Carmel Clifford Nationwide Building Society Current Challenges and Novel Solutions in Workspace Management at Nationwide Building Society BIFM ANNUAL CONFERENCE Oxford 2007
Background of Nationwide Largest Building Society in the world 11 million members and growing 16,500 employees Headquarters in Swindon
Property Services Department (PSD) PSD is the Facility Management Group in Nationwide Responsibilities include strategic property solutions management and operation of Nationwide s premises maintenance of facilities workspace management Property Services in Nationwide aspire to providing productive and motivating environments that support the business and the way people want to work (Property Services Intranet Site, 2006)
Current Challenges Time constraints on specific project No hard data to support on the spot decisions Flexible working Occupancy patterns are becoming far less predictable with the demise of the 9-5 job and the advent of telecommuting. Innovative solutions need to be introduced to monitor occupant movement and to resolve peaks and troughs in space demand. Automatic identification, radio frequency tracking, machine vision and other IT devices may assist in collecting and interpreting such information. (Finch, 2004)
Questions that PSD would like answered What is the overall utilisation of space in the society s administration buildings, segmented by building, floor and department? What workspaces have been utilised less on a daily, weekly basis over a given period of time? How often are buildings; floors and other areas at full capacity compared to given static figures?
Ideal World Scenario The ideal world for space management is: Continuous Flow of information Know numbers in the building on a daily basis Real time information at a touch of a button Hard data for quick decisions Data for before and after evaluations in large project Nationwide is attempting to bring the ideal world closer to a reality
Solution: Radio Frequency Identification Tags Reader Antenna Data base Making the ideal a reality The most profound technologies are those that disappear. They weave themselves into the fabric of everyday life until they are indistinguishable from it. (Mark Weiser) Examples of RFID applications Retail Military
How Nationwide intend to use RFID Security Access Control Asset Tracking Work Space Management Apply the principles of Retail industry Use operational data of access control cards Output will be data on volume and capacity of buildings
Autonomous Operation Controller Autonomous Controller will keep working even if both applications have failed Event Logged All Events written to local buffer on Controller Controller Checks Policy If valid lock released Tail Gaters Sensed TAG Ids sent to controller Employee Presents TAG Near Field Reader checks Tag Message Sent to controller
Event Collection Poll Poll Poll Poll Controller Responds Events sent back in blocks of 50 Poll Events Written To Database Indexing and Partitioning Application Polls undertaken to maximise Controller performance Primary Application Polls Controller for events
Volume and Capacity Pilot: Objectives Look at alternative solutions to replace the current security system. Understand volumes (people) and 'capacity' of Nationwide buildings. Build up data about buildings from a 'capability' perspective. Create an informed strategy for the management of workspace.
Volume and Capacity Pilot Pilot conducted in Nationwide HQ 135 volunteers from four departments Six week pilot June to middle of July 2005 Readers were placed at entrances of departments
Volume and Capacity Pilot: Results of Pilot Forecast actual use of space by volume and nominal cost of space Forecast capacity of building against building capability Understand use of space by: Division or Department Gain a strategic overview of movement between buildings and when building are likely to be full or space availability
Data of Volume and Capacity Department Male/Female Building Areas within buildings Work status Age Number Location Date Time Volume and Capacity
Issues of the novel solution RFID on people Privacy concerns Code of Practice People not carrying their access control cards everywhere Cost of technology Changing established protocols and procedures
Conclusions Creates continuous knowledge in volume and capacity studies Decrease time it takes to do volume and capacity studies Enhances and builds on current workspace methodologies
Conclusions RFID application: Multiple uses same application The pilot showed that an RFID access control system was suitable for the needs of security in Nationwide. The added value of this system is that it could show the movements of people in and around the building. The technology is there, it is just waiting to be used