Opinion A sustainable future Starting early in a projects life-cycle will have a long-lasting impact on its sustainability. Here, Mick Saltzer gives his tips on how to ensure outcomes benefit everyone Mick Saltzer In the realm of asset management, where investments and resources are strategically allocated, the true measure of success lies not in the inputs deployed, but in the transformative power of outcomes realised. In this context, there are many reasons why facilities may choose to invest in their infrastructure, including: To support core business functions To improve efficiency and effectiveness Safety and compliance Sustainability Resilience. Ultimately, the objective of an infrastructure investment is to satisfy the needs of its users and, depending on the nature of the investment, this can have an impact on businesses, communities and individuals. While many of the reasons listed above are not new to asset management, enhancing the overall sustainability of a facilitys assets has emerged as one of the most important driving factors for infrastructure investments in recent years. This is no surprise more than 40 per cent of carbon emissions in the United Kingdom are from the built environment. The Paris Climate Agreement, signed by 196 parties, aims to limit warming to +1.5C to avoid the most catastrophic impacts of climate change this means cutting 50 per cent of emissions by 2030. Starting early to get ahead Intelligent and data-driven decisions require smart buildings supported by smart systems and platforms Mick Saltzer has been engaged with the IAM for a number of years, supporting development of SSGs and other strategic projects. He is Regional Technical Services Director for CBRE (Europe) with more than 30 years of asset management experience. He has a BEng(Hons) in Mechanical Engineering, MSc in Asset Management, is a Chartered Engineer, Registered Asset Management Professional and Fellow of IMechE. Contact him at mick.saltzer@cbre.com Decisions made early in the infrastructure investment lifecycle will have a long-lasting impact. Starting early enables asset managers to go beyond the typical financial and technical questions allowing more sustainable and other important factors to be included. Incorporating other factors into the decision-making process introduces more complexity to the activity. There are many factors to consider and establishing success factors early in the life-cycle that can be revisited will also form part of continuous learning. These include: Decarbonisation: Developing a carbon and energy strategy that is fit for current and future requirements and leverages the use of renewable technologies. Resources: What are the projected demands on resources, congestion, supply chain, population and city growth? What innovation can be implemented to minimise impact and accelerate project planning and delivery? Technology and data: Deciding on technology that can be deployed to support future-proofing. What data is required? How can it be collected and stored securely, and used throughout the life of the investment to enhance decisionmaking and connectivity? Operation and maintenance: Driving intelligent and datadriven decisions requires smart buildings supported by smart systems and platforms with robust means to collect and analyse data and predict performance. Connected building automation will achieve increased efficiency and operational reliability while reducing carbon and lowering costs. This will be supported by IoT and data analytics solutions, with repetitive tasks being automated, increased levels of virtual and remote support and a range of dynamic services focused on the best user experience. Considerations include: Reporting: Requirements for business to report their emissions will increase. These will call for levels of detail enabled by a robust data strategy, whether it be for transport, energy, utilities or at a building level and should be an early consideration. Financial: What opportunities can be created to generate new revenue streams for businesses and local communities? The attractiveness to future investors and what is value in the eyes of shareholders. Regeneration: What is the impact on our ecosystem and how can we protect and regenerate our biodiversity replanting, reclaiming, repurposing. Designing for end-of-life disposal, repurposing and regenerating, and considering future liabilities and responsibilities. Social value: Projecting growth, demand and disruption, DE&I (diversity, equity and inclusion), impact on local employment, job creation opportunities, skills development, health, living and wellbeing. How do people work now and in the future in occupied buildings? How can communities be engaged? How can they be made accessible and promote wellbeing? Resilience: Increasing threats of cyber security, impact of a zero-trust culture, changes in work practices and worker expectations. Increasing changes in weather conditions. Anticipating and predicting changes in climate conditions and building in levels of adaptability and repurposing to protect investments and communities from drought and flood. In conclusion, focusing on outcomes and prioritising sustainability will ensure that needs and expectations are met for current and future generations.