Real estate is the second largest expense on the income statement for most companies, typically right behind labor. Managing all the information related to those facilities and their related systems can be an ongoing challenge. If it’s even available, current data about building value, condition, age and function, as well as maintenance and renewal needs, is often scattered across multiple locations and systems, creating isolated islands of information.
As a result, facilities professionals often have limited insight into operational issues that can significantly impact planning. Facility directors may be uncertain about how recently-completed projects impact their annual funding requirements. At the same time, executives don’t have a clear picture of how spending on facilities can support strategic organizational goals and objectives.
A Unified platform for Better Facilities Management
The VFA Capital Planning Software platform helps facilities professionals objectively model multi-year capital plans that optimize and align real estate portfolio investments with their mission. By centralizing asset and facility information, this cloud-based software provides the forecasting tools managers need to efficiently gather and maintain facility condition data and then leverage that data to optimize budget decisions about maintenance and capital planning.
“We wanted to put a defined strategy behind every decision we make going forward. VFA Capital Planning Software has helped position us to do that by developing a better understanding of our facility assets and creating strategic planning tools to support operating and capital funding decisions.”
Dave Tomber
Centralize Information about Your Facility Assets
VFA Capital Planning Software features a comprehensive database that supports the collection and management of a wide range of asset information, including location, structure, type, uses, conditions, requirements and their associated costs, and related projects and plans.
Customize data and views
Organize asset data into numerous levels and create customized fields and drop-down lists on the fly. Sort, group and filter asset information based on specific criteria, and view the portfolio by site, building type, size, ownership and more.
Provide remote access for all stakeholders
Unlock the value of the VFA Capital Planning Software platform for all stakeholders by providing them with quick and secure access to key facilities information on a desktop or mobile tablet. The entire team can have the timely access to the facilities data they need to effectively contribute to the capital budgeting process.
Perform mobile self-assessments
Leverage in-house staff with a tablet-based self-assessment module that helps facilities teams rapidly collect incremental facility and building condition data. This mobile capital planning software features best-practice inspection survey templates for quick and accurate assessments.
Find relevant documents and links
Documents and links to other sites and data sources can be associated site-wide, or attached to objects including regions, assets, and requirements. Examples include policy and procedure documents, maintenance schedules, approved budgets and facility-specific reports.
Even More Capabilities
In addition, with VFA software solutions, you can:
- Ensure estimate accuracy with industry cost and benchmarking data, such as RSMeans Data, BCIS, and BOMA to ensure reliable cost projections for deferred maintenance and systems renewal.
- Employ multiple cost sources within the software, including third-party solutions and your own proprietary cost estimation data.
- Streamline cost estimation with a library of building and system model templates to estimate the cost of capital asset renewal and replacement.
- Estimate system renewal costs and timelines based on both observed condition and asset age.
- Forecast long-term costs and explore the impact of different spending levels on facility conditions.
- Create multi-year budgets based on organization-wide priorities and strategies.
- Develop multiple ranking strategies for different types of assets and compare various budget scenarios.
- Evaluate different project scenarios and develop cost-effective capital projects from prioritized capital needs.
- Benchmark progress using industry- standard benchmarks, such as the Facility Condition Index (FCI), to compare assets across a portfolio or against industry standards.
- Evaluate and prioritize green options by incorporating green requirements into long-term capital planning.
