On my first visit to Rwanda about two years ago, I was impressed by what I saw of the City of Kigali considering the sad events of 23 years ago. I observed an infrastructural development programme that has clearly elevated the status of the city and indeed the country. Since then more development has taken place. The effect of this situation is that more economic, social, and other activities now take place under effective and efficient conditions.

However, those responsible for providing maintenance services on the vast collection of buildings and the constructed infrastructure have always been challenged. Balancing the conflicting imperatives imposed by the effects of time and nature against sometimes indifferent supply of required resources has been a problem for a long time.

Constructing roads, bridges and buildings that we can barely afford to maintain properly is not a new thing. Examples exist throughout recorded history and can be seen all around us today. These days, the challenge is more intense than experienced by those before us for several reasons.

Firstly, the building stock in any society is known to age at a rate much faster than it is being replaced. This means that there are older buildings than new ones.

These buildings and their components are expected to last longer than intended and many buildings are or will be pressed into services for which they were not designed. This factor has increasingly stressed our built environment and place even greater demands on facilities managers to deliver increasing value for the repair and maintenance.

The second factor, which will become more apparent over time, is the outcome of the current high pressure development philosophy.

Today, the success of a development project is often measured by how inexpensively it was constructed and how quickly it can be used.

Spurred by pressures to reduce construction cost and time, the building industry has responded with a flurry of new construction methods and materials which have yet to withstand the test of time. This attitude has also attracted developers whose only objective is to get the fastest and highest return on investment and to dispose of the property at the first profitable opportunity.

The result is that most infrastructural developments do not meet global standards, and worries about the quality of construction and life cycle are left to those who follow, the facilities managers. The legacy of this trend, if not tackled, will remain with us for a long time.

Thirdly, while decisions have been made for good and sound business reasons, some buildings have been left in the hands of inexperienced and unsophisticated owners in matters of asset preservation. In other cases, the expertise to do this is usually far removed from their core business despite a high level of interest in preserving their assets.Successful facilities managers understand that today’s buildings often include complex systems, increased technological demands, budgetary constraints and a continuously changing workforce.

They understand the necessity to advance and update their knowledge of facilities functions and services. These managers have learned how to quickly, safely and innovatively solve facilities and personnel problems because technology changes, facilities change and people change however the concept has not changed. Expectations from end users of facilities have increased.

The sustainability of the built environment depends on how well we maintain our facilities, how quickly we respond to unexpected challenges to safety issues, and personnel matters. Delays in problem solving can cause financial collapse of an organisation and more seriously, life threatening situations.

While our society is not as litigation-conscious as developed countries, it is a matter of time before facilities management personnel and organisations are made to account for their actions. Therefore, there’s need for a better understanding of the concept of maintenance and its benefits.

The writer is a lawyer and CEO of Great Heights Property & Facilities Management Ltd, Nigeria.