Industrialised, Integrated, Intelligent sustainable Construction - I3con

SUSTAINABLE CONSTRUCTION HANDBOOK 2
Figure 6. Does FM ensure the design of a new building meets the needs of the end-user?
The literature review highlighted the importance of the brief within the early project stages and the
challenge when the end-user is unknown at the time of design. 81% of all respondents from a
construction background claim that the knowledge of FM is not utilised at the briefing and design
phases. Interestingly, FMs are said to be able to inform the construction process of end-user
requirements and therefore present advantages to the process. Therefore, their lack of integration must
be linked with the barriers. 39% of respondents agree that the FM can ensure the design of a new
building meets the needs of the end-user, yet 81% highlight that their knowledge is not utilised.
To understand the barriers restricting the inclusion of FM at the briefing and design phases of a
construction project, the questionnaire administered to the construction industry included this
parameter. Figure 7 shows the top three barriers within the questionnaire include client constraints
(67%), lack of awareness of the parties involved (52%) and lack of knowledge (48%). The question
included an open ended section to answer other possible barriers. The lack of information provides the
assumption that the main barriers fall around these key areas. Client constraints are at a significantly
higher level than other results which can be linked to the barriers to effective sustainability
management. Clients are the driving force within construction projects as they usually pay for the
operations and require certain specifications and design levels, even if they are not the end-users. The
lack of awareness of the parties involved can be linked with the lack of awareness of what FM and
sustainability actually incorporates and how it can contribute.
The lack of knowledge of FM is a significant barrier which has been highlighted in much of the
literature in the research, such as the work of Sunil Shah. This lack of knowledge can be focused
around the lack of adequate knowledge of the construction processes, lack of knowledge of design
factors and the lack of knowledge of end-user requirements. This can also be interpreted as the lack of
knowledge of other construction professionals of the benefits the FM can bring at the design phases of
construction. If the FMs do not have the knowledge of design and the requirements of the end-user,
then their use within the early stages of the construction is severely limited and would provide little or
no benefit.
Financial constraints are a significant barrier for 43% of the construction organisations responding to
the survey. Financial constraints can be linked to the cost of the services provided by the FMs and the
perceived added costs of changing the traditional processes. If the knowledge of FM is brought into
the construction process from a service providing organisation, then there is a potential debate
between the professionals. Will the added costs be picked up by the design team in which the FM is
adding to the process or the client who is developing the new facility? Time constraints are significant
within 24% of organisations and linked with the tight timescales within all construction projects and
the limitation of including operational knowledge at this stage.
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