7 C Strategy for Cost-Effective Preventative Maintenance

Preventative maintenance is crucial for identifying maintenance needs and determining the amount of deferred maintenance needed. It will also help facility managers plan and prioritize projects and evaluate their costs.

“Cost-effective,” “preventative,” and “maintenance” are all common buzzwords used in the construction industry, and while the terminology is understood, few really understand how to make “cost-effective preventative maintenance” a reality for their facility.

Preventative maintenance activities are primarily condition-based. Cost-effective preventative maintenance is a fluid process that can have a huge impact on a property’s bottom line… if done properly. Created by Western Specialty Contractors, this “7 C Strategy for Cost-Effective Preventative Maintenance” list will help building owners and facility managers understand and put into practice a cost-effective preventative maintenance plan of their own.

Components and Conditions

A preventative maintenance program begins with making a list of a facility’s different components and gathering basic information on each of their conditions. Collecting this information is crucial for identifying maintenance needs and determining the amount of deferred maintenance needed. It will also help facility managers plan and prioritize projects and evaluate their costs. Tips for compiling the list include:

  • Keep an accurate building component inventory
  • Make a plan for performing a condition assessment
  • Conduct the assessment methodically
  • Assign condition ratings for each component
  • Decide on a regular frequency for assessments

Capacity and Costs

Preventative maintenance isn’t about big budgets or how much money is spent. To be cost-effective, it’s all about how the money is spent. Facility managers are encouraged to make a plan that targets their resources towards the highest needs.

To make a great plan, facility managers need to develop the capacity for ranking maintenance projects and evaluating their costs by doing the following:

  • Recognize that not all projects share the same importance
  • Use an objective process for prioritizing projects
  • Use life-cycle costing and other tools to evaluate total costs

Coordinate

When facility managers don’t have a plan, maintenance tends to be reactive instead of proactive. In other words, maintenance only happens when the need occurs, which typically results in higher repair costs and inconvenience. Coordinating long- and short-term maintenance plans together will help facility managers avoid costly reactive maintenance. Coordination includes:
  • Develop a long-term plan
  • Develop a capital improvement program
  • Establish a reserve account for maintenance
  • Develop an annual work plan
  • Link the annual work plan with the annual budget

Checklists

Once an assessment and inventory of all components have been made, the projects have been prioritized, and their costs have been evaluated, now is the time to make checklists and mini-frameworks for staff to execute the maintenance plan. Start by doing the following:

  • Develop checklists of tasks
  • Determine the frequency for tasks
  • Link preventative maintenance with everyday tasks
  • Schedule a timeline
  • Prepare procedures for managing the program

Contractors

No matter what the quality, performance characteristics, and cost of a material or system, each of these is only as effective as the caliber of its installation. Even the best systems may prove worthless or ineffective if not installed and transitioned properly. Improper installation can lead to structural and interior damage that could result in lost revenue for the building owner.

A critical aspect is contractors. It’s not about finding the one with the cheapest estimate; it’s about finding the right contractor for the project. The right contractor will make any project a lot less stressful. When selecting a contractor, consider the following:

  • Make a thorough review of whether they have the right experience and skills for the project
  • Determine whether they have proper fiscal responsibility to complete the project and honor the punch list
  • Create a qualification statement to pre-qualify contractors for projects

With these 7 Cs in place, the practice of preventative maintenance will offer your campus many important benefits, the most important of which is that it can improve your bottom line.

About the Author

Western Specialty Contractors (www.westernspecialtycontractors.com), based in St. Louis, MO, is the nation's largest specialty contractor in masonry and concrete restoration, waterproofing, and specialty roofing.

Featured

  • New Jersey PreK–12 School Breaks Ground on New STEM Building

    Saddle River Day School (SRDS) in Saddle River, N.J., recently announced that it has broken ground on the new Dr. Kristen Walsh Hall of Science & Entrepreneurship, according to a news release. The school partnered with DIGroup Architecture for the design of the new facility, which will provide the school with space to expand its STEM and business education classes.

  • Rice University to Build New Student Life Complex

    Rice University in Houston, Texas, recently announced that a groundbreaking ceremony for the upcoming Moody Center Complex for Student Life (MCCSL) will take place on May 8, 2025, according to a university news release. The 75,000-square-foot facility was designed by architecture firm Olson Kundig with Page serving as executive architect, and it has an estimated completion date of fall 2027.

  • Pangram Secures Funding for AI Detection Technology

    Pangram, which provides technology that detects AI-generated text, recently announced that it has secured nearly $4 million in pre-seed and seed funding, according to a news release. The most recent round of investments, totaling $2.7 million, come on top of the pre-existing seed fund of $1.25 million.

  • old university building with visible aging signs, overlaid with digital data graphics like thermal maps, charts, and system icons

    Modernizing Higher Education Infrastructure: Why Smarter Facility Management Is Essential to Protecting Aging Schools

    Schools now have the opportunity to adopt smarter, more strategic approaches to futureproof operations and enhance the on-campus experience.

Digital Edition