8 recommended Facilities Management activities to be carried out at the beginning of the spring season

Author: Alexandru Miculaș, Head of Facility Management Services FMS

The Facilities Management Services market is certainly one of the most dynamic services markets. It’s hard to talk about seasonality, because a lot of services are provided regardless of the month or season. Basically, the workload the plumbers, electricians or painters is the same throughout the year.

There are, however, peculiarities of every season. In warmer periods, outdoor work is predominant and the maintenance work is carried out on refrigeration equipment, whilst in cold periods more work is done indoors, on heating equipment.

Now, on the threshold of the spring, we will show you the most important maintenance operations that any building owner should have in mind.

1. Cleaning the jugs, tubs, and gutters. Certainly, this activity has not been executed since autumn. Winds, rains, snowfalls bring a lot of waste and significant amounts of mud that lead to the clogging of rainwater pickup and drainage systems. Statistically, over 70% of water infiltrations through roofs or other joining elements of buildings is due to stunted storm water systems.
2. Waterproofing repairs. Low temperatures and humidity, but also ultraviolet rays, cause the aging of waterproofing membranes. They should be inspected periodically in order to find possible loose, cracked or broken areas where water could penetrate. When water has already infiltrated the ceiling is too late. Since not every time infiltration takes place in the same crack site, there is a risk of accumulating large amounts of hard water to trace and drain between the insulation and the palm, which will generate infiltrations over a long period of time.
3. Revision of cooling and ventilation systems and their sanitation. As any equipment serving a specific destination space and cooling and ventilation equipment requires at least one service per year. Considering the warm period is going to be the most intense, spring is the best time to do this. We will not detail how a chiller or wall split works, but we can now say that the refrigerant charge level (Freon) that will determine the machine’s efficiency at the time of operation is now being checked.

Also clean and clean the condensate drainage paths, and wash, clean or replace the dust filters. Ignoring or neglecting these operations may have unintended consequences on electricity consumption or even serious consequences for the health of the staff on the premises. Extremely severe viruses can be transmitted through and through ventilation systems, from the common flu and, more seriously, legionellosis or Pontiac fever.

4. Revision of pumps, pumping groups, and hydrophores. When talking about the water supply of a building, we talk about the comfort provided by the supply of hot and cold water or the heating and cooling agent. There is also the aspect of safety when referring to fire extinguishing systems. Therefore, water pumping systems are a vital element in the safety and comfort of a building. The recommendation of FMS specialists is that the revision of this equipment should be done at the end of the cold season, or at specified intervals according to the manufacturer’s recommendations and the service manual.
5. Resuming debugging and pest control services. With the coming of natural heat, it awakens to life, and unwanted insects and rodents can appear. Pest control specialists must resume spraying of insecticides against insects. At the same time, he must prepare with specific baits the poison stations and rodent traps.
6. Recommissioning of irrigation facilities. Irrigation systems should be recharged with water and tested if they are under pressure. If necessary, replace sections or fittings where there are pressure losses. Check the water meters, valves, and other elements and finally test the functionality of the entire irrigation network. This check will depend on the health of lawns and plants in property gardens in the coming months.
7. Preparing the garden and green spaces. We all want the green space to be exceptional and it has become a business card for each property in recent years, whether it’s an office building, a shopping center or even a warehouse. But to enjoy the benefits of a garden, we need to pay attention to its maintenance. If at the beginning of the cold season we have prepared the winter garden now we have to prepare it for spring and summer. Trees should be cutted and cleaned, dry material removed, lawn scraped and over-sawn. Reproduction of perennial flowers and repositioning of garden decoration elements will be done.
8. Repairing of access roads, ramps, underground parking. In the cold season because of low temperatures, but also because of anti-slip material (salt, chloride) or mechanical action of snow removal with specific equipment, the running paths suffered. The consequences of these actions are from micro cracks to visible cracks or even pits. Careful inspection of runways and repair thereof is recommended to limit damages.

In conclusion

All of these activities are introduced into the annual property maintenance plan and are tracked by Facilities Management specialists. Such a maintenance plan is the responsibility of the provider. Professional teams introduce and track computerized, providing customer access to the area of additional works, ticketing, and status maintenance and repair activities. The Facilities Management Services team will ensure the operation and smooth operation of the property, without syncope, regardless of season or climatic conditions.

* * *