Enhancing Facility Management through Performance Contracts: A Case Study of King Khalid International Airport

Facility management is crucial for ensuring efficient and effective operation of airports. Performance contracting is one approach that has been used to improve facility management in various industries. This study aims to explore the effectiveness of performance contracting in enhancing facility management at King Khalid International Airport (KKIA) in Saudi Arabia. The investigation was carried out by conducting a case study at the airport, collecting data from various stakeholders and analyzing the findings. The study found that performance contracting had a positive impact on various aspects of facility management at KKIA, including maintenance, energy efficiency and cost savings. The results suggest that performance contracting can be an effective tool for improving facility management at airports.

Keywords:Facility management; Total facility management; Airports; King Khalid international airport; Performance contracts; KPIs; Key performance indicators

With the growing urbanization (with an elevated demand for transportation services) and technological advancements in building components and equipment, airports are facing increasing pressure to provide wider and diverse transportation services to a growing number of passengers [1]. The deterioration rate of airport facilities is typically higher than other buildings, compounded by the fact that these facilities provide essential services and are occupied and in use 24 ha day, all year round [2]. Over the years, there has been a growing focus on improving maintenance management practices in airports, mainly through establishing maintenance strategies, conducting performance measurements, and employing information technology (IT), to address maintenance cost, schedules and performance targets of airports [3].

To address these challenges, improving maintenance management practices in airports is essential [4,5]. This article presents a case study of King Khalid International Airport’s (KKIA) Total Facility Management (TFM) service, which covers property, financial, human resources, health, safety, security, environmental, risk and change management across the supply chain [1].

The KKIA’s TFM approach aims to drive value through improved service, reduced costs and well-managed risks. It seeks to attain international standards in safety, quality, environment, energy, facility and asset management, provide clear accountability and a single point of contact for TFM, reduce work duplication and service interruptions, enhance resilience and business continuity and provide clear Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and enhanced performance using Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) [2,6,7]. The performance specification of the facility management system seeks to clearly define the scope of services and establish a framework to achieve a fully integrated TFM solution across the airport site [7,8]. On another hand Facility management is a critical aspect of airport operations, as it plays a significant role in ensuring the efficient and effective functioning of various airport facilities. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in using performance contracting as a tool to enhance facility management [8-10]. Performance contracting involves the use of contractual agreements between facility managers and contractors to ensure that specific performance targets are met [7,11].

KKIA in Saudi Arabia is a large and busy airport that serves as a major hub for air traffic in the region. Given its importance, KKIA has invested heavily in facility management over the years. However, there is still room for improvement, and performance contracting has been proposed as a potential solution. This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of performance contracting in enhancing facility management at KKIA.

This study is a case study of King Khalid International Airport’s (KKIA) Total Facility Management (TFM) service. The study analyzed the KKIA’s TFM approach, which aims to drive value through improved service, reduced costs, and well-managed risks. The study examined the KKIA’s performance specification of the Facility Management System, which seeks to clearly define the scope of services and establish a framework to achieve a fully integrated TFM solution across the airport site. Data was collected through various methods, including interviews with airport management, contractors, and other stakeholders, as well as a review of relevant documents and records. The data collected was analyzed using qualitative methods to identify themes and patterns related to the effectiveness of performance contracting at KKIA.

Figure 1:Configuration of the shear wall [15].

Figure 2:Test setup [16].

The Contracting Authority, King Khalid International Airport, sought to provide a Total Facility Management Service that can deliver high-quality services that meet international standards. The Service Provider must manage complex facilities sustainably across their entire lifecycle, creating an exceptional airport experience for airlines, passengers, operations and business partners. To achieve their goals, the Contracting Authority is transitioning from its current operating model of delivering facilities management services to a consolidated model that delivers Total Facility Management TFM across four location packages. A Facilities Management Managing Agent (FMMA) is being sourced to support the Contracting Authority in delivering its Facility Management FM transformation and strategic goals

The KKIA’s TFM approach seeks to attain international standards in safety, quality, environment, energy, facility and asset management. The approach provides clear accountability and a single point of contact for TFM, reduces work duplication and service interruptions, enhances resilience and business continuity and provides clear SLAs and enhanced performance using KPIs. The performance specification of the Facility Management System seeks to clearly define the scope of services and establish a framework to achieve a fully integrated TFM, to ensure that the performance monitoring system is effective, the Contracting Authority should also establish a governance structure that will oversee the TFM provider’s performance.

The governance structure should include a contract management team that will manage the SLAs, KPIs and performance monitoring system. The team should also be responsible for reviewing and approving the TFM provider’s performance reports, identifying areas for improvement, and developing action plans to address any deficiencies.

In conclusion, the increasing complexity of airports facilities requires a comprehensive approach to facility management that ensures the efficient and sustainable operation of airport facilities. Performance contracts have been shown to be an effective tool for enhancing facility management practices in airports, enabling the establishment of maintenance strategies, conducting performance measurements and employing information technology. The case study of King Khalid International Airport illustrates how Total Facility Management Services can be used to provide high-quality services that meet international standards, covering property, financial, human resources, health, safety, security, environmental, risk and change management across the supply chain. The Performance Management System overview and key objectives, as well as the Performance Monitoring System, provide a framework for ensuring that TFM providers deliver world-class services and continuously improve their performance.

The use of performance contracts in facility management has been shown to have various benefits, including increased efficiency, improved service quality, reduced costs and enhanced risk management. This article presents a case study of the King Khalid International Airport in Saudi Arabia, which is seeking to enhance its facility management through performance contracts. The airport is seeking to provide total facility management services that can deliver high-quality services that meet international standards. The service provider is responsible for considering all elements of the total facilities management requirements and using its best judgment to determine the necessary resources and approach to meet the required standard of services.

To achieve its goals, the contracting authority is transitioning from its current operating model of delivering facility management services to a consolidated model that delivers total facility management across four location packages. A facilities management managing agent is being sourced to support the contracting authority in delivering its facility management transformation and strategic goals. The new approach aims to drive value through improved service, reduced costs and well-managed risks. It seeks to attain international standards in safety, quality, environment, energy, facility and asset management, provide clear accountability and a single point of contact for total facility management, reduce work duplication and service interruptions, enhance resilience and business continuity and provide clear SLAs and enhanced performance using KPIs.

The performance management system used by the contracting authority involves an incentivized performance mechanism for operational service costs. This mechanism involves a fixed percentage figure of the operational costs as the contractor’s fee, which the service provider is required to place within the performance mechanism against performance risk. The performance mechanism includes KPIs and SLAs that are intended to be pragmatic and flexible, allowing the service provider to operate while ensuring that performance in certain operational facilities is sufficiently important to warrant fees being withheld if obligations are not met.

The service delivery plan is the tool used to measure performance and ensure that the key objectives of the total facility management service provider are being achieved. The SLAs are the fundamental requirements that the provider must deliver to demonstrate efficient execution of the contract and the manner in which services are delivered. These requirements are grouped into three main sections, namely mandatory compliance, standards and contract performance. The KPIs, on the other hand, are the outputs of the service provider’s endeavors and generally reflect asset performance, availability, workflow management, presentation of the facility, cleanliness, hygiene and waste management.

The performance monitoring system is designed to ensure that all elements of the service delivery plan are fully met and that daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual deliverables making up the plan are measured on a monthly basis. The TFM provider will selfreport their performance, which will then be checked for adherence to the service delivery plan by airport management or its nominated agent. Both assessments will take into account non-conformance reports that exist and remain ‘live’ during the assessment period, with discounts given to NCR.

Tables 1-3 in appendix A show samples for Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s), Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and penalty points system. The investigation found that performance contracting had a positive impact on various aspects of facility management at KKIA. Specifically, performance contracting was found to be effective in improving maintenance operations, reducing energy consumption and generating cost savings. The following are the key outcomes of the investigation:

Table 1:Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) – Soft FM Services (Applicable to all TFM Work Packages - Aerodrome, Terminals, Landside and Royal Terminal).

Table 2:Service Level Agreement (SLA) – Standards.

Table 3:Weighted penalty points system..

A. Maintenance operations: Performance contracting helped to improve maintenance operations at KKIA by setting clear performance targets for contractors and ensuring that they were met. This led to a reduction in maintenance costs and improved reliability of airport facilities.
B. Energy efficiency: Performance contracting also helped to reduce energy consumption at KKIA by encouraging contractors to adopt energy-efficient practices. This led to a significant reduction in energy costs and a more sustainable operation.
C. Cost savings: Finally, performance contracting was found to generate cost savings at KKIA. This was achieved by setting performance targets that incentivized contractors to reduce costs and improve efficiency.

The investigation revealed that performance contracting is an effective means of improving facility management at airports. Through the case study conducted at King Khalid International Airport, it was evident that performance contracting led to enhancements in maintenance operations, cost savings and reduction in energy consumption. The findings indicate that airports can benefit from adopting performance contracting as a strategy for enhancing facility management. By doing so, airports can deliver high-quality services that meet global standards, while also reducing costs and improving risk management. It is important to establish clear SLAs and KPIs to ensure efficient execution of the contract and the delivery of high-quality services. The case study of KKIA in Saudi Arabia highlights the advantages of this approach.

A.E.M: The main idea of the paper. A.E.M. and M.E.M: Writing preparation part and interpretation of its data analysis. A.E.M. and M.E.M: Interpretation of application, paper writing and paper revision. A.E.M. and M.E.M: Review and editing. “Conceptualization, A.E.M: Methodology, A.E.M: Software, A.E.M and M.E.M: Validation, A.E.M. and M.E.M: Formal analysis, A.E.M. and M.E.M: Investigation, A.E.M. and M.E.M: Resources, A.E.M. and M.E.M: Data curation, A.E.M. and M.E.M: Writing-original draft preparation, A.E.M. and M.E.M: writing-review and editing, A.E.M. and M.E.M: Visualization, A.E.M. and M.E.M: Supervision. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

The authors would like to express their gratitude to the Dean of Science and Research at King Khalid International airport for giving support.

The authors state that they do not have any conflicts.

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