Your ability to successfully run your business probably depends on your access to working computers, copy machines, printers, telephones, mailing equipment, networking equipment and projectors. No matter how much you pay for the best brand names, such equipment can slow down or give up if they are not maintained properly. Modern office equipment may be designed to run reliably; with heavy use by multiple people, though, problems do appear. If you’re serious about keeping your office equipment working reliably at all times, you need to put a training and maintenance schedule together.
Training your employees
It is never sensible to assume that your staff is familiar with the right methods of using office equipment. Unfamiliarity can result in the use of excessive force and careless habits. The first thing that you need to do, then, is to place a technically competent employee in charge of finding out how familiar every employee is with the way office equipment is supposed to be handled. This person would need to watch employees as they worked with office equipment to catch potential problems. Then, they may offer suggestions.
Putting together a maintenance schedule
Every piece of office equipment requires maintenance, mostly dusting and cleaning. Copy machines, laptops and computers, projectors and printers can suffer greatly from dust buildup. This isn’t the kind of job that you would give to the cleaning personnel who visit your office each day. Rather, it needs someone with either informal familiarity with tech equipment or someone with actual training. Calling in an office equipment maintenance agency could help greatly. Alternatively, you could simply take the time to identify office personnel capable of performing competently, and set up a schedule.
What kind of cleaning would a routine include?
Printers tend to build up dust around all internal moving parts. It’s important to use an artist’s paintbrush to clean at least once a month. Copy machines tend to gather fingerprints on the glass bed, and dust in the internal parts. Depending on how heavily a machine is used, cleaning once a month or once every three months is important. Computers, laptops and projectors all have fans inside for cooling purposes, and can build up heavy layers of dust over time. Dust can degrade performance by contributing to heat buildup. Once every year or so, every piece of equipment with an internal fan will need to be taken apart and carefully cleaned with compressed air.
Thinking about business equipment insurance
When office equipment fails, it can seriously affect the ability of workers to perform and deliver. You need some way of ensuring that you can afford to get quick replacements. Buying business equipment insurance is the best way to do this.
Many small business owners neglect to buy office equipment insurance simply because they believe that they are already covered by their property insurance. Whatever coverage property insurance offers, though, often falls far short – it usually only covers damage arising from external causes. If someone in your office loses a laptop or fries its circuits by spilling water on it, your property insurance maynot cover you. Power surges and failure due to poor maintenance are not covered, either.
Getting a deal
New technology may seem very reliable. With constant upgrades and cutting-edge improvements, though, it tends to be somewhat untested. Failures often happen. With much equipment being portable and capable of being taken out, theft and damage are common, too. Many businesses hesitate to invest in insurance to protect against these risks because they fear the costs involved. Comparison services though, are able to pick out affordable insurance deals for most needs.
Aidan Birch is a business maintenance consultant. An avid writer, he likes to post about his experiences on the web. You can find his informative articles on a variety of websites and blogs today.
