As 2024 draws to a close, we take a moment to reflect on an extraordinary year filled with inspiration, innovation, and connection. From exploring the circular economy in Facility Management to diving into the lifestyle of digital nomads, celebrating a book launch, and so much more—this year has been nothing short of remarkable.

The first-ever FutureFM and IFMA Global Middle East Summit has officially wrapped up, and what an inspiring event it was! Over two incredible days, facility management professionals from around the world gathered to explore the theme: “Harness the Power of FM Innovation.”

This year, we had the incredible opportunity to attend the World Workplace conference in San Antonio, and it was an experience to remember. The event was a melting pot of ideas, innovations, and networking opportunities that left us all inspired and motivated.

On Thursday, October 24, the IFMA Belgium Chapter hosted an event dedicated to the circular economy, focusing on Facility Management (FM). Kris Cloots, Vice-Chair of the IFMA Belgium Chapter, opened the event by sharing the exciting news that the Belgian FM organization had received the Small Chapter of the Year 2024 award during the global IFMA World Workplace in Texas.

This holiday season, give the gift of transformation! Whether for yourself or a fellow professional, Disruptive Workplaces is the perfect read to inspire fresh ideas in facility management (FM) and workplace design.

On Tuesday, November 12th, the FM Nordic Workplace 2024 took place in the vibrant city of Stockholm, hosted by our colleagues from IFMA Sweden. This year’s edition was particularly special as it also marked the 30th anniversary of IFMA Sweden – congratulations on this milestone!

AGEAS welcomed IFMA Belgian Chapter on September 17 in the Manhattan Building. The beautifully newly designed office of the international insurance company on the 14th floor offered breathtaking views over the Brussels city center, while the speakers provided valuable insights.

Zaventem, September 25, 2024 – The future is smart! Buildings are increasingly becoming ‘smart’, incorporating advanced technologies and systems to make them more efficient, safer, and more sustainable. Installers will be busy with automated lighting, climate control, security systems, energy management, and smart devices. Other construction professionals will also face new challenges and opportunities with smart buildings. To lower the barriers on this topic, Buildwise has created a handy webpage offering a clear and concise introduction to smart buildings. It includes insights on better management of technical installations, offering new services to customers, and utilizing preventive maintenance to extend the lifespan of buildings. You can also explore smart buildings in practice at the Data Connection Center.

To mark this special occasion, you have the chance to win fun and valuable prizes for both yourself and your organization. Prizes include bol.com gift cards, as well as the opportunity to win a complete analysis of your guest and employee experience using the interactive “Hospitality Experience” tool for your organization. This will provide you with tailored inspiration to create a unique experience.

Planon, the global leader in smart sustainable building management software, is pleased to announce an expansion of its strategic partnership with Schneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation.

The 2024 Transdisciplinary Workplace Research (TWR) Conference in Edinburgh brought together experts from around the globe to explore the latest in workplace strategy. This recap from Anton Maes, IFMA Belgium board member, highlights the event’s insightful presentations, including those from renowned researcher Matt Tucker. Attendees delved into global trends, the circular economy, and the evolving role of facility management, leaving inspired by fresh research and innovative ideas shaping the future of work environments.

Why invest in a workplace when many prefer working from home? In early 2023, ISS transformed its restaurant, reception, and meeting areas into the Himalaya Lounge, an all-day hospitality hub. This welcoming space promotes creativity, connection, and well-being, with a focus on sustainability and inclusivity.

Last month, with Anthony Huygen from Transact, we examined why office tenants overpay on rent and how to address it. Here are our top five takeaways to help you negotiate better lease terms.

We are thrilled to announce that our recent event on digital nomads was a resounding success! Held on 19 March, it brought together a diverse audience eager to explore the evolving landscape of remote work and the rise of digital nomadism within organizations. Among our esteemed attendees was Eduard Coddé, from Profacility. Below, he delves into the highlights and key takeaways from our engaging discussion.

Join us for an engaging 40-minute webinar where we delve into the wealth of opportunities awaiting you as a member of IFMA Belgium. With your membership, you gain automatic access to the vibrant International IFMA Community, offering a plethora of benefits waiting to be explored.

We often start from the “people, planet, profit” model when thinking about sustainability. The so-called "triple bottom line." Whereas success used to be measured mainly through financial profit, a healthy organization is now measured not only on financial performance (“Profit”), but also on social commitment (“People”) and environmental awareness (“Planet”). A successful company not only avoids pollution and saves energy, but also shows concern for employees and the broader society.

How to optimally fulfil the needs and wishes of a high-profile and multi-site customer such as ING. How to build up an innovative Facility Agent Service model? What impact will it have in the Facility Management Landscape? How do you guarantee efficient property management that also prioritises a first-rate user experience? And how can you agilely respond to new facility management opportunities and challenges?

Our very own Tom Ryckaert attended THE event for FM professionals in Denver (Colorado, United States) and shares his insights and experience.

On Thursday, September 28th, IFMA Belgium Chapter hosted its first autumn event at the ‘Green Energy Park’ in Zellik, focusing on building technologies and how they can contribute to achieving facility management objectives. ‘Green Energy Park’ was established in 2019 with the aim of promoting the development of knowledge about green energy, gathering and consolidating it, and making it available to various organizations through advisory services and training. “Our areas of focus include energy and mobility, biotechnology, smart regions, and hospitals for the future,” explained Inne Peersman, the director of ‘Green Energy Park.’ “Our Research Park serves as a living laboratory and showroom.”

For the second consecutive year, IFMA Belgium Chapter hosted its ‘Summer Vibes’ event under a brilliant blue sky and nearly tropical temperatures. The chosen venue this time was the Sport Vlaanderen domain in Hofstade, one of the 14 sports centers operated by this organization. During his welcoming remarks, Kris Cloots, Vice President of IFMA Belgium Chapter and CEO & Country Manager of ISS Facility Services Belgium & Luxembourg, reflected on a year and a half of effective operation for the IFMA Belgium Chapter. The Belgian branch of the global professional association for Facility Managers now boasts over 120 members and is supported by more than 20 partners. Compared to other young IFMA chapters, Belgium is rapidly establishing itself as a well-rooted organization for and by FM professionals.

The future of work is hybrid, and BNP Paribas Fortis has understood that since well before the COVID pandemic. Their brand new office building at their headquarters in Brussels, Montagne du Parc, hosts 4,100 workplaces for over 8,000 employees. We sat down with BNP Paribas Fortis’ Marianne Kremer and application lead Kevin Huart, to discuss how they collaborated with PROCOS Group to smoothen the transition to hybrid working using the Facile app.

The FM Student Challenge provides a special opportunity for students to develop their skills and capabilities through a team challenge, make contacts with potential employers and fellow FM students. The winning team included three Belgian students.

On Tuesday 14 March ’23, IFMA Belgium Chapter organised a theme evening around ‘Generation Z’. Those present were able to get to know Generation Z in the flesh, as the professional organisation brought together four enthusiastic students in the field of Facility Management who are about to graduate. A better representation of ‘Generation Z’ could not be imagined!

In the kitchen of the brainmove office, there is a dishwasher. Strangely enough, the agreements about filling and emptying this machine are not followed. Many organizations struggle with unwanted behaviour from their employees, such as having loud conversations in an open work environment, taking the elevator instead of the stairs, printing emails, leaving confidential notes on the whiteboard and moving office furniture. How do we deal with this? And how can we change this behaviour without having to play the bad guy?

Thursday evening, 16 February, IFMA Belgium Chapter invited its members to get acquainted with the ‘metaverse’ a concept that is appearing more and more often, has already acquired great name recognition, but in terms of content remains very unfamiliar and even puzzling to most.

Let’s start by wishing you all a prosperous 2023! We are sure that the new year will bring amazing FM challenges to tackle. As IFMA Belgium Chapter, it is our mission to help you to achieve your ambitious objectives.

Together with some 80 FM professionals from EMEA, a small group of motivated Belgians participated in IFMA World Workplace.

TWR2022 is the ideal opportunity to indulge in scientific insights into workplace strategy and change management.

IFMA Belgium will cooperate with KiCom for the 42nd Facility Night on Tuesday the 13th of December at La Sucrerie in Waver. If you become now a member of IFMA Belgium you can win a free entrance ticket for this Facility Night edition and you’re welcome to join us at the IFMA table during the diner.

The health crisis has profoundly changed the way employees look at their work. Employees are questioning the necessity of returning to the office, are attaching great importance to a work/life balance, while for organizations finding and retaining suitable people became more difficult than ever. Xwork responds to this with a co-working solution that is both innovative and practical.

For a Facility Manager, each project is a strategic challenge. You have to make sure that people, planet and profit aspects are integrated in everything you do. In the past we were mainly focused on energy saving and sustainability. Nowadays we’re talking about ESG, and our work covers three different domains: Environmental, Social and Governance. As such, Facility Managers have a huge impact on delivering the objectives linked to each of these domains.

Learn how the Level(s) indicator on ‘Life cycle Global Warming Potential’ can help you assess and report on the carbon performance of buildings!

FM is not an easy job! Do you have a promising rookie in your team? As IFMA Belgium, we want to put our hard working members in the picture. Especially those who have recently arrived on the FM scene and are pushing to make a difference.

Anton & Tom are recognized experts, daily interacting with Facility Managers and C-levels. In 2021, they decided to relaunch IFMA Belgium with a board of people sharing the same ambition: to position Facility Management as a strategic role within organizations. They oversee IFMA Belgium’s communication and marketing and put a lot of energy in delivering great content to inspire IFMA members. Today, they answer a few questions on the core enablers to implement an efficient workplace strategy!

Data and extensive collaboration must bring water management into the 21st century. The e availability of fresh water is under increasing pressure in Belgium. “Human beings have adapted the landscape to their own needs for decades and we are now bearing the consequences,” explain Kobe Geryl and Thomas De Ruyck (…)

Mitigating the climate and energy crises requires a massive reduction in our energy consumption. This is a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for all organizations. It is a resilience factor for companies faced with soaring costs…

Key Findings from exclusive roundtable discussions outlining insights from industry experts on the role of technology in the evolution of FM services.

Listen to our international panel discussion on workplace strategy with Clark Elliot, Marisa Toldo, Céline Chaverot & Martin Ruppe!

IFMA has embarked on a global effort to disseminate facility operations and performance data. This white paper focuses on concierge/housekeeping as well as the use of in-house versus outsources services for a variety of facility service contract types.

Our first edition of the IFMA Summer Vibes networking event is a fact! We had the right tropical temperature to get the vibes going. More than 80 FM professionals joined this unique event. IFMA Belgium welcomed the attendees with a well deserved refreshment drink before revealing the calendar for the next events in 2022.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) still has a limited presence within the facilities domain but includes a lot of potential to support companies in their quest for efficiency and sustainability.

Our board members, Jan-Maarten Van Damme & Kristof Schrijvers have answered several questions on the new challenges and priorities for Facility Managers. For them, Energy Management, Employees Retention and Sustainability are 3 strategic topics that should be handled by Facility Managers!

IFMA has embarked on a global effort to disseminate facility operations and performance data. This white paper focuses on sustainable operations and maintenance practices and is the first in a series of three reports summarizing performance of select buildings throughout Europe. While there is a small sample size for this pilot study, there are relevant findings to consider.

Sustainability is on everyone’s lips, but over the years it has also become an easily claimed umbrella term. Companies play an important role in the sustainability debate, but according to Meliopus, they also have a responsibility to set a good example for individuals and society.

After years of online meetings and virtual events, the World Workplace congress Europe was finally back in a physical format. De Hallen in Amsterdam were the perfect venue for a great event on “FM for a sustainable future”.

Immerse yourself in the world of E-mobility & learn how to prepare for this as a buyer, supply chain manager, logistics manager & facility manager! What’s in store for us? What is the future of E-mobility? How can you already prepare your organization & your infrastructure for this?