UAE facilities management (FM) major Farnek has launched its remote monitoring solution using the Internet of Things (IoT) with a pilot project at select facilities of healthcare provider Aster in the country.

Farnek, which offers smart and green FM solutions, said that under the new system, sensors located at select Aster pharmacies and clinics will record temperature changes and energy consumption based on current voltage, amongst other data, which includes footfall. These statistics are then collated by a remote management system, which provides live readings for Farnek technicians.

The data is then subsequently driven by Machine Learning (ML) and an artificial intelligence (AI) based analytical platform, producing timely alerts, analytical reports and dashboards utilised for day-to-day and predictive maintenance, forecasting and planning.

Thresholds can then be set and benchmarked against similar facilities and assets and if there is a breach of those standards, alerts are sent in real time to a 24/7 command centre and technical teams who, by using mobility solutions, can take appropriate action. The platform also uses encryption protocols safeguarding the data with bank grade security.

Hanie Abdul Sathar, director of EuroHealth Systems, managing the project for Aster, said: “Introduction of the smart system at these select facilities will enable us to set a model for IoT enabled facilities management aimed at bringing in energy efficient and effective management which would enhance a customer’s experience with Aster. With plans to extend the set-up to all Aster clinics, pharmacies and hospitals, the introduction is in alignment with Aster’s ESG goals.”

Markus Oberlin, CEO, Farnek, commented: “The project highlights how we can provide practical business intelligence to our customers and as such add real value to our market proposition. Data about footfall, can be extremely valuable to our clients. If they correlated footfall with revenue and product portfolio over regular periods and benchmarked that with other stores in different locations, it could initiate changes in stock ordering or opening times. It could also help managers plan their staffing requirements to cover heavy demand periods.

Kelvin Vargheese, senior director, Total Facilities Management, Farnek, added: “This is an extremely exciting juncture for FM. It is where ML and AI come into play as we are harnessing big data from all participating Aster locations. That immediately gives us a valuable benchmark. With measurement thresholds agreed and set, if the temperature goes beyond a certain point, we know exactly where the problem is and a maintenance team can be dispatched to rectify the issue, unless the external variables are in question. This is the future of predictive facilities management.”.