Category: Building Maintenance

Could We Have Bluetooth in Smart Buildings?

Could We Have Bluetooth in Smart Buildings?

Bluetooth wireless technology has grown to become universal.  Most people use Bluetooth in their personal lives, but now the technology is also finding its way into smart buildings and devices.   

What is Bluetooth?

Bluetooth is a type of wireless communication that facilitates data transfer across short distances, usually less than 30 feet. It creates direct connections between two devices or sensors. Similar technologies have been developed since Bluetooth debuted, but none have threatened its dominance in the field.

Building Automation

Building automation is the automated control of a building’s vital systems (heating, ventilation, HVAC, lighting, security, etc.). Bluetooth smart building automation solutions can bring benefits including energy and operation cost reductions and prolonging the life of a building’s essential systems.

Bluetooth 5.0

2016 saw the arrival of BLE 5, and this latest version of Bluetooth has started showing up in consumer gadgets like Apple’s iPhone X and the Samsung’s Galaxy S8.

Bluetooth 5’s range is up to four times wider than BLE 4. Bluetooth 5 even features a special connection intended specifically for long-distance communication, making it perfect for smart building integration.

No Power Cord Needed

One of the biggest benefits of Bluetooth 5 is that it doesn’t need to be hooked up to a power supply or Wi-Fi to work. Many of a smart building’s sensors and devices require electricity to send and receive data, rendering them useless in certain contexts and locations. Instead of using a power supply or Wi-Fi connection, Bluetooth 5 sensors can be placed with a battery and use BLE 5 connectivity to communicate with the central hub. This newest iteration of Bluetooth will allow for even more ingenious smart building solutions as the tech becomes more ubiquitous.

Ways to Keep Your Occupants Healthy During Flu Season

Keeping your facility’s occupants healthy year-round should be a big priority for owners and facility managers alike, and flu season is no exception. Luckily, there are a few steps you can put in place to help prevent the spread of the flu in your facility.

Know who is the most Vulnerable to the Flu

Although everyone is susceptible to getting the flu, some are at higher risk of exposure. They include: 

  • People over the age of 65
  • People whose immune systems are compromised
  • Pregnant women
  • People with chronic medical conditions (asthma, diabetes, heart disease, and lung disease)

There are some simple things your occupants can do to minimize the effects of flu season:

Get Vaccinated

This is the best method to stop the spread of the flu. Encourage your occupants to get vaccinated.

Sick? Stay Home!

This seems like a no-brainer, but many people go to work sick. This naturally spreads illness, including the flu.

Wash your Hands

Encourage occupants to frequently wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. An alcohol-based hand rub can also be used when soap and water are not readily available.

Clean Surfaces

Keep surfaces (telephones, door knobs, computer equipment, etc.) clean. Avoid using other peoples’ phones, desks, computers, or other frequently touched equipment.

Want to know more about keeping your facility safe from the flu this winter? Call MaintenX today!

Easy Fixes to Increase Thermal Comfort

As the temperature drops, people across the country turn on the heat in their homes and workplaces. Soon afterwards, they often start to worry about the cost of their heating bills. Luckily, there are many simple things you can do to keep warm this winter without breaking the bank.

Rugs

Rugs not only make rooms more stylish and inviting, they’re also great at keeping heat from escaping through the floor. They also keep your feet warm on tile and hardwood flooring.

Insulate Outlets on Exterior Walls

Heat loss can happen in many ways, but people often forget about their electrical outlets as a potential cause. The solution? You can pick up socket sealers or outlet insulating kits at your local hardware store or on Amazon. Most kits cost as little as two dollars apiece and are even cheaper in bulk. Simply install them underneath the faceplate of outlets and watch your heating bill drop.

Doors and Windows

Window and door maintenance is a great way to keep the heat in and the cold out. Try adding caulk or weather stripping to seal up air leaks around drafty doors and windows. Check the sealing around windows and doors to prevent heat loss. It’s also a good idea to seal any air leaks around chimneys and keep your flue closed when not in use. Replace or repair screen doors. Do the same for window screens.

Want to know more ways to keep warm this winter? Call MaintenX today!

How Wellness Trends Are Affecting Modern Office Design

The days of an endless sea of cubicles under harsh fluorescent lights are gone. But what are the current and upcoming design strategies? As more and more workers prefer spaces that encourage health and well-being, office design layouts are changing to adapt.

Below we will explore some of the office design trends that are helping promote well-being.

Thinking Outside the Box

Alternative workspaces are becoming increasingly popular. From art therapy areas to indoor rock climbing walls, there are a lot of ways office designers are transforming the traditional office layout. A few examples:

Dynamic Workspaces

This design is meant to facilitate multiple functions, and can be easily transformed depending on your office’s needs at any given time. Dynamic office spaces offer flexibility and open the door for creativity and innovation. Some things you might find in these spaces are convertible furniture, multi-level wall dividers, and full wall dry-erase boards. For businesses looking for new ideas or a creativity boost, this is a clear winner.

Experience-Driven Spaces

These features of an office are not a one-size-fits-all addition. They’re meant to enrich the relationships among employees, foster creativity, or just to help workers relax and distress after—or during—a long day at the office.

Some examples include:

  • Massage therapy spaces
  • Meditation areas
  • Acupuncture parlors
  • Yoga studios
  • Walking trails
  • Espresso or cocktail bars
  • Game rooms
  • Theater or music spaces

There are many ways to increase the general health and well-being of your valued workers. Want to know more about wellness trends in office design? Contact MaintenX today!

Reducing Waste in Your Facility

Whether they are office buildings, schools, stores, hotels, or restaurants, facilities generate a lot of waste. Here are some tools and resources to help facility managers, building owners, tenants and other stakeholders improve waste management in their buildings while also reducing costs.

Importance of Waste Reduction

By reducing waste, a business can:

  • Conserve natural resources
  • Reduce waste disposal costs
  • Meet demand for “green” products and environmentally savvy businesses
  • Avoid adding to the environmental burden caused by waste disposal

Fine-Tuning

Facility managers can take steps to ensure the accomplishment of sustainability efforts by:

  • Using computer systems to help manage chemicals and waste while making suggestions on EPP. Managers can review the free electronic resources on the EPA Web site, www.epa.gov.
  • Establishing a sustainability program. The EPA has free calculators to help measure the likely environmental benefits of using greener cleaning supplies, chemicals, and of recycling. These also are available on the EPA’s website.
  • Promoting green initiatives with the use of labels and signs. Legal guidelines often mandate their use, but facility managers can consider signs and labels that encourage the use of environmentally friendly and non-toxic chemicals. The signs and labels ensure regulatory compliance and demonstrate a commitment to green initiatives.

Facility managers need to show the value they bring to the business. Promoting green initiatives is one area where facility managers can fully display their positive effect on the organization by protecting people, reducing waste, and helping the bottom line.

Want to know more about facility waste reduction? Contact MaintenX today!

Decentralized vs. Centralized Maintenance

Maintenance is a vital part of running your facility safely and efficiently. It involves things like tracking work orders and assets, as well as making the most of your workforce’s skills and drive to give you the edge in a competitive business space. To do this, you need regular, professional maintenance. But which is better for your facility, centralized or decentralized? Let’s explore the pros and cons of both.

There are some important differences between centralized and decentralized maintenance. For example:

  • Centralized maintenance is done on a fixed schedule, meaning it produces fixed expenses. This means it’s usually more expensive, but also more likely to find and correct problems before they occur.
  • Decentralized maintenance is done in limited areas. Overall productivity can decline with this method, although individual maintenance tasks are carried out in a relatively shorter time.

Centralized Maintenance

Pros:

  • Full control over organization and implementation
  • Usually a good option for smaller businesses

Cons:

  • Progress can often be slower
  • Not always a good fit for large companies

Decentralized Maintenance

Pros:

  • Requires more open communication
  • Can achieve faster results
  • Often a good fit for larger businesses

Cons:

  • May not get a consistent flow of authority, as there is more than one set of decision makers involved

There’s no one-size-fits-all method for successful maintenance. The method that’s right for you will depend on your industry, size, future trends, and the needs of your particular facility.

Need to streamline maintenance for your facility? MaintenX is here to help you every step of the way!

How to Run a Successful Fire Drill

Fire drills ensure your employees get to safety quickly in the event of a fire, power outage or other disaster in your facility. From chemical spills to terrorism, your workers need to be properly prepared. Conducting regular fire drills is one of the ways to keep your most precious asset, your staff, safe.

To run a successful fire drill, follow these steps:

How often you conduct fire drills depends on local regulations and fire codes, and on the local fire hazards your industry and local environment faces. For example, in a facility with serious fire hazards, fire drills should be conducted at least four times a year. In other facilities, once or twice a year may suffice. Check with local regulations and fire codes before you plan drills.

When you first implement fire drills, run them once or twice a month. Once employees get the hang of it, you can lengthen the intervals between fire drills. If you conduct them too often, employees may become nonchalant about the process and not take a real evacuation seriously. After your workers are well-practiced, you can go to the permanent schedule you’ve developed.

It’s a fact of life that emergencies happen. When you have a fire drill procedure and a staff that can competently follow it, you can rest easy knowing that if the unthinkable occurs in your facility, everyone will be well-prepared.

What to Do if Your Facility is Damaged by the Weather

Not only can a weather event destroy your property and damage equipment, but it can also cause injury and even death. Having the proper plans and equipment is essential to ensure your facility and employees aren’t in harm’s way.

Prepare Your Staff

One of the best ways to prepare for weather events is to talk to your employees. Add a weather emergency preparedness discussion to the company schedule. Many people in your facility can no doubt lead a weather event preparedness discussion. Get the conversation started!

Research
To protect your buildings from danger, you have to know the risks. Inform yourself and staff about the hazards that are most likely to affect your area. The more you know about severe weather, the more prepared you will be to act in an emergency.

Facility Damage

The most important factor when faced with water damage is safety. Have contact lists of appropriate local resources posted in common areas of the facility, including fire and police, mechanical contractors, insurance, utility, and restoration companies, and alert the proper authorities immediately.

Whatever the source, a natural disaster can wreak havoc on your facility, endangering your most important assets. Having a disaster plan in place and familiarity with your insurance policies is vital to long-term success. Taking the time to review these best practices will help ensure swift action when needed to get your facility back in good working order again.

Pros and Cons of Permanent Maintenance Staff

What is the difference between hiring temporary and permanent maintenance staff? We will discuss the pros and cons of each.

Temporary Maintenance Staff Pros:

  • Your company can test out their potential to perform various responsibilities before making a long-term commitment. 
  • It’s generally more cost-effective to hire a temporary facility management company, taking into consideration employee costs like a 401K, health insurance, and Paid Time Off.

Temporary Maintenance Staff Cons:

  • Training is required for any temporary employee. This can be time-consuming and expensive.
  • There will be a set end date for the employment period which may fall during a busy time when extra work is necessary.
  • Staff may be less dedicated and familiar with your plant, and performance may suffer.

Permanent Maintenance Staff Pros:

  • Permanent, full-time maintenance staff offers more financial security and job stability. This can reduce stress for workers and possibly make their performance better.
  • Your permanent staff can develop long-term friendships with colleagues in a team-oriented environment, which can contribute to the overall success of your company.
  • Extended engagements mean the team will be intimately familiar with the systems they maintain.

Permanent Maintenance Staff Cons:

  • Permanent maintenance staff requires additional costs in the form of benefits, training, resources, and space, among others.
  • If the job does not provide enough work to keep permanent employees busy, it may lead to reduced paid hours for the workers.

In the end, it all boils down to your company’s specific needs, and budget.

Have questions about maintenance staffing? MaintenX is here to help!

How to Find Quality Maintenance Professionals

Hiring a maintenance professional can be difficult, expensive work. That’s why you need to know precisely what you need from a candidate for the job. Here are some things to prioritize when you’re looking for your perfect maintenance professional:

Certified and Licensed

You’re hiring someone who will be repairing complex, expensive systems, so first of all, you’ll want to ensure that every prospective candidate has the proper certifications and licenses to carry out such work. Without a license or a permit, there is no guarantee of quality, and the company is opened to different kinds of legal liability. Don’t get too excited at the lower wages unlicensed maintenance workers ask for. If they make a mistake, it might turn into a much more expensive problem than you’d anticipated.

People Skills

People with good interpersonal skills know how to deal with complicated, stressful issues with grace. They can keep their cool during problems and are well-respected by their colleagues and management. Ensure that your candidate possesses these characteristics by checking their references and speaking to former clients or managers.

Attention to Detail

From your property to the people who work in it, the perfect maintenance professional will be able to provide you with the skillful and attentive service you and your employees require. Sloppy maintenance work can be dangerous.

If you are looking for a licensed, personable, and detail-oriented maintenance professional, look no further than MaintenX. Call a MaintenX service representative today and learn more about the many facility maintenance services we offer!