Company shut downs are a part of business operations. Plant down time is also an opportunity for necessary maintenance and deep cleaning that can’t occur during regularly scheduled hours. As a commercial property landlord or maintenance manager, a facility shut down is a time that should be optimized. Every second of company shut down should be utilized efficiently to ensure that all preventative maintenance and deep cleaning is completed before employees arrive.
Preventative maintenance and deep cleaning tasks should be a top priority; both options play a key part in preventing equipment break-downs, improving productivity, minimizing employee illness and injuries, and meeting customer deadlines. Machine and IT preventative maintenance ensures that all equipment is lubricated and maintained to prevent breakdowns that cost money and time. Deep cleanings of common areas, such as kitchens and restrooms, ensures that employees and visitors are in a healthy environment and minimizes interruptions to employee productivity.
The optimal time for company shut-downs is around holidays when the facility is empty, such as over the winter holiday or in the summer when employee vacations are planned. Scheduling for the facility shut down should occur months in advance to ensure efficient use of time and prompt service delivery by staff and vendors.
The following maintenance and cleaning tasks should be completed during facility down time:
- IT maintenance. Server and network maintenance should be scheduled for times when machines and users are not online. To minimize interruptions in productivity, send out an e-mail well in advance to warn users of the maintenance.
- Floor cleaning. The best time for floor deep cleaning is when plant and office floors are empty. A floor deep cleaning prevents premature wear and tear, prevents injuries from slips and falls, and saves funds that would be allocated to clean built-up grime. For hard floors, schedule a floor waxing to protect the floor in heavy traffic areas. Schedule rug laundering so that rugs are back in place before employees return to work.
- Restroom deep clean. A restroom sanitization prevents the spread of employee illness, especially during cold and flu season. Schedule a restroom deep cleaning for times when the facility is empty and employees are not disrupted by the cleaning.
- Equipment preventative maintenance. Equipment breakdowns are inefficient, interrupting employee schedules and negatively impacting product and service deadlines. Schedule machine fluid changes and other preventative maintenance that ensures smooth operation.
- Repairs and remodeling. Dust, space restrictions, and other side-effects of repairs or remodeling can disturb daily operations. Use a company shut-down to easily tackle these tasks, such as replacing ceiling tiles, repairing drywall, HVAC maintenance and restroom repairs.
A full analysis of company shut down maintenance and repairs are vital for the efficient user of time and funds. Make a complete list of maintenance and cleaning tasks; analyze each task to ensure efficient scheduling and task assignment. For some tasks, it can be more cost-effective to use maintenance and cleaning staff who are more familiar with the facility. In other cases, outsourcing the task to a maintenance and cleaning vendor with appropriate expertise and scheduling flexibility is a more efficient use of budgetary funds. Evaluate each task on the list, contact vendors for a quote, and schedule each staff member or vendor accordingly.
