The Cost Of Your Facility’s Downtime & Repairs vs. Cost Of HVAC Maintenance

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The Cost Of Your Facility’s Downtime & Repairs vs. Cost Of HVAC Maintenance

One of the most common reasons that large facilities use when deciding not to do preventative HVAC maintenance is the cost. Many facility managers believe that maintenance is not worth the financial cost up-front. However, when maintenance is neglected, it can often require your facility to spend on repairs and downtime.

The dilemma of whether to spend on proactive HVAC maintenance or waiting for a breakdown to happen and then repairing it is where many building owners and facility supervisors stand. But which one is actually cheaper? Is one of these clearly the better option? Today we will be breaking down the cost of HVAC maintenance compared to the cost of repairing an HVAC breakdown, and why ones is the clear best choice for your business or organization.

How Much Does Downtime From HVAC Breakdowns Cost?

The cost of HVAC downtime comes from more than the repair bill. When a major system fails, you are looking at serveral different areas that will cost you money. That is why an HVAC maintenance vs repair cost comparison needs to look at the whole picture instead of just the final number on the quote for your repairs. These are some of the contributing factors behind the cost of HVAC repair and downtime:

Loss Of Product

For food production facilities, pharmaceutical companies, labs, and manufacturing plants, HVAC failure can ruin temperature-sensitive materials or finished products. Depending on the facility, this can cost anywhere from a few thousand dollars to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Lost Labor

Even if your facilities are offline and work is stopped, there are still many scenarios where your employees will still need to get paid. For large facilities, lost labor time can add up quickly, especially when an entire shift is affected by the shutdown.

Cost Of Repairs

The big question usually is, how much does HVAC repair cost? The answer depends on what failed and how much damage was caused. Smaller commercial repairs may cost a few thousand dollars, while major repairs to air handlers, cooling towers, coils, or ductwork can cost tens of thousands of dollars or more.

Emergency Repair Premiums

Emergency repairs almost always cost more than planned maintenance. Emergency repairs might require after-hours service, rushed part delivery, temporary repairs until the final fix can be made, and lots of other additional expenses. A problem that could have been handled during routine maintenance can become much more expensive once the system fails.

Disruption To Clients Or Customers

Not every cost is easy to measure. HVAC failure can disrupt patients in hospitals, students in schools, tenants in office buildings, or customers waiting on delayed production. These issues can hurt trust and create problems that last beyond the repair itself.

Cost Of Proactive Maintenance For HVAC Systems

The cost of preventative HVAC maintenance is much easier to plan for than an unexpected breakdown. Maintenance helps your facility catch problems early and keep systems running before they lead to a costly failure. Here are a few of the different preventive HVAC maintenance services that could be the solution for your building:

  • Cooling tower refurbishment: Often several thousand dollars to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on size and condition. In many cases, refurbishment costs around one-third of a full cooling tower replacement. Learn more about the cost of cooling tower refurbishment.
  • Air handler unit restoration: Often a few thousand dollars to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on coils, drain pans, seals, fans, access, and internal damage. Learn more about the cost of air handler replacement or refurbishment.
  • Drain pan refurbishment: Usually around $300 to $20,000 or more, depending on unit size, access, and damage. Learn more about the cost of drain pan restoration.
  • Commercial duct cleaning: Often a few thousand dollars to $50,000 or more, depending on the building size, duct layout, and how contaminated it is.
  • Explosive dust removal: Often several thousand dollars to tens of thousands of dollars or more, depending on the facility size, amount of dust buildup, how easy it is to access, and certain industry-specific requirements. Learn more about ths cost of explosive dust removal.

Why Choosing Proactive HVAC Maintenance Is Best For Your Facility

When you compare the cost of preventative HVAC maintenance against emergency repairs, lost output, damaged products, and downtime, maintenance is almost always the smarter investment. Planned servicing may seem like an extra investment, but a major breakdown can cost far more than routine maintenance. Preventative maintenance also puts more power in your team’s hands. Instead of responding to failure, you can schedule your restoration and budget for the job before it becomes an emergency.

There are also benefits to maintenance that go beyond just cost. Routine HVAC maintenance can help improve indoor air quality, decrease stress on your equipment, prevent mold and contamination, increase comfort, and extend the life of your system.

 

Contact PROAC To Keep Your Facility’s HVAC System In Shape

Keeping your facility working for you requires investing in proactive maintenance that keeps systems running smoothly and spots problems before they lead to huge system breakdowns. To find out what maintenance your building needs to be in the best shape, our team can come out and and inspect your facility and determine whether cooling tower refurbishment, air handler unit restoration, drain pan refurbishment, commercial duct cleaning, explosive dust removal, air quality testing, mold remediation, or general commercial HVAC maintenance is best for you.

We can help you build a proactive plan that reduces downtime, controls costs, and keeps your facility working for your business. Reach out to PROAC to see how we can help your organization and facility.