In the world of facility management, maintenance strategies are critical to the long-term health of your assets and the efficiency of your operations. Two categories dominate the field: preventative maintenance (PM) and corrective maintenance (CM). At Skookum, our facility management services emphasize the importance of preventative maintenance, and here's why it matters.
Preventative Maintenance Basics
Preventative maintenance takes a proactive approach by scheduling regular inspections, servicing, and repairs to keep equipment running smoothly and avoid unexpected failures. The purpose is clear: address potential problems early to prevent them from escalating into expensive breakdowns or interruptions.
Skookum’s Chief Operations Officer explains:
"Following a properly planned and executed PM schedule for building assets can forestall costly asset repairs or failures. The most apt analogy is oil changes on a car. If regular oil changes are not completed, eventually the engine can seize, leading to an expensive repair or replacement. This holds true for building assets like HVAC systems, fire protection systems, plumbing, and electrical systems." - Skookum COO
Benefits to PM:
- Extended Equipment Life: Routine maintenance reduces wear and tear, helping equipment last longer.
- Reduced Downtime: By addressing issues before they cause failure, preventative maintenance minimizes unplanned downtime.
- Cost Savings: While preventative maintenance requires an upfront investment, it prevents costly emergency repairs and replacements, saving money in the long run.
Corrective Maintenance Basics
Corrective maintenance, on the other hand, is a reactive approach. It involves fixing equipment only after it breaks down or malfunctions. This type of maintenance is often unavoidable, as not all failures can be predicted. However, relying solely on corrective maintenance can lead to significant disruptions and higher costs in the moment.
Drawbacks:
- Increased Downtime: Unexpected failures can cause prolonged downtime, impacting productivity and service delivery.
- Higher Costs: Emergency repairs are typically more expensive than scheduled maintenance, both in terms of labor and replacement parts.
- Shorter Equipment Lifespan: Frequent breakdowns can shorten the lifespan of assets, leading to premature replacements.
Why Preventative Maintenance Matters for Your Facilities?
At Skookum, we believe that preventative maintenance is the cornerstone of effective facility management. Here’s why:
- Improved Asset Reliability: Preventative maintenance ensures that your equipment and facilities remain in optimal condition, reducing the risk of unexpected failures. This reliability is crucial for organizations that need consistent, uninterrupted operations.
- Enhanced Safety: Regular maintenance helps identify and mitigate safety hazards before they become serious issues. This is especially important in environments like military bases and universities, where the safety of personnel and visitors is paramount.
- Sustainability and Efficiency: Preventative maintenance aligns with sustainable practices by maximizing the efficiency of equipment, reducing energy consumption, and minimizing waste.
- Cost-Effective Operations: By avoiding the high costs associated with emergency repairs and equipment replacement, preventative maintenance helps organizations manage their budgets more effectively. This is especially important for government contracts, where cost-efficiency is a priority.
“While deploying technician mobility starts on day one, it will take a year or more for the effects of a more robust PM program to bend the cost curve with lower corrective maintenance costs. Even so, a facility with better asset reliability will reduce downtime and avoid negative impacts to productivity.” - Skookum COO
Skookum’s Commitment to Preventative Maintenance
Skookum’s facility management services prioritize preventative maintenance because we understand its value in creating reliable, safe, and cost-effective environments. Our approach ensures that our clients can focus on their core missions without the disruption of unexpected equipment failures.
“Our experience over the past six years at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island proves the value of preventative maintenance. Over time, by clearing legacy corrective maintenance and applying the correct PM frequencies to assets, the number, cost, and severity of corrective maintenance has decreased markedly. At Whidbey, we’ve gone from just over 2 PMs for every CM at Year 1 to just over 4 PMs for every CM at Year 4. This translates into 22% fewer expensive corrective maintenance work orders." - Skookum COO
At Skookum, we are committed to providing facility management that protects your assets, enhances safety, and promotes long-term sustainability, ensuring that your facilities stay running smoothly.