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Customer story
Novus: how proving compliance stopped costing days and started saving them
Since 2022, Novus has embedded Onetrace into passive fire delivery, replacing retrospective paper-based evidence gathering with live, auditable records. The result is clearer compliance, stronger client visibility and measurable efficiency at scale.
of admin saved every week
less resource on dashboards
typical support response
passive fire tasks per year
About Novus
Novus Property Solutions is a national fast-track fit out, refurbishment, maintenance and retrofit specialist with a 129-year heritage. Across their passive fire protection programmes, demonstrating that work has been specified, installed, inspected and certified correctly is as important as completing the physical work itself.
Services
Planned maintenance
Reactive maintenance
Passive fire compliance
Paintings & specialist coatings
Decarbonisation
Fast track fit out
Onetrace features
Installation recording
Customisable forms & QA
Reporting & QR codes
Client guest access
Planner
Timesheets
Since adopting Onetrace in 2022, Novus has transformed their passive fire protection process. Rather than assembling compliance evidence retrospectively from paper records, photographs and separate files, teams now capture information digitally as work happens, creating an auditable Golden Thread from survey and installation through to quality assurance, certification and handover.
The challenge
Proving compliance at scale
Passive fire protection is life-safety work. Novus needed a robust record of what was identified, what was installed, the materials and tested solutions used, who completed the work and how it was checked.
Previously, supporting evidence was held across paper records, photographs and individual knowledge, then brought together retrospectively. This created significant administration, slowed reporting and made it harder to give clients immediate visibility of progress and evidence.
Marius Fechete, Site Manager
The solution
One live record
Onetrace is now embedded within Novus’s passive fire delivery across the country. Operatives capture evidence at source as work takes place. Photographs, asset information, installation records, certifications, QA checks and corrective actions form a live audit trail, while client guest access provides visibility without waiting for information to be compiled at the end of a project.
The platform supports fire door installation and maintenance, fire stopping, compartmentation, intumescent coatings and associated works. Installers, administrators, contract managers, commercial teams and compliance colleagues work from the same live information, strengthening accountability and reducing duplication.
David Barnes, Operations Manager
The Digital Golden Thread
Assets and actions recorded
Evidence captured on site
Checks and corrective actions logged
Compliant records retained
Clients access a complete audit trail
Measurable value for Novus and its clients
Real-time evidence capture saves Novus around two days of administration each week. Dashboard management that previously required three or four people can now be managed by one, representing up to a 75% reduction in the resource needed for that activity. Support queries are typically answered in under five minutes.
The benefits extend beyond Novus’s back office. Live information can be filtered by contract, operative, action or asset, reducing manual searches and duplicated reporting while giving clients clearer oversight of instructed, in-progress and completed work.
Client programmes
Passive fire tasks delivered per year for Platform Housing, including 1,200+ fire doors and 2,500+ penetration seals
Reduction in GreenSquareAccord fire actions backlog within 10 months, from 15,000 to 6,000
Customer satisfaction at Midland Heart, with 100% of 10,000+ fire actions completed on time
Project spotlight: solving problems with evidence
On one project, Novus was delivering more than 50 door upgrades alongside a fire-resistant coating to a timber ceiling. During the works, the new coating reacted unpredictably with material already present on the timbers.
Rather than allowing the issue to become an unexplained delay, the team used Onetrace records and photographs to show the manufacturer’s technical representative exactly what was happening. The representative attended the site, tested alternative approaches with the team and helped agree a compliant way forward. Novus could evidence and explain the delay transparently to the client throughout.
Accurate, accessible evidence supported a faster technical response, transparent communication and renewed confidence in the way forward.
A partnership that continues to evolve
The relationship between Novus and Onetrace has developed beyond a conventional supplier arrangement. Novus has trialled functionality such as Planner in early access and shared practical insight from live projects to support product enhancement. Regular reviews help both organisations assess performance, respond to evolving needs and identify opportunities for continuous improvement.
The approach was recognised as the organisations were shortlisted for the 2026 ASFP Partnership of the Year award, focusing on their shared goal of making passive fire compliance safer, clearer and fully auditable from survey to handover.
Responsible and sustainable delivery
Digital records replace paper-based job packs, separately stored photographs and repeated evidence gathering. Capturing information once at source reduces duplication and rework, while accurate surveys and asset data help teams schedule work correctly, reduce repeat visits and avoid unnecessary material ordering.
The result
Around two days saved every week
Clients see live progress through guest access
Every action captured at source, as it happens
Live data filtered by contract, operative or asset
Final word
David Barnes, Operations Manager
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