Author: MaintenX

Facility managers spend a lot of time thinking of ways to reduce costs and maximize efficiency at their businesses. In the winter, much of this focus goes toward reducing heating costs. While this has much to do with the efficiency and performance of your HVAC system, it can be equally affected by the insulation and proper sealing of your facility.

 

“Sealing” the facility means eliminating air leaks from doors, windows, and cracks in the structure. A great deal of heated air can escape from doors and windows, while cold air freely flows inside. This makes your HVAC work harder than it should. You may be experiencing HVAC performance issues caused by overworking rather than the system’s age. If this is happening, your expensive HVAC system could meet an early deterioration due to improper insulation. 

 

The first step to sealing your facility is to close the gaps between window frames and doors. Common issues include door closers working improperly, a deterioration within the frame causing an improper fit, or deteriorating weather stripping. Weatherstripping and repairs on window and door frames can go a long way toward keeping you warmer in the winter. However, these are not the only places where air leaks can occur in your facility. 

 

You’ll also want to inspect the rooftop insulation to ensure it’s doing its proper job. A great deal of warm air escapes from the rooftops, which can cause issues for your HVAC system and your power bill. Talk to your MaintenX technicians about insulation options, as well as roofing maintenance to seal the leaks or cracks on the rooftop. 

 

Sealing your facility will also include insulation on your plumbing. Pipes tend to burst in the winter if they freeze. This can shut your facility down partially or entirely, especially if the plumber is not called immediately. In order to prevent the catastrophe, contact your MaintenX plumber to inspect your pipes and install insulation if needed. Insulating your pipes can also help with better airflow and protect them from wear and tear throughout the year. 

 

Your MaintenX technicians can help you take on these projects and fully prepare your facility for winter. We work with facilities across the country to help them insulate their facilities and perform at a high level in the winter. To learn more, contact your local MaintenX team!

Is your facility prepared for winter? If you live in a cold climate you are probably already experiencing the first real cold snaps, and are fast-approaching the snowy season. Even in Florida, where MaintenX is headquartered, we are experiencing shorter, colder days and are getting ready to turn the thermostat up for winter. However, it’s been a long time since you’ve had to worry about your commercial heater. It may need some TLC before the winter months to truly perform at peak performance. 

Below are just a few tips from your MaintenX experts on how to care for your commercial heater this winter:

Go through your fall HVAC maintenance checklist.

Your heater hasn’t been in use since last winter, which means it’ll need a tune-up to perform properly. Go through your basic maintenance checklist to ensure it runs properly on the first cold day of winter:

• Replace heater filters
• Check for gas leaks
• Inspect fan and blower operation
• Lubricate belts
• Adjust your thermostat

Look for air duct leaks.

This maintenance task may or may not require action, depending on the condition of your air ducts. However, it is one of the most important you can take to ensure proper airflow and energy efficiency. Seal any air ducts that are experiencing leaks now so that you don’t spend more than what’s necessary on heating.

Analyze your energy spending.

In Florida, winter temperature control can be very costly. Most commercial buildings, especially if they are older, are constructed with maximum cooling in the summer in mind. While this is necessary, it can be difficult to achieve energy efficiency in the winter. Run an energy audit and analyze your previous year’s heating expenses with your MaintenX HVAC technician. This can help you look for ways to reduce heating costs in the form of equipment upgrades, protocol changes, and maintenance service.

MaintenX HVAC technicians are here to help you stay warm during the winter. We offer preventative and emergency maintenance services for every situation and will work within a budget to help you get through it. To learn more about our services, contact your local MaintenX team today. 

 

Is your restaurant or commercial kitchen planning to serve on Thanksgiving day? 2020’s COVID-19 crisis will bring many changes to the holiday season, but it’s safe to assume that customers will still look for commercial kitchens to help with their Thanksgiving meals. If you decide to participate, here are just a few ways you can prepare for the holiday rush:

 

Plan for COVID-19 precautions. 

This year’s Thanksgiving for restaurants will be very different. Despite the high volume you’ll need to maintain social distancing and sanitization guidelines. We recommend putting a plan in place before the big day and communicate it to customers early. If you take orders in advance, be sure to let customers know exactly what to expect and how they can stay safe.

 

Adjust your service hours.

Thanksgiving is a day of high volume for commercial kitchens, but that doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice your own holiday experience. Typically the rush comes mid-day, which means you may have the option to close early and give your employees the chance to have their own Thanksgiving celebration. Talk with management and employees to determine the best operating hours for the big day.

 

Clear your schedule.

A commercial kitchen’s worst nightmare is being understaffed on Thanksgiving Day. However, your employees will be incredibly disappointed if you call them in or schedule them last-minute. In order to avoid this catastrophe, schedule your Thanksgiving staff well in advance. If you can’t close early, make sure that you offer additional compensation or a bonus for working on the holiday. A bit of appreciation and giving goes a long way toward boosting morale and maintaining your employees long-term. 

 

Prepare your kitchen for specialty items and services.

Many restaurants serve specialty items or offer to-go dishes for people to enjoy around their dinner table on Thanksgiving. While this will help boost sales, it can also cause mayhem in the back house if you’re not prepared. Stock up on ingredients and train your staff thoroughly for these new items and services so that Thanksgiving boosts your reputation rather than hurts it.

 

Schedule your maintenance ahead of time.

Aside from being understaffed, the worst thing you can allow to happen on Thanksgiving is for an essential piece of equipment to fail. If your refrigerator needs repairs or your HVAC system goes out, you’ll have no choice but to shut down on the biggest day of the year. Don’t let this happen to your business — call your local MaintenX team for a maintenance audit before the big day. 

 

MaintenX can help your commercial facility run at peak performance all year long. To learn more about our preventative maintenance services, contact us today.  

Is your retail outlet, restaurant, or local boutique getting ready for holiday sales? You’ve likely started your email marketing campaigns and rebranded your website for big sales, but is your storefront equally ready for the influx of consumers? If you haven’t given it much thought, here is what we at MaintenX recommend you do to prepare for the 2020 holiday shopping spree. 

 

Be prepared with COVID-19 precautions. 

People have been cooped up inside for months, and are ready to de-stress with holiday shopping in their favorite local outlets. However, this holiday season has the potential to spread COVID-19, which means your storefront must be additionally cautioned when planning for Black Friday and holiday shopping sales. Whatever safety protocols you enforce, be sure that you have adequate staffing to inform customers, keep them moving through the lines, and have proper security for policy enforcement if needed. 

 

Schedule preventative repairs before the big rush. 

If you have an HVAC issue that needs attention or a leaky faucet that’s been bothering staff, make sure you schedule the repair before your biggest sales. Your storefront will be running at its highest capacity and performance for up to two months. It needs to be a well-oiled machine before you tackle this immense sales rush. Call your MaintenX technicians for an audit at the minimum to make sure your facility is resistant to emergency repairs before December. 

 

Spruce up outdoor areas.

If you utilize an outdoor showroom, this should be on your checklist every season. However, many facility managers don’t think about their outdoor facilities as part of necessary maintenance for the holiday season. By cleaning up the parking lot, investing in lawn care, and maintaining hardscape elements such as pavers and woodwork, your storefront will be more inviting to consumers. And, a better overall shopping experience will translate to more holiday sales. 

 

This holiday season is your opportunity to close out 2020 strong. For more information on how you can better prepare your facility, contact your local MaintenX team today!

2020 has been incredibly hard on most businesses across the U.S. Even those who were able to stay open, like fast food and grocery outlets, were faced with unprecedented circumstances in staffing, safety, and customer demand. This year, we are hoping for a brighter future and greater strength to handle these trying times. 

 

While it may be difficult to think about the improvement in a time when many are still financially struggling from COVID-19, it is possible to grow in 2021. Below are just a few ways in which you can invest in your facility and make it a great place to work next year: 

 

Invest in aesthetics. 

Is there a space in your facility that is in need of a renovation? You may have held off on aesthetic investments in 2020, but next year the way you present your business will be vital to your success. Customers and employees will want to step into a place that shows pride in their appearance. It shows that you were able to weather the storm and are leading 2021 with a strong forward motion. 

 

Upgrade essential appliances. 

This may be on your laundry list of tasks if you run a restaurant or other high-volume business during COVID-19. Certain systems such as refrigeration were likely to run at peak performance for long months, and with factories shut down globally, there is a long waiting list for major appliances for commercial facilities. If you are looking to replace essential equipment, it’s important to start shopping now so you’re first on the list when new high-demand products become available. 

 

Invest in energy. 

In addition to aesthetic renovations, it may be smart to start thinking about energy efficiency in 2021. Businesses who had invested in energy-efficient equipment and solar resources were able to reduce costs effectively during COVID-19 shutdowns. However, these businesses were few and far between. If you have been looking into energy-efficient alternatives for facility operations, now is the time to start. Look into your county or state’s incentive programs to help you finance some of the costs and get started soon. 

 

Find a reputable maintenance contractor.

MaintenX prides itself on helping our clients weather the many storms of their facility maintenance. From natural disasters to overcoming COVID-19, we’ve been there for our clients through thick and thin. If you don’t have a reliable maintenance contractor on-call for facility repairs and preventative services, call your local MaintenX team today. 

 

As we enter the last few weeks of 2020, facility managers are beginning to consider their plans and goals for next year. While maintenance budgeting may not be first on the list when planning for the new year, it is a vital aspect of your facility’s overall performance. Planning for preventative repairs, upgrades to new equipment, and emergency services will help you maintain a high-performing facility in 2021. 

 

MaintenX helps customers create affordable preventative maintenance plans for the year. We emphasize the importance of preventative care for major systems in order to reduce reactive and emergency maintenance costs. In order to do that, we use these budgeting tools to plan your maintenance services accordingly: 

 

Asset-based budgeting

In maintenance, your equipment and systems set the budget rather than your staff. For each appliance or major system, you will need to budget for certain repairs and maintenance services based on its service life and service history. These factors will determine the maintenance budget needed based on work hours, replacement parts, and routine services needed to maintain system performance. This budgeting tactic builds from the bottom up and reduces unnecessary service calls. 

 

Replacement Asset Value Percentage (%RAV) 

You can also budget using the %RAV. This number, representing the cost of maintenance as a percentage of the cost to replace the entire system, can help you determine when new equipment is needed. Typically, %RAV hovers between 2-5%, meaning that annual maintenance costs shouldn’t exceed 5% of the total cost to replace and install a new system. This ensures that you’re not spending more on maintenance in a given year than you would to finance a new system. However, the %RAV does not give you the entire picture. You must look at your facility’s needs, and the service history of equipment before deciding to upgrade. 

 

Cost estimates based on the previous year

Analyze your 2020 maintenance expenditures to help you see the trends in your facility performance. It’s important to take into account changes you made due to COVID-19, such as shutdowns or increased cleaning and sanitization. These factors are not likely to reoccur in the same way, but they can help you adjust your emergency maintenance budget for 2021. 

 

These are just a few ways in which we recommend you plan your maintenance budget each year. There are countless ways to factor in potential expenses and annual costs, but one of the best is to talk to your local MaintenX team. 

 

MaintenX specializes in preventative maintenance for commercial facilities. We help you care for your facility systems and staff with performance-enhancing and cost-saving maintenance services. To learn more about what MaintenX can do for your business, contact us.

As 2021 rolls around, you should be thinking about your maintenance plan and budget. As part of your overall strategy, maintenance planning is an important step in reducing next year’s costs and increasing facility performance from the bottom up. Upgrades, increased preventative maintenance, and new staffing needs should all be addressed in your 2021 maintenance guide. 

 

If 2020 has taught us anything, emergency planning is essential. Many businesses struggled to keep up with additional maintenance demands for sanitization and cleaning, while others were ill-prepared for maintaining a closed store during lockdown months. Take the lessons learned from this year and apply them to your emergency maintenance budget. 

 

The easiest way to create your 2021 plan is to break it down into your maintenance strategy, maintenance policies, and monthly checklists. 

 

Your maintenance strategy helps management to see the whole picture, including how preventative maintenance will reduce expenses and improve performance over time. You can then compare your strategy goals at the end of the year versus the results, and make adjustments accordingly. Strategy planning will also help you bolster your emergency maintenance plan. 

 

Maintenance policies are built from your maintenance strategy and include all of the protocols, systems, and responsibilities of your maintenance team. These policies outline the steps you need to take throughout the year, as well as the proper methods and expectations for your maintenance staffing. These policies will shape day-to-day activities but will also be the guiding force in your overall strategy. 

 

Finally, your monthly checklists will put your strategy and policies into action. These checklists should be planned out in advance to ensure you hit preventative maintenance targets for specific applications. For example, you may only need to pressure wash or have your HVAC system audited once or twice a year. However, if you add these to a checklist in advance, you’ll remember to stay on schedule and never miss an important step in your plan. 

 

This thorough, methodical approach to maintenance planning will put you in a better situation throughout the year. 2020 has changed the way many of us to business. It’s time to put those lessons to use and create a 2021 strategy that will yield long-term results. If you’re looking for the right staffing to put this maintenance plan into place, MaintenX is right for you. 

 

We offer both preventative and emergency maintenance services that put you back in control of your business. MaintenX is solution-oriented and puts time and effort into the overall maintenance of your facility. We work from the bottom up to prevent emergencies before they happen. To learn more about our preventative maintenance strategy and services, contact us. 

At MaintenX, we often focus on indoor facility maintenance for long-term business growth and wellbeing. However, your outdoor areas are just as important for maintaining a proper appearance and a safe working environment for staff. Whether you’re utilizing an outdoor showroom, a large parking lot, or simply a commercial landscape for curb appeal, this outdoor maintenance checklist will help you maintain a beautiful outdoors for your property. 

Outdoor Maintenance Checklist

• Sweep front entrance daily or weekly to remove dirt and fallen debris
• Repair cracks in concrete, brick, and pavers
• Inspect the foundation for signs of deterioration and schedule repairs accordingly
• Clean windows regularly
• Inspect outdoor HVAC units for cleanliness and proper performance
• Inspect and clean rooftop of debris
• Clean out gutters around the entire building
• Replace broken or cracked shingles
• Repair roofing flashing and reapply a waterproof sealant if applicable
• Clean and repair outdoor lighting and electrical work
• Inspect caulking and weather stripping for signs of damage
• Repair railings, ramps, and other safety/ADA features
• Rake dead foliage and cut grass 
• Inspect outdoor irrigation and adjust as needed
• Inspect plumbing accessible outside the facility and ensure it is in good working order
• Pull weeds and trim overgrowth of trees and shrubs
• Repaint the exterior or freshen up chipped paint
• Apply sealants to brick, pavers, and stone
• Pressure wash stone and wood hardscape where applicable

This is not an exhaustive list, but it will help get you started creating a safe, beautiful, and functional landscape.

Does this checklist seem like too much for your handyman to carry out? If so, contact your local MaintenX team to learn about our comprehensive preventative maintenance services. We work with your staff and management to create a plan that is holistic, cost-efficient, and beneficial to your business overall. We believe that the best care you can give to your building is preventative care, which is why we put emphasis on routine checkups and low-cost preventative maintenance services. 

To learn more about our outdoor maintenance services, contact your local MaintenX team today!

Landscaping is your business’ first impression to new tenants, customers, or visitors. If well-maintained, it says to your guest, “We’re proud of what we do here.” However, having a dilapidated hardscape and wilting foliage sends the exact opposite message. If you want to put your best foot forward every day, landscape and hardscape maintenance should be a top priority.

 

Commercial landscape typically includes hardscape, or the built structures of your outdoor space. Elements such as patios, courtyards, walkways, and decks all encompass your hardscape. Stonemasons and carpenters typically specialize in outdoor hardscapes and can help you create a beautiful atmosphere for guests. However, it is up to you to properly maintain these structures for longevity and aesthetic appeal. 

 

Below are four tips to keep in mind when caring for your commercial hardscape:

 

Choose the right contractor. 

If you’re installing or repairing a dilapidated piece of hardscape, make sure to vet your contractors for quality craftsmanship and timeliness. It can be difficult to fix hardscape elements such as concrete and woodwork if not installed correctly the first time. Other elements such as pavers are more forgiving, but you want to ensure you choose the right contractor for the job to reduce maintenance headaches and expenses. 

 

Clean hardscape elements regularly. 

Cleaning hardscape is essential for many reasons. Not only will it keep your outdoor space looking neat, but it will also prevent mold and mildew growth. Professional cleaning including pressure washing and chemical applications will help remove stains, dirt, and organic growth from your hardscape design. 

 

Seal cracks and surfaces properly. 

There are many options for using joint sand stabilizers or sealers for the crevices in elements like pavers or brick. You can also use waterproofing sealants on some hardscape elements to ensure that water damage does not compound over time. These sealants may need to be refreshed annually, so check with your MaintenX technician to learn about proper long-term care. 

 

Replace broken elements ASAP. 

If you have a cracked paver or chipped piece of wood, contact the installation team immediately to replace it. These are not only an eyesore but can be a hazard to visitors on your property. A chipped wood board could cause a splinter, and a cracked paver could cause someone to trip. While these may not cause serious injuries, they leave an unfavorable impression that could easily be prevented by proper maintenance. 

 

MaintenX technicians are here to help you maintain the look and function of your commercial hardscape. For more tips and information on our maintenance services, contact us today.

Autumn is most often associated with change. As the leaves start to fall, the sun rises earlier, and the cold days become more consistent, we feel a change in the atmosphere that is significant beyond the weather. It is time to think about the upcoming year and begin new projects that can benefit your business as a whole. 

 

One way to begin this transformative period is by investing time into your landscaping. Not only will you impress guests and tenants with a more inviting outdoor space, but showing care for your lawn is an important way to show pride for your business. By putting time into these four fall lawn care activities, you can see improvements in your overall business aesthetic. 

 

Don’t neglect regular maintenance 

Because of the falling leaves and dry spells, many managers forget about the grass underneath. However, it is important to maintain certain tasks such as cutting the grass, raking the fall leaves, and providing proper irrigation in accordance with the rainfall you’re expecting. 

 

Trim and prune your larger foliage 

Typically it’s recommended to trim and prune trees and shrubs in the spring because the branches will have a better chance of healing and growing. However, the drier months can be a great time to trim away dead limbs, especially if heavy snowfall may cause them to collapse. Be careful about what you trim, and ask a professional for help when needed. 

 

Provide proper mulch 

Mulch looks great and provides your plants proper protection from frost during the winter (rather than just leaving the fall leaves on the ground). You can find mulch in a variety of colors and can use organic or plastic mulch depending on your facility’s needs and the size of your landscaping. 

 

Start thinking about spring 

Just as the autumn sparks creativity in business planning, it should inspire you to start thinking about your spring landscaping. You can begin planting now so that when spring arrives, you have beautiful new flowers and shrubs. Consult with local nurseries to learn which flowers and shrubs will last through the winter, and which will be best for your environment. 

 

November and December are great times to invest in your landscaping for the future. If you want to learn more about landscaping basics, best practices, and more, contact your local MaintenX team today.