It is that time of year when we swap winter ice for ice cream and we know what you are thinking, how does a Winter Maintenance service provider increase their profits during summer?
Well in the shortest explanation, it is because we must do all the planning, business development, maintenance, procurement and recruiting during summer because in winter when we are operational, we just do not have the time. In the longer, slightly more descriptive answer, we have a mammoth amount of work to routinely go through to always make sure we as a business and our clients are winter-ready.
High on our ‘to-do’ list during summer is the procurement of salt to recoup our dilapidated stocks. As a necessity and to ensure we remain competitively priced, we negotiate with our suppliers every year to agree on quantities and cost ensuring we have sufficient supplies to keep our stores and those of our clients stocked throughout the winter months. ‘How do you plan for salt quantities in summer’ we can hear you asking yourself, our strategy is always to be prepared for the harshest of winters, so we never run out.
Once the grit is ordered, we then use this opportunity to diligently check the salt stores are in suitable condition to hold the stock and adequate to cope with the growth of our customer base. If not, then a new task is added to the list (the never-ending jobs list) of locating new stores in suitable locations across the UK… that is not as easy as it sounds!
We also use our ‘downtime’ to double and triple check all the equipment we use in the field is in good working order or needs repairing/replacing. Maintenance is a key task and quite an operation to manage as all our spreaders in the field must be returned to either our central hub in Leicestershire or go through a maintenance check at one of our strategic locations around the UK. Our lead engineer/ fitter Henry Jordan who is responsible for the upkeep of our fleet is typically run off his feet during these months ensuring all equipment is ready to go again in the autumn.
Same as with the salt supply, we also need to ensure that our supply chain meets our requirement as shipping from the US (where we purchase most of our equipment) has a lead time of circa. 8 weeks so a lot of critical planning is required.
One of our other important jobs during summer is, of course, business development. This requires listening to feedback and working with our clients to ensure we continually uphold our standards to deliver and exceed their expectations. As an example, Dean recently had a meeting with a key client who has requested our AccuCams are installed on one of their crucial sites with the ability to feedback live temperatures. It is not an off the service, so Dean, alongside Leonie are putting a very specific proposal and project together for them, which all takes time.
We also have like to make site visits to our clients to check on how everything is going and of course, meeting potential customers to discuss their requirements and how we can support them, which all entails travelling to locations across the UK.
Finally, we have all the business running duties to work through, from gaining the ISO certifications to marketing, to recruitment, to general admin, all of this must be predominantly achieved or meticulously planned for during the summer months as from September onwards is when the action kick’s in.
So, this is how a business most ‘active’ in winter increases its profits during the summer months. But it is not all work and no play, as we do also try to squeeze in family time, holidays, home DIY, charity work, training for marathons…. you get the idea!
Have you got your winter maintenance plans ready for this year? We admit it can feel wrong to be talking about snow and ice in July, but if you have paid attention to our blog, you will know now is a crucial time to plan for this winter. We can help you with this and advise you on the best solutions to keep your commercial sites functioning during the worse of the weather, just follow this link and fill out the form: https://lp.accugrit.com/request-a-quote
