It’s that time of the year again, snow falling, gift giving and getting to spend time with your family. But you can’t relax when you are thinking about what is happening at your commercial facility during the holiday vacation time.
It can be a long list of tasks to prepare your facility to be closed for the holiday, whether it’s a few days or a few weeks. From protecting your data to safeguarding your building, there are precautions you can take to ensure you come back to work ready to go!
West Roofing Systems is located in Cleveland, Ohio; our teams install quality roofs that are made to withstand hard winter weather. We work with commercial facility owners and managers every year to prepare their buildings for the winter season and holiday vacation.
Why Do Companies Shut Down? Should Your Company Shut Down?
It’s widespread practice for companies to close their doors during the last few weeks in December. Closing your business for a brief time at the end of the year could be beneficial for your employees and bottom line.
Here are some reasons why companies close for a holiday vacation:
- Save on overhead
- Business partners are not in their offices
- Improve employee morale
- Perform maintenance on their facility
Adding a long list of tasks to complete before you leave for the holidays can be daunting, you want to make sure everything is done on time, correctly and safely. Here is a list to follow when you are closing up for your winter holiday break!
General
- Update emergency contact list and post in an easy to access area: facility manager, contractors, key contacts
- Clean out perishable food from kitchen and break rooms
- Confirm that all kitchen equipment, both gas and electric is turned off
- Update voice messages to reflect holiday times
- Update website and notify customers
- Turn off interior lights
- Empty all trash and waste
Offices
- Turn copiers, printers, projectors, and computers off
- Lock desks, filing cabinets, and offices
- Run a backup cycle on computers and servers
- Ensure all personal heaters are turned off
Plants
- Perform safety inspection
- Ensure all non-essential equipment is placed in standby mode or turned off
- Check to see that all compressors used are turned off
- Properly store flammable items
- Ensure all chemicals are locked securely
Facilities
- Contact contractors to perform critical building maintenance
- Change HVAC to power-saving mode or set to 55º F
- Ensure that nothing is stacked on HVAC unit ventilators
- Turn off all automatic and manual exhaust fans
- Ensure all windows are closed and locked
- Set security alarms and inform your security company that your property will be vacant (you may want to have some patrol during your vacancy)
Outdoor
- Schedule for a landscaping company to keep up with snow removal and to salt walkways
- Schedule final roof inspection with roofing contractor
- Ensure all gutters and downspouts are cleaned
- Check all gutters, flashings, and accessories are securely attached
- Set exterior lights on a timer
Winter holidays are a time for you and your employees to reflect on the past year and look forward to the future together. You can take the time to prepare your facility beforehand properly; you can spend the holidays carefree. Pull in your key personnel to handle every aspect of your business: customers, offices, facilities, specializes areas and security to share the workload and make sure nothing is missed.
At West Roofing Systems, we take pride in the new roofs we install and the maintenance we provide for our customers and their commercial, industrial and manufacturing buildings. Our M.a.R.S. (Maintenance and Repair Service) Program is available for new and existing roof systems.
Choosing West Roofing Systems as a turnkey roofing company will provide you with highly trained teams and award-winning service. Our services are flexible and diverse; we can recoat, repair or replace your facility’s roof so that it lasts decades.
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