January 29, 2003—The International Facility Management Association (IFMA) has released its research report, Project Management Benchmarks, which reveals how FMs handle projects, strategic planning and the allocation of space.
Among the findings is further evidence that the number of square feet of office space per person is continuing to shrink. In 2001, the reported average rentable space per person was 355 square feet, dropping to 347 in 2002. When examining space standards and the average square footage per workstation, office sizes have decreased an overall average of 13 percent since the last report.
The amount of office space per type of worker has been shrinking steadily since 1997, but the most dramatic drop in measured space has been in upper management, decreased from 280 to 239 square feet. Senior management offices have shrunk from 193 to 169 square feet. Senior professional and professional technical offices went down to 97 and 79 square feet, respectively. There also were separate breakdowns of square feet usage according to industry type and facility use.
Only four out of 10 respondents use a CAFM (computer-aided facilities management) system to manage their space. Size of facility managed was a factoronly 23% of facilities with less than 100,000 sq. ft. use a CAFM system, while 79% with more than one million sq. ft. have such a system in place.
There was a slight increase in vacancy rates since the last measurement was taken in 1997. The median was 3% vacant. There was a slightly higher percentage of vacant space in larger facilities than in smaller ones.
The new report also shows the ratio of open offices to those enclosed continues to increase. Since 1997, the percentage of private offices has decreased by 3 percent, while open plan offices have increased by the same percentage.
Slightly less than half of the respondents provide non-dedicated workspace for workers who telecommute of visit on a periodic basis. The results were more pronounced from some industries than others (e.g., information services, e-commerce, software manufacturers).
A majority of respondents store furniture and business records off-site (78% and 61%, respectively). A smaller percentage store equipment and marketing/training materials off-site.
The number of total office relations to an entirely new location is up 8% compared to 1997, but the number of moves within an existing facility went down. The median “box move” (employees and their files only, no furniture) cost $106; the median move with furniture cost $405. Construction moves were significantly higher (just under $3,000).
The average churn rate (number of moves within a 12-month period divided by the number of occupants) was 41%. The investment industry had the highest churn (56%) and educational institutions had the lowest (15%). As a rule, the service industry had the most churn, followed by manufacturing and then by institutions.
The median cost to furnish a private office was $5,000 and for an open office was $3,750 (including panels).
Project Management Benchmarks, released in January, also reveals survey results on a variety of project management topics and facility benchmarks. Data on project scope, schedules, budgets, bidding processes and staffing are included, as well as move management and furnishings, space planning and strategic facility planning.
Almost three-fourths of the facility professionals surveyed said they either meet with senior executives or supply information that is used by others in the strategic facility planning process. While 82 percent agree that having a strategic facilities plan is important, only 54 percent said they actually have a current written plan.
The survey was mailed to IFMA professional members in the United States and Canada in April 2002. More than 650 were returned, and a total of 629 were used for analysis. Among the respondents, 50 percent represented service industries; 30 percent were from manufacturing facilities; and 20 percent came from government, education, research, religious and other institutions. About half of the respondents came from headquarters sites.
Project Management Benchmarks, is available from the IFMA Bookstore, $50 for members; $100 for non-members. Orders may be faxed to 713/623-6124 or by e-mail. For phone orders (credit cards only), call 713/623-4362.
