Leading industry experts discussed the growing importance of facility management (FM) activities in enhancing public facilities, especially in the healthcare sector, at a key networking event held in Dammam, Saudi Arabia.

The event was hosted by The Middle East Facility Management Association (Mefma) to help raise the profile of the FM profession which has huge impact on the health, safety, productivity and wellbeing of people who use the built environment.

Mefma is a non-profit association that provides a dedicated platform for FM professionals, wider construction industry stakeholders and owner associations.

Through workshops and forums, the Association seeks to further strengthen the culture of knowledge sharing and exchange of experiences to provide solutions and advance research, education and creation of sustainable strategies for the sector.

Titled ‘Value Added of Professional, Comprehensive Facility Management’, the workshop and networking event was held at Prince Mohammad bin Fahd Program for Youth Development. It was aimed at leading the GCC facility management towards a productivity-driven business approach following international standards.

These activities are part of Mefma’s continuing efforts to drive innovation by promoting awareness about leading international trends that could help further empower the regional FM industry, said a top official.

Engineer Aiyd Al Qahtani, a board member of Mefma, said: "We remain committed to strengthening the regional facilities management sector by enhancing its global competitiveness through local management in line with global standards."

"We continuously find ways to meet the growing needs of asset managers and property owners towards meeting their goals of providing sustainable facilities management services, which is essential in maintaining and improving the lifespan of buildings," he added.-TradeArabia News Service