Non-inclusion of facilities management professionals in projects executed by the public and private sectors has been identified as one of the reasons for dilapidated and abandoned projects across Nigeria.
The Managing Director, Total Facilities Management Limited (TFML), Nwando Chukwura, who disclosed this yesterday in Lagos during the presentation of the ISO 41001:2008 certificate to the firm by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), noted that the maintenance of public facilities had remained a major challenge because professional facility managers were not involved by the government.
She said, “It (maintenance) has always been a problem with public assets. I think the solution is for us as an industry to make an impact and to get the authorities to know that we have to be part of the system. Once we are part of the system, we would be able to play our part to ensure the structures are maintained. Maintenance is part of us, so, I don’t see any reason that when it gets to public assets we lose interest.”
She opined that it would be easier to maintain public facilities once professionals were involved right from the design stage of the projects and when there was budget provision for it.
She noted that the certification by SON was a testament of the firm’s determination to meet the changing needs of all interested parties, including its clients, environment and the people.
Chukwura further noted that the firm had started to enjoy the benefits of the certification as it had impacted on the way it delivered exceptional services to its clients.
Meanwhile, the Director General of SON, Farouk Salim, who noted that TFML was the first organisation to be certified to ISO 41001:2008, said it was a demonstration of the firm’s management system’s conformity to internationally acceptable standard requirements to provide effective and efficient delivery.
Salim said, “The certification now provides you with a robust, globally recognised, and acceptable solution to address the challenges associated with managing facilities and delivering an excellent customer experience.”
Represented by the Head, Business Development Unit, SON Management System Certification, Mrs Oludunke Oluwafunmilayo, the DG warned the firm to maintain the standard that earned it the certification as its system had been placed on annual surveillance audits to ensure continuing suitability and effectiveness of the implementation of the facility management system.
