Solutions

Energy and Resources companies understand that the risks associated with health and safety, employee morale, operational risk and downtime are inherently high in selecting a food and facilities management (FFM) services contractor which normally would include food services (food safety risk) and technical maintenance services (health and safety risk).

Contractors will wish to provide a standard of service delivery that meets their clients' expectations as a basis for growing the business relationship and have to manage this within the clients' own procurement process (e.g. budget, standards, technical and commercial evaluation process, contractor selection process, etc.).

An approach, therefore, to minimise the gaps between end-users and contractors requires an aligning of end-user requirements and of contractor capabilities and resources, and this would include the following elements:

Procurement

• RFP/tender documents that clearly articulate the nature of the project, the operational priorities (e.g. quality, cost, health and safety, schedule and local content), scope of work, specifications, standards and client responsibilities.
• Contractor shortlisting processes that determine whether prospective contractors have the required level of experience (references), financial capability, planning and operational systems and resources capacity to undertake the project.
• Contract cost estimates based on the requirements of the RFP/tender documents with respect to; mobilization, operations and demobilization throughout the duration of the project to compare with contractor pricing.
• Contractor management arrangements that ensure there is an on-site representative responsible for ensuring the contractor meets the contract requirements and for leading action where this is not being provided.
• Balanced scorecard contract award that evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of the bidders and assess the likely impact/contribution of their performance of the services on the clients own project as part of the award process.
• Facilities and equipment should be considered as an important part of the plan to have a successful food and facilities management contract including their design and layout and equipment type, functionality and maintenance.

Contractor

• Develop and put in place a Quality Management System (QMS) that covers the key operational, functional and internal processes that will be required to operate the contract to the end-user's expectations.
• Identify equipment and other resources required by the QMS by reviewing each of the QMS procedures and listing the equipment, tools, software and other items necessary to make the procedures function efficiently and cost-effectively.
• Key personnel selection and pre-mobilization training; including Site Manager, Maintenance Supervisor, Administrator, HSE Officer, Storekeeper and Housekeeping & Laundry Supervisor.
• Scheduled site visits and client meetings by off-site managers to ensure that service quality is meeting the client's expectations and maintain regular contact with the client in-between site visits to close out operational issues quickly.
• Invest in training local staff using dedicated training supervisors and/or a higher proportion of experienced FIFO supervisors for the first 6-12 months of a contract until the staff members have acquired the key competencies.
• Detailed supply chain logistics planning during the tendering stage to ensure the means, costs, or regular supply are included in the contract pricing and discussed in the proposal/tender response.