Patent ID: 7475122

Claim:
A system for remotely and automatically controlling, by a facilities management company, maintenance of facilities by a maintenance company with regards to a contract binding the maintenance company to the facilities management company, said system comprising: local monitoring units, each local monitoring unit being installed in close proximity to at least one piece of said facilities and associated thereto, each local monitoring unit comprising: means for measuring operation parameters of the associated pieced of facilities for detecting an operational state thereof; control means for allowing a maintenance technician to real time notify the start and the end time of his maintenance or repair task performed on the associated piece of facilities or to notify that the associated piece of facilities is out of order for a long period because works are in progress, said control means being independent from the operational state of the associated piece of facilities, a transmission network, and means for transmitting through said transmission network said detected operational state of said associated piece of facilities and said maintenance task start and end times; a first and a second computer, each computer being connected to the local monitoring units through said transmission network and comprising means for receiving and processing said detected operational state and said maintenance task start and end times transmitted by the local monitoring units, and means for storing all information transmitted by the local monitoring units, said first computer being available to the maintenance company and being used to manage the maintenance of said facilities, and said second computer being available to the facilities management company and being used to automatically control the maintenance and repair tasks performed by the technicians of said maintenance company on said facilities with regards to their contractual obligations.