KanBo is Empowering Construction Companies to Enable Effective Maintenance Management

Maintenance management is crucial for the success of any modern construction organization as it helps to businesses to streamline their processes, optimize resource allocation, and increase overall operational and financial efficiencies.

Effective maintenance management in construction not only reduces downtime costs but also improves customer satisfaction and enhances productivity. In the absence of proactive and efficient maintenance management, construction companies have to face increased risk which can lead to both reputational and financial damage. That’s why maintenance management is an essential attribute of any construction organization seeking long-term sustainable growth and brand development.

A well-functioning maintenance management system (MMS) like KanBo can help minimize risks while providing long-term cost savings by reducing downtime in the event of major problems relating to any type of building equipment. With maintenance management software like KanBo, construction organizations can keep the company’s assets and systems up-to-date. It enables you to plan, budget, and monitor work performed by maintenance engineers or other personnel. It also includes the option to keep proper records to develop a knowledge base for future use and make informed decisions driven by meaningful insights.

What is Maintenance Management in Construction?

Maintenance management is the science of determining how construction projects are to be operated and maintained. It is a complex discipline that encompasses many disciplines, including engineering, economics, business, and management. The main goal of maintenance management is to ensure that the cost of maintaining an asset over its life cycle does not exceed its estimated value. Maintenance may involve selecting appropriate methods for performing routine tasks or activities on an asset, conducting periodical inspections, and prioritizing and allocating resources wherever necessary.

A comprehensive maintenance management strategy should be a part of every modern construction organization to mitigate risks, deliver high-quality results, make timely essential decisions, and ensure reputational integrity.

Critical Benefits of Maintenance Management in Construction

Enhance Cost Efficiency and Improve Productivity

When you are able to maintain your equipment and assets, you will be able to produce more work per hour than if you were without maintenance programs. This can mean increased revenue and profit margins for the company because of increased productivity and efficiency in production. Many organizations don’t take this into account but the cost of downtime is often higher than that of regular repairs or other maintenance activities, so it makes sense that companies with effective maintenance programs would see lower overall repair costs over time as well as reduced downtime due to less frequent repairs being required during operational periods where most assets need attention. Construction companies that use reliable data collection and maintenance management system such as KanBo will also find themselves better able to anticipate when problems may occur before they become critical enough that they need immediate attention but not yet too severe enough where they require immediate attention. This directly results in less wasted material output which saves money on materials while maintaining quality standards and still producing results without having clients complain about quality issues such as poor sanitation practices, subpar construction methods, and less-than-ideal build quality.

Make Construction Sites & Assets Safer than Ever

The benefits of maintenance management are many as it can directly help prevent injuries and other accidents in the workplace, reduce costs associated with injuries, improve productivity by reducing time lost due to injury or accident, and even reduce insurance costs. In addition to these benefits, maintenance management also helps ensure that equipment and assets remain safe for use by employees during their shifts. When the equipment is in good condition, construction organizations are better able to keep it from being damaged or worn out during use. This helps ensure that everyone who works with the equipment is safe, and it also prevents accidents from occurring when people do not wear safety gear like gloves or helmets. If there’s one thing we know about people who work on construction sites is that they’re not always careful with their surroundings or themselves. This can lead to accidents such as getting cut by metal parts while trying to fix something or falling off ladders while working on roofs and walls—which can sometimes cause serious injury if not properly treated right away. Maintenance management can help reduce such instances by integrating safety protocols directly into processes leaving almost no room for human error or negligence.

ROI Optimization and Sustained Future Profitability

As more and more businesses and startups enter the construction industry, it has become increasingly challenging for existing players to maintain their return on investment, let alone improve it. As competitive pressures pile on, construction organizations need to identify innovative approaches that enable them to maximize profitability per unit of expenditure. That’s where effective maintenance management can help construction companies to identify areas where they can cut costs and enhance productivity. Maintenance management software like KanBo can empower businesses to deploy a single source of truth for better work visibility and progress transparency. These aspects can be leveraged to:

• Extend the life of long-term assets including machinery and equipment
• Ensure compliance with industry regulations and best practices
• Cut down and address dependencies, bottlenecks, and downtime
• Track data from different channels and maintain a record
• Use information accumulation to standardize maintenance management
• Deploy cost controls and prepare more accurate forecasts
• Improve maintenance management team’s performance and reporting
• Reduce and even eliminate reliance on paper documentation

Role of Construction Maintenance Manager

A construction maintenance manager is responsible for a wide range of tasks as they must be able to ensure that a construction project stays on schedule and within budget while also dealing with any unexpected issues that may arise. In addition, they are responsible for supervising the construction workers and ensuring that safety guidelines are followed.

Design Maintenance SOPs and Ensure Effective Implementation

A construction maintenance manager is responsible for developing and implementing maintenance procedures. They must ensure that all equipment and machinery are properly maintained and serviced. The construction maintenance manager also oversees the work of the maintenance staff and ensures that they are properly trained.

Conduct Regular Inspections to Identify and Address Issues

A construction maintenance manager is responsible for carrying out regular inspections of the facilities under their care. This helps to identify any potential issues that could cause problems down the line. By resolving these issues early on, they can help to avoid major disruptions and keep the construction project on track.

Assess Electrical and Hydraulic Systems for Functional Continuity

It is also a construction manager’s responsibility to ensure that the electrical and hydraulic systems of buildings are functioning properly. This includes checking for any potential problems and taking corrective action to prevent any issues from arising. Additionally, they will need to keep an eye on the condition of the equipment and machinery used in these systems to ensure that they are operating efficiently. By keeping these systems in good working order, they will help to keep the building safe and functional for everyone.

Strategize & Supervise Repair And Installation Tasks

A construction manager also takes care of planning and overseeing all repair and installation activities. This will include coordinating work schedules, ordering materials, and supervising workers. They will also need to keep accurate records of all work done and ensure that all regulations are followed.

Delegate Workload & Guide Maintenance Staff

The construction maintenance manager has the duty to allocate workloads and supervise maintenance staff. They make sure that all the equipment and facilities are properly maintained and that any repair work is carried out swiftly and efficiently. In larger construction firms, the construction maintenance manager may also be responsible for managing a team of Maintenance Engineers.

Control Expenditure & Forecast Maintenance Budget

For construction maintenance managers, one of the primary responsibilities is to monitor expenses and control the budget for maintenance. This can be a challenging task, as unexpected repairs or maintenance issues can arise at any time. To be successful in this role, the individual must be able to effectively manage both money and time. They will need to have strong organizational skills and be able to stay calm under pressure. They will also need to be able to communicate effectively with both the team and upper management.

Maintain Relationships with Stakeholders

It goes without saying that the construction manager has to create and nurture relationships with contractors, service providers, vendors, and all the other stakeholders. This includes ensuring that contracts are up to date and that service providers are meeting the needs of the construction site. They will also be responsible for troubleshooting any issues that may arise so they don’t become a major risk or hazard in the future.

Document Maintenance Logs & Prepare Timely Reporting

One of the key duties of a construction maintenance manager is to keep accurate records of all maintenance activities. This includes logging each task that is completed, as well as any issues that may occur. These logs can be used to create daily reports which can be shared with upper management. This information can be invaluable in ensuring that the construction site is running smoothly and that any potential problems are quickly dealt with.

Ensure Compliance with Health & Safety Regulations

A maintenance manager ensures that all health and safety policies are being followed by employees. This includes making sure that all machinery is properly maintained and that all employees are properly trained in how to use it. They also conduct regular safety audits to identify any potential hazards and develop plans to mitigate them. By following these steps, they ensure a safe work environment for all teams and departments.

Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations

United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs has introduced Goal 9 which is closely related to the construction sector and its future objectives concerning sustainable consumption and production. It encourages global construction companies to invest in and create durable and long-lasting infrastructure while also pushing for a long-term and easily accessible process of industrialization and economic growth for the masses, particularly in underdeveloped regions. Organizations are also directed by the UN objective to foster an environment of innovation supported by robust research and development.

Construction Companies Should Strive for the Following Sustainability Objectives

Provide Easy Access to Resilient and Sustainable Infrastructure
The construction organizations should aim for environmentally friendly and certified infrastructure development and implementation of PPP concepts. Additionally, the development of the telecommunications system and the construction of new transportation facilities as well as industrial involvement and activities should be a major focus.

Promote Health and Well-Being across Local Communities
In addition to real estate development in different regions, the goal also involves promoting workplace health and safety as well as health services and sports activities for workers. Construction organizations are encouraged to implement sponsorship and citizenship for the benefit of the communities in which the companies operate.

Provide Learning Opportunities to Students with Disabilities
A broad variety of continuing education options should be made available to all employees, as well as the development and supervision of institutions of higher learning. There should also be support for intellectual efforts, interaction with academic institutions, and engagement in corporate social responsibility and sponsorship programs that help the young talent.

Ensure Sustainable Management of Drinking Water and Wastewater
The construction organizations should make sure that the construction of water supply and wastewater treatment and disposal systems is coordinated with the construction of flood protection and water treatment facilities. Throughout the construction process, companies should take steps to minimize their impact on the environment.

Deliver Affordable, Sustainable, and Resilient Energy
Building and infrastructure initiatives that are ecologically friendly should be paired with energy infrastructure developments. Companies in the construction industry should also be involved in the development and operation of alternative energy projects.

Maintenance Management for Construction Organizations & Project Owners with KanBo

Being one of the leading construction management platforms, KanBo provides a comprehensive and versatile solution for construction organizations, owners, and contractors to ensure effective maintenance throughout the project. Relying on KanBo, they can ensure thorough collaboration with all the stakeholders and create and deploy maintenance strategies, scheduling, inspections, work orders, documentation, and service requests. They can also design and implement SOPs through maintenance manuals for standardization of the process.

Ensure Cost-Efficient Project Lifecycle Management

Using KanBo, the construction maintenance management team can identify the ideal balance of profitability and maintenance costs through efficient management and optimize their investment return per unit of area. KanBo also puts you in a better position to ensure infrastructural maintenance that aligns with sustainability goals including green landscape elements, green areas, and renewable energy production. Being a highly transparent solution, maintenance managers can enable timely and proactive communication with building users and supervise compliance with mandatory policies according to their contractual obligations. It also provides project stakeholders to prepare and implement compliance SOPs and objectives by creating a long-term plan for the project taking the maintenance management budget into account. KanBo can be leveraged as a single source of information for collecting and addressing all issues, challenges, and service requests related to maintenance along with ensuring compliance with the requirements of the project master plan in terms of service and maintenance taking life value, sustainability, and safety.

Enable Proactive Scheduled Maintenance and Inspections

KanBo provides all project guardians with the capability to build result-oriented maintenance strategies and ensure timely deployment. They can develop a culture of collaborative communication and coordination to bring operational efficiencies to their maintenance strategy by identifying faults, issues, and service requirements through real-time actionable insights. The enhanced transparency provided by KanBo gives the maintenance manager the ability to execute scheduled maintenance work with convenience and ensure adequate supervision of different aspects of the project according to the contract.

Constantly Track & Manage Work Orders and Service Requests

With KanBo, maintenance managers can always ensure the effective implementation of daily maintenance operations and on-time technical assessments conducted by the facility management team in compliance with the original contract. They also receive real-time maintenance system notifications to track progress, learn about the successful completion of scheduled service orders and keep up with full-service documentation. KanBo can also be used to develop and deploy ad-hoc service orders for timely maintenance and close them once digital service documentation has been completed. Maintenance managers also have the option to use KanBo to manage and oversee the performance of maintenance and cleaning operations, upkeep of green areas, and efficiency of renewable power equipment.

Seamless Transition of Authority & Management

With KanBo’s maintenance management platform, project owners are in a better position to organize project closure and handover procedures for property maintenance without any hurdles or challenges. It takes them little to no time to fetch and share final records for maintenance contracts including all the relevant information like warranties, documentation, and manuals. They can also acquire contract documentation and safety guidelines to seamlessly execute field operations in real-time. KanBo also helps you to facilitate auditors by providing them with easy access to all the maintenance parameters and inspection records through one central location.

Streamline Operations & Enable Documentation Management

Relying on KanBo, construction companies can conduct comprehensive research and identify efficient solutions that can ensure higher productivity, lower costs, and safety of maintenance procedures through proper risk mitigation. KanBo also enables the teams and crews to work in an integrated collaborative environment to create operations and maintenance manuals (O&Ms) that completely align with design specifications, project features, quality parameters, and maintenance benchmarks. With access to real-time information, maintenance managers can create final O&Ms including warranties, closure records, and as-built documents to make sure the organization is in full compliance with contractual obligations. They can trust KanBo to make necessary modifications and additions to instructions, guidelines, and manuals according to the information collected throughout the project lifecycle to keep them up-to-date at all times.

KanBo is a Maintenance Management Tool for All Hierarchies

Any construction organization that’s trying to ensure effective maintenance management through the aforementioned initiatives needs a digital framework that can operate at all levels. If the said framework is spread across different teams, it makes it quite challenging to monitor work and information that results in inefficiency. KanBo, with its basic building blocks, enables project owners, team leaders, contractors, and employees as they can create and improve their processes and project plans according to their evolving needs.

For C-Level Executives – Digital Headquarters

For top management, the overview of the business holds all the importance. KanBo provides them with the digital headquarters they need with quick and convenient access to strategy, tasks, projects, information, knowledge, documentation, internal communication, and organizational community along with integral applications. This means that they can make decisions on the go without having to hold meetings and video calls every other day.

For Citizen Developers – A Low Code Platform

When we talk about low code platforms, we refer to a visual approach in terms of software development that allows the swift delivery of applications without manual coding. Low code platforms exist to make app development more mainstream, especially for citizen developers who are basically business users with very little professional coding experience. These may include project managers and business analysts. As a low code platform, KanBo enables employees to make a significant impact in a multitude of ways such as getting rid of IT department backlogs, eliminating shadow IT, and taking ownership of business process management (BPM) work streams.

For Citizen Developers –  A No-Code Platform

No-code development platforms (NCDPs) enable coders and non-coders to create application software through GUIs and configuration features. They don’t use conventional computer programming which can be more complex. No-code development platforms like KanBo are closely related to low-code development platforms as both are designed to make the application development process quicker. These platforms have both increased in popularity as companies deal with the parallel trends of an increasingly mobile workforce and a limited supply of competent software developers.

Information Workers – A Work Organization Platform

A process is a procedure that constitutes a sequence of steps that need to be deployed to produce a certain outcome. On the other hand, a project is a temporary course of action that aims to deliver a distinctive product, service, or result. To manage these processes and projects seamlessly, KanBo provides a central hub with all the features required by the employees, managers, and executives.

Final Word

It is no secret that maintaining profitability and ensuring sustainable growth in the current market has become a primary challenge for the construction organization. When you take into account the slow pace of digitalization in the industry and resistance towards making necessary changes, you can easily see that we have a scenario where the industry finds itself in a spot of bother. That’s why it has become a critical issue for construction businesses to have an effective maintenance management strategy that can help them provide better service, enable ROI growth, ensure regulatory compliance, and protect long-term interests.

As maintenance management can be quite labor-intensive, it needs an efficient digital construction management tool. That’s where KanBo can empower maintenance managers and their teams working across the organizational hierarchy to create and nurture a collaborative work environment and make their contribution towards achieving the common goal of successful implementation of maintenance management strategy.