Cloud use in facility management

The need to have timely information on the most important business processes in facility management (FM) is growing almost in parallel with the further spread of software-supported facility management systems.

In order to have a clear overview of all tasks, costs and structures of often complex and widely distributed (FM) business processes, data mapping and processing has become almost indispensable. Cloud Computer Aided Facility Management systems (CAFM), which are now widespread in the Anglo-American markets, are gradually assuming an increasingly important position in the business field of related software solutions in German-speaking countries too. Reason enough to take a closer look at the practical advantages of purely internet-based systems for FM.

Peter Schmidt has been Head of Facility Management at KLEPIERRE since September 2015. After studying in Germany and the Netherlands, he initially worked for several years as a consultant for FM and maincontracting. He then took over the implementation of maintenance software for an international food group as a CAFM consultant. After successfully establishing a business segment for a Dutch CAFM provider in Germany and Austria, he took over responsibility as Head of Facility Manager at NORDSEE for many years.

Peter Schmidt is also a lecturer in CAFM at the Westphalian University of Applied Sciences in Gelsenkirchen and a scientific advisor at the Dutch Saxion University of Applied Sciences in Deventer.

Definitions Cloud Computing:

According to Wikipedia, cloud computing is the provision of IT infrastructure (computer capacity, storage, software, etc.) with access via the internet. When using cloud computing, the following distinctions must be made with regard to the technological environments:

Public Cloud:

Public IT environment; shared use by many/all users, data storage in (globally) distributed data centers, maximum cost benefits, maximum flexibility, low data protection.

Private cloud:

Organization/company-internal IT environment with private access; data storage internally or externally in a physically known data center, high cost benefits, high flexibility, maximum data protection.

Hybrid Cloud:

Combination of private and public cloud environment; linking of public and private data centers, internal and external data storage, high cost benefits, high flexibility, high to medium data protection.

Differentiation of CAFM systems

When using internet-based CAFM, the different application options must be compared in advance. This article will focus exclusively on the use of CAFM systems that can be provided and therefore used via cloud computing. The use of in-house installed server-client based systems (which can then be used via various technical options via the internet or intranet) are therefore not part of the following considerations.

The classic purchase solution

The most obvious difference between cloud CAFM systems and conventional FM software solutions, which have to be installed locally, is initially less of a technical nature than a legal one. With the classic purchase solution, the customer acquires the permanent rights of use and hardly has to worry about any other legal aspects apart from the recurring (and often absolutely necessary) updates. The rights of use for the FM software remain permanently with the buyer and the software can be capitalized commercially in the company’s balance sheet. This is often accompanied by an “up-front” “considerable” purchase price, which (depending on the organizational structure and size) can quickly reach the six-figure range.

The modern SaaS solution

With modern Software as a Services (SaaS) solutions, on the other hand, the customer usually pays a usage fee for the use and application of the cloud CAFM solution as part of a subscription for a fixed period (e.g. monthly or annually). The fee is often based on the number of modules used, the number of users in the system, any services (such as application management, back-up services, etc.) and/or the amount of data used. In contrast to the purchase solutions that have so far been widely used in German-speaking countries, the SaaS CAFM customer has no further rights to the software other than the usage rights contractually agreed for the defined area. However, it is important for both solutions that the customer always remains the owner of the data in the software. With SaaS solutions, data must therefore always be transferred back to the customer.