Soft vs. Hard Facilities Management: Learn Key Differences

Facilities Management, or FM, refers to managing and optimizing the functionality, safety, and efficiency of buildings and their environments. Facility management ensures that the space in which people spend most of their time is both comfortable and productive while ensuring that the value of a physical asset is preserved. Within this discipline, two branches exist: Hard Facilities Management (Hard FM) and Soft Facilities Management (Soft FM). Learn effective facility management by joining the Training Course in The Objectives of Risk Management in Facilities offered at the British Academy for Training and Development.

What is Facility Management (FM)?

Facility Management is a professional discipline that involves coordination and oversight of physical workplaces, infrastructure, and the people using them. It integrates operational and strategic functions to enhance the day-to-day functioning of facilities, ranging from small offices to large industrial complexes.

According to IFMA, FM is "an integrated profession that ensures, through a combination of people, places, processes, and technology, the proper functioning of the built environment and services within it so that: value to users is created; the physical assets are protected; value to investors is created; and costs associated with facility maintenance and operations are reduced." FM can be broken down into two types of facilities management, namely Hard Facilities Management and Soft Facilities Management.

What are Hard Facilities Management Services?

Hard services facilities management refers to the hard physical infrastructure of a building. Hard FM services play a significant role in conserving the structure while making sure it meets the defined health and safety standards. The components of hard FM services cannot be compromised because their components directly affect the safety and functionality of a facility.

Examples of Hard services are HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) systems maintenance, electrical systems, plumbing, elevators, and fire safety equipment. These services make sure that the building is functional, safe, and legally compliant. If hard FM is not appropriately given, the structural integrity and use of the facility will not be achieved.

What is Soft Facilities Management Service?

Soft services management services focus more on the people and the operations in the facility rather than on the physical structure itself. The intention is to provide a safe, clean, and comfortable environment for users. Again, unlike Hard FM, soft FM services may be developed to support the specific requirements of an organization and its occupants.

These soft FM services include cleaning, security, catering, waste management, and landscaping. These are the services that ensure the comfort of employees, visitors, and other users of the facility. Soft FM services are not related to the structure of a building but significantly affect the atmosphere and operational efficiency of a space.

Types of Soft Facilities Management Services

Soft FM involves a wide range of services that add value to the user experience and day-to-day functionality of a facility.

Cleaning Services

Cleaning services ensure that the environment is hygienic and pleasant, especially in industries like healthcare and hospitality. 

Security Services 

Security services include manned guarding, access control, and surveillance to help protect people and property. 

Catering Services

Catering services provide food and beverage solutions for employees and visitors, promoting convenience and productivity. 

Waste Management 

Waste management ensures proper disposal and recycling of materials to ensure hygiene and sustainability. 

Landscaping 

Landscaping is the process of maintaining outdoor areas to make an environment look attractive and warm. 

Other Services 

Other services may range from reception management, pest control, and event support to others depending on the facility's needs.

Types of Hard Facilities Management Services

Hard facilities management is concerned with maintaining and optimizing a facility's core infrastructure.

Construction

The construction maintenance will also be reflected in the structure's solidity, including repairing of the roof, facade restoration, and painting. The HVACs will be working, repaired, and ensured heating and cooling, proper ventilation that promotes comfort,t and efficient use of energy.

Electric and Plumbing

Electric and Plumbing services will solve some basic utility problems, namely lighting, power, water, and drainage distribution.

Fire and Safety

Fire safety systems, including alarms, sprinklers, and extinguishers, would be maintained to ensure safety compliance with regulations.

Transport System

Elevators and escalators would ensure critical transportation systems are operating at peak performance, and other Hard FM services would be maintaining the parking structures, industrial equipment, and IT infrastructure.

Soft and Hard Facilities Management Differences

It's a matter of focus; Hard FM would be about the absolute, non-negotiable physical infrastructure of a building, whereas Soft FM would be about the services that enhance the human experience within the facility. Here are some hard services vs soft services:

  • Mandatory and essential services, Hard FM services afford a building's safety and function. This includes those required legal maintenance for structural and mechanical systems.

  • Soft FM services are broadly discretionary, meaning an organization can take these up as they see fit or tailor them to what fits best.

  • Another difference is that Hard FM generally involves long-term planning and capital investment as it is essentially big-ticket assets, such as HVAC systems and structural components.

  • Soft FM is very much an operational issue and flexible and tends to require routine adjustments according to changing needs.

Although different, both services under Hard and Soft FM are inter-related. For instance, whereas the proper maintenance of a Hard FM HVAC system translates to clean air inside, the clean air in buildings leads to cleaning and hygiene services in the buildings by Soft FM.

Management Tips in Soft vs. Hard FM Facilities Management

Hard and soft facilities management can only be achieved through integrated strategy:

Proper Assessment

This involves taking up the needs of your facility and its users. Proper assessment identifies and determines the necessary Hard and Soft FM services. Communication through stakeholders is required to facilitate the delivery of services with the organizational aims.

Proper Maintenance

A proper maintenance schedule should be implemented for Hard FM, avoiding costly breakdowns and ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements. Soft FM can be established as an entity aimed at producing a clean and efficient user environment. This may be done through tailored cleaning schedules, enhancing security measures, or providing customized catering options.

SM Operations

The FM operations have to be streamlined through technology. Facilities management software is supposed to keep track of the maintenance schedule, track the service providers, and track performance metrics for Hard FM and Soft FM.

Coordination

Coordination between the teams responsible for Hard FM and Soft FM is a prerequisite for seamless operations. For example, in case a building needs repair, then the cleaning and security services should be intimated and their work-flows aligned accordingly.

Outsourcing

Outsourcing becomes the best way to manage either category if such organizations do not have house expertise. Experienced FM providers ensure high-quality service delivery and give room for the organization to concentrate on its core activities.

Conclusion

Soft and Hard Facilities Management can be considered as two sides of the same coin. They are critical factors in the maintenance and optimization of facilities. While Hard FM takes care of the physical structure and its systems to ensure safety and functionality, Soft FM brings out the comfort of using the space and increases its operational efficiency. Learn an integrated approach to managing both Soft and Hard FM by joining facilities management courses in London. 

 

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