A-Z Glossary

A/C

Air Conditioning

Access

Approach, entry, internal circulation or exit, including in cases of emergency. These are recorded in the areas /rooms module (Sites Home > Areas/Room & Selected Site > Areas /Rooms) within Concerto, which can be populated from a polylined CAD drawing.

Accessible

Capable of being accessed and used by disabled people. Accessibility to a building can be recorded in the DDA survey module within Concerto

Adaptability / Adaptations

Possibility of changing characteristics such as volume, function or space in order to meet new demands or needs.

It would be common to see an adaptations project in Concerto.

AP

Accounts Payable

Application for payment

A record submitted by a contractor using the Concerto suppliers portal requesting cost approval for services provided.

Application Programme Interface (API)

A set of routines, protocols and tools for building software applications that specify clearly defined methods of communication between various software components.

APS

Association for Project Safety

AR

Accounts Receivable – Typically used when describing a type of interface to and from a client finance system.

“Will, have you got that AR interface at Blackburn with Darwen live yet pal?”

ARP

Activity resumption plan.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

The theory and development of computer systems able to perform tasks normally requiring human intelligence, such as visual perception, speech recognition, decision making and translation between languages.

As built information

Expression of the design, its working detail, construction works and/or installations, functions, operations and maintenance needs of a facility in a form suitable for use in managing that facility.

Asbestos

Asbestos is a collective term for six naturally occurring family of minerals which between 1940 and late 1980s was used prolifically in building materials, e.g. internal/external cladding, roof materials, roof eaves, pipe lagging (insulation).

Unfortunately, it transpires that this stuff kills people who breath in the fibres when the materials are disturbed. 20 tradesmen die each week as a result of past exposure.

Asbestos Surveys

Asbestos needs to be recorded, monitored and manage to ensure safety. The detail is recorded in the asbestos register per building/site in Concerto via a management survey or re-inspection

Asset cost breakdown

Itemisation of the capital cost of a facility asset in terms of its constituent parts.

Asset management

A process of proactively managing a building’s assets to ensure maximum efficiency and return on capital investment.

Asset register

An asset register is used to record the specification, make and model details of equipment and plant within a building. It is used for both planned and reactive maintenance services to ensure the service schedule meets specifications.

Asset Verification

Confirming the truth about the existence and correctness of the money value of the assets and liabilities appearing in the balance sheet of the business.

Automation

The use or introduction of control systems for operating equipment, machinery, processes, networks and other applications with minimal or reduced human intervention.

Azure

Microsoft Azure, our primary cloud infrastructure provider.

B & ES

Building and Engineering Services Association.

BCM

Business continuity management.

BCP

Business continuity plan.

BCT

Business continuity team.

Bellrock Group

The group company Concerto is a part of.

BEMS

Building Energy Management Systems.

Benchmarking

A continuous, systematic process for evaluating the products, services or work processes of organisations that are recognised as representing the best practices for the purpose of organisational improvement.

BIA

Business impact analysis.

BICSc

The British Institute of Cleaning Science.

BIM

Building Information Modelling. A process involving the generation of digital representations of the physical and functional components of a facility. The resulting building information models become shared knowledge resources to support decision-making about the facility from the conception stage, through design, construction and operational life up to eventual decommissioning. The Government requires collaborative 3D BIM (with all project and asset information, documentation and data in electronic form) on its projects by 2016.

BIM Task Group

Set up by the Cabinet Office following the government’s announcement of its Construction Strategy on 31 May 2011. The task group is responsible for implementing collaborative 3D BIM (with all project and asset information, documentation and data in electronic format) on government projects by 2016.

Biomass

Plant matter such as trees, grasses, agricultural crops or other biological material. It can provide a renewable source of electrical power, fuel, or chemical feedstocks. BOMA Building Owners and Managers Association International.

Breakdown maintenance

Operation of restoring an item to fulfil its original function after a failure in its performance.

BREEAM

Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method.

Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)

The policy of permitting employees to bring personally-owned devices such as laptops, tablets and smart phones to their workplace and to use them to access privileged company information and applications.

BS 8300:2001

Code of practice explains how the built environment can be designed to anticipate and overcome restrictions that prevent disabled people from making full use of premises and their surroundings.

BSC

British Safety Council.

BSI

British Standards Institution.

BSRIA

The Building Services Research and Information Association provide specialist consultancy, testing and research services for construction, building services and facilities management.

Bug

A software bug is an error, flaw or fault in a computer program or system that causes it to produce an incorrect or unexpected result, or to behave in unintended ways.

Buildability

Degree to which the design of a planned building assists its construction and utilisation.

Building fabric

Elements and components of a building other than furniture and engineering installations.

Building Information Modelling (BIM)

A digital representation of the physical and functional characteristics of a facility that then forms a reliable basis for decisions during its lifecycle (i.e. from earliest conception to demolition).

Building log book

Operations and maintenance information used to improve energy management within a building.

Building maintenance

Work, other than daily and routine cleaning, necessary to maintain the performance of building structure, fabric and components and basic engineering installations.

Building Management System (BMS)

Computer-aided control systems including hardware and software to collect and monitor parameters and performance data of plant, equipment, systems and elements either at source or remotely and to enable corrective action to be initiated.

Building manual

Log of a building’s operation and maintenance, and record of refurbishments and alterations.

Building physicist

Person with knowledge and experience in the behaviour and performance of buildings and their components under the influence of physical, chemical and biological phenomena.

Business continuity planning

Business continuity planning is the process of ensuring an organisation can sufficiently recover and restore partially or completely interrupted critical functions/systems within a predetermined time after a disaster or extended disruption.

Cabinet Office work package 104

Entitled ‘Plan of Works’, this project within the government’s BIM initiative is being carried forward by the Construction Industry Council (CIC). Institutions such as RIBA are working with the CIC to develop BIM-enabled digital plans of work that could be used across the design and construction industry to facilitate the implementation of BIM in government projects.

CAD

Computer Aided Design.

CAFM

Computer-Aided Facilities Manager (Software). A popular section of the Concerto software solution which includes the Helpdesk, PPM Scheduler (Planned preventative maintenance), Quotes, Estimates, Suppliers portal, FixMy and Mobile modules

Call-off Contract

A contract for the supply of goods or services that may or may not be called off as and when required (also Term Contract).

CAPEX

Capital expenditure.

Carbon Emissions

Polluting carbon substances released into the atmosphere.

Carbon Footprint

Totality of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused directly and indirectly by an individual, organisation, event or product.

Carbon management

Reducing the impact of carbon dioxide emissions (CO2) on the planet as part of a global warming mitigation strategy based on carbon capture and storage.

Carbon metric

Measure of the weight of carbon dioxide equivalent (C02-eq) emitted per square metre per annum (based on greenhouse gas emissions over a 100 year period).

Case Management

A module with highly configurable workflow which generates a case record. A case record is used to record the details of a record which is managed by multi-disciplinary teams, e.g. “Setup a new lease”, “FOI Request” or “Disposal”. Notable users are Manchester City Council.

CD247

Consultative document issued by the HSE to seek views on its draft National Local Authority Enforcement Code. Produced in response to the Löfstedt review recommendation for the HSE to be given a stronger role in directing local authority health and safety inspection activity.

CEN

European Committee for Standardization.

CEO

Chief Executive Officer.

Certificate

A collection of one or many client approved applications for payment submitted by a contractor which they invoice against.

CFO

Chief Financial Officer.

Checklist

Within Concerto this primarily relates to the checklist module within a Concerto project (Selected project > Checklists). The checklists within Concerto are used to structure project governance activities, including project management best practise, health and safety, financial rules and regulations, sustainability etc. Using the checklists means that project teams are delivery projects in a cohesive and governed fashion.

CHP

Combined heating and power.

CIBSE

Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers.

CIBSE Guide M

CIBSE Guide M: Maintenance Engineering and Management (2009) is an update of the guide to ownership, operation and maintenance of building services published in 2000. It covers such issues as owning and operating costs, economic life factors, energy efficiency and maintenance, maintenance strategy, and different types of maintenance technique.

CIC

Construction Industry Council, the representative forum for the professional bodies, research organisations and specialist business associations in the construction industry.

CIO

Chief Information Officer.

CIOB

Chartered Institute of Building.

CIPS

Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply.

Clean room

A room in which the concentration of airborne particles generated by people, processes and equipment is controlled to specified limits. The level under which these particles need to be maintained depends upon the activities in the clean room.

Cloud computing

The practice of using a network of remote servers hosted on the internet to store, manage and process data rather than a local server or personal computer.

Cloud file sharing

The process of using cloud computing-based technologies to enable file sharing over the internet between multiple users based anywhere in the world.

CMI

Chartered Management Institute.

COBie

Construction Operations Building Information Exchange. COBie is a means of capturing and sharing structured information about new and existing facilities, originally developed in the US. Its data can be viewed in a simple spreadsheet such as Excel. COBieUK: 2012 is a digital data exchange format being prepared as part of the government’s BIM initiative.

COBRA

Collaborative Occupiers Benchmarking Research Alliance. The Strategic Plan for the Benchmarking Alliance has been guided and agreed by a Steering Group of pan-industry institutions and experts supporting the benchmarking needs of both facilities managers and real property occupiers and is available for download from LinkedIn.

Company voluntary agreement (CVA)

(Also company voluntary arrangement.) A legally binding agreement between an insolvent company and its creditors.

Competitive dialogue

A procedure in which a purchaser conducts a dialogue with prospective suppliers with the aim of identifying those capable of meeting its requirements, who will then be invited to tender.

Computer-aided Design (CAD)

Software used by architects, engineers, drafters, artists and others to create precision drawings or technical illustrations, including 2D and 3D models.

Computer-aided Maintenance Management System

System specifically designed to enable planning, organising, direction and controlling forward maintenance programmes and to collect and collate historical data on the performance of assets so the most effective maintenance strategy is selected under actual performance and environmental conditions.

Concerto Analytics

A business intelligence tool configured and embedded within the Concerto application for Concerto customers to buy. The platform itself is Tableau, which is no secret, but is played down.

Concerto WFM

A piece of software used by Bellrock for the delivery of direct labour (engineers), originally developed by PES (see PES) IP bought by Bellrock. Currently not sold externally.

Condition monitoring

Act of measuring and recording data from operating parameters using either human senses or instrumentation to verify plant and equipment condition and trends.

Condition Surveys

A survey carried out by one or many surveyors to record the condition of a site, the components of the building fabric (e.g. roof, walls, windows), the assets both inside the buildings (boilers, lifts, heating and ventilation), and outside (barrier gates, lighting).

Understanding the condition of your estate is the cornerstone of good asset management practise.

Condition-based maintenance

Is an approach where activities are carried out following inspection of the asset and comparison if its actual state with the desired condition.

COO

Chief Operating Officer.

Corrective maintenance

Maintenance carried out after fault recognition and intended to put an item into a state in which it can perform a required function.

COSHH

Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002.

CPD

Continuing professional development.

CRA

Continuity requirements analysis.

CRE

Corporate real estate.

Critical Activity

Activity which has to be performed in order to deliver the key products and services which enable an organisation to meet its most important and time-sensitive objectives.

Critical Environment

Are or location which, in the event of its non-availability, would have a significant negative impact upon business processes and activities.

CSR

Corporate social responsibility. Defined by the EU as a ‘concept whereby businesses integrate social and environmental concerns in their daily operations and in their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis’

CSSA

Cleaning & Support Services Association

CSV

Comma-separated values. The Comma Separated Value (CSV) file format is a common structuring strategy for text format files. In CSV flies, each line in the file represents a row of data and, within each line of the file, the different data fields are separated from one another using a comma.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

Practices, strategies and technologies used by companies to manage and analyse customer interactions and data throughout the customer lifecycle with the aim of improving business relationships, customer retention and sales growth.

DAS

Design and Access Statement.

Data drop

Data that is deliverable at a defined gateway in a stage-gated process.

Data element

Basic unit of information that is quantifiable and measurable.

DDA

Disability Discrimination Act.

DEC

Display energy certificates. Can be recorded in the DEC/EPC module within Concerto (Selected Site > DEC/EPC)

DEFRA

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Deliverable

Product or service as an outcome of a process.

Depreciation

The estimated or expected decline in value of an asset.

Design brief

Statement that describes the purpose and required functions and performance of a facility, product or service; also a stage in the design phase.

Design development

Transitional phase where the basis of the design progresses towards the production of detailed design information.

DR

Disaster recovery.

DRC

Depreciated replacement cost, a method of valuing all types of asset. This is a type of valuation that would be chosen by a user when recording a valuation in the valuation module (Sites Home > Valuations & Selected Site > Valuations).

DWG

A DWG file is a database of 2D or 3D drawings created with AutoCAD.

EA

Environment Agency.

Easter Egg

In computer software, Easter eggs are secret responses that occur as a result of an undocumented set of commands. See “Bug”.

Element

Functional part of a building or other facility.

Emergency maintenance

Environmental Management Systems.

EMS (Estate Management Statistics)

Estate Management Statistics. EMS shares estates information among UK higher education institutions and empowers institutions to improve management of the physical infrastructure.

End of life costs

Costs for the disposal or demolition of a facility.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

The integrated management of core business processes that allows an organisation to use a system of integrated applications to manage the business and automate back office functions related to technology, services and human resources.

Environmental impact assessment

A tool to predict, assess and mitigate the possible effects of a construction project so that environmental considerations can inform and be integrated into decisions.

Environmental policy

Statement of the measure taken by an organisation to minimise the impact of its activities on the environment.

EPC

Energy performance certificates. Can be recorded in the DEC/EPC module within Concerto (Selected Site > DEC/EPC).

ERIC

Estates Return Information Collection. This central data collection for estates and facilities services from the NHS containing information dating back to 1999/2000. Trusts enter data into the system which provides real time performance indicator information varying form on screen indicators to charts allowing organisations to benchmark their performance.

ERP

Enterprise resource planning.

External envelope

Roof and façade including openings.

External stakeholders

Individuals or groups outside an organisation having an interest in the activities of that organisation.

Estates

In Concerto speak, we use this term to refer to group together Occupations (leases granted/taken), Ownerships (Acquisition/Disposals), Case Management, Invoices to Tenants, Estates Action Centre, Valuations, Strategic Forecast.

Estates Management

Estate Management concerns the appraisal, acquisition, development, marketing and disposal of property, or sometimes the ongoing management of property.

Evacuation

A building may require evacuating if there is a fire or other emergency. Plans should therefore be developed and tested following an appropriate risk assessment.

Facilities Management

Organisational function which integrates people, place and process within the built environment with the purpose of improving the quality of life of people and the productivity of the core business.

Facility

Tangible asset that supports an organisation.

Facility Management

Organisational function which integrates people, place and process within the built environment with the purpose of improving the quality of life of people and the productivity of the core business.

Facility product

One of a defined set of classified and hierarchically organised facility services.

Facility related service

Service supporting the primary activities of an organisation, delivered by an internal or external provider.

FD

Financial Director.

Feasibility study

Means for establishing the economic viability, performance and acceptability of the design and other measurable parameters of a facility.

FEFCE

Further Education Funding Council for England.

FFI

Fee for Intervention (FFI) is HSE’s cost recovery scheme. Under The Health and Safety (Fees) Regulations 2012, those who break health and safety laws are liable for recovery of HSE’s related costs, including inspection, investigation and taking enforcement action.

Fixed-wire testing

Fixed wiring must be maintained so as to prevent danger and that regular service inspection is an essential part of preventative maintenance.

Flawless start up

Fault free commencement of operations.

FM

Facility Management.

FOI

Freedom of information. A piece of law which entitles members of the public to request information from a public sector organisation.

E.g. “Dear Council, I would like to know how much money you have spent on parks on spaces in this financial year”. These requests are sometimes managed in the Concerto Case Management module.

Framework (agreement)

A general term for agreements with selected suppliers. This sets out terms and conditions under which specific purchases can be made throughout the term of the agreement.

E.g. Concerto is a supplier on the government GCloud technology framework, which allows public sector organisations to purchase Concerto directly or via mini-framework competition.

FTE

Full-time equivalent. A unit that indicates the workload of an employed person (or student) in a way that makes workloads comparable across various contexts.

Full disclosure

Public procurement rules in the European Union require that public contracting authorities must publish all tender evaluation criteria and weighting in advance.

Functional brief

Interpretation of the statement of needs in the form of recommendations (provisions) for the design of the facility.

Gantt chart

A Gantt chart is a graphical depiction of a project schedule. It is a bar chart that shows the start and finish dates of several elements of a project that includes resources, milestones, tasks, and dependencies.

Gateway

Key assurance or decision point in a process.

Project gateways can be configured and used in the Concerto project management solution.

G-Cloud 12

Cloud computing services covering hosting, software and cloud support on a commodity based, pay-as-you go service. For general use by the UK public sector.

GDPR

General Data Protection Regulation.

GEA

Gross External Area. Includes enclosed roof plant, balconies, thickness of external walls and internal parking.

GEEP

Generic/General Emergency Evacuation Plan.

Typically stored in a site documents folder within Concerto.

GIA

Gross Internal Area. Excludes external walls, balconies, roof plant and parking from GEA.

GIS

Geographic Information System. A geographic information system is a conceptualized framework that provides the ability to capture and analyse spatial and geographic data. In simple terms, think of a clients own version of Google Maps

Typical systems include ESRI “ArchGIS” and Pitney Bowes “MapInfo”. Concerto typically connects to the clients GIS system, more prolific in the public sector.

Global Positioning System (GPS)

A global satellite-based navigation system that can be used to locate positions anywhere on Earth.

Government green lease

Use of incentives to align parties toward sustainable business practices within the terms of a lease agreement.

GPG

Good Practice Guide.

GPU

Government Property Unit. GPU works collaboratively across the public sector, acting as a catalyst for change, to create an effective and efficient government estate, which provides value for money for the taxpayer, reduces our environmental impact and enables improvements in the way we work.

GSL

Government Soft Landings. A policy led by the Cabinet Office FM Category Team as part of the government construction strategy. The aim is to ensure that design and construction are aligned with operational asset management, and to implement greater use of outcome-based specifications against clear performance criteria.

Handover

Act of passing responsibility for, and control over, a facility to the owner or operator following testing and commissioning.

HEFCE

Higher Education Funding Council for England. A non-departmental public body of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, which has been responsible for the Benchmarking: Effective performance management for FM| distribution of funding to Universities and Colleges of Higher and Further Education in England since 1992.

HOTS

Handover to Support – The process of handing over a Concerto implementation from delivery to the Concerto support team.

Hox

David Horrocks, long-standing Concerto software developer. Hox is semi-famous within the German gaming community for creating “Hoxs64”, a Commodore 64 emulator for Microsoft Windows 10. The emulator substantially reproduces this legacy machine in minute detail.

HR

Human resources.

HSE

Health and Safety Executive, the national independent watchdog for work-related health, safety and illness.

HSSE Health, Safety, Security and Environment

Services protecting from external dangers or internal risks and protect assets and the health and well-being of the people and providing a safe and sustainable environment.

HVAC

Heating, ventilation and air conditioning.

IAM

Institute of Asset Management.

ICE

Institution of Civil Engineers.

ICT

Information and Communications technology.

IDEA / IDEA Model

A maturity scale devised by Bellrock to assess a client maturity in respect of their property and facilities management data and processes.

IEMA

Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment.

IET

Institute of Engineering and Technology.

IFC view

Allows you to view your model from all angles to get comprehensive understanding of your building. Highlighting properties of every element.

IFMA

International Facility Management Association.

IFRS

International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) is a set of accounting rules that determine how transactions and other accounting events are required to be reported in financial statements.

IHEEM

Institute of Healthcare Engineering and Estate Management.

IIRSM

International Institute of Risk and Safety Management.

IMP

Incident management plan.

Inclusive design

Design that seeks to include everyone irrespective of needs, circumstances or identity.

Industry Foundation Classes

Industry standard data structures for exchanging information about construction projects, intended to be neutral and open specification and not under the control of a single vendor. It is an object-based file format with a data model developed by buildingSMART, and applies to the physical components of a building as well as related information.

Information handover plan

Statement of intentions and timings for the delivery of information assets.

Information management

Processing and storage of information in a controlled manner.

Information management plan

Statement of intention for the collection, maintenance, updating, communication and control of information and data.

Initial Investment costs

Costs that occur before taking a facility into use, e.g. planning, design, construction and legal cost and cost of incentives such as rent free periods.

Input specification

Input specifications stipulate exactly how the service provider should achieve the desired outcome. This is generally based on a schedule of tasks, frequencies and methodologies dictating exactly what should be done, when and how.

Installation

System or items of plant and equipment having the function of a facility or part thereof, also the act of installing.

Integrated Workplace Management System (IWMS)

A software platform that helps organisations optimise the use of workplace resources, resulting in cost efficiencies and increased productivity and customer satisfaction. This is the fancy term to describe the Concerto system, though not everyone in industry recognises the term.

Intelligent Enterprise (IE)

A management approach and computing infrastructure that applies technology to improve business performance.

Intelligent Workplace

The Intelligent Workplace is an intranet system that gets your people, processes and technology to work together with the information they already have, with the tools they already use.

Interface

A method of transferring between Concerto and other systems, typically a finance system.

Internal stakeholders

Individuals or groups within an organisation.

Internet of Things (IoT)

The interconnection via the internet of computing devices, vehicles, buildings and other everyday objects that enable them to send and receive data.

IOSH

Institution of Occupational Safety and Health.

IPFMA

Irish Property and Facilities Management Association.

ISO 14001

Specifies the requirements for an environmental management system.

ITT

Invitation to tender.

IWFM

Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management.

Joint procurement

The name given to the practice of combining the procurement activities of two or more contracting bodies.

Just In Time

JIT management is an operational strategic model based on the JIT inventory-management systems used by many manufacturing organisations. Justin Croston’s nickname when he’s hit is quarterly target.

Kanban Board

A Kanban board is an agile project management tool designed to help visualize work, limit work-in-progress, and maximize efficiency (or flow).

KPI

Key performance indicator.

LAN

Local Area Networks.

LCC

Life cycle costing.

LEED

Leadership in energy and environmental design.

LENS

A system used by Bellrock to manage supplier applications for payment within their target operation model.

Logistics

Services concerned with the transport and storage of goods and information.

M&E

Mechanical and electrical.

Maintenance audit

Process in which a competent person surveys all assets to determine maintenance requirements so that the assets continue to perform their intended function.

Maintenance management

Process of ensuring that the most effective and efficient maintenance programme is formulated and delivered to ensure that assets continue to perform their intended function.

Maintenance manual

Technical instructions intended to preserve an item in, or restore it to, a state in which it can perform a required function.

Maintenance plan

Structured and documented set of tasks that include the activities, procedures, resources and the time scale required to carry out maintenance.

Maintenance policy

Statement of organisational requirements in terms of regulations and standards to be observed.

Maintenance strategy

Statement of organisational approach to maintenance management.

Managing agents

This developed from the traditional role of an agent appointed to manage residential properties, on behalf of the owners or occupants. A managing agent may also manage commercial and investment properties. Also described a workplace and compliance service line (see guide book).

Manual of authorities

Document containing the authorities and authority holders within an organisation, relating to its business, functions and legal entities.

Means of escape

To reduce the risk from fire and ensure that there are safe means for people to escape in the event of a fire.

MEP

Mechanical, electrical, plumbing.

Method statements

Document detailing how a particular process will be carried out. Particularly useful for health and safety risk assessment, project planning and quality management.

MIS

Management information system. Computer system that collects and analyses data to measure performance in given areas of a business and facilitate strategic or operational decision-making.

MRF

Materials Recycling Facilities.

MTPD

Maximum tolerable period of disruption.

MTS

Medium Term Strategy.

MTTR

Mean Time To Repair.

MTBF

Mean Time Between Failures.

MTTF

Mean Time To Failure.

NaPPMI

National Property Performance Management Initiative Indicators.

Nature conservation

Nature conservation, land and biodiversity issues are regular features of business corporate social responsibility statements, FMs are usually involved in the development and implementation of biodiversity policies and action plans.

NEBOSH

National Examinations Board in Occupational Safety and Health.

NEC Forms

NEC Contract Forms Suite.

Net Capacity Survey

The net capacity assessment method is the standard method for measuring the number of pupil places available in any mainstream school. The module in Concerto (Selected Site > Net Capacity & Surveys > Net Capacity) allow the user to record pupil numbers per classroom. The module outputs to an Excel proforma as per the Department for Education specification.

NRM

New Rules of Measurement. Document published by RICS that provides a standard set of measurement rules. Gives best practice guidance in the cost management of construction projects.

NRM3

NRM 3 is intended to provide a consistent method for the quantification and description of maintenance works.

O&M

Operations and maintenance. O&M manuals must legally be provided as part of health and safety documentation for a building following any significant building work. They are usually compiled by the main contractor or the contractor’s specialist consultants.

Occupants

Users who spend a significant proportion of their time in or about a facility.

Occupations

A module within Concerto for recording occupation records, which is a broad term to describe different types of lease (Turnover, short-term, long-term, peppercorn) granted or taken by the Concerto customer.

Occupiers’ liability

Relates to the Occupiers’ Liability Acts of 1957 and 1984 and responsibilities for vacant or unmanned property. It deals with liability that may arise from accidents caused by the defective or dangerous condition of the premises.

OH & S

Occupational health and safety.

OHSAS 18001

British Standard for occupational health and safety management systems.

OJEU

Official Journal of the European Union, the publication in which all high-value public sector contracts in the EU must be advertised.

OPD

Operational Property Databank.

Open-book contracts

The Customer and the service provider agree which costs are remunerable and the mark-up that the contractor can apply to them. The customer is then invoiced for the work based on the actual costs incurred plus the agreed margin.

Operability

Capable of being put into practice or use.

Operational carbon

Weight of carbon dioxide equivalent attributable to the operational phase of a facility.

Operational phase

Use or occupancy phase in the life cycle of a facility.

Operational strategy

Overall approach to managing the production or use of a facility.

Operator

Organisation responsible for the day to day operation of a facility.

OPEX

Operational expenditure.

Organisation specific

Services related to people and organisation which are specific to the type or branch of the organisation.

OSCRE

Open Standards Consortium for Real Estate is a Non-profit organization dedicated to the development of industry standards for data exchange.

Output specifications

This focuses on the desired outcome of a service, rather than setting out details of how the service should be provided. This gives providers the scope to propose innovative solutions that might not have occurred to the procurement team.

Outsourcing

The procurement of services from external providers, normally covering both the service (or services) and management function.

Owner

Individual or organisation owning or procuring a facility.

PAS 1192

PAS 1192 is a Publicly Available Standard for the delivery of BIM-enabled information. Part 2 (2013) is focused on design and construction information. Part 3 (2014) covers the operation and management of assets.

PAS 55

The British Standards Institution’s (BSI) publicly available specification for the optimized management of physical assets – it provides clear definitions and a 28-point requirements specification for establishing and verifying a joined-up, optimised and whole-life management system for all types of physical assets.

PAT

Portable Appliance Testing.

PCI

Payment Card Industry.

PEEP

Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan.

Permits to Work

A permit to work system is a formal system used to control work that is potential hazardous. A PTW is a document which specifies the work to be done and the precautions to be taken, based on a risk assessment.

PES

Planned Engineering Services Ltd, bought by Bellrock in 2017.

PF2

The Government’s new approach for involving private finance in the delivery of public infrastructure and services through long-term contractual arrangements, following a review of the Private Finance Initiative (PFI).

PFI

Private Finance Initiative. A method of funding major capital investments where private firms, usually construction companies or service providers, are contracted to complete and manage the projects. The public services are leased to the public and the government authority makes annual payments to the private company.

Photogrammetry

The use of photography in surveying and mapping to ascertain measurements between objects.

Planned maintenance

Maintenance organised and carried out with forethought, control and the use of records to a predetermined plan based on the results of condition surveys.

PM/PPM schedule

Preventive maintenance or planned maintenance (PM) is the same thing as planned preventive maintenance (PPM). A PM or PPM schedule is a list of preplanned maintenance events over a specific period, typically 52 weeks.

Point cloud survey

A method of generating a BIM from an existing building. Laser technology is used to survey the spaces in an existing building to create a digital ‘cloud’ of geometrical points. This data is used to generate the geometry of the building which can be imported into a BIM-enabled CAD package. Materials can be identified and detailed specification information can be added.

Post Implementation review

Study of the effects of a system after it has reached a stabilised state of operational use.

Post occupancy evaluation

Process of evaluating a building or other facility in a systematic and rigorous manner after it has been built and occupied.

Power over Ethernet (PoE)

Standardised or ad hoc systems that let network cables carry electrical power, allowing a single cable to provide both data connection and electric power to devices such as wireless access points and security cameras.

PPE

Personal protective equipment.

PPP

Public private partnership. Similar in outcome to a PFI.

PQQ – Prequalification Questionnaire

This is a useful step in the process for procuring FM services. It assesses a potential service providers commercial, technical and financial capabilities and provides a method of shortlisting interested parties.

Primary processes

Processes identified by an organisation as essential to the provision of a service or product in its value chain, direct to its customers.

PRINCE2™

PRINCE2 is a process-based method for effective project management, and will give you the fundamental skills you need to become a successful project manager. It stands for Projects in Controlled Environments, and is used and recognised all over the world.

Programme

Most probably a programme (group) of projects to deliver an overarching strategic aim, e.g. “Schools basic need capital replacement 2020” or “Asbestos removal 2019”. Just think of a collection a group of common projects, commonly annualised. Within Concerto there is a mandatory one to one relationship between a project and a programme. The programme module allows users to see an overarching view of progress, financials, risks/issues and documents.

Project brief

Summary of the requirements for the definition of a project, including the development of its design.

Project execution plan

Statement of the intentions and arrangements for the implementation of a project, i.e.. Its construction work, and supporting activities and processes.

Project execution strategy

High level statement of the intentions and arrangements for a project.

Projects Module

The projects module is used to manage the delivery of a project both internally and by Concerto customers

Quick Response Code (QR code)

A type of machine-readable matrix (or 2D) barcode that contains information about the item to which it is attached and can be read using smartphones and dedicated reading devices.

R & D

Research and Development.

RA

Risk assessment.

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)

A wireless system that uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track tags containing electronically stored information that are attached to objects.

RAG reporting

RAG status reporting is used when project managers are asked to indicate the performance of a project using the series traffic lights.

RAID Log

A RAID log is a project planning tool for identifying key (R)isks, (A)ssumptions, (I)ssues, and (D)ependencies. Within Concerto these are separate modules, which can aggregate as a scorecard on the front page of a project.

RAMS

Risk assessment and method statements.

RASCI chart

Responsible, accountable, supported, consulted and informed chart that is used to summarise the roles and functions performed in a process and the activities within it.

RCM

Reliability centred maintenance.

Reactive maintenance

Unplanned maintenance activities; an inevitable supplement to planned preventative maintenance regimes in the operation of a building.

Real estate

Encompasses land along with anything affixed to the land, such as buildings.

Recycling

The collection and processing of used materials in order to utilise the raw material to produce new products.

Reliability Centred Maintenance (RCM)

Systems-based methodology used to determine maintenance tasks necessary to ensure that a facility asset or system continues to function in order to fulfil its purpose as designed in its present operating context.

Remedial work

Redesign and work necessary to restore the integrity of building fabric and components to a standard that will allow the facility to perform its original function.

Residual life

Period during which a material or component might reasonably be expected to continue to fulfil its present function provided it is routinely maintained.

Restricted procedure

Usually applies to high-value public sector contracts. Strict pre-qualification criteria are set for the contract, and only those suppliers meeting the criteria will be invited to tender.

RFI

Request for information. An alternative term for PQQ (pre-qualification questionnaire), a set of questions designed to help buyers select the most suitable bidders to be invited to tender.

RFP

Request for proposal.

RFQ

Request for quotation.

RIBA

Royal Institute of British Architects.

RIBA Stages / Plan of Work

A project delivery methodology, the RIBA Plan of Work organises the process of briefing, designing, constructing and operating building projects into eight stages. Very common to see checklists and workflows configured to align to these stages with the Concerto projects module.

RICS

Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

RIDDOR

The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 1995 regulates the UK businesses statutory obligation to report deaths, injuries, diseases and “dangerous occurrences” that take place at work or in connection with work.

Risk assessments

A systematic method of looking at work activities, considering what could go wrong and deciding on suitable control measures to prevent loss, damage or injury in the workplace.

Risk Browser

Projects Home > Risk Browser. Aggregates all project risks into a single view with filters, e.g. allowing a user to see all critical risks against all projects and programmes.

Risk Log

There are two risk log modules within Concerto, the most predominantly used is within projects. The project risk log module (Selected Project > Risk) allows users to record project related risks, which can be added from a pre-defined library of risks or project specific risks. The module allows the user to describe, categorise and score the risk. The user can record risk mitigation options, notes and optional risk impacts, e.g. time, quality, health and safety, cost, liability value. Periodical risk assessments allow the responsible user to record any deviations in risk likelihood and impact, which in turn will change the direction or travel. i.e. has the risk increased/decreased/remained the same in terms likelihood/impact. Documents can also be assigned to risk records.

Optionally risks can be allocated to activities on the project plan, and also escalated to an issue (see Project Issue).

The second, seldom used module is simply titled “Risk Register”, a standalone register of risks that may not be related to a project. E.g. organisational risks.

Robotics

The interdisciplinary branch of engineering and science that include mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, computer science and others.

ROI

Return on investment.

RPI

Retail Price Index. The retail price index is the industry standard measure of inflation, published monthly by the Office for National Statistics.

RPO

Recovery point objective.

RSTs

Road surface temperatures.

RTO

Recovery time objective.

Sale of Goods

Sale and Supply of Goods Act 1982. Protects consumers but does not apply to most business transactions.

Scope of work

Design, construction work and/or installation, testing and commissioning, handover and start up activities necessary to deliver an operational facility.

Service charges

These are levied by landlords to recover the costs they incur in providing services to a building.

Service Delivery

Service delivery is as any contact with the public administration during which customers, citizens, residents or enterprises – seek or provide data, handle their affairs or fulfil their duties.

Service level agreement (SLA)

Contract between a service provider and a client detailing the nature, quality, and scope of the service to be provided.

SFG20

The standard maintenance specification for building services. Includes detailed maintenance information for all principal types of heating, cooling and ventilation, installation and plant, and electrical services in buildings commonly in use within Europe.

SFG30

As per SFG20, but specifically concerning the mothballing and re-activation of sites.

Shell and core building

Base building elements such as structure, envelope and fit out of common areas.

SIG

Special Interest Group.

Smart Buildings

The integration of building, technology and energy systems to connect the structure itself to the functions it exists to fulfil.

Smart Cities

An urban development vision to integrate multiple ICT and Internet of Things solutions in a secure fashion to manage a city’s assets, such as schools, libraries, hospitals and public transport.

Smart Working

New ways of working made possible by advances in technology and made essential by economic, environmental and social pressures.

Space planning

The process of determining the amount of floor space available in an area, floor or entire building and how it is best used to meet individual, group and corporate needs.

Space Utilisation

A space management measure used to understand employee requirements and demands on workspace by gathering real time data, such as frequency and occupancy rates, to record how space is being used.

Stakeholder impact analysis

Method for evaluating the influence that stakeholders possess in regard to an organisation, facility or project.

Statement of needs

Expression of the objectives and needs of an individual or organisation and the extent to which they are likely to be satisfied by a facility.

Statutory Compliance Rate

Statutory compliance refers to laws which are set out by the government and enforced by the government that your business or facility must adhere to.

Succession planning

A process for identifying and developing potential future leaders or managers, along with individuals to fill other mission-critical positions. A robust succession plan is a key component of the FM business continuity plan.

Suppliers Portal

A module within Concerto that the supplier logs into to interact with orders, invoices, applications for payment and PPM.

Support processes

All activities not classified as primary are non-core activities.

Sustainability

The ability to operate in a way that does not harm the environment and that has a positive effect on the planet and its population.

Sustainable FM

The concept of sustainable practices forming the basis of facilities management operations including energy efficient products, environmentally friendly materials and recycling based waste management.

Sustainable space provision

Appropriate and affordable space requirement of an organisation.

T & Cs

Terms and conditions of contract.

Taxonomy

Practice and science of classification.

TCO

Total cost of ownership. An estimate of the total cost of a building, including direct and indirect costs, over its lifetime (including operating costs).

Telemetry

The wireless transmission and reception of data from remote sources for recording and Analysis.

Tenant

Individual or business which has temporary possession of or pays rent for real estate owned by another party.

Term contract

A contract for the supply off goods or services that may or may not be called off as and when required (also Call-Off Contract).

TFM

Total facilities management. Total facilities management is a strategy in which a provider takes responsibility for the delivery and management of all required service lines on the behalf of a client. The integrated nature of TFM solutions will often provide both cost, operational and performance efficiencies.

TOM

Targeting Operating Model. More specifically in Bellrock it is a nickname given the Concerto platform (Concerto.bellrock.fm) used to manage group service delivery.

TPM

Total productive maintenance.

TQM

Total quality management.

TUPE

This is the colloquial abbreviation of the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (SI 2006/246), which is the United Kingdom’s implementation of the European Union Business Transfers Directive. It is an important part of UK labour law, protecting employees whose business/employment is being transferred to another service provider through outsourcing or a business take-over.

Uniclass

Unified classification for the construction industry, published in 1997 by NBS (National Building Specification) on behalf of CPIC (Construction Project Information Committee). It is a classification scheme made up of a series of tables, each representing a broad facet of construction information.

VA

Volt-ampere.

Valuation

A valuation of a site, building or piece of land, recorded within the Valuations module in Concerto.

Valuation certificate

Interim certificates provide a mechanism for the client to make payments to the contractor before the works are complete. The Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act, states that a party to a construction contract in excess of 45 days is entitled to interim or stage payments.

A valuation certificate can be generated from a contract record stored against a project. Can be sometimes confused with a certificate generated for hard and soft FM works – See “Certificate”.

Virtual Reality (VR)

Computer technologies that use software to generate realistic images, sounds and other sensations that replicate a real environment, or create an imaginary setting, and simulate a user’s physical presence in that environment.

VPN

A virtual private network (VPN) is the creation of a secure network over the internet to connect to a remote server. A VPN allows users to connect to work systems and files from a remote location.

WAN

Wide area network.

Waste Management

A waste management service is characterised as the collection, transport, processing and recycling or disposal of waste materials from a building.

WEE

Waste electrical and electronic equipment.

Workplace

Services related to the working environment like fit out with furniture and equipment and tenants fit out.

WRAP

Waste & Resources Action Programme. WRAP works with businesses, individuals and communities to help them reap the benefits of reducing waste, developing sustainable products and using resources in an efficiency way.

XML

Extensible mark-up language, similar to HTML, designed to transport and store data.

Zero waste

Eliminating pollution and waste at the start of a product’s life cycle, through better product design, clean production and sensitive material selection.