Imagine if you found out you could improve your business appearance and get more customers through the door, create a more positive and appealing environment for your tenants, all while lowering energy and water costs? Grounds Maintenance can tick all these boxes as well as preserve property value and even improve rental rates by 7%!
In this article, we’re going to do a little bit of digging (pun intended!) on how landscaping can maximise your green space, and your revenue, by creating attractive spaces for your customers, tenants and employees.
What is Grounds Maintenance?
Grounds maintenance is all about maintaining and improving the outdoor space of a building, facility, business, or park. The focus aesthetically is to keep things neat and presentable, but can also offer practical gains through mechanical maintenance of sprinkler systems and equipment, and even an increase in property value and potential tenant or customer enquiries.
Types of Grounds Maintenance?
Most grounds maintenance is managed into a few key areas, but a good strategy will use a combination in order to properly care for the plants and outdoor space.
Planned maintenance
Planned maintenance is all about the regular tasks that are scheduled as part of a maintenance plan. The focus of this kind of work is to extend life, reduce costs and minimise downtime. This kind of work might include watering plants and lawn care, administering oil oil and treatments for grounds equipment and applying fertiliser.
Corrective maintenance
The clue is in the name for corrective maintenance, and comes into effect to resolve an issue or failure or to fix something broken. The aim here is to fix something, or return something broken to its original state as quickly as possible. Examples of corrective grounds maintenance includes fixing a broken water or irrigation pipe, changing the blades in a lawn mower or a dead battery in a golf cart, or removing a tree that has fallen down.
Condition-based maintenance
This is a maintenance strategy that tracks and monitors the performance of equipment and creates alerts using sensors. The focus here is to proactively service grounds equipment that are critical to overall grounds maintenance by identifying poor health or upcoming failure. Examples include maintaining proper greenhouse humidity through hygrometer readings, water pressure alerts warning of a water pump that needs replacing in an irrigation system or the removal of certain plants or trees if rot or infection is detected.
Who can benefit from Grounds Maintenance?
Residential
Apartment blocks: Residential properties will benefit from consistent grounds upkeep and maintenance by providing plants and trees that offer shade and an attractive environment, as well as privacy to tenants.
Care homes: Residents of care homes will be thankful for a calm and tidy space and a clear, flat path to move safely around outside (make sure tree roots are removed!).
Commercial
Offices: To welcome new customers and maintain a good first impression, it’s important that any hard surfaces are swept of debris, lawns are kept at a neat height and any shrubbery is trimmed.
Golf courses: The green of a golf course must be kept in pristine condition, so regular and measured grounds maintenance is crucial.
Shopping centres: Shops and shopping centres must be visually appealing from the outside in order to attract customers inside. Well trimmed hedges and hanging baskets of flowers must be well maintained to remain inviting throughout the year.
Councils
Town parks: Councils will want to make sure their town is presented in the smartest way possible. Making sure lawns and fields are kept well, trees and bushes aren’t blocking pathways and flowers are flourishing will be a priority for the outside space.
Market places: Grounds maintenance will be used here to make sure debris and rubbish is kept off the ground, stains from birds and people are washed away and any shrubbery or flower beds/hanging baskets are looking attractive all year round.
Schools, universities and colleges
Safety is a big part of ground maintenance at schools, as there are always children and staff members within the area, often in the outside space multiple times a day. Not only within the school, but out the front must be kept presentable to attract and welcome new students and teachers.
Grounds maintenance is a necessary part of any facility management plan. Well maintained outside spaces can lead to an increased property value, reduced energy costs, and enhance the experience of visitors and patrons. At Dependable, we offer a range of grounds maintenance services, from a simple lawn upkeep plan and hedge pruning, to cleaning and tidying communal spaces and the precise maintenance of sports pitches, we’re here to help.
