Author: MaintenX

Performing facility maintenance can be a tricky and complicated endeavor. Thermal imaging technology gives technicians the ability to see hidden problems, making it easy to spot issues with:

• Failing motors
• Faulty electrical components
• HVAC condenser leaks
• Bad ductwork
• Leaky roofs

Using infrared imaging, facility technicians can fix problems before they intensify, as well as reduce a facility’s heating and cooling costs.

Uses

Infrared imaging’s uses include:

• Preemptive asset monitoring: Manual use of thermal imaging tools can identify failing systems before they fail, including pumps, valves, belts, motors and more.
• Checking equipment remotely: Infrared imaging allows for routine maintenance without shutting down operations.
• Automated system monitoring: Infrared imaging lets you organize automated systems that can recognize problems, generate signals, and alert you before a failure occurs.

Unwanted Guests

Pests like mice, rats, or possums can be difficult to get rid of, and can cause significant damage to building insulation, wiring, and other components. Infrared images can help technicians locate these pests, their nests, and the destruction they might have produced.

HVAC    Uses
Technicians performing HVAC inspections with a thermal imaging camera can locate misrouted and leaking ducts, identify electrical or mechanical HVAC system faults, confirm the source of energy losses, spot missing insulation, and discover air conditioning condensate leaks.

To prevent breakdowns, technicians inspect the many electrical and mechanical elements of an HVAC system, including thermostats, gas heaters and boilers, air-handling systems, and AC condensers.

Want to know more about how infrared imaging can help your facility management processes? Call MaintenX today!

It’s hard work keeping a home in good condition. But do you actually know what’s necessary to keep your house looking and performing its best? There’s a lot of misinformation out there. Maintaining your home improperly can cause serious damage to your home and your wallet. Here are some of the most common maintenance myths.

Furnace Filter Replacement

Myth: A furnace filter only needs changing once in the winter and once in the summer.

The Truth: The replacement frequency depends on many elements:

• System operating time
• Quality of the filter
• Location
• Climate
• Size of home
• Number of floors in the home
• Climate
• Age of the home

All of these help determine how often a filter should be changed. Cheap fiberglass mesh filters must be changed more often (usually once a month) compared with the pricier “three month” pleated upgrade. There are also permanent filters which don’t need replacing, but rather cleaning. Need help deciding? Call MaintenX today. Our HVAC experts can help you decide the right filter strategy for your home.

Home Insulation

Myth: The more insulation you have, the better insulated your home will be.

Truth: Attic insulation is one of the most cost-effective energy-saving improvements that can be made to your home. That said, installing too much insulation can actually be counterproductive. In order for insulation to be effective, air space should surround the material. That’s why you should hire a professional service to take care of your insulation needs.

Our expert technicians can help you assess your home maintenance needs. Give us a call today!

Facilities management is demanding. FMs face many and varied challenges every day, such as:

• Coordinating vendors
• Handling unexpected problems
• Meeting compliance guidelines
• Scheduling regular maintenance
• Completing internal audits
• Warning staff of safety issues

From relationship-building to project management, the FM’s plate is full. Keep reading to learn about the most vital skills you will need in your next facility management hire.

Understand the Company’s Business

Effective Facilities Management can help your organization reach its goals; knowledge of how the departments interact and where improvements can be made is a vital part of this strategic process. Make sure your FM has these credentials.

Leadership

As the central responsibility of a facilities manager is to deliver effective management and support of functions of a business, robust leadership skills are indispensable.

IT Expertise

IT literacy is imperative if you want a solid facilities manager because the facility management world is becoming increasingly dependent on modern technologies.

That means that the better the grasp they have of the IT realm, the more valuable they will be to your business.

There is a large range of IT software specific to facilities management, such as

• CAD
• BIM
• GIS

Have a general grasp of them so you can check to see if perspective FMs are familiar with them. While it’s not certainly not essential for FMs to be tech experts, it is essential that entry-level facilities managers know how to use these systems, because technology’s importance to the function of facilities will only grow over time.

Want to know more about facility management? Call the experts at MaintenX today!

Facility managers are accountable for a wide variety of duties, all of which require crucial skills and measured judgment. That why you want to ensure you hire the right manager to handle this daunting task. Below are some credentials to look for when hiring a FM.

Technological Vision

Facility managers have a lot of tasks—and sometimes disasters–thrown at them all day, every day. Many of these challenges demand inventive, resourceful answers. If you want to sustain and build an innovative workplace, you’ll want to look for a FM who can think on their feet, as well as outside the box.

Certifications

Facility Management Certifications are quality, respected designations that can help you find the right FM candidate. They:

• Confirm a candidate has the necessary core competencies
• Show his or her drive to improve and grow as a facility manager
• Show competency for managing many types of spaces and industry sectors

A good facility manager also needs to structure your space to facilitate worker productivity. This might mean removing physical barriers and re-arranging office furniture, or even finding ways to admit more natural light.

Although you might not have realized it, the responsibilities of a facilities manager are vital to your company’s success. Make sure that whoever you put in this position is a meticulous and flexible employee.

Want to know more about the proper credentials for your next facility manager? Call MaintenX today!

Are you handling your inventory efficiently? Most companies have a lot of areas to improve on. By following inventory management best practices, you can achieve an accurate and effective inventory year after year. Here’s how.

Create Inventory KPIs

Inventory KPIs measure your performance in a specific area over a defined interval of time. They add deductive reasoning to your goals so that you can better meet them.

KPIs to focus on:

• Inventory storage costs
• Inventory write-offs
• Rate of inventory turnover

Inventory Software

Conducting inventory management by hand can be a time-consuming task. Making use of inventory software is a smarter inventory management method. It can also profoundly increase efficiency and productivity.

With inventory software, you can:

• Track and trace stock levels
• Quickly look up product details
• Make edits that automatically sync across systems and devices

Automated Inventory

Maintaining accurate counts of inventory while reducing the time spent moving and counting items around the warehouse will save you headaches. Inventory automation can play a vital role in this endeavor.

A smartphone or handheld device can scan barcoded inventory items as they move in and out of inventory, eliminating the need for paper records.

Investing in the new wave of inventory management solutions can ensure that your business has the power to succeed by showing your inventory as well as the openings to reduce cost and improve inventory management processes.

Your workforce is your most treasured asset, so you want to make sure your employees do their best work. But many business owners don’t have the right tools immediately at their disposal to make the best decisions about the what’s, where’s, who’s, and when’s of an expansive and ever-changing workplace. That’s why many businesses are using workplace analytics to get the edge on the competition.

But what is workplace analytics?

Microsoft’s Answer to Common Business Problems

Workplace Analytics is a program that uses data from everyday work you and your staff do in Office 365 to identify the various patterns and trends that impact your company’s productivity, as well as your workforce’s efficiency.

Maximize Workforce Value

Use data from everyday work in Office 365 (emails, meetings, collaboration, communications trends, etc.) to see what challenges your company faces, time spent on focused work, high after-hours workload, and more. Combine these insights with customizable survey results to discover relationships between work patterns and team strength indicators to get a better picture of what works—and what doesn’t—in your organization.

Powerful Analytics Information

Everyone’s different. That’s why employees function at their best in different situations and at different times. One person may be at peak performance during the day shift, but then their productivity drops dramatically when they work at night.

In agile, cooperative work environments, work times can be calibrated to fit individual needs and strengths.

Workforce analytics allows you to see past a “problem employee” that isn’t working well in a group or at a certain time, and then pair them with a team that better suits their personality, strengths, and collaborative skills.

By making a work environment that adapts to the needs of the individual worker AND the company as a whole, your business can work smarter and more productively.

Utility vehicles hold a special position in a company’s fleet: they can work on rough terrain, transport people, and work, both inside a facility and out in the world.

You want the best for your business, but you also want a price you can afford. Here’s a look at what to consider when purchasing your next utility vehicle.

Get the Right Vehicle for The Job at Hand

Think about engine size; more power is sometimes unnecessary. If you don’t need a lot of horse power, then a smaller—and possibly cheaper—vehicle might work better for you.

Remember that horsepower equals more fuel consumption which means higher expenses for your business. Don’t get more than you need.

Look at the Customization Options

With all the options available in today’s utility vehicle marketplace, you can personalize your vehicle or fleet of vehicles to your business’s exact needs. Whether you need puncture-resistant tires, an overhauled drivetrain, customized door fittings, or an amplified long-range CB radio or satellite imaging compatibility, your solution is out there.

Safety First

Most available models of commercial utility vehicles come equipped with a roll-over protection system (ROPS). Be sure to ask about other safety features each utility vehicle offers.

When it comes to commercial utility vehicles, you’ve got a lot of options. That’s why you should take time to consider them all before adding one to your fleet.