Field evaluation, testing, and analysis of the future potential of the facility management turnover information systems

Facility managers carry out their responsibilities in areas related to project and asset management. They need access to the right and timely information to make informed decisions and maintain a competitive edge. The nature of work performed by facility managers brings them in contact with construction managers when the facility is completed and ready for handing over to the facility operators. This process involves not only the transfer of the actual facility to the facility manager, but it is also accompanied by the transfer of a wide array of facility related documents. Traditionally, in the construction industry, the data is collected at each specialty area and there is very little exchange of information between different specialties. This results in duplication of effort and inconsistencies in data from different sources. To avoid this duplication this thesis identifies the useful sources of data which are generated during the project development phase and which could be useful for facilities groups for the project operation phase. Based on this information, a computer-based Facilities Management Turnover Information System (FMTIS) has been developed which enhances the problem solving and information management abilities of facilities managers. The FMTIS has been developed based on an understanding of the functions and information needs of the personnel responsible for facilities management. The thesis includes a description of the development of an operational prototype. The system presented here allows users to document and retrieve facility related information in the form of text. It is developed for PC platforms and runs under Microsoft Windows ™ operating environment using Microsoft Access software.Applied Science, Faculty ofCivil Engineering, Department ofGraduat