A resource for facility managers to calculate the life expectancy of buildings in the Middle East has been revealed.

The Facility and Equipment Reference and Estimated Service Life Research Report, commissioned by the Middle East Facility Management Association (Mefma) is a qualitative review of the various standards and data sources that help facility managers calculate life cycle costing.

The report identifies data sources which should be of considerable value to Mefma members tasked with assessing facility component life expectancies.

It was commissioned after research revealed that life expectancy values in the Middle East were based on more than the opinions of a number of survey respondents.

The bibliography of resources and international standards can be accessed by Mefma members to help them calculate service life data of specific equipment, ranging from manufacturer data to empirical data, said a statement.

The referenced data provides a means to estimate component service across seven modifying factors - quality of components, design level, work execution level, indoor environment, outdoor environment, in-use conditions and maintenance levels.

Tariq Chauhan, group chief executive officer at EFS Facilities Services, said: “The research makes it clear that facility managers cannot avoid the link between finance and budgeting, adequate levels of maintenance and service design life. Inadequate budgeting can lead to less than optimum maintenance, which can have an adverse effect on facility component service life.”

Meanwhile, Ali Al Suwaidi, a member at Mefma highlighted the need for more performance-related data in the Middle East.

“Members should contribute to a database of regional facility component life expectancy data. Properly designed, such data would support the development of locally relevant equipment and component life cycle distribution curves which should improve the accuracy of, among other things, forward funding assessments.”

The report is set to be revealed today (January 15) at an event in the World Trade Club (Dubai), that will review the report and discuss estimated service life calculations in the Middle East. - TradeArabia News Service