Contact: McKinstry/essention, Inc.
Karen Little, (206) 268-9810
klittle@essention.com 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Commercial Building Technology Earns High Marks from Customers

Web-based technology and service solution receives impressive customer satisfaction results in nationwide survey

SEATTLE, WA (January 5, 2003) – McKinstry/essention, Inc., a Seattle-based application service provider of Web-based property and facility management solutions, today announced the results of an online survey taken by users of its InfoCentre product/service offering. InfoCentre combines an intuitive Web interface with a 24x7 customer service desk to provide a robust workflow and maintenance management system for customers in more than 40 million square feet of commercial building space across North America.  

In an effort to objectively gauge overall customer satisfaction with InfoCentre, McKinstry/essention conducted an anonymous online survey to users, focusing on adoption rate, ease of use, and quality of service. 

Because InfoCentre represents a significant change in the way users submit and track their day-to-day building-related issues, the rate at which building occupants standardize on the use of the system and service is of key importance to customer organizations.

Of those surveyed, 95% of customers responded that they were actively using InfoCentre to submit requests. The high adoption rate was predictable to many customers, and indicative of the cost savings that have been realized since InfoCentre’s implementation. Predominant use of the system has resulted in a significant reduction in the amount of administrative time, and thus cost, required to “hand-hold” issues submitted by occupants that often involve coordination and action amongst many levels of facility staff, vendors, and other contacts.

It was equally as important to understand the level of satisfaction with the services being provided. When asked to rate the following services, users cast a definitive response:

Product/Service Function:	Responded “Extremely Satisfied” or “Satisfied”	N/A - did not respond
Ease of online request and issue submission	91%	5%
Checking status of requests and issues	78%	14%
Interaction with customer service representatives	88%	7%
Obtaining building information	65%	32%

Satisfaction levels with the Customer Service Representatives (CSR’s) that are provided on a 24x7 basis as part of the InfoCentre solution was especially of interest, as the decision for many customers to outsource the direct point of contact with tenants is typically a particular source of concern. Although centralizing and standardizing this function dramatically reduces costs and expedites delivery of service, many building owners and managers perceive a risk of compromising control or quality of service being delivered to its customers. Evidence of successful transitions to the InfoCentre service desk, without detriment to quality of service, was revealed in the following survey findings:

Is the InfoCentre CSR:	Responded “Very” or Usually”
Courteous	99%
Knowledgeable	94%
Professional	98%
Responsive	96%

Overall satisfaction with InfoCentre, and satisfaction in comparison to building workflow management processes or systems prior to InfoCentre being launched, also far exceeded expectations. 94% of respondents rated their overall satisfaction as “extremely satisfied” or “satisfied,” while 70% said it is a “significant improvement” (50%) or “slight improvement” (20%) over the previous process.

“Customer satisfaction has been a core value proposition of InfoCentre since its inception,” stated Karen Little, Chief Operating Officer for McKinstry/essention, “These remarkable results, in tandem with the cost savings and efficiency gains that our customers consistently report, are evidence of the exceptional and tangible returns on investment InfoCentre is providing.”

 About McKinstry/essention
McKinstry/essention, Inc. is a real estate application service provider (ASP) that markets Web-based property and facility management solutions. McKinstry/essention develops and markets InfoCentre, a highly scaleable technology that addresses property and facility management inefficiencies and unifies service information. InfoCentre is currently being used to manage more than 30 million square feet of commercial property across North America, including clients that own or manage substantial property portfolios and Fortune 1000 organizations with large or geographically dispersed buildings. McKinstry/essention is headquartered in Seattle, WA, and on the World Wide Web at http://www.essention.com. For additional information, send email to media@essention.com.

McKinstry/essention is a registered trademark of McKinstry/essention, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners

SOURCE McKinstry/essention, Inc.