Preventive vs. reactive maintenance: where your budget goes
Fixing things when they break feels cheaper, until it is not. How to balance planned and reactive work in a commercial building.
Every building does two kinds of maintenance. Reactive maintenance fixes something after it fails. Preventive maintenance services equipment on a schedule so it fails less often. Most buildings need both, but the balance makes a big difference to cost and comfort.
Why reactive-only gets expensive
When the only plan is to wait for a breakdown, repairs happen at the worst time: after hours, at rush rates, with tenants already affected. Small issues, like a clogged filter or a slow leak, get time to grow into large ones.
What belongs on a preventive schedule
- HVAC: filter changes, coil cleaning, belt and motor checks
- Plumbing: fixtures, drains, water heaters and backflow devices
- Electrical and lighting: panels, emergency lighting and fixtures
- Roofs and drainage: debris, flashing and gutters, especially before the rainy season
- Life safety: extinguishers, alarms and exit signs, on the schedule your local codes require
- Doors and access: locks, closers and access hardware
How to start
List the equipment in the building, note its age and condition, and follow the manufacturer's service intervals. Put every task on a calendar and track it like any other work order, so you can see what was done and when.
Keep room for the unexpected
Even the best plan will not prevent every failure. Keep a clear process for reactive requests: one place to report them, a priority for each, and a record of the fix. That record also tells you which equipment is due for replacement.