How IFM Can Save Time & Money
One of the questions new clients ask us is “Can using an Integrated Facility Management service save us time and money?” Typically, they’re considering bringing the services that an IFM firm provides in-house.
Is this a good idea? To answer that question, let’s look at the difference between using an IFM service like LESCO360 compared with going in-house.
When a company does everything in-house
The primary concern with moving to an in-house service is whether or not the maintenance request will be handled properly. Using an example of a bank, let’s assume Jennifer (the head teller) notices a ceiling leak when she arrives at the branch one morning.
Does Jennifer know the proper protocol? Most likely, she doesn’t.
Instead, Jennifer will try to reach the branch manager to find out what she should do. While they may know, there is always the real possibility that the manager will be sick or on vacation when this happens. Jennifer’s next step is to try to reach a nearby branch manager or even the corporate office. Depending on location and availability, these secondary sources of help can be in other states.
In addition, this assumes that the person who answers the phone even knows what to do or who to call. Most likely, they’re going to need to call her back.
Meanwhile, the water needs to be dealt with
As a temporary solution, Jennifer puts a small bucket under the leak while waiting.
Eventually, someone will call Jennifer back, providing her with the name of the plumbing vendor. Let’s assume his name is Jack at a hypothetical company named Call Action Plumbing. Hopefully, Jack can answer the phone. Most likely, Jennifer will reach Jack’s voicemail.
During all of this, the ceiling tiles start to look soggy. Eventually, Jack reached back out and says he’ll stop by soon to check out the leak. Does this always happen though?
No. In fact, it’s not uncommon in this scenario for Jack to be a no show. Eventually, because she’s an hourly employee, Jennifer will need to clock out and go home for the day. The leak doesn’t clock out at 5, however, which means that the only recourse is to find a bigger bucket and hope it lasts overnight.
The next morning
When the manager (let’s call him Dave) returns, he’s going to walk into a mess including fallen ceiling tiles, an overflowing bucket, and soaked carpet in the lobby. It’s now on Dave to track down Jack. Jack eventually shows up, fixes the issue, and remits an invoice which then must be sent to corporate Accounts Payable, causing delays with payment to the vendor.
Of course, all of this was done in a rush. Was it done properly? Is the repair satisfactory? Even if the leak is fixed, what about the damage to the ceiling and carpet? Who handles that?
When a client lets LESCO360 handle everything
If everything sounded complicated just now, it’s because it is. With LESCO360, we handle everything making Jennifer’s job as simple as:
She discovers a leak
She calls her officially designated LESCO360 phone number, with 24/7/365 monitoring and guaranteed to pick up by the 4th ring.
Opens a work order
From there, we’ll reach out to the appropriate vendors, let them know of the urgency, schedule and follow up on the appointments, pay the invoice upon verification completion and update the client on the work the vendor performed.
It’s that simple!
Let LESCO360 manage your Integrated Facility Management needs!
Our mission is to ensure that anything involving your facility maintenance is completed fully to your satisfaction. At any time, you’ll have access to all vendor records, prior and active work orders, expenses and more via your company portal.
Ready to get started? contact us today to learn how we can help make your life simpler! You can also see our current customers and how we’ve helped them.