CONNECT !T h e Q u a r t e r l y N e w s l e t t e r o f A s s e t S e r v i c e s I n d i a

V o l u m e 8 : I s s u e 3 - O c t o b e r 2 0 1 4

ASSET SERVICES

2

Foreword

Anshuman Magazine

Chairman & Managing Director CBRE South Asia Pvt. Ltd.

Dear Team,

With CBRE India completing 20 years

of service in the real estate sector, I

take this opportunity to thank you for

helping us succeed and sustain our

leadership position in the industry.

Starting out with a team of three

operating out of an office in New Delhi

back in September 1994, I am proud

to say that today we have over 3,200

colleagues spread across the country.

We could not have come this far

without your dedication and hard work

throughout this journey.

In the early 1990s India was a

struggling economy with a small and

unorganized real estate market, which

lacked professionalism as well as

funding. It was an extremely difficult

market to operate in, without any

brand awareness of our firm, non-

existent market information—and most

importantly—non-existent real estate

talent.

Despite our early challenges, we have

today become a leading International

real estate services firm in India. It is

heartening to note that a large number

of our colleagues have been a part of

our organization for more than a

decade, a commitment that all our

clients value.

Thank you for making the past 20

years so successful for us.

Warm regards,

Anshuman Magazine

Introduction

Rajesh Pandit

Dear Team,

The recent months have certainly

proved to be a season of achievements

and awards for us in the organization.

I wish to express my appreciation to all

our Asset Services team for their role in

helping CBRE India complete 20

successful years in the business of real

estate consultancy in this country. On

that note, I would like to thank each of

you for your dedication and

commitment towards the growth of our

firm over the years.

With such sustained hard work comes

recognition; and it is with immense

pleasure that I announce the

achievement of our Asset Services

team in winning the Property

Management Firm of the Year – West

as well as the Property Management

Firm of the Year –South trophies at the

recently concluded Realty Plus

Excellence Awards.

Congratulations to all of us in the team

for working relentlessly towards

excellence in everything that we do.

Our persistence and attention to detail

have paid off.

All this encouragement from our peers

and industry leaders should hopefully

inspire us to reach for greater heights,

going forward.

As part of CBRE's commitment to our

RISE values and to maintain the

highest standards of ethics in

everything we do, recently all

employees had been enrolled in a

valuable training course on

“Confidential Information and

Computer Security”.

I’m happy to say that all of us have

successfully completed the course. The

training helped explain the goals of

our information security program,

while describing how to best protect

our firm’s electronic resources and the

responsible ways to protect our

confidential information.

Hopefully, going forward, we should

now be able to identify and prevent

social engineering attempts, and

effectively manage our records to the

best of our abilities. Especially as many

colleagues in our team are stationed at

remote sites and client offices, it is all

the more important for us to protect

our electronic resources and remain

alert to computer security incidents.

Please remember to report concerns

and raise questions as soon as they

arise.

Also I would like to highlight that most

of the articles in this issue of Connect

are contributions from our colleagues

in the North region. Please feel free

and send in your contributions for

Connect.

I would like to end this note with the

thought that whether we win or lose,

our satisfaction should remain in

having applied the best of ourselves to

the task at hand—and recognition will

surely follow.

Take care, and stay ahead of the

game!

3

ASSET SERVICES

THE WOW FACTOR

Contributed by: Mayank Agnihotri

The "Wow" factor is a commonly used slang that

most often depicts what a company does to go

beyond customer

expectations in

delivering a great

service experience. It

generally relates to the

exceptional customer

service in which a

team offers the client more than expected or

something not expected at all.

However, in anticipation to achieve a WOW from

client we just need to follow few basic aspects:

Being Pro-Active

Active means doing something. The prefix ‘pro’

means ‘before’. So if you are proactive, you are

ready before something happens.

For some cases

it’s not possible

for the team to

avoid the

breakdown

situations;

however team

can anticipate

the situation

and gear up

the ground

work that will

result in

dealing with the problem much faster than the

usual. For example, maintenance staff should have

the directory where all the contact details of the

vendors are mentioned for different breakdowns

that can arise with the specific set up. For soft

services, proactive term stand more valid as you

should have the eye for the detail; even small

modifications can make you achieve the word

“WOW”.

Anticipation is the key of being Proactive.

Feedback Surveys

Client feedback is paramount when determining a

Client's needs and expectations.

Crucial step towards maintaining or raising

customer satisfaction is through running feedback

surveys.

Feedback

surveys

help you

know

your

client in a

better

way:

You give your Clients the opportunity to tell

you what they like / dislike regarding the

services.

It’s a good way of finding out what your

customers really want, instead of assuming that

you know what they desire.

You can correct past actions and

practices which didn’t appeal to your customer.

Future actions and strategies can be planned to

be more effective and more client-oriented.

“The more you engage with the clients

the clearer things become and the

easier it is to determine what you

should be doing”.

Customer Service

Good customer service involves developing bonds

with customers, hopefully leading to long-term

relationships. It creates advantages for both

customers and the business.

Customers benefit because the business is

providing a service that meets their needs. The

business benefits because satisfied customers are

likely to be repeat customers. However, good

customer service is not easily achieved. It takes

time to establish. It requires investment to deliver

consistent standards.

ASSET SERVICES

4

Continued…. The Wow Factor

To maintain these standards first you need to

identify what client expects from us in terms of

customer service provision. It then builds these

customer expectations into the services it provides.

For example, this involves:

Ensuring first that deployed team is courteous

at the site.

Deployed team is well informed with services

we provide at the site.

Dealing with any complaints promptly and

fairly.

Follow-ups.

“Customer service is just a day in, day out

ongoing, never ending, and unremitting,

persevering, compassionate, type of activity”

Value for money

Is a very short term but a long difference it can

make towards the perception of the Client? It

simply can be

termed as

producing

good results

without

costing lot of

money. Client

should feel

that whatever

is being spent,

should get the

right worth for

the same.

Proof of good value for money is in believing or

concluding that the goods/services received was

worth the price paid.

Source | Image from: customerservicemanager.com /

forbes.com

THERMOGRAPHY

CASE STUDY

Contributed by: Vivek Bhatia

Location: CBRE Managed Office in Gurgaon

Introduction

Most of us today think of infrared thermography

as a tool that is used to detect problems with

electrical connections. But that represents only

one segment of the array of applications and

potential benefits when this technology is properly

utilized.

Background

As part of our desire to provide the best of

services, meet all safety norms and take proper

care of equipment and electrical installation

safety; infrared thermal imager camera was used

to perform a Thermography study through one of

our partners.

Image 1 – Poor termination can result in

generation of high temperatures

Infrared thermal imager camera inspection of the

distribution equipment is beneficial in the

reduction of risk. Many companies are beginning

to see the advantages of the technology and

endorse it due to the reduction in risk by those

that incorporate IRT compared with those that

don’t.

ASSET SERVICES

5

Continued…. Thermography Case Study

Image 2 – Possible termination within 3 phase

MCBs

It was in this backdrop that the complete Client

Facility, which has 195 Panel & Distribution

Boards were put through this test.

It was discovered many potential points of

failure and others that had the potential for a

more significant and imminent fault to occur.

An electrical infrared thermal imager camera

study identified many different defects, from

poor terminations of conductors to out of

balance phasing, faulty components to

overloaded installations. Thus it became clear

that the use of infrared thermal imager camera

can and does highlight issues that cannot be

detectable by other means and not identifiable

when completing an Electrical Installation

Condition Report (or PIR, periodic inspection as

it was previously known). For this addition,

there is no requirement to shut down the

installation which also enabled us to complete

our clients study during normal business

operations.

The varied defects found on the day of

inspection were presented in a concise report

which was shared with Client for review. The

most significant defects were highlighted and

summarized in report (single page, defect

identification) immediately after completing the

study.

Image 3 – Poor termination will over time

deteriorate with very early detection available

using IRT

In one of the distribution board which was

inspected, the team discovered that several of

the conductors were exceeding the working

normal temperatures and one of these

conductors was exceeding 60˚C due to a poor

termination at the wire connector.

Temperatures such as this can be the only

catalyst required to trigger a devastating fire.

Other defects included a possible defective 3

phase MCBs at a distribution board, lower risk

poor terminations and possible defects to

switch gear feeding plant. This was so very

essential to the running of the entire plant, as a

single defect can cause failure in supply and

have the potential to close the entire building

production.

The study carried out was able to highlight all

the risks identified within the electrical

distribution at the plant and enabled the site in

house engineering and maintenance team to

effectively carry out prompt repairs of those

defects. Without early detection it can manifest

into events far more sever and with more

devastating results.

In addition to infrared thermal imager camera

study, we are able to carry out full inspection

and test regime for a complete condition

monitoring of all installations.

ASSET SERVICES

6

PLANNING TOOLS

Emergency Response Guides

Emergency Preparedness Booklets and

Brochures

Riser Diagrams & Floor Plans

Fire Safety and Emergency Action Plans

Online and Video Instruction

RECOVERY ACTIONS

Replace and repair

property

Replace sprinkler

components

CRISIS MANAGEMENT

Establish an Incident

Command

Notify fire department

Evacuate the building

Establish a Safety zone

EMERGENCY

PREPAREDNESS

IMPORTANCE & BENEFITS

Contributed by Himadri Chatterjee

When people think of business emergency

preparedness plans, they tend to imagine massive

catastrophes like hurricanes, floods, earthquakes,

tornadoes, bombings, and shootings etc.

These events are certainly significant in their

scope, but for most organizations the bulk of

business interruption risk actually comes from

more ordinary threats like a leaking or bursting

pipe, an Internet access outage, or a power

outage caused by an external event. The

difference between bouncing back with minimal

disruption or costly, long-term damage is often

the plan that was in place long before the disaster

occurred.

A recent survey has indicated that that nearly one

in five (19%) surveyed organizations did not have

an up-to-date emergency preparedness/business

continuity plan. This figure is only more shocking

considering the catastrophically high cost that an

unforeseen emergency can incur – including the

possibility of total business failure. The study

suggests that the 81% of organizations with an

up-to-date plan are “not only able to handle

identified risks, but they are also more resilient

when recovering from unplanned events.”

This makes a compelling case for elevating the

role of facility management professional as a

strategic partner as organizations and facilities

gain complexity. For businesses developing or

updating their emergency preparedness/business

continuity plans, there are 10 areas that must be

considered.

A facilities management professional plays a

significant role throughout this process.

Define Roles: Determine who is responsible for

the formation and execution of the plan. This is

often a role assumed by a facility management

professional and/or a facility management

team.

Define Mission: Critical Functions – Prioritize

functions so you can determine which to

dedicate resources to protecting and which to

address first in the case of a failure.

Define Risks: Assess vulnerabilities, especially

to mission critical functions, and determine

their likelihood.

Calculate Costs: Estimate the cost of downtime

as well as the cost of preparation and

planning.

Monitor: Use manpower and technology to

catch disasters before they occur.

Communicate: Make sure your post-

emergency communications plan is resilient.

Test: Ensure the elements of your plan are in

good working order.

Practice: When possible, conduct live drills and

table top exercises.

Adapt and Adjust: A plan should be an

organic thing, not something you write and

file. Make regular adjustments based on

testing, practicing, and changing situations

and priorities.

Crowd Source: Develop a network of strategic

partners and facility management

professionals that you can go to for advice

when disaster strikes.

The schematic diagram below provides a simple

process which could be followed in the course of

preparation of plan, to ensure recovery and during

the crisis scenarios.

ASSET SERVICES

7

Continued…. Emergency Preparedness

An emergency plan specifies procedures for

handling sudden or unexpected situations. The

objective is to be prepared to:

Prevent fatalities and injuries.

Reduce damage to buildings, stock, and

equipment.

Protect the environment and the community.

Accelerate the resumption of normal

operations.

Development of the plan begins with a vulnerability

assessment.

How likely a situation is to occur?

What means are available to stop or prevent

the situation?

What is necessary for a given situation?

At the planning stage, it is important that several

groups be asked to participate. Among these

groups, the health and safety committee can

provide valuable input and a means of wider

worker involvement. Completing a comprehensive

plan for handling emergencies is a major step

toward preventing disasters. However, it is difficult

to predict all of the problems that may happen

unless the plan is tested. Exercises and drills may

be conducted to practice all or critical portions

(such as evacuation) of the plan. A thorough and

immediate review after each exercise, drill, or after

an actual emergency will point out areas that

require improvement. Knowledge of individual

responsibilities can be evaluated through paper

tests or interviews.

The plan should be revised when shortcomings

have become known, and should be reviewed at

least annually. Changes in plant infrastructure,

processes, materials used and key personnel are

occasions for updating the plan.

It should be stressed that provision must be made

for the training of both individuals and teams, if

they are expected to perform adequately in an

emergency. An annual full-scale exercise will help

in maintaining a high level of proficiency.

SOFTSERVICES FORUM

TEAM

Contributed by Shivaprakash

In light of keeping the momentum and pioneer the

support team activity

“Chennai soft service

forum team” has

driven this great

opportunity to meet

this splendid crowd of

cheerful participants

from sites in Chennai

without affecting the site operations during

weekend. The Workshop took its great dive on 9th

Aug, 2014 and under the leadership of the

Operations team.

Idea of workshop:

The display of Posters, checklist, and product

information took the team to an edge of awareness

with a Workshop Moto so called – Listen, Execute &

Teach others for better understanding of their job

activities at their workplace. Four different colour

badges (Blue, Green, Red & Yellow) were

addressed to participants with the Six Golden Rule

of Workshop namely Safety at workplace,

Grooming, Time management, Communication,

Teamwork and Job Knowledge.

SSFT (soft service forum team) has planned the

workshop in such a way that it provides more

knowledge, methodology in easy way of

understanding, and enjoy their work and provide

result as expected out from them.

Task team enjoyed participating in few live activities

like communication, teamwork, time management,

grooming which was well addressed by our CBRE,

Facility & Property Managers.

ASSET SERVICES

8

GLOBAL WARMING

FM PERSPECTIVE

Contributed by: Jasraj S Grover

Global Warming is the increase in the world's

temperature and changes in the world's climate

caused by Carbon Dioxide

from our cars, factories

and power plants. Many

scientists believe that the

world is getting warmer

and that this will affect

our oceans, weather,

and agriculture. Some

even believe that

countries and cities near

the coast will disappear

as sea-levels rise.

The planet is warming

everywhere from North

Pole to South Pole.

Globally, the mercury is

already up more than 1 degree Fahrenheit (0.8

degree Celsius), and even more in sensitive Polar

Regions. The effects of rising temperatures are not

waiting for some far-flung future. They’re

happening right now. Signs are appearing all over,

and some of them are surprising. The heat is not

only melting glaciers and sea ice it’s also shifting

precipitation patterns and setting animals on the

move.

How can FM Industry Contribute

Electricity consumption while a must for human

sustenance is also one of the major sources which

is contributing to global warming in developing

economies like India, considering the major source

of power generation in India being thermal power

(coal).The question that arises is what can we do to

minimize CO2 / Green House Gases emission

which in turn would help in reducing global

warming?

The FM industry plays a definitive role in providing

answers, one of which is conducting an energy

audit at every site, irrespective if is a floor or

building being managed, whether it is a newly

constructed or a relatively / old occupied / owned

building, or replacing the lights with sensor based

system, sewage treatment plant

A question that will be raised by the associated

employee of the FM industry/ CBRE (making it our

company centric for being able to connect better)

with site will be about

allocation of budget

from the clients in the

current times of cost-

cutting.

Our role as a company

/ industry comes in

here, we need to show

the client the value of

his spend, one of the

ways can be to get an

energy audit conducted,

this will not only help in

bringing down monthly

electricity invoices (return

on investment) due to

bridging in gaps where energy loss can be

minimized, suggestion such as increasing the

precision air conditioner temperature in critical

rooms to about 24 Deg C temperature in area like

Server room / Hub rooms is acceptable as against

18 – 20 Deg C that is largely maintained at many

sites, using light sensors instead of the conventional

switch on and off PDU (Power Distribution Board)

for lights.

Project team at the

time of planning

can suggest a

onetime expense

of creating a solar

power set up for

new sites which

would generate

electricity for them

and reduce electrical financial spend quite

significantly month on month. Let’s not forget that

more and more companies are opening up to the

idea of giving back to the environment / society, in

fact the government is making it mandatory for

9

ASSET SERVICES

Continued…. Global Warming

corporate to invest in Corporate Social

Responsibility (CSR’s)

How can we make a Difference?

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Do your part to reduce waste by choosing reusable

products instead of disposables

Change a Light Bulb:-

Replace regular light bulbs with compact

fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs. Replacing just one 60-

watt incandescent light bulb with a CFL will save

you $30 over the

life of the bulb.

CFLs also last 10

times longer

than

incandescent

bulbs, use two-

thirds less

energy, and give off 70 percent less heat.

Buy Energy-Efficient Products

When it's time to buy a new car, choose one that

offers good gas mileage. Home appliances now

come in a range of energy-efficient models (Bureau

of Energy Efficiency - Star rating is now available

for every electrical appliance, the higher the star

rating the less energy consumption)

Do not leave appliances on standby

Use the “on/off” function on the machine itself. A

TV set that’s switched on for 3 hours a day

and in standby mode during the remaining 21

hours uses about 40% of its energy in standby

mode.

Clean or replace filters in time

Cleaning a dirty air filter can save 350 pounds of

carbon dioxide a year of an small AC.

Plant a tree

A single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide

over its lifetime. Shade provided by trees can also

reduce your air conditioning bill by 10 to 15%.

Source | Image: admc.hct.ac.ae / environment.nationalgeographic.com /

environment.about.com / globalwarming-facts.info / brainjabber.wikispaces.com /

youthvoices.net

HOUSEKEEPING

It is the responsibility of CBRE and our service

partners to ensure that work is performed in

compliance to

maintain safe

housekeeping

practices in CBRE-

managed facilities.

The health & safety of

the housekeeping staff

should be protected by good housekeeping

practices, achieved through implementation of

proper training, policies and procedures.

Regular housekeeping and inspection practices

should be performed to ensure that facilities are

kept in a condition which reduces the occurrence of

hazards. The following are some of the process

requirements for safe housekeeping practices:

Spill Management

Measures should be taken to keep containers

sealed when not in use and keeping only the

minimum quantity of liquid required at the worksite

and the remainder in storage.

Housekeeping staff must be trained in procedures

for the safe clean-up of the various types of

hazardous spills which may occur at the site.

Material Storage

Good housekeeping practices, such as that of

organizing storage material will reduce the quantity

of material handled and ensure designated

materials are being properly stored

Designated storage spaces with sufficient capacity

must be available at the workplace for the storage

of materials. Aisles and passageways must be clear

of obstructions which could create a hazard.

Materials must not be stored, temporarily or long

term a) near electrical equipment, b) near locations

where materials may block entry into a machine or

process and any safety device (a guardrail).

10

ASSET SERVICES

HOW TO IMPROVE LOOK &

FEEL OF AN OFFICE

LOW COST OPTIONS

Contributed by: Purva Verma

Design of office building per se contributes in a

large measure, to the look and feel of the office.

This is a onetime effort, when the facility is getting

ready. The Interiors, which by itself, is a very

structured process, like getting right colour

combinations and texture, ergonomics, furniture

design, fixtures,

lights, glass etc.,

which can lead to

a breath-taking

work environment.

The look and feel

of any office is

generally kept in

sync and company’

values, ethos, work

culture etc.

However here my

endeavor is to

bring out aspects

which can further

contribute to the

look and feel of the

office, through small actions by Facility

Management team, and especially which are low

on cost but high on impact.

Plants

The easiest and foremost is to add a bit of green by

placing plants in areas like reception, hallways,

cafeterias, balconies, break out areas, or the

landing area, etc. This very easily breaks the

monotony of the structure (which are generally of

softer shades and straight lines) and creates an

ambiance of peace and calm, as plants are very

pleasing and refreshing to eyes.

These can be placed in areas where it will not come

in the way, which might cause people to trip or

clutter the corridor, and importantly also these are

placed in areas where can be easily reached for

their upkeep and maintenance.

Yes, the key word is ‘balance’, it is most important,

because, it’s not always about the ‘wow’ factor. Just

because something looks great or goes with the

design scheme doesn’t mean it will be functional or

promote productivity.

The office space by all means must make the

employees feel welcome and inspire them to do

their work efficiently and proficiently. If an employee

is going to spend eight hours a day on the job--or

10, or say 12, it should be a place where he or she

wants to go to.

Air Freshner

We all are very

conscious of smell;

good smell does

lighten us up and

bad smell does put

us off. The

ambiance can be

enhanced by

adding some soft

aromas to the

office space, by

means of scented

candles,

deodorisers or air

fresheners or some

soft scented plants in the corridors. These areas

need to be selected very carefully after studying, as

few employees may be allergic to some scents or

these aromas invite unnecessary attention, which

may be distracting to employees.

And, for washroom it is something which we must

always do as that is the area where lot of times foul

smell do generate and these scented

candles/lamps/sprays etc. are very useful to offset

the foul smell. Often, the smell of food from the

cafeterias wafts through vents into the working

areas. Sometimes these smells linger on and turn

unpleasant. This can be mitigated, by perhaps

trying to make sure that all the food laid out in the

buffet area are in containers that have lids. Or even

by spraying room fresheners into the vents above

the cafeterias post all meal times. Also, pot-pourris

can be placed on reception desks or meeting

ASSET SERVICES

11

How long have you been with CBRE?

7+ years

Where are you from?

Jalandhar

What are you addicted to?

Everyday chat with my daughter

What is your idea of fun?

An evening with close friends

What do you like most about your job?

Number and variety of people we meet

Who inspires you and why?

My Father - A selfless man

The one food you can never say no to….

Sweets

If you were invisible for a day you would …..

Travel the world without having to pay for it

Dinner with Kareena, Katrina or ………

Deepika Padukone

Your favourite poison…

Black Label

Music, you can’t get off your head…

Jagjit - Chitra Ghazals

If you could play any character in a movie, which one would it

be…

Ranbir Kapoor in - Yeh Jawaani hai Deewani

Where would you like to go for a vacation?

Bali

Which book that you have read would you recommend to your

colleagues?

Alchemist

Who’s your favorite superhero or cartoon character?

Chacha Chaudhary

What is your favorite quote or saying?

Life is simple. Lets’ not complicate it.

Continued…. How to improve Look & Feel of an

office

rooms, which could create a welcoming feeling for

the people working in the office.

A very mundane but important factor is "Use of the

Right Cleaning Agent” which adds to aroma and a

freshly cleaned office can smell superb as well!!

Painting:

Paintings and posters do break the monotony of

the wall, adds colour to the office space and helps

us to establish connect with the employees.

Paintings also add to brightness of the office space

and softness to an otherwise serious corporate

environment. These again can be very suitably

placed at the

reception walls or the

hallways or corridors,

cafeterias, break out

areas, etc. Small

painting/posters can

be put in the cabins

and meeting room.

These need to go with the internal décor and to

say the least be always pleasing to eyes. The

cleaning and maintenance of painting is

something which is a specialised activity. Cleaning

of painting with a soft dry cloth, and frames need

to be a practically executable chore. A canvas

hanging on the wall would need a great deal of

care than a print or a painting that is framed in

glass.

Today offices are largely open-plan, with a view to

encourage teamwork, collaboration, creativity, and

allow employees to share information faster and

easier. Therefore managing these offices are

easier compared to the offices which have too

many cabins and walls in the floor plate. At the

end of the day what we are expecting to achieve is

to make employees feel good, make them feel

welcome; provide them a work space in which they

feel happy to spent time, and in all improving their

satisfaction level and happiness quotient. This all

leads to enhanced productivity and morale.

It is just a matter of being pleasingly-practical!!

Image source: pantherinteriors.co.uk / learntodream.co.uk

Col Rajinder Singh

Unplugged

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