This quarter marks our first under new leadership, with Mats Broman replacing Gary Watkins as CEO in May, Nigel Robinson appointed UK General Manager in July, and Charlie Nordenstjerna taking on the role of General Manager in the Nordics from 1st September 2024. Gary founded SWG 30 years ago and has grown the company internationally under his tenure; Mats Broman, the former CEO of SWG Nordics, is committed to build on this, creating sustainable value for customers.
Robinson comes to this role with over 18 years of experience in professional services, working directly for or with the UK National Health Service (NHS) for over 15 years delivering performance and efficiency improvements and Nordenstjerna was formerly CEO of Fast2, acquired by SWG at the start of 2023, with extensive knowledge and experience of the Swedish housing market and successfully leading teams to success.
Read on to learn more about what SWG have been doing to support customers in the past few months.
Software Launches
What’s new in QFM 5.2?
The release of QFM 5.2 includes key performance enhancements to a number of modules across our leading CAFM (Computer-aided facilities management) solution as well as several functionality updates. Visit processing has been significantly improved, delivering work requests to operatives up to 80% faster*; resource scheduling is enhanced with improved data processing speeds; and the speed of page loading and data sorting within the Event Director has increased, becoming 25 – 60% faster.
Additionally, in this latest release updates to single sign-on with Azure AD have become seamless after user authentication. These updates aim to provide a more streamlined and efficient user experience.
*speeds may vary depending on environment.
Partnerships
SWG Celebrates Another Successful ISO Accreditation
We are celebrating the announcement of the successful renewal of its ISO 9001 (quality management) and ISO 27001 (information security management) accreditations, as audited by the British Assessment Bureau. Globally recognised, ISO 9001 standard is based on a number of quality management principles and ISO27001 is the gold standard for information security.
SWG’s CEO Mats Broman says: “These accreditations show our clients and partners that we operate at the highest levels of quality and security, so we are delighted to have renewed them once again.”
Healthcare Roundtable
In June, we held a roundtable event for a small selection of our NHS and healthcare clients, kindly hosted at the estate of our client, Royal Brompton NHS Trust. The roundtable of end users initiated some excellent discussions around the challenges the NHS is facing and how QFM and QFM Space is helping address those on a day-to-day basis. From the ways in which BIM and digitisation can elevate maintenance within healthcare to QFM product roadmaps and priorities, the event was crucial in connecting with our clients.
PPP Podcast
Maintaining relationships between public and private sectors can be difficult but contract resets can help address changing needs and improve the overall outcome within PPPs (public-private partnerships). SWG was featured in PPP Bulletin’s popular podcast series, 3Ps in a Pod discussing our experiences with global PPPs focussing on what lessons can be learnt from PFI (Private Finance Initiative) projects in the UK, the challenges of different behaviours around contracts, and how tech can help partnerships respond positively.
Enhancing Facilities Management at Kettering General Hospital
Our recent case study with Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust demonstrates how using our CAFM system, QFM, has enabled operational improvements by centralising building and asset information and digitising its estate data. The use of QFM has enabled seamless integration with SFG20, which is vital for Kettering in managing maintenance across the Trust’s estate by aligning all PPM schedules with industry standard specifications. This has enabled them to become more proactive, reducing reactive maintenance by 35% and increasing PPMs by over 40%. The hospital has also integrated QFM space management tools to help with space occupancy challenges, such as patient relocations, and to keep secure, up-to-date information about the estate for relevant compliance regulations.
Edward Payne, Chief Engineer at Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, says: “By having all building information, cleaning plans and maintenance schedules in one place, the estates team can run an efficient and steady ship at the hospital with ease. I cannot urge other NHS Foundation Trust leaders enough to begin their journey with this technology. The benefits of QFM are next to none, having totally transformed the way we work at Kettering General Hospital for the better.”
FM Technology Trends Survey Results
This month, we partnered with leading journal FMJ to survey FM practitioners across the UK about how technology is being used. Key trends include the adoption of AI and IoT sensors to enhance decision-making and efficiency, importance of digital transformation for future-proofing organizations, with a focus on sustainability and ESG goal. Read more about the industry need to embrace new technologies in our guide ‘FM Technology Trends 2024 Survey’.
BIM and FM Knowledge Share
Optimising Healthcare Estates with Space Management
Faced with overcrowding, underinvestment, and the pandemic’s impacts, NHS hospitals are seeking innovative ways to optimise their overburdened facilities. Specialised software like QFM Space provides intelligent insights to streamline operations, improve efficiency and offer rapid return on investment. Penny Brinsley, our Account Director, spoke to International Hospital and Equipment and Building Better Healthcare to discuss how remote working and digital tools have allowed better allocation of space and how the PAM framework assists in submitting reports for smarter NHS estate management.
Unlocking ESG Potential in FM Estates
Organisations like universities are focusing more and more on sustainability to meet net zero targets, with many customers and stakeholders prioritising ESG commitments. Facilities management technology like BIM (building information modelling) and sensors play a key role in managing the building lifecycle, providing real-time data for informed decisions and reducing carbon emissions, as discussed in FMJ and Higher Education Estates. These technologies provide a wealth of data that FMs can use to assess and improve energy usage, wastage and asset lifecycle.
Managing Matchday Maintenance
Samantha Fuller, General Manager at Service Works Global for Asia Pacific, shares her insights on how advanced software solutions streamline maintenance, ensuring smooth operations for a large stadium like the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in Australia even during busy events. Discover how technology transforms the MCG’s maintenance strategies in our client case study, debating the challenges and best practice for stadiums.
Space Management within Refurb Projects
Smart space management can provide a host of benefits for FMs, including cost savings, enhanced compliance and a more efficient asset management process. Integrating space management software with a CAFM system and sensors for example, can provide a full overview of estates and give unrivalled insights in one dashboard. Hazel Bedson, Marketing Director, is featured in Public Issue Sector Building exploring how integrating technology can improve efficiencies in the public sector, especially within refurbishments of workspaces.
For more information about anything included in our newsletter, please contact us here.
