The Modern Facilities Management Podcast

#115 Dr. Jake Smithwick: AI in Facilities Management

Griffin Hamilton

This weeks guest is Dr. Jake Smithwick, a professor at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte. Jake and his team have assisted hundreds of owners improve performance outcomes across thousands of projects ($15+ Billion of procured services in construction, IT, auxiliary services, design, healthcare, insurance, and more). His industry experience also includes field inspection of nearly 2,000 roofing systems (74 million square feet) across the United States, and six years in the US Air Force Reserve (civil engineering squadron).

On this episode, Dr. Smithwick discusses the role of AI in facilities management, including: 

  • The value of mentorship in the FM industry and the positive impact AI can have in knowledge transfer and enhancing FM practices. 
  • The fear of the unknown and the skepticism surrounding AI 
  • Practical applications of AI in FM for tasks such as work order scheduling, maintenance planning, and data analysis. 

Chapters

00:00
Introduction and Background

08:39
The Impact and Potential of AI in FM

15:31
Practical Applications of AI in FM

28:31
Closing Remarks

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