MARS 8.6 Facility Cost Forecast System

Key Features in Version 8.6

• Recapitalization module calculates capital requirements by age and type.
• SQL-based forecast engine, capable of generating up to 50-year operations and maintenance (O&M) requirements for virtually unlimited square footage.
• Operations cost forecast module can be configured at task level.

The Choice for Large Facility Portfolio Management

MARS is a predictive modeling tool for forecasting facility maintenance & repair (M&R), operations, and capital costs. Designed for facilities managers, financial analysts, and real estate professionals, MARS leverages Whitestone's years of experience in forecasting and benchmarking facility costs for companies and agencies of all sizes.

Unique Capabilities

• Forecast long-range O&M funding and labor requirements.
• Task-based forecasting of M&R life cycle costs.
• Task-based forecasting of annual operations costs, including Custodial, Energy, Grounds, Management, Pest Control, Refuse, Road Clearance, Security, Telecom, and Water/Sewer.
• Save initial development time with 60 sample building cost models
• Calculate deferred maintenance backlog and facility Condition Index (FCI).
• Identify capital cost requirements.
• Rapid and flexible modeling process open to user-specified values.
• Evaluate alternative funding strategies.
• Compare actual cost trends to Whitestone benchmarks.
• Project Builder for groups and tracks M&R tasks.
• Classify building components by mission to prioritize spending.
• Estimate Plant Replacement Value (PRV) by building type, size, and location.
• Role-based security and relational database technology.
• Optional MARS Workbench enables direct access to MARS forecast and market data for creating custom queries and reports, and integration with other software applications.

Estimate Deferred Maintenance without Costly Inspections

MARS is used by many government agencies and other large facility owners to estimate deferred maintenance costs based on life cycle principles. In a large scale (3 million square feet) test, MARS estimates were within 10 percent of those from a traditional inspection-for less than half the cost. MARS estimates meet FASAB Standard Number 6, DOE 430.1B, and Executive Order 13327 reporting requirements.

Integration of Whitestone Cost Data

MARS is pre-loaded with a complete set of model facilities and economic data. Labor and material costs are provided for over 250 North American cities and 150 other worldwide locations. Other integrated features include over 140 pre-defined building templates and a library of over 1,700 facility components and related maintenance tasks.

Flexible Estimation Process

Each step of the modeling process is open to user-specified values, enabling careful calibration of estimates for local practices and costs. MARS users can produce alternative cost profiles by altering building components, labor rates, staff assignments, or any of the many other inputs into the estimation process. MARS analyses are presented in an extensive series of pre-defined reports that pass easily to other Windows-based applications.

Licensing

Flexible licensing terms can accommodate single users to large institutional and service providers.

Contact Us

Version 8.6 is now available. Schedule a free demonstration or for more information regarding Whitestone services e-mail us or contact us at (800) 210-0137.

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