From 19 to 21 January 2011, approximately 150 experts from the fields of facility management and real estate management came from around the world to gather in Kufstein for the purpose of discussing the latest contributions to the sphere of Built Environment. Thus, for these three days and for the 13th year running, Kufstein stood at the center of the facility and real estate management world.
The underlying issue is that at this time many corporate departments are isolated from one another in the way they work; in other words, they are not seen from a holistic perspective within their organization. Under the umbrella of Built Environment, the disciplines facility management, real-estate management, and architecture are brought together. The objective of this interdisciplinary concept is to optimize the processes in and around buildings in accordance with their life cycles as well as to increase the value and quality of the properties and services.
In the opening ceremony, Mag. Wolfgang Richter, CEO of the FH Kufstein, underscored the international significance of this particular congress and was pleased to welcome the renowned participants from the facility and real-estate management world. Dr. Johannes Lüthi, President of the FH Kufstein, continued by reflecting on the strong tradition of the degree program Facility & Real Estate Management, which has existed since the founding of the university in 1997 and which – representative for the entire the entire range of degree programs at the FH Kufstein – stands for international education at the highest level.
In its role as host for the congress, the Facility & Real Estate Management faculty offered a platform for papers and presentations on cutting-edge topics by internationally renowned experts from the USA, Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany, Great Britain, Austria as well as Lagos and Nigeria.
The enthusiastic visitors listened to and discussed ideas with top-class scientists from 18 countries, who presented their recent work in nine thematic areas: Architecture & Functionality; Building Sciences & E-Technology; Work-Station Management; Energy & User Monitoring; Service Management; Green Buildings & Building Certificates; Best Practices; Financing & Investment; Planning & Decision Systems.
There were also a number of famous personalities among the presenters, for example, Prof. Matthias Ebinger from the Pratt Institute New York, Prof. Dr. Jan van Dalen from Maastricht, and Vicky Hardy, formerly of Stanford University, USA. Many other opinion leaders and professionals from big-name companies in the field of facility and real estate management also took advantage of the congress to exchange knowledge and ideas. The best contributions and papers will be published in the congress proceedings.
Aside from the presentations, there was also a highly interesting poster session and exhibition. Also deserving a mention is the entertaining social program with its many opportunities for professional networking. “No participant will ever forget the great international curling tournament,” affirmed Prof. (FH) Dr. Thomas Madritsch, the Director of Studies for the degree program Facility & Real Estate Management.
FMG 2011
