The South African Facilities Management Association (SAFMA) has awarded the 2021 SAFMA Award of Excellence in Facilities Management (FM) to Afroteq Academy. This annual award recognises individuals, groups or corporates who contribute to the advancement of Facilities Management within the South African FM industry.

“The Excellence in FM awards recognises the ‘best of the best’ within the FM world and promotes the strategic value and progress of facilities management. It also gives invaluable recognition to recipients for their commitment to promoting and enhancing FM practices,” explains Marianne Botes of SAFMA. She adds that the purpose of the award is to honour and reward individuals, teams or corporates involved in Facilities Management who make a positive contribution to the knowledge, practical application and communication of strategies to improve the workplace environment and sustainable performance of their facilities.

The six categories in this year’s competition were:

• Young Achiever of the Year
• Facilities Manager of the Year
• Technology Implementation of the Year
• Award for Excellence in FM
• Chairman’s Award
• Management and Response to COVID-19

Afroteq Advisory walked away with this year’s honours after they were able to impress the independent panel of judges with their journey to develop, implement and deliver a Facilities Manager training programme for the Quality Council for Trades and Occupation.

“We were absolutely thrilled to hear that Afroteq Academy had won the category for excellence in FM. Since our inception in 2002, our focus has always been on enhancing the skills level of practitioners in the FM industry by equipping them with the knowledge and practical experience they need to deliver excellent service. The Occupational Certificate in Facilities Management (OCFM) that we helped to develop in partnership with FM practitioners and industry leaders was a significant step forward in this regard. Not only did it allow us to align training content that is outcomes-based, but it is also aligned to the Facilities Management ISO 41001:2018 standard,” says Portia Mkhabela, Divisional Head at the Afroteq Academy.

Afroteq Academy was part of a team of FM experts who began developing the training content for the Occupational Certificate in 2018. They were one of the first FM training companies to offer this qualification after SAFMA registered it with the Quality Council for Trades and Occupation (QCTO), enrolling the first group of learners at the beginning of 2020. Since then, they have gone on to register five more groups of students. The first group of students will be writing the EISA examination in 2021 – the first for SAFMA endorsed qualifications.

“The OCFM is a two-year NQF level 6, outcomes-based programme that was designed specifically for the industry, by the industry. The content is targeted at professionals who have already gained experience in the FM field, e.g. building managers, facilities coordinators, maintenance managers, project managers and technical managers, but who need the formal qualification to take them to the next level,” Mkhabela explains.

“It is imperative to address the skills gaps that exist in the FM industry if we are to create credibility and value to a business as a whole. Through delivering the Occupational Qualification, Afroteq Academy helps to establish a consistent and uniform understanding of the important role facilities managers play in an organisation. They also play a vital role in educating the market, promoting FM as a viable career option and attracting new entrants to the profession. All of these factors make them worthy winners of our Excellence in FM Award. We look forward to seeing them represent South Africa at the Global FM Awards for Excellence later this year!” Botes concludes.