We all want to deal with problems before they come up, after all, that's why we see our doctors for preventative care and get our cars serviced. Dealing with maintenance before it turns into a full-fledged problem is always the better choice, and it is the same with our facilities. Yet, as Facility Managers we often delay preventative maintenance maybe out of budget concerns or just a lack of time. Maybe our current problems are just so front and center that it makes it really hard to consider our future problems. No one wants things to go catastrophically wrong, rack up a huge repair bill but it can be easy to be lulled into a false sense of security when it seems like everything is going fine. But we all know problems are lurking, seemingly waiting for the worst time. And once a significant issue surfaces, you have no choice but to pay out and have it fixed because you need your facility to be operational. But, if you make in-house facility maintenance part of your building maintenance plan and factor it into your budget, you can help protect yourself from these unexpected charges and damage and manage small issues before they become big problems.
Of course, any type of maintenance is going to cost you money, preventative notwithstanding, but fixing problems as they inconveniently pop up is always going to cost you the most. There must be a shift from pay big later to pay a little as you go now, but the cost savings in preventative maintenance saves big money over time. If you identify issues before they become full blown problems, it is much easier to address, service or repair, and you can do it in your own timeframe if the problem allows. By avoiding peak operating times, you can plan to fix issues when it will cost you the least and be the least disruptive. Take for instance your HVAC systems. If it breaks on a summer day mid work week, it is likely to cost you a small fortune to get it repaired in a timely manner. But if you test and service your HVAC in the off season, you can make a plan at significantly less costly fix instead of waiting until it stops working. This allows you to construct a history of problems to start looking at predictive maintenance as well. If you know when your equipment starts to have problems, you can identify when you need to start working on certain things to further protect yourself from unforeseen complications. Instead of reactively addressing problems as they come up, you can save yourself the stress, time, and money by taking advantage of preventative and predictive maintenance to keep your facility running optimally.
Of course preventative and predictive maintenance are going to require some forethought, planning, and be figured in to your already tight budgets. But by actively addressing potential problems in your facility before they become immediate problems, you save yourself money, time, and net a lot of value from something much simpler than trying to coordinate an emergency fix for critical systems. Any professional commercial handyman service can help you put together a preventative maintenance plan that makes sense for your facility. This comes with the added benefit of being able to work around your busy times and gives you more control of your budget because you know what everything is going to cost with no surprises. Even better, when you do have unforeseeable maintenance issues, you already have a partner in your corner ready to step in and help.
There are a couple core areas standard across most facilities that have huge returns with a little preventative maintenance. Light, carpets, flooring, and the HVAC system that picks the middle of winter or the hottest day of the summer to break. Light bulbs are often the least conspicuous. It doesn’t seem like it takes a lot of time to replace them as they go out, but it adds up very quickly. Consider re-lamping and replacing your standard halogens with LEDs that have nearly fifty times the lifespan and can help you reduce money spent on powering them. They may cost a little extra, but in the long run they can save you some big money. Another less than noticeable area is your hard flooring and carpets. A solid carpet cleaning and repair plan can easily add another five to ten years onto your carpet’s life. If you wait until the stains, dirt and damage are visible on your carpet, it is likely already too late. The same goes with your hard flooring. If the protective coat has been worn down, your building’s traffic will start to damage the floor itself.
A commercial handyman service can clean, repair and protect these expensive assets before they are too far gone and give them a much longer lifespan. Repairing and servicing them early is always going to be less expensive than replacing carpet and hard flooring. The final area that you should look into preventative maintenance is for your HVAC system. It will break, and it will be at the worst possible moment. If you take the time to test, service and repair your HVAC unit, you can make sure that when it is needed most, it is ready to go. Most commercial handymen services recommend looking at it at least twice a year. On top of this, it can be a good idea to conduct a thorough inspection of it when the time rolls around that it is needed again. This is certain to save you a lot of money in the long run.
Forming a lasting partnership with a solid, professional building services company is going to be a better investment that trying to secure the right contactor in the middle of an emergency repair. Not only will you have year round service available when you need it, but the ongoing service and repairs will save you money and help extend the longevity of some of your most important building assets. There is no way to avoid every nasty surprise, but with a little planning and due diligence, you can help reduce their impact on your facility and be prepared.