So you’ve almost made it to the end of your budget cycle and you’ve managed to stay within budget across the board. What should you do with your budget surplus to really get your facility set up for the coming year? Using your surplus effectively now can really help you ensure that you’re within budget next year. Some of the most effective areas to use a surplus budget are staff training, repairs, preventative maintenance, and purchasing new equipment.
Unexpected equipment failures are a common cause of blown budgets. While using your budget surplus to repair issues is a great use of that money, preventing those issues in the first place is even better. Using your budget surplus this year on preventative maintenance can help prevent an unexpected failure next year. Preventative maintenance lowers the overall cost of operating equipment, reduces downtime, reduces the likelihood of repairs, and increases the overall operational efficiency of the equipment.
Take a look at the assets your facility has and which ones are most critical to production. Compare this list to the maintenance that was done this year. If any equipment is older, critical to production, and undermaintained, then that equipment is a good option for using your budget surplus. Putting an emphasis on preventative maintenance for this equipment will also help to keep productivity higher, which will help your budget in coming years.
The better training a facility’s staff receives, the higher their level of productivity and efficiency will be. The downside to this is that training costs money. With a budget surplus, it can be a lot easier to justify the costs of this training. Take a look at the overall duties that the staff performs. Is there one area that would benefit most from extra training? Having better trained staff may mean relying less on outside technicians to repair problems, or may mean that the preventative maintenance program will be more effective. Either way, better training will help to keep costs lower in the future.
Most facilities have equipment that could use some degree of repair. Deferred maintenance is a big issue for many facilities, but a budget surplus can help reduce those problems. Sometimes, the repairs are not serious enough to warrant being fixed immediately, so they go unrepaired for long periods of time. Problems with equipment don’t typically go away, they just get bigger. Using a budget surplus to fix neglected repairs is a great use of that money. Look at repairs that will cost significantly less now than they will in the future if they are not repaired. Your future budgets will thank you.
Every facility has old equipment that has become a hassle to keep running. Maybe the equipment is constantly breaking down, or maybe it’s just an inefficient energy hog. Using a budget surplus to offset the cost of new equipment is a great way to improve your facility’s capital equipment and reduce the maintenance and repair costs in the future. New equipment is often safer, more reliable, and more energy efficient. An important metric that is often forgotten is how much faster new machinery can operate. New equipment, combined with the right training, will often boost productivity and make the facility more productive and efficient.
Finishing the year with a budget surplus is a great accomplishment. Don’t let your surplus go to waste. After looking at all of these areas where your budget surplus could be used, try to determine what will have the biggest ROI for your facility. Using the surplus effectively this year will set you up for success next year.
When you decide how to use your budget, you can make smart decisions to help your facility. The experts at Tate can help you out in this area, offering maintenance, repair, and equipment installation services. Get in touch today, and talk to us about how we can help you make the most of your money.