The high cost of deferred maintenance

By Emma Peterson. 

How putting off repairs can dramatically increase long-term infrastructure costs. 

In a new episode of Roofing Road Trips®, Karen Edwards got the chance to talk to Rick Johnson. Rick is a regional sales manager at Tremco CPG covering the mid-Atlantic region. Prior to joining Tremco, he spent a decade working as a restoration contractor.  

When we asked him about the common misstep he sees building owners and facility managers make, he pointed to deferring of maintenance. What does Rick mean by this? He used sports stadiums, as an example, "Stadiums tend to need repair and restoration regularly, and most professional stadiums get replaced every 20-25 years. But what we’re seeing is people deferring maintenance and even replacement because money is tight. But what they don’t realize is how much deferring that maintenance will cost them over time.” 

How much does it cost? Rick used a car oil change as a metaphor, “A regular oil change will cost you $50-$100 depending on your vehicle. And it’s something you do regularly that might seem annoying or like something that could be put off. But if you put it off you risk blowing your engine. And if the engine blows, that’s $8,000-$10,000 minimum.” 

How does this analogy translate to infrastructure? Regular maintenance is the oil change and the risk of blowing the engine is a catastrophic collapse. Rick explained:  

Over time, corrosion begins to attack the rebar of these facilities. This is where regular seal maintenance, often in the form of reinforcement, is key. If you don't maintain it and the corrosion continues unaddressed, it expands, which causes the concrete to further crack and start to delaminate, where pieces will pop out of it. When this happens, suddenly you’re looking at repairs that are 10%-20% more costly than maintenance. And if it goes unaddressed beyond that point, you’re risking a collapsing structure. 

So, how can facility managers and owners find a balance between keeping in budget and keeping up with their infrastructure's maintenance? Rick pointed to the way the Lambeau Field (the Green Bay Packer’s home stadium) team manages their facilities:  

For probably 30 years now, they’ve done yearly maintenance where they recoat 20% of the stadium with a deck membrane, which costs anywhere from $4-$7 a square foot. And to my knowledge, this system has helped them avoid deeper issues like concrete repair, which comes with a $60-$80 per square foot price tag.  

This strategy of building a program that sections off the building is the perfect example of how to both protect your facilities and your finances. As Rick put it, “Dollars are always tight. But if you put that plan together where the build every piece of the building gets addressed every 5-6 years, you can protect that facility and even extend its life anywhere from 20-50 years while staying in budget.” 

Listen to the episode or Watch the recording to learn more about maintaining infrastructure properly.