Paul Thomas FIWFM 

News

We are saddened at the passing of longstanding member, committed volunteer and Fellow of the Institute, Paul Thomas. 

Leading the tributes from IWFM, CEO Linda Hausmanis said  

“I was greatly saddened to hear of the loss of Paul. He made a varied, valued and highly impactful contribution across our community as chair, committee member, judge, subject matter expert, advocate and friend. I know he will be very sadly missed by everyone who knew him at IWFM and I offer sincere condolences to his family and friends.”  

Paul’s workplace and facilities management career started in 1983, and encompassed fields such as environmental services, construction and public health.  

Most recently, he worked at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester – had last year joined the Midlands Region.  

Chair Sarah Orpwood said: 
 
“I am extremely shocked and saddened to hear the heart-breaking news of our fellow committee member, Paul Thomas. He was a dedicated, passionate, and extremely valued member of our committee, always enthusiastic to actively lead and deliver valuable CPD events to our cohort of Midland-based IWFM members. My heart goes out to his colleagues and loved ones.”  

Paul was originally a member of the North Region and is remembered by Lee Cooper who paid this tribute: "Paul was a fantastic contributor to the North Region, organising some great events and always taking the lead. I can remember one specific event at Lincoln Cathedral that he organised, one of my first IWFM events (BIFM in those days) with such an interesting tour and discussion about servicing and maintaining historic buildings.

Paul also started the madness of cycling from York to Manchester for the North Ball, which we did for a number of years, raising some valuable funds for the charities. But always a pleasure to ride along with.

Paul was a good colleague, but also a good friend to me and many of us, he will be greatly missed."

Also, an active SIG member, Paul volunteered his considerable expertise to develop and advance the Institute’s foundational work on operational readiness and BIM, including authoring the Guide to BIM and later serving as the new Technology SIG’s inaugural Chair in 2019 as the subject became firmly rooted in the profession’s DNA.  

Paul also offered his time and expertise to the Impact Awards as a judge serving most recently in 2022.