Crown Commercial Services is an agency of the Cabinet Office established to help the public sector achieve maximum commercial value when procuring specific goods and services. In 2021/22 it helped specifiers achieve commercial benefits equivalent to £2.8 bn.  Launched in 1990 by the Building Services Engineering Services Association, (BESA), SFG20 (https://blog.sfg20.co.uk/resources/news/g-cloud) is the industry standard for building maintenance specifications, and helps asset managers meet their legal responsibilities to keep their buildings safe, while also maintaining assets correctly to help with energy efficiency and maximise equipment’s lifespan. It provides a digital library of over 2,000 maintenance schedules covering over 70 types of building engineering equipment, and offers specialist guidance for different types of building, including in hospitals, care homes, schools, prisons, commercial offices, and catering facilities. 

SFG20 users have access to a complete, digital maintenance programme for their buildings – including the frequency with which each piece of equipment should be serviced, the skills needed to undertake the work, and the up-to-date legal and regulatory position. BESA says this ‘helps them stay on the right side of the law’, while maximising their installed systems’ operating life, ensuring they are energy-efficient and control their operating costs, and ‘avoiding costly under or over-maintenance’. 

CCS says the G-Cloud enables any public sector procurer to buy cloud-based software and services ‘faster than if they set up individual contracts’. It also gives them access to ‘the latest cloud technology and innovation’ from pre-approved suppliers, with agreed terms and conditions and legal protections already in place. 

“More than 80% of the value of a building is realised during its operating life, which is why strategic and targeted facilities maintenance is such an important consideration for any asset manager,” said SFG20 MD, Kirsty Cogan. “Being accepted onto G-Cloud 13 means it will now be easier and quicker for public sector procurers to gain access to this valuable tool, along with the quality data needed to help them meet all their FM goals.”