Facility issues are not one-time events. They happen when you less expect, and can endanger your activity as a manager and the business’s productivity.
The best solution to these problems is following a regular commercial and industrial maintenance schedule.
While it may seem that creating a maintenance schedule is easy and straightforward, there is a lot that goes on behind. Here’s everything you should consider:
What Is Facility & Property Maintenance?
Summarized, facility and property maintenance includes a great blend of behind-the-scenes work, all to ensure the facility remains in top-notch shape and functional for users.
Facility maintenance covers tasks such as cleaning common areas, repairing broken items, fixing minor repairs, and removing the trash regularly.
It can also involve maintaining electrical systems, inspecting the HVAC system and other utilities. Few property managers extend building maintenance to their outdoor property as well – for example, lawn care, sprinkler maintenance, and landscape management.
The Importance Of Maintenance
Everyone talks about how maintenance is an important component of facility management. But does it help exactly?
Your property needs to be attractive, hygienic, and safe at all times. This is particularly true in this post-Covid 19 transition.
These are a few top reasons why building maintenance is so important:
1. Creates a Positive Outlook
Clients, visitors, employees, and other stakeholders like it when a building is well cared for. Regular maintenance will ensure that your building remains as good as new.
The first impression usually starts from the outdoor, such as the lawn, paintwork, and the parking lot. Building maintenance keeps an exterior appearance looking clean and fresh, which translates to visitors feeling safe, welcomed, and appreciative of the space they’re in.
2. Enhances Safety in the Building
Poorly maintained buildings are a timebomb for everyone working there. Regular maintenance ensures the building is safe for industrial or commercial use.
Safety is a major aspect in shopping centers, retail malls, and other public places. Minor chinks like inadequate electric wiring and faulty elevators can make the facility unsafe for visitors.
3. Sustainability
Building maintenance improves the quality standards of a facility. You can make the entire premise more efficient by lowering waste and improving resource utilization.
The management providers will continuously take steps to increase the efficiency of equipment within the building.
Why Do We Need A Maintenance Schedule?
Scheduled maintenance refers to carrying out repairs and inspections among other tasks as per a pre-defined maintenance schedule.
You can include isolated responses to work orders as part of the task as well. For instance, you can add recurring or period machine lubrication and calibration as part of the maintenance schedule.
Here’s what setting a well-set maintenance schedule will do for your property and assets:
1. Increased Transparency
As a facility manager, one of your primary responsibility is to respond to the timely needs of the visitors and ensure the premises run smoothly.
You are also the one optimizing the budget and liaising with different service providers and suppliers, such as plumbers, technicians, and delivery workers.
Planned maintenance helps the facility manager keep the building in top shape, as it keeps a smooth communication and assignment flow to all involved parties.
2. Improving Building Safety
Another reason for scheduling maintenance services is that even the most high-tech and user-friendly machinery can pose a safety hazard.
You can ensure that all your machinery and equipment operate smoothly without any risk, through a planned maintenance schedule.
3. Optimizing Workflow
Technical malfunction in the facility or building can stop work abruptly. It can also interrupt ongoing processes and plans.
You may need to alter business decisions because of the unpredictable nature of damage and repair schedules. Planned maintenance can reduce the likelihood of untimely repairs. This allows a building to operate more efficiently.
4. Increase Equipment Longevity
There is overwhelming evidence in medical sciences that suggest that early diagnosis saves lives. It also accelerates a patient’s quality of life.
The same theory applies to buildings, electronics, and machinery as well. You can extend the life of your facility by having it maintained at the right time.
5. Helps the Environment
When your equipment runs longer, you don’t just save time and reduce costs. You also become more environmentally responsible.
Companies that don’t renew or replace their equipment frequently create less harmful electronic waste. The regular maintenance schedule is an excellent opportunity for saving resources.
Service providers, such as electricians and plumbers can analyze excess energy usage and potential water leaks. They can provide facility managers and building owners with recommendations for tackling these issues.
Who Should Be Responsible For Maintenance?
Clean and organized business establishments and workplaces promote higher motivation for employees and visitors.
You won’t be able to get the maximum out of your workforce or business opportunity if you let your fixtures fall into disrepair or the trash bins overflow.
Hiring a commercial facility maintenance company will help prevent the spread of disease as well. Commercial building services will ensure that your facility remains in top condition.
These are a few services offered by commercial maintenance companies:
- Disaster and emergency cleanup: With the several weather fluctuations happening because of climate change, you need a contractor that can take care of the emergency cleanup. This includes servicing plumbing issues, such as broken water pipes and overflowing.
- Construction cleanup: Construction debris can pose a danger to customers, employees, and visitors if your building is currently under expansion or remodeling. Dust and particles in the air can dangerously reduce indoor air quality.
- Janitorial services: Custom clean-up and lighting maintenance are offered by certain commercial cleaning companies. There are several facilities maintenance services that offer refrigeration and HVAC maintenance as well.
- Exterior services: Facility management professionals can clean and protect exterior walls, sidewalks, and other areas under constant stress from environmental factors.
Rules Of Thumb Used To Determine Facility Condition Assessment
The property maintenance contractor you hire will inspect the entire facility to assess its present condition.
These are a few aspects they will pay particular attention to:
1. Architectural Issues
Architectural repairs, such as small cracks and minor mold problems can quickly turn into major renovation expenses if you are not careful.
Having a professional maintenance company take care of your architectural concerns will allow you to focus on other issues.
2. HVAC Issues
HVAC systems in commercial office buildings can easily be the most expensive investment. Timely maintenance will ensure that your system runs at peak condition.
3. Electrical Systems Issues
Certain tasks are required daily if you want your building to run efficiently. Electrical issues are very common in commercial establishments.
You don’t need to worry about broken bulbs or blown fuses when you have a responsible commercial maintenance contractor.
4. Plumbing Issues
Plumbing issues are not that common. However, when they happen, they can derail day-to-day activities and stop your business from functioning for even a couple of days.
Public restrooms need to have a fully functional plumbing system to ensure smooth management. Drainage issues are critical as well. They can quickly hamper routine tasks.
Maintenance Types
There are two broad types of maintenance that need to be performed in commercial properties. This includes emergency repairs, general upkeep, and special inspections. Preventive and predictive maintenance are important for preserving equipment, buildings, and grounds.
What are the differences between the two?
1. Preventive Maintenance
Preventive maintenance encompasses all activities which are taken for preventing a breakdown. This includes conducting routine audits of the infrastructure.
This type of maintenance is performed to prevent unexpected malfunctions and breakdowns that can wreak havoc on resource deployment and productivity.
Preventive maintenance has the sole objective of prolonging life expectancy and preventing equipment failure.
It also minimizes unscheduled downtime and reduces the overall maintenance costs by correcting defects before they become significant problems.
2. Predictive Maintenance
Predictive maintenance entails work performed on the condition of a system or component. It involves regular inspections for forecasting equipment failure.
Predictive maintenance involves using various techniques for determining the condition of the equipment. Many people consider predictive maintenance to be part of preventive maintenance since they share the same goal of preventing equipment failure.
6 Steps Of Maintaining A Building
There is a lot that goes into maintaining industrial and commercial buildings. These are six steps that your commercial contractor should diligently perform for ensuring that your building remains in top condition.
1. Environmental Conditions
The first step in building maintenance is to set a proper temperature. The climate and temperature inside a building shouldn’t just keep people comfortable, but also ensure the equipment runs optimally.
The right environmental conditions will also prevent mold and mildew from forming.
2. Heating & Cooling
Another important step in building maintenance is to make sure that heating and cooling are happening at optimal levels. The contractor will have special equipment for ensuring this happens.
3. Lighting
Poor lighting conditions can make people wary of a facility, it reduces productivity and can even cause accidents.
Lighting conditions should be perfect in industrial and office settings. Broken light bulbs or flickering light can lend a shabby appearance to the building.
4. HVAC Maintenance
HVAC systems are a big investment. The commercial building maintenance contractor you hire should have the technical knowledge to inspect and fix minor issues with the HVAC system. They should also clean or replace the air filters periodically.
5. Preventing Water Damage
Plumbing is a vital aspect of facility maintenance. This is particularly true for older buildings. You should have the professional maintenance service providers take a look at all piping and other components to ensure there are no cracks or other issues.
6. Electrical Maintenance
This is one of the most common areas for ongoing maintenance. There is always an electrical issue in a building regardless of whether it is a blown fuse or a wiring problem.
Having an on-call commercial contractor take care of electrical maintenance will ensure that your facility doesn’t have to face a blackout or other unpleasant situations.
Industrial Building Maintenance Scheduling
Manufacturing facilities find equipment failure and downtime very costly. This is because profits are directly related to production.
The life force of an operation is timely maintenance. And, there is no better way of ensuring that your industrial building is maintained properly than by scheduling or pre-planning maintenance.
The complexity of maintenance depends on the type of manufacturing or industrial facility. Several issues are specific to manufacturing facilities.
For instance, environmental requirements can differ or there may be specialized equipment requiring specific technical knowledge.
Working with an experienced and certified maintenance company ensures you get the best results.
Commercial Building Maintenance Scheduling
Most of the maintenance in commercial buildings is predictive and routine. However, every office building has specific needs.
You should speak with a reputable commercial maintenance contractor about your requirements.
While industrial maintenance scheduling will need to take place as per production schedules, commercial building maintenance can be done during off-business hours.
Office buildings generally require more subtle maintenance that doesn’t disrupt daily activities.
How Preventive Maintenance Benefits A Business
There are a lot of benefits to having your commercial establishment maintained proactively. You will save time and money, increase the property value and you will have more leverage to run your business with no issues.
Keep A Building’s Systems Running Smoothly
One of the best ways to keep a well-maintained building is to be on top of anything that may arise. This includes electrical concerns, plumbing issues, and a clogged HVAC air filter among other things.
You must be proactive rather than reactive. This will help you take care of repairs before they spiral into something major.
Building repairs are easy and cheap if detected early. You may end up paying for major renovations if you are too late to fix an issue.
It can be extremely disruptive when major repairs and maintenance have to be carried out. You don’t want your commercial establishment to be closed just because of repairs. The right commercial maintenance service providers can ensure your building runs smoothly.
Speak with a Commercial Facility Maintenance Company
Commercial maintenance is a must if you want a successful and profitable business. You should hire a dependable maintenance company if you don’t want to compromise the productivity, health, and safety of your clients, employees, and visitors.
You can reduce your stress by hiring a professional building maintenance contractor that offers excellent services that help you realize your business goals.
You’ll need the help of a market leader and services provider in your area, and Servi-Tek Facility Solutions is here to help you!
Get in touch with us today for a free estimate and support directly from field experts.
