In the Operations & Maintenance world, our clients do not like surprises, which is why it is so important to establish a proactive HVAC and mechanical maintenance strategy to help identify potential problems before they occur. The best way to do this is to collect information and record it in a Maintenance Outlook notebook. This will serve as a predictive report of possible failure points in an HVAC or mechanical system. A good Maintenance Outlook will:
- Look ahead 3 years.
- Show the cost of the individual repairs.
- Show the operational (electricity) costs over the next 2 or 3 years with the old / existing equipment.
- Show the operational savings over the next 2 or three years if newer, more efficient equipment is installed.
- Show operational impact if the system fails unexpectedly….can you afford the down time or is the mission critical?
Over time, as equipment degrades, a good Maintenance Outlook will keep your HVAC system running efficiently and will help you avoid system failures, major repairs, and costly downtime. A good Maintenance Outlook will also help you decide when it is more beneficial and cost effective to repair an HVAC system or replace it.
Take an air conditioning system for example. Suppose the system is still running and cooling, but there can be age or operational vulnerabilities, including:
- A fan motor with less than 1 M insulation resistance from windings to ground (insulation breakdown)
- A Compressor with a poor compression ratio (seals going bad)
- A small refrigerant leak in an evaporator coil (leaks don’t get smaller!)
- Heat Stress on fuse blocks (over current or poor conduction)
A Maintenance Outlook should be completed on all major mechanical equipment in a building, helping to make a proactive and cost-effective decision that makes sense in the long run
A Maintenance Outlook in Action: To Repair or Replace
Here’s an example of a Maintenance Outlook for an air conditioning unit manufactured in 1998 – 15 years old. In this case, repairing (4 repairs) and operating the HVAC unit over 3 years only saves a total of $432, but after 3 years, the unit needs to be replaced, costing $14,490 ($8,340 plus $6,150). Replacing the unit with a new system right away, however, saves $5,718 ($14,490 less $8772).
| Repair Costs | New System Cost |
| $4,302 for 4 separate repairs | $6,150 |
| $4,038 operating cost for 3 years | $2,622 operating cost for 3 years |
| $8,340 total costs for 3 years | $8,772 total costs for 3 years |
Like us on Facebook; follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Google+To learn more about how our Maintenance Outlook reports can help you maintain your HVAC and mechanical equipment for your office building or data center, contact us. Our MSCA GreenSTAR qualified technicians can optimize your mechanical equipment and lower your utility costs with our annual preventive maintenance agreements. Contact us to get a FREE assessment of the condition of your HVAC equipment. We offer 24/7/365 mobile service in Maryland, Virginia and DC. Call us at 301.262.2771 or email sales@crockett-facilities.com. We’re in this Building Together!