Over the years, not having facilities staff, we’ve developed a team of volunteers and contractors that handle our facilities maintenance program. I talked to one of our contractors the other day when the “ongoing nature” of facilities maintenance came up.
I said, “The facilities game never ends!” Call it “job security,” I guess :). I know from first-hand experience that taking care of a building and campus is a “never-ending battle.” The contractor definitely agreed.
In our case, we are blessed to have two buildings (more than 50,000 square feet) and 19 acres of land. It’s an awesome thing to have a 1,000 seat venue and lots of children’s/student space for Sunday morning services. It’s almost as awesome to have some nice office space in which to work through the week.
But, it means there are …
- 22 toilets
- 9 urinals
- 1 poop grinder
- Lots of paper towel dispensers, soap dispensers, sinks, mirrors, etc.
- 14 separate HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) units
- 14 separate, programmable thermostats
- Hundreds of light fixtures
- Thousands of light bulbs
- 2 security systems
- Lots of hedges and grass
- Lots of “stuff” (carpet, tile, tables, chairs, vacuum cleaners, hand trucks, ladders, tech/production equipment, servers, computers, phones, etc.)
- Etc …
Yes, a lot to maintain and otherwise fix, adjust, replace, repair, clean, paint, patch, schedule, etc.
In my corporate days, we had lots of dedicated employees and several contractors to take care of similar facilities and grounds. Not so much these days. Consequently, getting everything done is a challenge!