Retirement village - Audley villages across the UK
Account manager - Laura Smith
System installed - Asset management
Details - Through our technology-driven, proactive approach, Audley can now seamlessly manage over 40,000 devices, across all of its villages. For the first time, Audley knows exactly where all of its critical devices are located, their installation and service history, projected life span and even whether basic SLAs are being met for their service and maintenance.
Audley Group has been successfully building and managing luxury integrated retirement communities (IRC’s) since 2007 and developing quality retirement properties and care services for older people since 1983.
Today, Audley’s portfolio includes 20 villages across the UK and is set to grow further in the coming decade as additional retirement homes for 250,000 older people are built nationwide by 2030.
With a large and growing portfolio, Audley needed to proactively manage the tracking and maintenance of over 40,000 physical assets, including but not limited to - CCTV cameras, intruder alarm systems, fire alarms, door entry systems, access control devices and warden call systems - across its entire estate to ensure they are in good working order and remain compliant with the latest regulatory requirements.
Without a robust process in place, managing the lifecycle of assets can be problematic. Audley needed full visibility across the lifecycle from installation through to replacement, with the ability to track incidents to completion within agreed SLAs, and manage maintenance schedules inline with compliance to ensure that assets are always in good condition.
Steven Jeremiah
Group Asset Manager, Audley Group
For a large operator like Audley, simply knowing what assets have been installed and where they are located can be a daunting enough task, due to the large number of physical assets and devices.
With so many retirement villages in its portfolio, over time, multiple primary contractors had been involved in the development and building of its retirement communities, alongside different systems being installed by different contractors, utilising a variety of technologies and devices that all had different operating life spans, fault rates, testing schedules and compliance levels.
This all led to significant difficulties when it came to identifying, cataloguing and tracking assets, necessary before Audley could even start to proactively plan and schedule maintenance across its multiple villages, buildings and facilities. A proper process needed to be established that could ensure smooth operations and resident safety, whilst mitigating risks.
Additionally, to prove 100% compliance 100% of the time, Audley wanted visibility at the asset device level so that each component across each system could be individually tracked, tested, managed and maintained via the lifecycle replacement programme. From a wider cost management perspective, Audley wanted an asset management strategy that could identify and plan for the replacement and upgrade of assets over the next several decades as they come to the end of the manufacturer’s recommended lifespan. This long-term forward planning would enable Audley to allocate budget far in advance and avoid unwanted and unnecessary surprises.
At TIS, our design, installation and maintenance philosophy for life safety, security and communications systems is to utilise converged systems sitting on IP infrastructure. It has become the standard specification for customers across all new-build developments, and we are gradually upgrading older villages as they need to be renewed and refurbished. The reality is that this approach is fast-becoming the go-to option for all smart, forward-thinking IRC operators who recognise the overall benefits of longer-term planning. Convergence rightly gets the plaudits for modernising and future-proofing IRCs, and its role in optimising asset management strategy is significant.
Our relationship with Audley is a well-established and successful partnership, with TIS supporting Audley as its trusted life safety and security technology partner across all of their sites for a number of years. As TIS has taken on the design and installation of Audley’s new-build developments and taken over the maintenance of existing sites that were previously managed by other contractors, we have implemented a proactive, robust and reliable approach to asset management that comes with multiple commercial and operational benefits.
Using our own asset management platform, we began by capturing and uploading all assets, including unique references for each device, indexing key information such as make, model, age, inspection date, engineer attending, expected obsolescence date, problem history and a whole lot more. A key advantage of using an asset management platform is that it can be used whether an IRC has newly installed converged infrastructure and systems, or older, obsolete technologies that will eventually need updating.
The asset management platform feeds data into a dashboard that offers invaluable insights to drive efficiencies. By accessing information via each device’s unique reference, engineers and operations teams can now see how often incidents are fixed the first time - by site, by building, by engineer - and if it wasn’t fixed the first time, why not? It might have simply been an access problem, or perhaps it was a parts issue. Whatever the problem, having that information enables Audley to be more strategic about how it manages the assets moving forward.
With in-depth, business intelligence data readily available, Audley now has a single management point for multiple disciplines across its various sites. This allows the monitoring of all systems - from warden call, to phones, fire alarms and intruder detection - more accurately, with less manual intervention from staff, freeing them up to do the important things that keep Audley’s retirement communities operating efficiently.
With full visibility now available, we were able to implement smart scheduling for the service and maintenance of Audley’s assets, bringing new economies of scale. It is now possible to schedule the correct engineer with the relevant skill set and hardware stock because the data gathered from the devices in the system reveals the manufacturer, the model, when it was installed and any previous issues. Audley now has the right engineer, in the right area, with the right equipment and parts to solve the incident first time more often. And that can bring significant added value.
Through our technology-driven, proactive approach, Audley can now seamlessly manage over 40,000 devices, across all of its villages. For the first time, Audley knows exactly where all of its critical devices are located, their installation and service history, projected life span and even whether basic SLAs are being met for their service and maintenance.
Getting to grips with every asset, being proactive with maintenance schedules and staying ahead of the curve, Audley can optimise its resources, improve operational efficiency, enhance security and reliability, plan effectively, and collaborate better. This translates into significant benefits across individual IRCs and for Audley Group as a whole.
● Effective asset management improves resident satisfaction by ensuring all systems, technologies and devices are well-maintained, are in good condition and do what they’re expected to do when required.
● By tracking and maintaining all assets, Audley can identify areas to improve efficiency and reduce costs.
● Knowing what assets exist, where they are and their operating history ensures that all legal and regulatory requirements are met, helping to avoid costly
incidents, fines and penalties. With a comprehensive process in place, Audley is able to anticipate issues and stay ahead of the regulatory curve.
● A solid approach to safety and security via a robust service and maintenance schedule helps to enhance and maintain Audley’s reputation as a market-leading IRC operator.
● Keeping its systems and devices well-maintained and in good condition reduces maintenance costs and potential issues can be identified before they become major problems.
● Regular maintenance schedules and tracking asset usage means Audley can be sure devices are being used efficiently and effectively, reducing wear and tear and extending their lifespan.
● Having a better understanding of its assets, their age and their position within the asset lifecycle replacement programme allows for better financial planning and budgeting across Audley’s portfolio, reducing the risk of unexpected expenses and improving overall cost of ownership over time.
● With business intelligence data on hand, Audley can see where upgrading a single asset might end up costing significantly more in comparison to replacing the infrastructure as a whole, helping to maximise value and plan strategically.
