How to Budget for Facility Maintenance
Your cleaning team does a fantastic job. They work hard. They get the job done. They keep the occupants of your building happy. You’re happy. But the cost of doing business continues to rise each year, and if you want to keep the best of the best, that means you’re probably going to have to prepare for yearly increases in the cost of those services and budget accordingly.
So how do you budget? Do you implement a program that increases each tenant’s rate 5 percent to 8 percent annually? Does money saved from the previous year follow through on a use-it or lose-it basis?
Here are a few other variables, besides labor, that will have an impact on your facility maintenance budget.
Where is your facility located?
Location is key when it comes to how much you might pay for janitorial services. Hiring a cleaning team in Beaufort, SC, is going to cost less than hiring a team in New York City. There is also a variation in hiring costs within cities and markets. Often facilities in affluent, suburban areas are more difficult to staff than those in urban city centers. Facility managers must adjust their pay rate to accommodate the financial demands of workers in these higher income and less dense neighborhoods.
Does your building need special equipment or services?
Medical office buildings, for example, by the very nature of whom they serve, need additional and more in-depth cleaning, than regular office buildings and will cost more to service properly and thoroughly.
Will your building incur major construction costs in the coming year? Are you planning an addition? Reconfiguring office spaces? Putting up walls? Taking them down? Renovating a restroom or kitchen area? Budgeting for these costs, in addition to the cleanup required when construction is completed, is important to keep in mind.
Don’t forget the landscaping. The outside of your building is as important as the inside for generating good first impressions. Landscaping or any outdoor renovations, such as parking lot repair, should not be an afterthought when planning your budget.
Plan for updates. Any items that need to be serviced or replaced, such as mechanical and electrical equipment, lighting, HVAC systems, appliances, office electronics, furniture, carpeting, etc., need to be included in your yearly budget.
Basically, there are three types of approaches to building maintenance: reactive, preventative and predictive.
- Reactive – Fix it when it breaks
- Preventative – Check it often and repair it before it breaks
- Predictive – Use technology to predict when a problem will occur and provide maintenance accordingly.
As you may guess, the most common approach is reactive because it’s the cheapest, but the cheapest is almost never best when it comes to maintenance. Taking into account past expenditures for maintaining your facility and planning ahead for the new year before budgets are set in place is the best way to way to keep your building running smoothly and economically. CLICK HERE to learn more about 4M Building Solutions. We deliver the best, innovative, safe and sustainable cleaning and service solutions for your business.
