Facilities Management in West Germany: THE STATE OF THE ART

In Germany, the term facilities management (FM) as well as the integrative approach to regard buildings, stock and staff as a whole, is relatively new. Although sophisticated organisation systems have been installed in those sectors, methods and means of facilities management have been lacking up to now. The central element of good FM is the introduction of an organisational concept, equipment files and a CAD‐administration of buildings and stock. The main obstacle to rapid introduction of FM is the high initial costs, which are caused by the initial costly and large‐scale registration of data. FM will generally be accepted in Germany within the next few years because the effective management of a company, its buildings and stock as well as good working conditions for the staff are becoming more and more important for the success of a company.