Springtime is spring cleaning time. It is also an often-overlooked occasion for spring seasonal maintenance. Adventist Risk Management, Inc. (ARM) provides insurance products for things outside our control— storms, wildfires, and cyber threats. However, for things we can control, seasonal maintenance is critical. We spoke with ARM's risk control specialist Brian Schwab about his work and why spring seasonal maintenance is important.
Konstantin: Tell us a little bit about yourself and what brought you to risk control?
Brian: From a young age, I learned the importance of maintenance. My father worked in facilities maintenance and Adventist institutions, primarily academies. I spent almost 20 years in some in camp ministry between summer camp and full-time camp ministry. And finally, I was the risk manager for the Southeastern California Conference. Among other things, risk management was part of my responsibility.From Southeastern California Conference, I joined ARM as a risk control specialist. Risk control is the idea of taking care of people and taking care of facilities. We are looking for opportunities to reduce the possibility that people or property will be injured or damaged.
My day-to-day entails visiting our Seventh-day Adventist boarding institutions. Those are primarily academies and summer camps. And during those visits I do several things. One of my tasks is to provide the organization with a current estimated replacement cost for their buildings. And then I also look at their structures. There are several opportunities that we find, for example, fire extinguishers haven't been serviced or stairs without handrails that could lead to injury. A few baptismal tanks don't have handrails.
Konstantin: One of the reasons seasonal maintenance is important is because it is a critical strategy to avoid costly losses. Can you tell us why ministries should prioritize maintenance every season, especially during the spring months?
Brian: The year has cycles as far as the equipment-use and our facilities need to be checked. Recently, we visited a property where several of their buildings don't have heat and they're actually shut down for the winter months. It is helpful to think of spring maintenance as kind of cranking things back up. We must check things that may not have been used and that we’re getting ready to use.One example is air conditioning systems. You know, in many parts of the country here in North America, air conditioners are not used during the winter. As spring begins to roll around, that's a great time to change filters, clean condenser coils, check the refrigerant level, inspect belts, motors, and other electrical components. This not only increases the life of the unit or helps to prevent early, an early demise of the equipment, but it also improves the energy efficiency. In the long run, maintenance will save your ministry money because it helps to keep the life cycle of the machine where it should be or even extend it.
Spring is a perfect time to check that out. Another thing to look at in the spring are parking lots and sidewalks. But you know, here where I live in California, we don't get a lot of rain. But every time we do have a lot of rain, it seems like new potholes develop in the roads. Also, roofs are a good thing to check after winter. Make sure that your drains are clean, your gutters, and downspouts are cleaned and there's no damage. In snow country, snow sliding off of roofs will damage or destroy gutters.
Konstantin: What are the first steps ministries should take to start a robust seasonal maintenance program? What should ministries do in the spring season?
Brian: The first step I would say is to just start. Sit down with the board or safety committee of your church, school, or the camp maintenance personnel and develop an inventory of buildings and property, electrical equipment, and systems. Then, develop a maintenance schedule. You also want to create a tailored plan for your church, given the environment and risks that your ministry faces. The most important step is just to start something. It's not going to be perfect. You can have revisions but just start and do it. Make it a priority to set up a program and then it can be adjusted as you go along.In the spring, check those systems, assess ventilation, or electrical systems, look for broken pipes and sprinkler heads, and so forth. Get the system ready to use rather than just turning it on. If you don’t do this, you might have a broken pipe that shoots thousands of gallons of water out. During the winter months, you get snow on trees and branches fall. Spring is a great time to pick up all the branches and clear overgrown vegetation, which also is part of fire season.
While visiting properties, I’ve seen branches laying on the roof of a building. Look for any trees or bushes that are overgrown and could damage your structure. Make sure someone, properly trained do so, takes corrective action and addresses any vulnerabilities.
