CAFM explained
What is a CAFM?
CAFM stands for Computer-Aided Facility Management: software that records what is in your buildings and makes sure it is maintained, inspected and repaired — on time and with proof. An introduction in about ten minutes.
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Facility management, with software
Facility management (FM) is everything that keeps a building and its assets running: maintenance and repairs, statutory inspections, cleaning, security, space, energy. The international standard ISO 41011 describes it as an organisational function that brings together people, place and process within the built environment — so that the core business can run undisturbed.
Computer-Aided Facility Management — CAFM for short — is the software for it. It replaces the binders in the plant room, the Excel list of maintenance dates and the notes on the noticeboard with a system in which everything is in its place: on the building, on the room, on the asset.
The core is always the same: an inventory (what is where?), duties (what must happen when?) and jobs (who does it, and is it done?). Everything else — space planning, lease management, energy — is an extension that not every business needs.
Distinctions
CAFM, CMMS, IWMS — three terms, three focuses
The terms are often used interchangeably. The differences lie in the focus:
| Term | Focus | Typical for |
|---|---|---|
| CAFM | Buildings, rooms, assets and their maintenance | Businesses with their own building stock |
| CMMS (maintenance software) | Machines and their maintenance | Production, workshops, vehicle fleets |
| IWMS | Additionally real estate, leases, projects, energy | Corporations and large property portfolios |
| ERP maintenance module | Maintenance as part of procurement and accounting | Large companies with an existing ERP |
The boundaries are fluid: a CAFM knows about machines too, a CMMS about rooms. What matters is where the system starts from. If you think from the building outwards — property, building, floor, room —, you need a CAFM.
Tasks
What a CAFM does
A CAFM for maintenance covers six tasks. The more completely it connects them, the less anyone has to fill in by hand:
- Inventory: properties, buildings, floors, rooms and the assets in them — with type, manufacturer, location and documents.
- Maintenance and inspections: plans per asset type, statutory inspection deadlines, maintenance contracts with external contractors. The system calculates the dates.
- Faults and jobs: whoever spots something reports it; it becomes a job with a deadline, a person responsible and feedback.
- External service providers: jobs for companies that do not work in the system, and their feedback on them.
- Records: who inspected what, and when? Documented per asset, per building, per period.
- Reports: open jobs, overdue deadlines, costs per building.
Inspection duties in Switzerland
The duties a business needs to know
Anyone who operates buildings in Switzerland has a range of statutory inspection and maintenance duties — regardless of the size of the business. Some examples:
| Asset | Basis | Interval (guideline) |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical installations | NIV Art. 36 | every 5 years |
| Fire doors and closures | VKF 12-15 | annually |
| Power-operated doors | VUV Art. 32b | annually |
| Drinking water installations | LGV Art. 73–76 | annually |
The intervals depend on the type of asset, its use and in part on the canton — chimney sweeping, for instance, follows cantonal law. On top come duties from occupational safety (Suva, EKAS) and the requirements of the building insurer.
A CAFM replaces none of these inspections and no specialist. It makes sure none is forgotten and records that it took place. Fristo comes with 59 such templates, each with legal basis and source — as a proposal, not as legal advice.
Choosing
How to recognise the right CAFM
For a business without its own IT department, different things matter than for a corporation. Six questions you should ask every vendor:
01
How long does the rollout take?
Weeks with consultants or an hour on your own? A system that has to be set up first costs time before it saves any.
02
Does it know the Swiss duties?
Does it come with the inspection deadlines, with legal basis and source — or do you have to research and type them in yourself?
03
Can anyone report?
The person who spots a fault is rarely the one with the account. Reporting via QR code without signing in lowers the barrier to zero.
04
How do external contractors take part?
Do your service providers need an account of their own and training — or is a link through which they report back enough?
05
Can you get your data back out?
A full export in a readable format, at any time and even after cancellation, is the best insurance against lock-in.
06
Where is the data stored?
Switzerland or the EU, under the FADP and GDPR — and who may see it? Support access should only be possible with your visible consent.
Rollout
Up and running in five steps
This is what a rollout looks like when the system is built for small businesses — using Fristo as an example.
Step 1
Record your inventory
Buildings, floors, rooms and assets — by hand, from an Excel list or straight from the floor plan.
Step 2
Confirm your duties
The system suggests the statutory inspections for every asset. You confirm what applies to your business.
Step 3
Invite people and contractors
Staff get an account without a password; external contractors get a link for their jobs.
Step 4
Put up QR stickers
Every asset gets a sticker. Whoever spots a fault scans it and reports — without an account.
Step 5
Pull the record
When the inspector comes, you create the record with one click: everything done and everything still open.
When it pays off
Does my business need a CAFM?
A CAFM pays off as soon as one of these statements applies:
- Only one person knows the maintenance dates — and nobody knows what happens if they are away.
- There is no quick answer to the question “When was this asset last inspected?”.
- Faults come in by phone and word of mouth, and later nobody knows what became of them.
- Several buildings, several companies, several contracts — and the overview sits in binders.
A CAFM does not pay off if you mainly manage rents, service charges and letting space: there is property management software for that, and an IWMS is then the better choice. Fristo does maintenance — and does it completely.
Questions
Frequently asked questions about CAFM
What does CAFM mean?
Computer-Aided Facility Management — software that supports the operation of buildings: inventory, maintenance, statutory inspections, faults and jobs, records.
What is the difference between CAFM and CMMS?
A CAFM starts from the building (property, building, room), a CMMS from the machine. For businesses with their own building stock, a CAFM is the more natural choice.
Does a small business really need a CAFM?
The statutory duties are the same as for a corporation. If dates and records currently sit in an Excel list or in one person’s head, it pays off — provided the system needs no rollout.
Does a CAFM replace inspection by a specialist?
No. It reminds you of the deadline, records the inspection and makes it provable. The inspection itself must still be carried out by the persons and companies licensed to do so.
How long does a rollout take?
With large systems, months, with consultants. With a system for small businesses such as Fristo, about an hour until the structure is in place and the first duties are confirmed.
What does a CAFM cost?
Anything from five-figure licences plus consulting to a monthly price based on the number of buildings. With Fristo, one building with up to 100 assets is free forever; the prices are shown openly on the home page.
One building with up to 100 assets, free forever.
Full feature set, no payment details. If it does not fit, you have lost an hour.
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