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How To

The Maintenance Program

Cost Comparison

While most buyers recognize that purchasing a high quality product should lead to improved value over time, many fail to invest in a proactive flooring maintenance program. By not considering and budgeting for a comprehensive maintenance program, buyers run the risk of having the floor fail sooner than expected and having to replace it prematurely.

The chart below offers a brief comparison illustrating the cost of carpet for a 10,000 square-yards commercial office installation.

 Scenario A  Scenario B
 $/yd.2  Cost  $/yd.2  Cost
 Product & Installation  $20  $200,000  Product & Installation  $20  $200,000
 Maintenance  0  0  Maintenance  $2  $200,000
 Removal  $3  $30,000  Removal  $3  $30,000
 Disruption  $30  $300,000  Disruption  $30  $300,000
 Selection  $50,000  Selection  $50,000
 Total Cost/5 years.  $580,000  Total Cost/10 years.  $780,000
 Over 5 years  $116,000 per year  Over 10 years  $78,000 per year
 $116,000 — 78,000 = $38,000 x 10 years = $380,000 in savings*

Both scenarios assume:

  • Installed price of product is $20 per square yard
  • Cost of removal is $3 per square yard
  • Disruption cost (breaking down or lifting of partitions and furniture, interruption of computers and telephones, personnel relocation) is $30 per square yard
  • Selection cost (management time dedicated to project of this size) is $50,000

Scenario A is typical of a case in which a cleaning firm is used for all office maintenance. Here, the carpet maintenance is built into the general maintenance contract, but all too often, carpet cleaning is only done as needed, when spots or stains are noticed. The carpet suffers when it does not receive regular, routine attention. We assume, based on end user averages, that in this case the carpet will last five years.

Scenario B introduces a proactive maintenance program at a cost of 10 percent of the installed product price annually. This equates to $2 per square yard, or somewhat less than $.02 per square foot per month.

Program results
This program dramatically increases the carpet's expected life from five to 10 years. This, in turn, lowers the annual ownership cost significantly. When this savings is multiplied over the 10-year expected life of the carpet, it yields a return of nearly double the investment in maintenance. The benefits of the investment decision are obvious-better-looking, longer-lasting carpet.

*Cost data collected in 06/1998 and subject to change