In recent years, the management of bussiness buildings has gradually evolved from conventional property management to facility management, which encompasses the management of processes and the work place, to support the occupying organisations in implementing their overall operation strategies, as well as to ensure a safe working environment and improve productivity. EMSD has been quick to respond to this emerging trend and over the past few years started to extend its services from equipment maintenance to facility management. The EMSTF has been registered as a Professional Facility Management Establishment by The Hong Kong Institute of Facility Management Ltd (HKIFM) since 2004 in recognition of its active advocation of quality practice in the management of the built environment and facilities.

Facility management service offered by EMSTF puts emphasis on total management, covering rational utilisation of facilities and resources, maintenance of E&M equipment and building service installations, minor alteration and improvement works and all kinds of support services such as energy management and customer relationship management. The new headquarters building with its myriad of innovative facilities has been a great testing ground for our facility management capabilities. Facility Mangement Office (FMO) is the unit charged to manage the facilities in the building. The unit has developed an e-booking system in collaboration with the Management Information Systems Unit. This allows staff to book facilities such as conference rooms and parking spaces via intranet, which greatly benefits operational efficiency. FMO has also set up a forum on the intranet for colleagues to express their opinion. This open and interactive exchange platform has drawn enthusiastic participation from colleagues since launching. The FMO has also been very responsive to comments and prompt in follow-up actions. The combined result has been a continuous improvement in the operation of the building's facilities, and enhanced communication among staff. FMO has been able to gain valuable experience which few government departments could have exposure. If in future the Government decides to embark on building a new Central Government Office, we might be able to offer support.

Apart from contributing to continuously improve operational processes, FMO has also acquired rich experience in managing the energy saving facilities in the new headquarters building. The motion and daylight sensors system has achieved good performance during the first few months of occupation. We are ready to share these energy efficient devices with our customers and to join hands in better protecting the environment.

We have always sought to put new concepts into practice through the application of technology. This is the rationale behind our plan to introduce the Intrusion Detection System in the headquarters buildings. This surveillance system records images in pre-specific sites using IP video cameras, which are then encoded and transmitted through the digital network to the software system. The continuously recorded images will then be compared and if any irregularity is detected, the alarm system will be activated. Such 24 x 7 monitoring can effectively save manpower in patrolling the premises, and hence especially suitable for installation in areas like plant rooms, data centres and warehouses where objects are kept in still position for long periods.

The smooth running of various facilities in the new headquarters building will undoubtedly go down well in the track record of FMO. More importantly, this fully demonstrates EMSTF's concept of total facility management: by consolidating our technical experts across different disciplines, and leveraging technological application to effectively advance the evolution of conventional property management, ultimately bringing more quality value-added service to our customers.

In early 2005, the department's Vehicle Engineering Sub-division (VESD) received a request from the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) to take over the facility management of the Kowloon Bay Refuse Transfer Station.

Under the recent austerity programme, and in support of the Programme on Source Separation of Waste currently advocated by the Government, the EPD has decided to convert certain refuse transfer stations for other purposes such as recycle centre for used tyres. Part of the premises will also be allocated to non-profit-making organisations for the promotion of recycling schemes. The Kowloon Bay Refuse Transfer Station is one of the pilot plants.

The contract puts VESD responsible for provision of all services within the station, from cleaning, security to maintenance of all the facilities, which include the fire service installations, 38 tractors and some 100 trailers, air-conditioning systems for the offices, the vehicle weigh bridges at the entrance, sewage treatment plant, car washers, refuse compressors and the lighting in the entire premises. All the subcontractors are directly engaged and supervised by EMSD. This means the customer can keep a single contact point for service, a perfect example of one-stop service. They can then do away with a lot of trivial matters and concentrate their resources in their core services.

VESD has been EPD's long-term partner in the area of vehicle maintenance. The division has been striving to provide customer-focused professional service. It has also implemented "Total Quality Management" and been constantly pursuing excellence in quality, the ultimate goal being to satisfy customer's demands. The division has long built up a good image with the customer, who is confident that it could execute this new service with great competence.