Introduction
The maintenance system under consideration will consist of various types of repairs. Some will be routine, others will preventive while others will be scheduled. In case of an emergency or breakdown then maintenance will still be necessary.
This system will consist of the staff needed to carry out maintenance and it will outline their respective schedules. It will also specify materials and equipment needed in order to carry them out and the criteria used to make those choices. Cost accounts, environmental concerns as well as future renovation projects will also be part of this system.
Types of maintenance
Leysin hotel will carry out scheduled maintenance as part of its general maintenance system. This will consist of all those repair and maintenance works that require long periods of time. It will involve immense planning of all tools and staff needed as such kinds of maintenance are interdisciplinary.
A typical example would be erecting a wall or getting rid of a ceiling and replacing it. The hotel will also need to prevent occurrence of certain dangers by carrying out preventive maintenance.
Here, the company will inspect and identify areas within the premises that require simple adjustments. The major aim of carrying this out will be to ensure that all hotel equipment lasts longer such that the company reaps maximum benefits from it.
This maintenance system will also involve room maintenance. In that process, staff will inspect guest rooms, identify and report potential problems. These deficiencies will then be corrected according to a time schedule. Normally, reports should be made during peak times such that the hotel can purchase all necessary material for the repairs.
Those activities ought to be carried out during the off peak season so as to minimise guest interruptions. Usually, room attendants are in charge of these activities. Despite all the care that the hotel can exercise, there may still be a possibility of a breakdown.
Some equipment can breakdown without detection and the firm needs to act quickly in order to correct this. It should then take note and keep watching those things that easily breakdown so as to prevent future incidences. Leysin will set some money aside for this purpose so as to ensure that they can be accountable for future challenges.
People involved and time schedule
An administrative assistant will be crucial in this maintenance system because he will be responsible for keeping records about repairs that have been detected. He will also order the parts that are needed in the repair after liaising with other members of the team. The administrative assistance will also be in charge of repair inventory and will deal with payroll for contracted maintenance experts.
The maintenance system will consist of a shift engineer. Such a person will be at the beck and call of the hotel as he will respond to the repair alerts made by housekeeping, guests or any other staff member at Leysin. Usually, these may occur on a daily basis.
However, there could be other scheduled ones that are not as urgent and maybe scheduled. There will also be general engineers who will be coming into the organisation from time to time in order to work on long repair and maintenance projects.
These individuals will be contracted from time to time. The system will also possess electricians who will be hired when they are needed. It will be essential to work with one or two key people who already understand the electrical system in the hotel.
Also, this team will be composed of a series of generalists who are proficient in some mechanical work, carpentry and plumbing. Such kinds of people are less expensive than specialists. Specialists may cost the company a lot of money yet they can only respond to a few challenges in their line of specialisation (Hirsh, 1995).
Housekeeping will also be a vital part of this system because if it was not for them, Leysin Hotel would not be clean or attractive. These individuals will play a vital role in ensuring that guests are comfortable and that everything is as expected. Here, they will carry out tasks such as turning the heating and lighting systems on and off, taking care of the kitchen equipment and many others.
In terms of time schedule, it will be imperative to carry out any regular maintenance in the afternoons. These activities need to be done on a need-to basis. On the other hand, scheduled maintenance will need to be done during the off peak season. Sometimes this can last for as long as three months so it should start as soon as that season begins.
Seamlessness will need to be the major goal in these operations. Afternoons were selected because most guests come back to their rooms in the evening hours.
Employees, guests and corporate purposes
Maintenance in this hotel will be imperative in order to ensure that facilities and equipment stay in their ideal state. Future breakdowns are either detected or prevented due to this. Essentially, it serves a crucial role for guests because it ensures that no service hitches occur.
It would be a pity if a guest tried to turn on the taps only to find no water or if he wanted to get his laundry done, he found that the machines are ruined. Such scenarios can tarnish Leysin’s name and destroy potential business in the future. Consequently, the company needs to know whether its facilities are in order so that it can serve the needs of consumers (Grattan, 1999).
Maintenance would also be quite useful for employees and the corporation. When Leysin is well maintained then chances are that employees can carry out each of their respective duties without having to worry about breakdowns.
They can also be protected from possible physical harm that would emanate from poorly maintained buildings. The company will be the greatest beneficiary in this maintenance system because it will get to save costs, it will operate in an environmentally efficient manner, provide high quality services to consumers and increase returns because of satisfied consumers.
Cost accounts
(Henderson & Home, 1992).
Hiring engineers and generalists may not cost the company too much because these individuals will only be called in during crises, scheduled maintenances (which are seasonal) or instances requiring minor adjustments. Their costs will not be as high as permanent staff such as shift engineers because permanent staff members are salaried.
Temporary labour will cost less than all the others because these individuals often come in small numbers and most will accept minimum wage payments. Renovations will be the second most expensive because they will require a lot of intense work.
Materials and equipment are definitely the most expensive because their costs are standardised. Most of the time, one must purchase materials depending on the size of the facility. Since this hotel will be quite expansive then plenty of material will be needed in order to carry out an annual renovation.
Breakdowns will require half a million pounds because they are likely to be small time and since preventive exercises will be done then chances are that future problems in the facility will be captured before they breakdown (Gibson, 1979).
When procuring the materials and equipment the hotel will rely on references by its generalists and electricians for suppliers. However, the company will always consider market prices. This information can be easily found across the internet or in property publications.
Leysin will always compare these prices before the supplies can be obtained. The shift engineer will need to liaise with the administrative assistant in order to come to the final price of the material or equipment under analysis. Final approval will be done by the manager under consideration so this will ensure accountability.
Future renovation projects
Renovation projects can involve a series of intricacies depending on the priorities of those concerned. Leysin will start with the roof work. Here, the company will need to work on replacing some of the materials on the roofs and this means that membranes, asphalt shingles and tiles will need to be worked on.
The roof also consists of chimneys which will need repair after a couple of years (Swallow & Chanter, 1996). Once again, every part of the hotel will be given proper attention annually. The company will work systematically from top to bottom. In the next year, the company will work on pipes and gutters. Here extensions, gutters and eaves will be repaired or cleaned so as to make sure that they function effectively. Thereafter, Leysin will renovate its exteriors.
These will consist of all the walls that require renovation. Such renovations will only occur once if it has been affirmed that they have problems. It will involve painting and wall trimming as well. After this, renovations will entail working on interiors such as windows and doors (Seeley, 1987).
This will be followed by outdoor renovations where the lawns will be examined. Some termite investigations will be done and followed by extermination. The company will then work on the plumbing. Investigations and repairs of laundry tubs, kitchen sinks, toilet seats, waste pump, bathroom renovations and others, toilet unclogging will be done in the subsequent year after external renovations.
Broken sewer lines, Jacuzzi tabs and pump tanks will be examined. In the last year of these projects, there will be electrical renovations (Zavadskas, 2006). These will involve checking and repairing light fixtures, switches, upgrading the breaker panels and dealing with the water system.
Here, pumps and other components dependent on water will be fixed. It should be noted that in certain years, very minimal renovations will be done as replacements or repairs can only be executed when a problem has been found or the material is too old.
Environment and the economy
This organisation will employ a series of strategies in the water and electrical sectors so as to minimise wastage and also for environmental concerns. First, the company will have a water recycling program for its irrigation system in the lawns and gardens; this will minimise water shortage (Ashurst, 1988).
That lawn will also possess plants that require less water than conventional ones. It will possess energy saving bulbs all over the building. This will definitely use less electricity. Housekeeping staff will always ensure that electric switches are switched off whenever someone else is not using them.
The same will apply for appliances that are not in use in the entire hotel. Leysin will also save on water usage by having a linen re use system. This will also save on the detergents or other cleaning agents.
As part of its green initiative, this firm will also start using green energy by employing solar power. Electricity generated from that source will be used for water heaters (Christer, 1984). The company can also save up to 50,000 pounds if the hotel reuses water from basins and baths for flushing (Cole, 1996).
It will therefore have such a scheme in place. Some of the toilet paper that is unused will be taken to staff washrooms instead of getting thrown away. This will save the company a lot on staff logistical costs. The company can also encourage a vast number of its guest to practise water saving by reminding them to switch off or to put towels back on racks so that they do not have to ask for different ones every time.
The company will put little posters such as “water is precious” in order to prompt guests to minimise wastage. Lastly, the company will keep monitoring water and electricity consumption in each department so that they can compare notes and determine which area is using less or more. This will cause them to work on improving aspects that have led to excessive use of resources in the past.
References
Ashurst, J. (1988). Practical building conservation. Ontario, BCIN.
Christer, A. (1984). Delay time models of industrial inspection maintenance problems. Journal of operational research society, 4(92), 56.
Cole, R. (1996). Life cycle energy use in office buildings. Building and environment journal, 7(5), 127.
Gibson, E. (1979). Developments in building maintenance. London, Applied science publishers.
Grattan, E. (1999). Maintenance and repair: too big to ignore. Mn, Citeseer.
Henderson, R. & Home, A. (1992). Inventory, cash, security and maintenance control. [online].
Hirsh, W. (1995). Contracting out by urban governments. Urban Affairs review, 58(4), 189-234.
Seeley, H. (1987). Building maintenance. London, McMillan.
Swallow, P. & Chanter, B. (1996). Building maintenance management. NY, Wiley.
Zavadskas, E. (2006). A multiple criteria of multifamily apartment block’s maintenance contractors. Building and environment, 14(3), 68.