Helping Cope to get the best out of its buildings

Cope Foundation is a non-profit organization that supports more than 2,300 children and adults with intellectual disabilities and or autism. The organization operates across 65 locations in Cork City and County. Their training and therapy; day, residential and short-break support; physical activities and sport; arts and creative therapies; and garden centres help people to take a full part in society.

One of the guiding principles for Cope’s work is being resourceful and accountable. And using the buildings and equipment in the best way possible is a key part of their strategic plan. To achieve optimum efficiency in managing the hard services for the organization’s properties, Cope introduced QFM software from Service Works Global (SWG).

Client:Cope Foundation

Project:To provide an FM software application to enhance the operational efficiency of the organization’s hard services and to support the wider business objectives.

Objectives:To manage reactive maintenance requests; to enhance hard service delivery; to streamline reporting; to increase transparency for users; to demonstrate value for the non-profit organization; and to provide technology to support new internal and external business demands.

Results:Reporting time dramatically reduced; optimum value from external contractor relationships; and increased compliance, transparency and accountability. Major improvements in workflow and performance.

Cope Foundation

se

rv

i c e w

or

ks

g l o b a l

Service Works Global info@swg.com

+1 905 332 2335

CASE STUDY Cope Foundation

With over 100 properties, including 23 residential locations, the demand for maintenance work is high. Managing Cope’s hard services includes everything from mending a creaking door to maintaining the building fabric, mechanical and electrical systems, fire alarms, plumbing and painting. The work is delivered entirely by external contractors. As Cope’s work has developed, the sites have expanded and the volume of jobs has massively increased.

Cope needed improved systems to monitor, manage and increase the efficiency and effectiveness of their maintenance work. For an organization that is working with vulnerable people, a power outage can be critical and it is essential for repairs to be carried out as soon as possible.

h Moving Forward With Technology

When Cope started searching for an FM software system, they looked at universities and colleges in the county that were using technology to manage their facilities. When SWG was able to demonstrate the benefits of QFM in a care setting in a Dublin hospital, Cope chose this system to most closely match their maintenance needs.

Before purchasing QFM two years ago, the estate relied upon Excel and Outlook to log and track reactive maintenance tasks. The master spreadsheet was held in the main office and updated with information from a copy template received with work requests from each of Cope’s sites. Jobs were sent out daily by email to the contractors, who were alerted to urgent requests with a telephone call. QFM has removed the risk of inaccuracies and time wasted in formatting Excel spreadsheets.

QFM went live across the majority of sites in September 2014 and, 12 months later, Cope’s

central administration team says that it can “breathe again.” The software system’s

self-service capability allows the care assistants to log their jobs directly, and the complete transparency of job statuses through on-line tracking has been well received.

Prior to the installation of QFM the administration team manually closed

down around 800 contractor jobs each month, which can now be done by the

service providers themselves by remote access. This allows Cope to move from being snowed under with reactive works to a proactive position and improved service.

2 of 3

h Meeting New Demands h Taking Service to a New Level

The system has huge potential.

It is capable of doing so much more and this is only the tip of the

iceberg.

Service Works Global info@swg.com

+1 905 332 2335

CASE STUDY Cope Foundation

With SWG training support for users, to guide them through the few simple steps for using the system, they quickly overcame their initial hesitation and the feedback on the benefits has been very positive. Cope’s contractors have embraced the system, with one supplier upgrading operators to smart phones to receive jobs instantly from QFM.

Using QFM has also “removed the nightmare of reporting”. Monthly reporting for line managers and the organization’s board, which used to take a day and a half to prepare before QFM, can now be completed in around one hour. Site managers also have the capability to create individual reports.

The system proved invaluable when the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) visited Cope at short notice to inspect the facility. HIQA regulates all residential services for children and adults with disabilities, making a thorough check of all the care standards, including building maintenance. Cope was able to provide a comprehensive report for hard services, commenting that it was, “fantastic to be able to hand over an extremely detailed report in a very short time frame. QFM really helped us to raise the bar.”

3 of 3

Room for the Future

Cope believes that, once installation and training is completed, the system will provide many more opportunities for enhancing FM processes, such as room bookings: “The system has huge potential. It is capable of doing so much more and this is only the tip of the iceberg.”

QFM has enabled an improvement in hard services across Cope sites by increasing operational efficiency, reducing failure, and rationalizing relationships with external contractors. An increased transparency for end-users and the capacity for producing comprehensive performance reports in a very short-time are key benefits of the system. The system supports the organization in meeting growing operational and regulatory demands.