Utilizing Six Sigma to develop standard attributes for a Safety for Facilities Management (SFFM) framework

Introduction: Repair and maintenance personnel in the field of facilities management (FM), have a much higher rate of injury and illness than the national average. Research has shown that a major contributing factor to these high incidence rates is the disorganization and fragmentation of relevant safety information, coupled with the often time sensitive nature of FM tasks. Practical application: In order to improve worker's safety during the FM phase, a BIM-based Safety for Facilities Management (SFFM) framework is being developed to categorize, consolidate, process, and efficiently present job specific, relevant safety information to FM personnel. Method: In order to properly develop the SFFM, the safety information that is applicable to FM staff must first be identified, organized, and categorized. This is executed through a number of research methods, structured within the theoretical framework of Six Sigma's Define-Measure-Analyze-Design-Verify (DMADV). Results: By systematically collecting, analyzing, and categorizing data within the Define Phase of DMADV, an iterative process with validation steps provides a rigorous and a comprehensive evaluation of the data. Conclusion: This paper describes the data collection and analysis methods, known as the Define Phase, of Six Sigma's Define-Measure-Analyze-Design-Verify (DMADV) methodology, in order to develop safety properties that are utilized within the BIM-based SFFM framework. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.