Speech by 2M Indranee Rajah at the Facilities Management Expert Summit (FMES) Opening Ceremony
Aug 15, 2025
Introduction
Good morning. I am delighted to be here with you today.
The FM industry touches our everyday lives.
You perform the important work that ensures that our homes and workplaces are safe, clean and well-maintained.
Over the years, our FM industry has also been transforming itself through harnessing technology, adapting to emerging needs and deepening collaborations with key stakeholders.
Today I would like to recognise some of these efforts and share a few thoughts on the road ahead.
Harnessing Technology
First up on technology. The deployment of robotics, Internet of Things sensors, and Artificial Intelligence has revolutionised FM services, improving efficiency and enabling more responsive FM services.
Our FM companies have been quick to harness these innovations.
Today, Smart FM solutions have been widely adopted across Singapore.
This includes most public buildings and a significant proportion of private buildings.
For instance, in CPF Board’s offices, the FM team from Chambers International deployed a suite of smart sensors, automated solutions, real-time monitoring dashboards, and predictive maintenance systems.
Their smart systems can optimise cleaning schedules based on facility usage patterns.
Complemented with cleaning automation tools including robotics, the results have been remarkable: with up to 51% reduction in cleaning hours achieved.
As new technological solutions emerge, there will be more opportunities for our companies to unlock greater value.
The Government has set up various initiatives to help the industry harness these opportunities.
The Built Environment Accelerate-to-Market Programme (BE AMP) is one such initiative. It matches FM companies with solution providers to tackle challenges faced on the ground.
For example, EM Services found that inspecting common spaces in HDB blocks was very labour-intensive.
Through BE AMP, EM Services was connected with dConstruct, a robotics solution provider, to develop robots that can automate such inspections, freeing up their staff to focus on higher value work.
I would like to commend our FM companies that have harnessed these innovations to improve operational efficiency and undertaken job redesign that have created brighter career prospects for our FM professionals.
Adapting to Emerging Needs
Second, our FM firms have also been adapting to meet the changing needs of our society.
One key area is environment sustainability.
Our buildings contribute to about 20% of Singapore's greenhouse gas emissions.
As stewards of our buildings, our FM companies play a key role in reducing the carbon footprint of building operations.
Take for example, Kim Yew Integrated, a leading local FM SME.
Through smart air-conditioning systems that incorporate weather forecasts and predictive models, Kim Yew Integrated helped clients reduce their buildings’ carbon emissions, extend the lifespans of key building systems, and reap cost savings.
I encourage more FM companies to continue pressing on with such efforts, so that we can realise our national decarbonisation goals.
Another area of emerging need is to ensure the timely maintenance of ageing building infrastructure.
This includes building structures, facades, lifts and escalators.
As the day-to-day caretakers of our buildings, FM teams are well-positioned to identify early signs of wear and tear, and flag potential issues for timely remediation.
These will complement the periodic checks by our Competent Persons and Specialist Professional Engineers and help ensure that our buildings remain safe and comfortable for all of us.
To better support our FM professionals to identify infrastructure-related issues, BCA will be looking to organise training and sharing sessions with the FM industry in the coming years.
I encourage our FM companies to participate actively.
BCA will share more details in due course.
Building Strong Partnerships
Third, the FM industry thrives on strong partnerships.
When FM companies, their sub-contractors, building owners, and stakeholders work together effectively, we can achieve better outcomes for all.
For instance, Cushman & Wakefield (Singapore), or C&W, has launched an initiative for its contractors, known as the “Strategic Preferred Partnership Programme”.
Through this programme, C&W develops long-term collaborations with key contractors.
C&W’s in-house teams involve their key contractors in identifying common challenges and co-create innovative solutions.
They also share resources and access to their technological platforms with their key contractors for greater synergies.
These efforts allow C&W and its contractors to uplift their capabilities together and deliver greater value-add to building owners.
Over the years, the industry is transforming and trying out new contracting models. As the stakeholders in the eco-system adapt and adjust to the changes, there may be friction in negotiating contract terms and highlighted the need to improve contracting practices.
Some have voiced concerns about unfair profit-sharing arrangements between main contractors and their sub-contractors;
While others have highlighted the difficulties involved in negotiating contract variations and sharing of unanticipated cost increases.
To encourage the adoption of sub-contracting best practices, I am pleased to share that BCA will be releasing an updated FM Procurement Guide around the end of this year.
FM service buyers and providers, in both the public and private sectors, can take reference from the guide to improve your contracting practices.
BCA will share more details when ready.
To drive deeper collaboration, BCA will also be piloting the first NEC 4 FM contract in Singapore, as part of its ongoing Integrated FM tender for the BCA Academy.
The NEC4 FM contract form offers a more collaborative alternative to traditional FM contracts with fairer sharing of risks and rewards.
For example, it requires parties to raise early warnings so that issues can be discussed and resolved early. It also sets the service level and reward to incentivise service providers towards better service delivery.
BCA has developed additional clauses to align the NEC4 FM contract with local laws and practices and will be looking to share the best practices and lessons learnt from the pilot with the broader industry.
We hope this will help encourage more building owners and FM companies to try out collaborative contracting approaches in the coming years.
Conclusion
Let me conclude. The FM industry has made significant strides in technology adoption, adapting to meet emerging needs, and fostering stronger partnerships.
Through this transformation journey, SIFMA has been an invaluable partner supporting the industry and raising professional standards.
As SIFMA celebrates its 5th anniversary, I would like to express my appreciation for your contributions to the sector.
Today, we are also honouring Dr Teo Ho Pin, who has made significant contributions to the FM industry in various capacities, including as a FM professional, educator, and leader.
Over the past three decades, he has also been a strong advocate for the BE sector and played a key role in efforts to uplift the FM industry.
Congratulations SIFMA and Dr Teo for your achievements.
Thank you very much and I wish everyone a fruitful summit ahead.