Posted August 31, 1999
Internet technology finding its way
into the
mainstream 
Young people are wired and ready to go, reports international technology
consultants Forrester Research.
Call centres average 6 million calls
daily
New research commissioned by IT company Cincom Systems highlights
a growing dependence on call centres, with almost one in three people
using call centre facilities more than once every two weeks.
Wembley cancels outsourcing contract
and
saves money
A blow for the principle of outsourcing was delivered today, as Wembley
International announced it expected to make significant savings after
cancelling its outsourcing contract.
Posted August 27, 1999
Better space utilisation could see property
costs cut by 20%
Property performance measurement specialist Investment Property Databank
has published its first occupier cost saving guide.
Economy looks good for 2000 says CBI
We may be unsure about the effects of Y2K, but the CBI is nevertheless
looking forward to solid growth next year from a more balanced economy.
Government pushes through legislation
regardless of consequence, says report
The government and European Commission rely on companies not understanding
business legislation, making them less likely to appeal and complain,
says a report by the Fair Regulation Campaign.
Posted August 26, 1999
BT says teleworking is working
It's just over two months since BT announced plans to convert about
10% of its 100,000 UK staff to teleworking.
Facilities managers watch out - asbestos
kills
3000 a year
If you own or manage a workplace building which may contain asbestos,
you need to think about the risks of exposure.
British becoming a nation of workaholics
A survey of 8,000 workers has found that Britain is fast becoming
a nation of workaholics who actually enjoy working long hours.
Posted August 25, 1999
OCS joins European alliance
OCS Group has teamed up with partner companies in France and Germany
to offer pan-European business support services, including cleaning and
security.
"IT makes me ill"
RSI, eyestrain, aches and pains are all on the increase - and look set
to rise over the next 10 years, according to survey results released on
Monday by leading insurance company Norwich Union.
Job security at all-time low - and the
rise of IT is being blamed
The Centre for Business Research at Cambridge University has found
that low job security is particularly widespread amongst professional
workers.
Posted August 24, 1999
Arlington expands tenant services again
Business park developer Arlington Securities has announced a new joint
venture with workspace specialist Claremont, broadening the range of services
available to its tenants.
'Bosses
are warned about millennium - again
Action 2000, the government millennium bug watchdog, has warned businessmen
that they could face legal repercussions if adequate precautions against
the millennium bug are not taken.
Rise of the robots could cut 40% of
call centre jobs
40 percent of all call centre jobs could be lost to new technologies
within the next five years.
Posted August 23, 1999
BIFM launch innovative new website
The FM industry has a new information resource at its fingertips in
the shape of the British Institute of Facilities Management's new website.
'Intelligent building' begins to take
on new meaning
A University of Massachusetts engineer has designed - and proven in
practice - the world's smallest micro-computer.
Call centres could contravene basic
human rights
Call centres and other UK companies are being warned that staff are
entitled to private phone calls at work.
Bovis buys US healthcare company 
The US healthcare facilities company has been bought by Bovis Construction
for an undisclosed sum.
Posted August 20, 1999
Women fear pregnancy affects work opportunities
A new survey carried out by Johnson & Johnson of 3,000 first-time
pregnant women reveals that women worry that having children will adversely
affect their careers.
Rentokil prophecies come true
In line with the forecast made at the Annual General Meeting in May,
Rentokil failed to meet its hallowed 20% target for the first time this
half year.
Call centres: the way forward - or sweatshops
of the future?
Orange have just announced the creation of 2,000 call centre jobs
and the focus is once again directed on the growing trend of call centres.
Aqumen's £9m a
year share of hospital PFI
FM company Aqumen is part of the consortium which last week won the bid
to develop a new hospital in South Tees, Middlesborough under the PFI
initiative
Posted August 19, 1999
Telecity help Scottish
Internet Exchange on-line
FM company helps turn Scotland into e-commerce centre.
Tonex deal contributes
towards good quarterly results for Workspace
Quarterly results growth associated with demand and low interest
rates.
Will emergency services
be read for Y2K?
New report from Public Accounts committee calls for naming and
shaming.
All the threes for Johnson
Controls
Leading computer network company 3Com has awarded a three year contract
worth £3m to Johnson Controls.
Posted August 18, 1999
Halifax leads the way
in outsourcing card processing
Halifax leads the way in breaking banking reticence in outsourcing services.
Hi-tech business…high
customer relations
Today's technology can play a big part in keeping customers happy, according
to a recent survey by CMG.
Capita establishes a £50m
local service partnership
Outsourcing gained another boost today when Norfolk County Council
said it could only meet the standards it wanted to, by linking with a
private sector partner.
Posted August 17, 1999
Social chapter welcomed, red tape criticised
While companies in general recognise the benefits of the social chapter,
there is concern about the possible increase in bureaucratic red tape.
Project Jaguar long-list
Around 100 formal responses have been received and 16 companies or
consortia short-listed for the current hot bid in FM.
New Contract Wins?
Haden Young, the UK mechanical and electrical building services contractor,
has secured further new orders in the healthcare sector.
Shape up for the workplace of the future
A new report released by the Department of Trade and Industry, explores
how the working environment will change in the next 15 years.
Posted August 16, 1999
Property gets connected
The internet is finally having an impact on the property sector, says
a new report - and connectivity is having a vital impact on location,
location, location.
Best practice report for PFI
What makes a value-for-money PFI project? A new report from the Audit
Commission aims to show us.
Millennium bug preparations for water
"cannot be 100% guaranteed"
An OFWAT spokesperson told I-FM today that even though they have received
a 'blue' status from Action 2000 they will continue monitoring water companies
to ensure there is as little risk of disruption as possible.
Posted August 13, 1999
Yorkshire Electicity wins
"prestigious" Virgin Atlantic contract
With vast savings to be made through effective utility procurement,
the airline, Virgin Atlantic has appointed Yorkshire Electricity as its
electricity supplier.
Planning is eventually
being speeded up, says DETR
The Government's efforts to speed up planning decisions and reinvigorate
local authority planning procedure are eventually paying off, according
to the Department for the Environment, Transport and the Regions. However,
there is still a lot of hard work to be done, planning minister, Nick
Raynsford said.
Kingston say "outsource
your customer
relations to us"
In a move which it says will help businesses concentrate on their
core activities Kingston Communications has launched a new call centre
to handle companies most important and time consuming activity, customer
relations.
Posted August 12, 1999
Serco buys German engineering
defence specialist
Serco Group, said it now has a solid base for expansion within Germany,
after buying Elekluft - a subsidiary of Dasa.
OCS Group says "we've
had another good year"
Results for OCS Group to the year to 31st March were again, good, despite
"an increasingly competitive environment".
European levels of employability
to be established
A European conference which aims to establish a health, safety message
which makes workers more employable is taking place next month in Bilbao.
Posted August 11, 1999
Workplace will reflect
"the way we work"
Workplace 99 - the office furniture and workplace event themed "The
way we work", looks to attract representatives from a wide spectrum
of UK companies.
London commercial property
market experiences turnaround
A growing confidence in the central London Office market has caused a
significant increase in take-up levels of commercial property according
to the latest research by CB Hillier, the international property consultants.
How much is the eclipse
going to cost your company?
Traffic chaos, industrial shutdown - and a commercial cost to the
UK of around half a billion pounds, according to the London Chamber of
Commerce.
Posted August 10, 1999
Unicorn gains independence via MBO from
B&P, Felton is executive chairman
Unicorn Consultancy Services has been liberated from Building & Property
Group via a £37 million MBO, backed by Mercury Private Equity.
BIFM conference will focus on FM beyond
the
Millennium
A BIFM conference held 1-3 September at Warwick University is encouraging
FM companies to look beyond the Y2K to increase the growth of the FM industry
in the marketplace.
Logica-led consortium wins £14 million
"University for industry" infrastructure contract
The governmentºs University for Industry has awarded the lucrative
contract for its communications and technology infrastructure to a consortium
led by Logica.
Posted August 9, 1999
Millennium 'total cock up' leaves thousands
without electricity
So-called Y2K compliance is no guarantee, thousands are left with no electricity,
hot water or light, but the company concerned has been awarded a compliance
standard.
Symonds say PFI is the way forward
Symonds is concentrating hard on a PFI based future said Nigel Manger,
Associate Director of Symonds FM told I-FM today.
Outsourcers taking control of under-performing
LEAs
Ofsted, the education watchdog, is to publish a report into poor performance
at Leicester City education authority suggesting outsourcing is now an
acceptable move for helping poor-performing local education authorities.
Posted August 6, 1999
Get Health & Safety right or payÜcompanies
are
warned
Companies have been warned anew that they face large fines if they
do not follow workplace health and safety regulations.
Project Jaguar: Response to BT's call
for interest "much greater than expected"
While not willing to divulge who precisely has expressed an interest,
Jo Adams, project manager for the "hot current bid" in FM, BT's Project
Jaguar, says the interest received after its recent ads has been "very
good indeed, much greater than expected".
King's College to tender prestigious
new library
project
In the next month or two, Kings College London will be asking for tenders
to carry out work on its landmark new library project.
Posted August 5, 1999
Ford fuels outsourcing revolution
"Building cars is no longer core business," says Ford. "We may outsource
our property management too."
New 'unpaid leave' law planned
Plans to give parents 13 weeks of unpaid leave during the first five years
of a child's life have been announced by the government.
Workplace smoking under fire
Smokers may come under more fire as the Health & Safety Commission look
to crack down on passive smoking in the workplace.
People in the News
A quick summary of who's been on the move in FM.
Posted August 4, 1999
E-commerce showcase launched
PriceWaterhouseCoopers have converted a part of their Swindon offices
into a retail e-commerce testbed to explore technology applications -
and reinforce the importance of staying focused on customers.
Overtime demands thrown out by tribunal
A mother who was sacked for refusing to work 16-hour shifts at Heathrow
airport because she needed to look after her baby has won a landmark employment
tribunal case.
Businesses warned 'woefully slow' progress
is not good enough
Action 2000 today announced that over a quarter of British companies were
causing 'significant concern' with their millennium preparations.
FM Report: Nortel FM in UK
Nortel Networks has appointed CB Hillier Parker to provide corporate FM
services to its 120,000 sq m in the UK.
Posted August 3, 1999
Good news for big City occupiers
Property developer Minerva has applied for planning permission for
two major new buildings in the City of London.
Industry update
A new management structure being implemented by AMEC is hoped
to improve their customer services, streamline reporting and reduce costs.
Data protection risk increased by internet
A lack of understanding of the internet is causing many firms to accidentally
breach the data protection laws.
Posted August 2, 1999
Virgin makes tracks for virtual working
A new teleworking project which will take call centre operations into
the community is being pioneered by Cap Gemini on behalf of Virgin Trains,
i-FM reveals today.
Government rethinks on 'Consultancy Tax'
The government is believed to be having second thoughts about legislation
aimed at cracking down on people who hire themselves out through their
own companies.
White collar staff more likely to need
time off
The CBI's latest study of absence at work, published today, reveals a
new trend amongst white collar workers.