Read this before you repair your facilities' commercial flooring

Commercial flooring is extremely durable, but many different factors can affect how long it lasts. The geography of the location, dolly transportations, gondola movements and consumer traffic all put the floor at risk for damages. It’s vital to have a reactive plan in place when the unpredictable happens because commercial flooring doesn’t show signs when it is near the end of its life. When accidents and damages occur, a store manager can take many possible routes to establish an efficient facilities maintenance program.

Have many helpful hands on deck

Store managers are often spread thin. Ideally, they should focus less on the tactical aspects of maintaining a facility and more on the customer experience and their brand perception. However, this is not always the case when a maintenance emergency arises, especially with commercial flooring. Without a reliable facilities maintenance program in place, a store manager must take on many roles to assess the maintenance problem and get a qualified vendor on site that will solve the issue without interrupting the flow of the store.

Requesting and receiving a service for something as minor as a few tile replacements can take the same effort as a substantial structural problem if the right tools, relationships, or resources aren't in place. However, relying on a managed maintenance solution that is executed by subject matter experts and an extensive in-house operations team eliminates the worry associated with the tactical issues. A facilities maintenance partner is capable of handling small and large work orders quickly and efficiently with little involvement from the store management.

Find the best reporting and analytics

A store manager does not always have the time to research before solving an issue, but if they have historical data, research isn’t always necessary. Historical data can help identify if a facility has overspent on services, which allows them to pay more attention to alternative solutions. However, the data has to be entered and used correctly to make sense.

When historical data is recorded correctly, a store manager can have the awareness to identify an unpredictable problem like an unsettled substrate for example. Visibility into the past services and repairs, details of where the work orders took place within the store and how often the issue occurs makes it easier to weed out possible causes. However, someone has to be responsible for entering the data at every stage of the work order, so the reports are accurate and consistent. These additional details can help solve the problem the first time and saves money on unnecessary services, but it can be challenging to do alone.

Depend on streamlined routing

Reactive services require much more attention to detail than recurring services due to their last-minute nature. Finding a reliable technician for commercial flooring maintenance in such short notice means working around their schedule, rather than the other way around. Additionally, finding a reasonable rate for an emergency service will be close to impossible.

Using data-driven technology that automatically dispatches technicians results in orderly schedules and consistent prices per work order for our customers. Automating the check-in and -out processes and the before- and after- photos for service verifications provides all levels of management within the company with transparency into completion times.

A well-functioning maintenance strategy is essential to the success of any modern-day facilities portfolio. To make sure your facilities maintenance strategy is meeting your needs, request a demo to learn more about how our programs can help you.