1. 'Ring clean: Birmingham's Bullring gets its first polish', FM World, 25 June 2004, page 4

2. Janine McDowell, quoted in Ellie Pratt, 'Colourful design used to help female inmates', FM World, 25 June 2004, page 7

3. Facilities-UK, Companies against terrorism, leaflet for a conference held at the Institute of Physics, London, 22 to 23 July 2004

4. Health and Safety Commission, Annual Report, 2004, on www.hse.gov.uk

5. Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 1997, and posted on http://unfccc.int

6. Constructing Excellence, KPIs 2003 for all construction, and posted on www.kpizone.com

7. Building Services Research and Information Association, 'Measuring performance over next five years', 2004, and posted on www.bsria.co.uk

Facilities Management: The Blair Commandments

The ever-so-sustainable Building Services Research and Information Association (BSRIA) boasts it has long advocated that construction industry companies should measure their performance. James Woudhuysen provides a list of what New Labour would like all facilities managers to do, beyond looking after their building and it's services.

There are 15,862 silver disks on the curvy surface of the Future Systems designed Selfridge's in Birmingham's Bullring. In June, Europa Support Services spent nearly five man-weeks cleaning them - by hand. (1)

Meanwhile, Janine McDowell, the director of Bronzefield prison in Ashford, Middlesex, described how the colour schemes recently installed for her 450 women inmates had given them '... a new, nice, attractive facility'. (2)

These two developments give a sense of the growing irrationality that surrounds the still-adolescent discipline of FM. That discipline has yet to create its Thomas Edison or its Gordon Moore. Too often, even the most thoughtful 'visions' of the future of FM come down to little more than lists of things to look after. So allow me to make my own list of what New Labour would like facilities managers to do.

1 Thou shalt not install lifts and escalators - even in tomorrow's new Bullrings. Of course, thou shalt marvel at the 1995 Disability Discrimination Act coming into force. But since thou shalt also show no obesity, even older workers must take some exercise by climbing stairs.

2 Thou shalt assure business continuity in the event of an Al Qaeda attack. A conference has just heard from three Major Generals on this matter. To quote the blurb for the bash, '... even if you are not a direct target, you may be caught up in someone else's incident'. (3) That's reassuring. Clearly, steps must be taken not just with thine own building, but thy neighbour's too.

3 Thou shalt never conduct an office move again. Moves burn fossil fuels and increase carbon emissions. They are also deeply stressful, and likely to fall foul of the Health and Safety Executive, which in the year 2003 to 2004 '... achieved 122% of the target for inspector time allocated to stress' (4) Pretty stressful for the inspectors, at least!

4 Thou shalt install videocameras. They're needed to smite down workplace smoking, workplace bullying and shopping centre smacking, too.

5 Thou shalt not bother to read the 28 Articles and two Annexes of the 11 December 1997 Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate - the Kyoto Protocol. (5) But somehow thou shalt believe everything the government says about the need to build windmills, turn off computer monitors, and install cycle racks everywhere. Thou shalt collaborate more with the construction industry to save energy - but thou shalt not burn too much midnight oil in the process.

6 Thou shalt miss the point about Gordon Brown's disposal of £30bn of Government assets by 2010. It's true that asset sales and PFI deals are sweeping the old EU, will move on to the new East European members and, in time, to China. But these are not merely economic events. As we know from telecoms, rail and utilities, privatisation can be accompanied by greater regulation. All the assets sold and PFI deals done will be accompanied by more state inspections. The Trumpet Shall Sound. Avenging government angels of sustainability and supply chain diversity will be among us. Every SME will get its chance to enjoy Holy Communion with Whitehall.

7 Thou shalt expect to communicate more during the Full Inquisition that will surround every planning process. Will that new facility verily generate quantifiable benefits for the local community? Will it regenerate Britain's regions, once they heroically adopt their frightfully democratic Regional Assemblies? Thou shalt have the arguments and the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and the lawyers to hand.

8 Thou shalt KPI everything and give more work to quangos in the process. In 2003, Britain's Constructing Excellence quango issued a Mosaic wall chart of 10 graphs with which builders could go measuring factors such as productivity, profitability and client satisfaction. Eight graphs contained no units of measurement beyond percentage changes on 2002 and subjective 'ratings'. (6)

In February 2004, a consortium won a DTI funded five-year contract with the DTI to produce an 'annual suite' of construction industry KPIs. What another construction industry quango - the Building Services Research and Information Association - calls 'The UK KPI hierarchy' was arranged like this, though no doubt other KPI authors feel left out: (7)

With KPIs, inimitable prose claims, 'Competitors are doing it and reputations are at stake. Clients are demanding it… particularly with more take-up of framework / partnering projects since setting of targets and benchmarking is a key mechanism on such projects'. (7) KPIs, it is felt, highlight 'weaknesses'. With KPIs, therefore, thou shalt bear thy soul in the manner of Saint Clinton.

9 Thou shalt ensure that all catering and cleaning is dietetically and ecologically correct.

10 Thou shalt abdicate all responsibility for making facilities less labour-intensive to operate. Instead, thou shalt evoke a Damascene conversion on the positive effects of trendy facilities design on the retention, morale and mental health of customers and staff.

Construction 2034: New Labour's vision realised

A lack of commitment in the Labour 'commitment' of a decent home for all

Dear reader: you may think that I exaggerate.

But I say unto you that these Ten Commandments will reverberate around facilities management long after Tony Blair has left the workplace he enjoys so much. James Woudhuysen 21 August 2004

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