The global facility management market was valued at $1.37 trillion in 2025 and is projected to reach $1.44 trillion in 2026, growing at a CAGR of 8.5%. In the U.S. alone, the facility management market was valued at $365.93 billion in 2025 . Yet most facilities teams still operate with disconnected tools: one system for work orders, another for vendor invoices, a spreadsheet for asset tracking, and email threads for approvals.

That fragmentation costs real money. NetSuite eliminates it by bringing maintenance work orders, preventive scheduling, vendor management, and asset tracking into a single ERP platform. In this guide, we show how RIOO's facilities management solution  extends NetSuite to give facilities managers complete operational control without third-party tools.

The Hidden Cost of Disconnected Facilities Management Tools

 Facilities management is no longer a back-office function. According to the International Facility Management Association, FM now encompasses infrastructure maintenance, energy management, and occupant experience. Hard services like HVAC, electrical, fire safety, and infrastructure upkeep
controlled 58.45% of the U.S. facility management market in 2025.

Yet most facilities teams run on a patchwork of disconnected systems. The real costs of this fragmentation include:

• Data lives in silos-
  Your CMMS tracks work orders. Your accounting system tracks vendor payments. Your asset register lives in a spreadsheet. Nobody has a unified view of what a building actually costs to operate.

• Reactive maintenance dominates-
  Without integrated scheduling and asset data, teams default to break-fix mode. Facilities relying on reactive maintenance experience 3.3x more downtime and reactive maintenance costs 2 to 5x more than a planned approach.

• Vendor spend is uncontrolled-
  When purchase orders, invoices, and work orders live in separate systems, there is no three-way matching. Duplicate payments, billing errors, and contract overcharges go undetected.

• Compliance is manual-
  Fire safety inspections, elevator certifications, HVAC filter schedules, backflow testing: tracking these in spreadsheets means missed deadlines and regulatory exposure.

The solution is not another standalone FM tool. It is an integrated ERP that connects facilities operations to financial reporting, procurement, and asset management natively. That is exactly what NetSuite delivers.

How NetSuite Case Management Handles Maintenance Requests Natively

From Request to Resolution in One System

Many facilities teams don't realize that NetSuite includes a native case management module that handles maintenance requests without any third-party add-on.

Here is how it works: a tenant, employee, or building occupant submits a maintenance request through the RIOO self-service portal. NetSuite automatically creates a case record linked to the specific building, floor, unit, or common area. The case captures issue category (plumbing, electrical, HVAC, general), urgency level, photos, and access instructions.

From there, automated workflows take over: the case is routed to the appropriate facilities manager based on building assignment and issue type. Priority rules escalate urgent requests (water leaks, electrical hazards, elevator outages) to the top of the queue. The assigned technician or vendor receives a notification with full case details. Every status update, communication, and cost entry is logged against the case for complete audit trail.

This native capability means facilities teams get structured, trackable maintenance request management without paying for a separate CMMS license.

Building Preventive Maintenance Schedules Inside NetSuite

 Preventive maintenance typically cuts operating expenses 12 to 18% and can deliver approximately 400% ROI through fewer failures, energy savings, and extended asset life, according to the U.S. Department of Energy Federal Energy Management Program Maintenance Best Practices.

Yet most property companies still manage PM schedules in spreadsheets or standalone tools disconnected from their financial systems.

Why the Shift from Reactive to Preventive Matters

How NetSuite PM Scheduling Works

NetSuite allows facilities managers to build recurring maintenance schedules tied directly to assets, buildings, and vendor contracts:

• Time-based schedules-
  Monthly HVAC filter changes, quarterly fire extinguisher inspections, annual elevator certifications, and semi-annual roof inspections, all configured as recurring tasks with automated generation.

• Condition-based triggers-
  When integrated with building management systems or IoT sensors, NetSuite can generate maintenance tasks based on actual equipment condition data rather than fixed calendars.

• Compliance-driven schedules-
  Regulatory requirements like fire safety inspections, ADA compliance checks, and environmental testing are mapped to specific assets and buildings with automated deadline tracking and escalation.

Each preventive maintenance task generates a work order with pre-populated instructions, required parts, estimated labor hours, and assigned vendor or technician. When the work is completed, costs flow directly into the property-level P&L, no manual journal entries needed.

Regular preventive maintenance can extend equipment life by 20 to 40%.

Inside NetSuite, facilities managers can actually measure that impact because asset maintenance history and depreciation data live in the same system.

Work Order Creation, Assignment, and Tracking

The Full Work Order Lifecycle

NetSuite's work order capabilities cover the entire lifecycle from creation through completion and cost allocation:

• Creation-
  Work orders are generated automatically from maintenance cases, preventive maintenance schedules, or manual entry. Each work order captures the asset, location, issue description, priority, and estimated cost.

• Assignment-
   Rules-based assignment routes work orders to internal technicians or external vendors based on trade specialty, availability, building assignment, and contract terms. The RIOO vendor dispatch module  adds intelligent routing that considers vendor proximity, response time history, and current workload.

• Tracking-
   Real-time status tracking shows every work order in queue, in progress, awaiting parts, pending approval, or completed. Facilities managers get dashboard visibility across all properties, with drill-down to individual buildings and units.

• Completion and cost capture-
   When a work order is closed, all associated costs (labor, materials, vendor charges) are automatically allocated to the correct asset, building, and GL account. This eliminates the month-end scramble of matching vendor invoices to the work that was actually performed.

• SLA monitoring-
   Response time and resolution time are tracked against service level agreements, with automated alerts when SLA thresholds are at risk.

For property companies managing multiple buildings across different markets, this centralized work order system replaces the chaos of email chains, phone calls, and spreadsheet trackers with structured, measurable operations.

Vendor Management: Approvals, POs, and Payment

 Organizations are increasingly outsourcing facility operations to improve efficiency and optimize costs, according to CBRE Research Insights on Facility Management .Outsourced FM services are growing at a 3.7% CAGR through 2031 in the U.S. alone. 

How NetSuite Handles the Full Vendor Lifecycle

• Vendor onboarding-
  Vendor records in NetSuite capture trade specialties, service areas, insurance certificates with expiration tracking, W-9 documentation, and contract terms. Automated alerts notify facilities managers before insurance lapses, preventing compliance gaps.

• Purchase order workflow-
   Every work order that involves external vendor spend generates a purchase order routed through configurable approval chains. A $500 plumbing repair might auto-approve. A $15,000 HVAC replacement routes to the property manager, then the COO.

• Three-way matching-
   NetSuite matches the original work order, the purchase order, and the vendor invoice before payment is released. Discrepancies are flagged automatically, eliminating overpayments and billing disputes.

• Vendor performance scorecards-
   Track response time, completion time, callback rate, and cost variance by vendor across all properties. This data drives better vendor selection and contract negotiation.

• Payment processing-
   Approved invoices flow directly into accounts payable with correct GL coding, property allocation, and payment scheduling. No manual re-entry from a separate FM system.

The RIOO procurement module extends this further with competitive bid workflows for larger projects, preferred vendor auto-assignment by trade and building, and consolidated vendor spend reporting across the portfolio.

Asset Lifecycle Tracking and Depreciation

Every building contains hundreds of depreciable assets: HVAC systems, elevators, roofing, fire suppression systems, appliances, parking equipment, and common area fixtures. Tracking these assets across their full lifecycle is essential for financial reporting, capital planning, and tax optimization.

What NetSuite Asset Management Delivers

• Asset register
   Every asset is linked to its specific building, floor, and unit location with make, model, serial number, installation date, warranty information, and expected useful life.

• Depreciation automation
  NetSuite calculates and posts depreciation entries automatically using straight-line, declining balance, or any other method required by your accounting standards. No spreadsheets. No manual journal entries.

• Maintenance cost accumulation
   Every work order and vendor invoice tied to an asset accumulates against its record, giving facilities managers a true total cost of ownership. When an HVAC unit's cumulative repair costs approach replacement value, the data makes the capital decision obvious.

• Capital vs. expense classification
  NetSuite enforces your capitalization thresholds automatically, ensuring that asset improvements are capitalized and routine repairs are expensed correctly.

• Disposal and replacement tracking
  When assets reach end of life, NetSuite manages the disposal entry, removes the asset from the register, and initiates procurement workflows for the replacement.

Each dollar spent on preventive maintenance saves an average of $5 later on . With NetSuite, you can prove that ROI because maintenance costs and asset depreciation share the same database.

Space Record Management: Building to Unit to Room

Hierarchical Space Modeling

NetSuite's record architecture allows facilities managers to model every physical space in the portfolio:

Portfolio > Property > Building > Floor > Zone > Unit/Suite > Room

Each space record carries its own square footage, use classification, occupant assignment, maintenance history, and associated assets. This granularity enables facilities cost allocation down to the individual space level: how much does it cost to maintain the 4th floor common area versus the lobby versus the parking structure?

For property companies managing mixed-use portfolios, this hierarchy handles retail spaces, office suites, residential units, and common areas within the same building, each with appropriate cost centers and reporting structures.

The RIOO space management module  extends this with visual floor plans, space utilization tracking, and occupancy analytics that connect directly to lease and tenant data.

Reporting: Maintenance Cost Per Property, Vendor Performance, and Response Times

Data-driven facilities management separates high-performing property companies from the rest. IoT sensors and AI-based predictive maintenance are reshaping operating models by cutting downtime and optimizing utilities across the industry.

NetSuite's real-time dashboards give facilities managers the metrics that matter:

• Maintenance cost per property
   Total maintenance spend broken down by building, by trade category, and by reactive vs. preventive. Benchmark properties against each other to identify underperformers.

• Vendor performance
   Average response time, average completion time, callback rate, cost variance vs. PO estimates, and customer satisfaction scores, all tracked per vendor across the portfolio.

• Work order analytics
  Open vs. closed work orders, average resolution time, aging work orders, and SLA compliance rates. Drill down by property, building, priority level, or trade category.

• Preventive maintenance compliance
  Percentage of scheduled PM tasks completed on time vs. overdue. Identify properties or asset categories falling behind schedule before reactive failures occur.

• Asset health indicators
  Repair-to-replacement cost ratios by asset category, remaining useful life estimates, and capital expenditure forecasting based on asset condition data.

These reports aren't generated manually from exported data. They update in real time from the same database that processes work orders, vendor payments, and asset depreciation.

Integration with IoT and Building Management Systems

Modern facilities management increasingly relies on sensor data and building automation. Over 40% of large commercial properties globally now use IoT sensors and automation tools to manage energy and maintenance schedules.
NetSuite's open API architecture enables integration with:

• Building Management Systems (BMS)
  HVAC controls, lighting systems, and energy management platforms can push data into NetSuite, triggering maintenance tasks when equipment readings exceed normal parameters.

• IoT sensor platforms
  Temperature sensors, water leak detectors, air quality monitors, and occupancy sensors feed condition data that drives predictive maintenance workflows.

• Access control and security systems
  Visitor logs, access events, and security alerts integrate with facility records for comprehensive building operations visibility.

• Energy management systems
  Utility consumption data flows into NetSuite for cost tracking and sustainability reporting at the building and portfolio level.

These integrations transform facilities management from reactive and calendar-based to predictive and condition-based, a shift that delivers measurable cost reductions and better building performance.

Take Control of Your Facilities Operations

The facility manageme market is expected to grow from $61.08 billion in 2025 to $138.50 billion by 2030.

The shift from disconnected tools to integrated ERP-based facilities management is accelerating, and property companies that make the move now gain both operational efficiency and a data advantage over competitors still running on spreadsheets and standalone CMMS.

 Schedule a demo with RIOO to see NetSuite facilities management in action.
 "Also:" - Read our  Facility Maintenance Management  

FAQs: 

1. How does NetSuite handle maintenance requests?

NetSuite's native case management module captures maintenance requests from self-service portals or email, automatically creates case records linked to specific buildings and units, routes them to the correct facilities manager or vendor, and tracks every step from request through resolution with full audit trail.

2. Does NetSuite have work order management?

Yes. NetSuite supports the complete work order lifecycle: creation from cases or PM schedules, rules-based assignment to technicians or vendors, real-time status tracking, cost capture on completion, and automatic allocation to the correct asset, building, and GL account.

3. Can NetSuite replace standalone CMMS software?

For property companies already running NetSuite as their ERP, adding facilities management through RIOO eliminates the need for a separate CMMS. Work orders, vendor management, asset tracking, and maintenance reporting all operate inside NetSuite, removing data silos and duplicate data entry.

4. What is the best ERP for facilities management in real estate?

NetSuite with RIOO is the leading option for property companies seeking integrated facilities management. It combines maintenance operations with financial reporting, procurement, and asset management in one platform, eliminating the need for disconnected FM tools.

5. How does preventive maintenance work in NetSuite?

Facilities managers configure recurring maintenance schedules tied to specific assets and buildings. NetSuite auto-generates work orders on schedule, assigns them to vendors or technicians, tracks completion, and posts all costs to the correct property-level P&L automatically.