Adoption of new technologies and smart building solutions besides convergence of energy management services will help drive the growth of the facility management business in the UAE over the next three years, said a report.

Big data analytics is vital to drive the efficiency of building facilities and great value for clients, stated the report by Imdaad, the UAE-based integrated facilities management (FM) solutions provider.

Even though the country's FM sector is in the early stages of evolution, a number of factors including technological innovations, rising environmental awareness, increasing cost as well as various initiatives by local and federal governments have boosted the demand for integrated solutions and forced service providers in the country to diversify their offerings.

The study, titled “High Level Overview of the UAE Facilities Management Market,” projects that advanced big data analytics will transform the FM business, as the analysis of data through remote monitoring of buildings is gaining popularity in the UAE.

The insights from the analytics help facilities managers proactively manage and maintain various equipment and systems in a building, providing cost-effective and a more productive work environment for their customers, it stated.

A Dubai-based group that provides integrated, sustainable facilities management services, Imdaad said the research also highlights that energy management has now evolved into a full-fledged service in the country to become a part of the integrated FM services.

The customised energy contracting packages being provided by the FM firms and energy services companies include energy consulting, energy savings services, energy procurement, and generation.

"The findings of our study suggest that the sector is headed for a quantum leap driven by the private sector. Service evolution, technology innovation, and new value propositions are expected to bring game-changing effects in the market. Big data is transforming all the industries and sectors and FM is no exception," remarked Jamal Abdulla Lootah, the Group CEO of Imdaad.

"The FM service providers in the UAE can build on their capabilities to capitalize on the huge potential in energy consulting and savings portfolios, which include auditing, energy strategy planning, data collection, analysis and monitoring, and upgrading of building controls and retrofits," he noted.

“The launch of the smart building index last year, which is in line with the UAE Energy Plan for 2050 that stipulates increasing the contribution of clean energy in its total energy mix to 50 per cent by 2050, and the push for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (Leed)-certified green buildings are significantly contributing to the new trend. Hence, it is imperative for FM companies to build their capabilities in order to achieve more energy savings,” stated Lootah.

In addition, the research notes that Middle East and Asia Pacific will see the highest growth and the latter will become the largest overall FM market surpassing Europe by 2025, he added.-TradeArabia News Service