white hand towels and deluxe embossed 2ply and luxury quilted 3ply toilet rolls for the more exclusive washrooms.

SEBO will be presenting its new range of commercial upright vacuums which have been designed to maintain the current performance values, whilst working within the power constraints soon to be imposed by EU legislation in 2017. Higham Roofing will use the show to exhibit its ‘HighScan’ drone survey. This provides a sustainable and cost effective approach to scientifically measuring the condition of flat roofs, in order to detect wet insulation, defective insulation, lack of insulation and thermal performance of the roof and its components.

Angel Springs Ltd will be displaying its range of bottled and mains fed water coolers. This includes its Angel Counter Top Eco-boiler T5 and its Glacier Bottled Freestanding Water Cooler. Gritting.com will also be at the show to demonstrate its gritting service for winter maintenance.

Cleaning City will be presenting its high quality and innovative cleaning equipment, machines and products. On show will be the Banana Cone, its award winning wet floor warning sign, plus a live demonstration of its I-mop, a versatile scrubber dryer, which is more cost effective than the traditional mop and bucket method. Direct Telecom Services will be showcasing its extensive range of two-way radio solutions. This will include simple radio to radio communication systems, or a system featuring GPS, lone worker protection, fire alarm and telephone integration.

QCR Recycling Equipment will be exhibiting its QPC CP30 Can crusher, QCR Glass Crusher, QCR Bin Compactor and QCR 102 waste baler all of which aim to improve waste handling efficiency, whilst saving money for organisations of any size.

Paramount Security Group will be displaying its bespoke, integrated security solutions, including its range of security gates, traffic barriers and the control systems that go with them. Lutterworth Ecolighting will be highlighting its energy saving light fittings used in public sector locations such as community centres, sports halls and car parks.

Complimentary Shows
Of all the facilities management services, cleaning is the most likely to be re-tendered or re-scoped at contract end. Consequently buyers are always keen to meet new suppliers. To meet this need, Facilities Management will once again feature the Cleaning Zone. This provides a dedicated area for those buying cleaning products and services. It will be especially relevant to FM professionals and FM companies working within hospitals and healthcare organisations, education establishments and government and local authority buildings. The zone will feature the top cleaning innovations at the heart of the facilities industry from exhibitors such as Cleaning City, Disposables UK, SEBO, IRTS and more.

The remit of facilities managers is getting wider, with more skills and knowledge expected to be incorporated within the role. With this in mind Facilities Management 2016 will also once again be run alongside two complimentary shows. The first of these is Maintec 2016, the UK’s longest running maintenance, plant and asset management event. Maintec returns, for its 41st year, with a new conference programme, an expanded show floor and a host of top industry suppliers.

Health and safety is another key consideration for FM professionals working in the public sector. After all, the sector employs 5.358 million people and many of its buildings are also frequently used by the general public. Issues such as asbestos control, fire risk assessments and Legionnaires’ disease management are all on facilities managers’ agendas.

So fittingly, Facilities Management is also co-located with the Health and Safety Event, run by Western Business Exhibitions, a leader in the health and safety sector. This event provides the perfect networking and educational opportunity to facilities professionals, who are responsible for running a safe and efficient workplace in the UK. Visitors will be able to access all shows with one badge which further demonstrates the commitment Facilities Management has to providing an educational and highly time efficient event.

Networking opportunities
In addition to having three shows under one roof, those in attendance will have full access to the Networking Bar throughout the event, where they will have the opportunity to meet with industry peers and network with like-minded individuals. Don’t miss the Facilities Management 2016 official networking drinks on Wednesday 23 March.

Further information
www.fm-birmingham.com