The management of modern office buildings today is very different from what it used to be. The janitorial function, which used to manage everything from building maintenance and heating to checking boilers, climate and other technical equipment, has now been replaced by modern technology. ENGIE Services, one of the top providers of Facility Management services, has been providing its services to the Bratislava headquarters and more than 140 branches of Tatra banka and Raiffeisen banka, across Slovakia, since 2022. As part of an ongoing cooperation, last year it managed to successfully connect internal online building management systems.
Facility Management (FM) services for Tatra banka include comprehensive management and maintenance of facilities, servicing, professional inspections and tests of technical equipment, regular building inspections, repairs, maintenance of greenery, etc.
“Based on our experience, I can confirm that companies, developers and building owners today choose suppliers who have fully mastered the digitalization of their services. We make full use of all the latest technologies and it is our long-term goal to digitize everything we can. We are pleased that Tatra banka sees these efforts in the same way. It has always been helpful and supportive of all our efforts. Together we are looking for ways to further digitally streamline our cooperation,” says Tomáš Korpáš, Director of the Facility Management Division of ENGIE Services.
Linking online systems was a challenge for us
One of the important factors in the successful and efficient cooperation between the bank’s branches and the head office at ENGIE Services was the interconnection of the two companies’ own online building management systems. Tatra banka uses the JIRA Service Management system to manage internal service requests, while ENGIE Services uses a number of CAFM (Computer-Aided Facilities Management) systems and applications that can automate and optimise a large part of the processes. For this project, it chose the INSIO system, which is designed to manage FM activities, record, plan and control maintenance, repairs and revisions, communication and data processing.
It was absolutely crucial that the bank’s staff did not have to deal with anything extra and ENGIE Services was able to automatically download everything needed from the client’s internal systems. “From the beginning of our collaboration, we knew that it would be important for the client to be able to continue using their own JIRA system. For us, it was also important to keep the tools that our technicians work with on a daily basis and are also linked to our internal communication system. So the only logical solution was to link the two systems to ensure a continuous flow of information between the companies, while at the same time both companies retained their own applications with all the benefits they provide,” explains Tomáš Korpáš.
However, ENGIE Services, as facilities manager, had a considerable challenge to solve. “Linking the two systems was not easy given the stringent security measures in the banking sector. Therefore, we had to create a solution that would fully comply with the bank’s security standards, but at the same time be as functional as possible. We are pleased that we were able to do this and after initial testing in both companies, the two systems were successfully interconnected, synchronized and put into operation last year.” adds Tomáš Korpáš.
How does it work?
Tatra banka employees will enter a request into the JIRA system today, for example, to repair a selected device. Thanks to the interconnection of both systems, it is automatically forwarded to the INSIO application of the respective ENGIE Services project manager, who then assigns it to a technician at the selected facility. The technician carries out the repair and then sends a report back to JIRA via INSIO, where the request is closed after the equipment has been checked.
“Thanks to the digital trace of every action performed within Facility Management, not only we, but also the client, have an overview of the services provided and performed. In addition to the repeated checking of tasks, we also automatically obtain data on the scope of the work performed, which serves us, for example, as a basis for transparent invoicing,” says Korpáš.
In addition to communication regarding service requests, both systems also offer the possibility of storing documents, inspection reports, photographs or measurement results of various technical equipment.
“Tatra banka is open to all possibilities of digitalisation and supports innovations in this area as well. As a service provider, FM expects a proactive approach from us, which not only obliges us, but above all moves us forward and enables us to meet our digitalisation goals more quickly,” concludes Tomáš Korpáš.
