Encompass Insights

Rising energy costs are becoming more and more of a concern for many executives, with energy making up 30 percent of operating costs for the average company.

This means it’s a great time to initiate an energy efficiency program at your facility. Such a program can help you gain control of your facility’s energy use and result in sizeable energy savings.

But before we jump into how you can reduce facility energy costs, let’s first take a look at how much energy is really costing you.

Facility maintenance is a tough job. The ideal facility maintenance manager has to be a mixture of a number of different roles in order to run a facility smoothly and effectively.

So how do you spot a good facility maintenance manager? Here are some attributes of ideal managers so you know what to look for. 

These days, data is more ubiquitous and accessible than ever before. So are you using it to make informed business decisions when it comes to facility maintenance?

It’s time to start using the technology available to us and leveraging the information that’s at our fingertips to create value, reduce maintenance costs, and increase reliability.

It’s time your facility gets a grip on its plug load management.

According to the Department of Energy, overall energy consumption by commercial buildings will increase 24% by 2030. Additionally, plug and process loads (PPLs) will increase by 49%.

While traditional factors like location, academic standing and financial aid still dominate the decision-making process when it comes to choosing a university, sustainability is becoming an increasingly important factor for prospective students.

According to the Princeton Review’s fifth annual “Guide to 353 Green Colleges,” 54 percent of the 10,000 applicants surveyed said that having “a way to compare colleges based on their commitment to environmental issues” would “very much” or “somewhat” influence their decision to apply or attend. According to The Guardian, an additional seven percent said “a school’s environmental standing would be one of the most important factors in their decision to enroll.”

When the time comes to select a vendor, it’s important that you have all of your proverbial ducks in a row and that you don’t rush your decision. After all, this is going to be your business partner: someone who you’ll hold accountable to meet deadlines, stay on task, and help improve your bottom line.

So what can you do to make sure you’re selecting the right vendor? Read on to learn how to make an informed decision that can ultimately reduce your outsourcing expenses.

If you haven’t looked into incorporating a lean facility maintenance initiative at your organization, now may be the time. But what is the principle of “lean” and how can it apply to facility maintenance?

Let’s take a look at the what, how and why of lean and why your facility maintenance contractor should be incorporating it.

Benchmarking is an incredibly important practice in the field of facility maintenance; primarily because it’s a powerful way to reduce operating expenses and improve sustainability.

Here are some reasons why your outsourced facility maintenance contractor should be properly benchmarking their activities. 

Facility maintenance costs are hefty, so finding savings anywhere possible, can mean more budgetary room for other essential areas.

One of the best ways to cut costs is to incentivize outsourced vendors to help you reach your savings goals. By using performance-based contracting and contract incentives, you can easily get vendors on board with saving you money.

If you’re hiring someone to manage your facilities, it’s incredibly important that they have and adhere to a formal facility maintenance plan.

Why is this so important?

Well, according to the Whole Building Design Guide Program (WBDG) of the National Institute of Building Sciences, “it is now widely recognized that Operation and Maintenance (O&M) represents the greatest expense in owning and operating a facility over its life cycle.”