The global economic downturn offers the Middle East a “great opportunity” to lead the world in modern facilities management, an industry for which the UAE has become the “world capital,” said leading global experts.

“In the Middle East, you folks have a great opportunity to leapfrog what has happened elsewhere in the world, learn from their mistakes and improve the industry,” said Stan Mitchell, CEO of Key Facilities Management International, and founding chairman of the Global Facility Management Association.

He was giving the keynote address at the Property and Facilities Management Conference taking place at Al Murooj Rotana Hotel, Dubai, running in conjunction with FM Expo, the Middle East’s leading facilities management event at the Dubai International Exhibition and Convention Centre until Tuesday (May 26).

He also urged Middle East participation in the first World Facilities Management Day which takes place on August 28.

As the boom in construction slows and the number of completed buildings increases, the facilities management industry is showing strong signs of growth and is eventually expected to surpass the construction industry itself.

In the Arabian Gulf countries alone, the outsourced facilities management industry is expected to reach a value of $10 billion by 2012, according to recent estimates.

The growing importance of the industry was illustrated by the conference chairman. There are now at least 75 facilities management companies operating in the UAE, said Mick Dalton, general manager at Abu Dhabi-based Marafeq Facilities Management and a past president of the British Institute of Facilities Management.

“The UAE has become the world’s capital for facilities management companies at the moment,” he added.

The importance of the facilities management industry had grown as property owners become more aware of its importance to their bottomline.

The economic slowdown provided further opportunity to demonstrate how it can help soften the impact, said Dalton. New green building and property management regulations along with energy management demands also added to the growth of the sector.

Several speakers emphasised the need for facilities management to be introduced at the design stage of buildings with estimates that the initial development cost of a facility is only 15 to 20 per cent of the total money spent across the lifetime of a building.

Platinum sponsor for FM Expo 2009 is Etisalat Facilities Management, which is also supporting the conference.-TradeArabia News Service