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It is all too common. Budgets get tight and cuts have to be made; preventive maintenance is often one of them. The problem then becomes cumulative. Next year the need is increased, yet the budget is not changed. Many times the larger requests are denied – in whole – as ‘not justifiable’. Thus begins the deferred maintenance paradox. Preventive maintenance begins to drop off the list of budgeted items.
The problem however is clear. IEEE states it best, i.e., having a preventive maintenance program in place can reduce the risk of an unplanned outage by as much as 66%. Too many facility managers sweat these odds every day knowing they will face the inevitable – hoping it is not today.
A fixed-rate maintenance plan could be a good way to break the deferred maintenance paradox and get back on track. These plans offer the opportunity to implement a maintenance program in place over a term, say 36 months, and pay a fixed monthly fee over the term of the plan. Add in parts labor and travel for any troubles that may arise and budget risk is now shared by the plan provider … a “no budget surprises” all-inclusive support model.
With a maintenance plan that offers comprehensive support for a fixed monthly fee over a stated term, Further surprises may arise when comparing the cost of any maintenance and ad hoc repairs incurred over the term of the agreement to the cost of the fixed-rate plan. NFPA 70B states that, “An effective Electrical Preventive Maintenance program satisfies an important part of management’s responsibility for keeping costs down and production up.”
Armed with a new fixed-rate maintenance financial model, a little comparative research on ad hoc repairs, and statistics on the risk of deferred maintenance, facility managers should now feel empowered to approach management with a way to break the deferred maintenance paradox. Why sweat another day?
