Enhancing Facility Service Processes in Government Offices Through Standardisation

Tuuli Jylhä1 & Auli Karjalainen2

1Post-doctoral Researcher, School of Engineering, Department of Real Estate, Planning and Geoinformatics, Real Estate Business, Aalto University, PO Box 15800 FI-00076 AALTO, [email protected]
2Chief Adviser, Senate Properties, PL 237 FI-00531 Helsinki, [email protected]

Abstract

As many other organisations, the Finnish government aims at efficient office use and supporting the core activities of its agencies. This demand has pushed the government real estate organization to develop its facility management service processes. This paper focuses on a process that develops solutions for the agencies. The service process is currently under standardization in order to use it efficiently and to increase the quality of the services nationwide. In this paper, the aim is to analyse the process under standardization from lean management perspective to identify key areas of future development. The process under standardization is studied via multiple case studies including three case processes. The main data material consists of process materials, such as memos, contracts and minutes, and interviews. The analysis identifies three issues that require special attention in order to avoid limiting the value creation in the process. First, standardisation should be developed in the separation of requirements from solutions. If a solution becomes a requirement, the process will most likely be disturbed. For example, to match the solution of own rooms to an open plan office is more difficult than to match the requirements of increased feeling of privacy and co-operation. Second, standard information inputs should be qualified in order to avoid making-do. Currently, making-do interrupts the service process. Finally, the standardisation should cover at least information inputs, operations, and the order of operations. Standardisation of the process is a critical step to increase efficiency. However, standardisation requires a careful examination and continuous improvements to avoid standardising waste and value losses.

Keywords

facility management, standardisation, orderliness, value creation, process, multiplecase study

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Reference

Jylhä, T. & Karjalainen, A. 2014. Enhancing Facility Service Processes in Government Offices Through Standardisation , 22nd Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction , 343-352. doi.org/

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