Philadelphia businesses are struggling as difficult economic conditions set in across the country. As CBS News has highlighted, Philly businesses are starting to consider increasing their prices as a deadly combination of inflation, supply chain problems, and increasing rent rates hit. When businesses start to make a loss, it’s often time to tighten the belt - meaning cuts in other areas, including maintenance and upkeep. However, business owners should pause before they start cutting away at their maintenance budgets - there are a myriad of ways to find savings without risking the hygiene and safety of the work area, starting with proper prevention.

Getting a thorough job done

All businesses will pay out for maintenance, but not all of them will be getting a proper job done. This is something considered in depth by IBM, who’s analysis of preventative maintenance reveals some interesting facts. Firstly, only 18% of assets have age-related maintenance issues; 82% break because of random problems. At the same time, significant numbers of businesses under-maintain their property and equipment, and of those businesses that do have good maintenance practices, 30% over maintain.

What this means is that significant numbers of businesses are wasting time and money on unnecessary maintenance, often directed to the wrong area of the business and its premises. Getting experts in, from companies with a solid, rack record, in to conduct both routine and deep clean maintenance ensures that you’ll be focusing on the right areas. Finding efficiencies is crucial in keeping overheads down, and will also reduce risk in the future.

Hard to reach

It’s also important to consider those harder-to-reach parts of the business that don’t necessarily undergo routine maintenance. Roof space is a key area where this principle is concerned. Over the summer, nesting birds and detritus can cause damage to the roof. In the autumn, and especially an early autumn, leaf buildup can cause gutter damage; and in the winter, snow can mix all of these elements together and threaten serious structural damage. Undertaking regular and early roof maintenance, rather than cutting it from the schedule, can help to avoid serious trouble further on in the year.

Looking towards modern sustainability

Sustainability can seem like a buzzword for businesses. Often, converting to low-carbon and renewable solutions can lead to increased costs. However, the market desire is now definitely there for sustainable businesses - and that means critically assessing every stage of the business operation and what the environmental impact is. This is true for maintenance and cleaning too and, interestingly, eco-friendly cleaning can actually reduce overheads. This is a double benefit - reduced benefits, and potential increased revenue from the green market.

Green cleaning uses natural substances that are inexpensive to produce and sell. It also uses less energy, and less complex machinery. Green cleaning has also been shown to be long-lasting, according to the Wilburn Company. It is both cost and time effective to maintain a property by using environmentally friendly cleaning methods, which will help your bottom line.

The little things

For businesses that have their affairs mostly in order, there are still blind spots that, if left without assessment, can cause big problems - especially in winter. As government statistics show, there’s a growing body of work that shows dust and detritus levels inside of properties across the country is contributing to significantly poor air quality. Furthermore, according to Washington State University, air quality is significantly worse in the east during winter, due to low pressure across the region.

Simple cleaning to remove dust build ups can help to prevent a degradation in air quality. It can also reveal more deep seated issues, such as mold and damp build ups - taking away superficial dirt and grime can often be the only way to do so. Tackling those issues will help to protect your bottom line by reducing sick days and ensuring that customers find a welcoming place to come to. The opposite can be the business owner and staff getting sick, or customers getting sick. Reputational damage stemming from this can be absolutely lethal to the long-term health of the business.

If times are looking tight for the business, think twice before cutting back on maintenance. Rather than looking to curtail areas such as cleaning and repair, which are crucial in creating a healthy long-term prospect for your business and your property, instead look to get smarter. Use expert help to identify weak areas and use their experience to establish what areas of the business really do need consistent maintenance. Moving to green cleaning methods can help to provide further savings, while also endearing the business to the customer; when paired with a proactive approach to remove dust and mold from the property, the business can protect its most important elements.