The Ultimate Commercial Painting Guide for Facility Managers

Keeping your facility looking its best requires a great deal of skill. You can multiply this requirement when more buildings are being managed. Keeping ahead of the maintenance can be daunting, especially when it comes to updating your painting jobs. If you are considering commercial painting for the facilities you manage, there are a few key factors to keep in mind.

The Importance of Maintaining Your Brand’s Colors and Appearance

You may not realize it, but color is critical for marketing and branding. For example, when you picture the Golden Arches, the exact color of gold comes to mind immediately. Regardless of what kind of facility you have, you should consider color carefully and be consistent throughout your facility.

In addition to color selection, the facility’s appearance will influence the perception of potential clients and passersby. First impressions are important, so maintaining exteriors should be a cornerstone of any business. As the facility manager, you are responsible for ensuring the color scheme is always aligned with the brand or property management guidelines.

How Often Should Your Facilities Freshen Up the Paint Inside and Outside?

It is important to remember that the front of your facility creates the first impression for your potential clients. If the outside looks dated, it may turn them away. This applies whether the facility’s offering is a physical product or service, office space, apartments, or something else.

Determining how often to freshen up your facility’s image depends on two factors things — the kind of weather your area gets and the type of material used on the exterior of your building.

Weather

The type of weather in your region plays a role in how quickly your facility will need a new paint job. If there is a lot of sun on your building, the color will fade faster. If you live in an area that experiences severe weather, such as winter storms or tropical storms, the paint may not last as long either.

Materials

Certain building materials will hold paint and color longer than others. If you use wood, it will need to be maintained every few years to look its best. If you use aluminum, it can go as long as five years before needing a fresh coat. There is no definitive answer, but a professional commercial painter can evaluate and give you the best advice.

Signs You Need to Repaint

While the above factors will influence how frequently you need to refresh the paint, there are additional factors to consider. Remember, your building’s appearance is where your customers will get their first impression, so you want it to look its best.

• Poor Color: If you have faded colors instead of vibrant, inspiring colors, it is time for a facelift. Using a commercial painter will ensure everything is primed and painted correctly, keeping your building looking fresh and new.

• Poor Condition: If your exterior paint is peeling, worn out, or generally looks older than it should, it is time for a fresh look. Even when the color looks just as good as the day you painted but is fading, it is time to get a new coat applied.

• Mildew: This is a more common problem for facilities in humid climates. Exterior paint can start to grow mold and mildew, making a building look neglected and dirty. It is crucial to take care of the mold immediately. Hire a commercial painter to clean and mitigate the mold, then apply a new coat of paint. It is important to remember the mold has to be removed before fresh paint is added or it will ruin the new paint job.

Should You Create a Commercial Painting Maintenance Plan for Your Properties?

As a facility manager, if you do not plan for maintenance and repairs, you may pay more when the repairs are needed at the last minute. Not only that, but these repairs will also inevitably crop up at the worst time. The best way to combat this is to plan accordingly and prepare a budget for your maintenance and painting needs.

As a property manager, you are likely always looking for a way to make projects easier. Due to the challenges of juggling multiple maintenance priorities, it can be easy to let painting slip and get forgotten. If this has been a past issue, it is time to consider creating a plan for your properties.

How does a painting maintenance plan help your property?

• It keeps your building looking fresh and clean.
• Helps with budget planning.
• Reduce costs.
• Touch-ups cost less than repaints.
• It makes routine maintenance easier.

In addition to these advantages, your commercial painter or painting company will oversee the maintenance plan. This is crucial as it means you will already have a painter that you trust for future projects. In other words, you won’t have to waste time trying to find a reputable and highly-rated company when it comes time for a major painting project.

There’s even a chance that a painting company will prioritize your facility over other customers if they know that you provide them with regular business. Or perhaps you’ll get a slight discount.

What Would a Maintenance Plan Include?

These plans are highly individualized to meet your needs, budget, and goals. Some possibilities include:

• Touch-ups
• Pressure washing
• Mold removal
• Interior painting
• Rot replacement
• Recording paint colors
• Structure painting

Create a Plan with Your Commercial Painting Professionals

You don’t have to come up with a commercial painting maintenance plan yourself. Work with your commercial painters to determine a schedule that makes the most sense for the property. They will know what factors to consider and may suggest maintenance services you may not even be aware of.

How Should a Facility Manager Plan and Budget a New Commercial Painting Project?

You have decided to plan for your repairs and painting, but where do you start? Here are a few steps to keep your facility looking its best, attract new clients, and showcase your skills as a facility manager.

Understand Your Materials

Even the best paint jobs may only last about 8-10 years, and if your facility was last painted under someone else’s management, it is a good idea to start fresh. This will reset your cycle and allow you to plan correctly. Being proactive will help you keep a modern, cost-effective storefront that attracts a steady business flow.

Prioritize Your Checklist

Review all of the details and create a list of what needs to be painted. List exterior and interior spaces, marking any additional maintenance to that space that needs to be done. Prioritize areas of urgency. Work on high-risk areas first. To a professional facilities manager, these are the areas that need proactive work to prevent larger repair costs. Peeling paint may be ugly, but it also exposes the area to the risk of water damage. A commercial painting company can help you prioritize what repairs should be done first.

Set a Budget and Stick to It

You need to know more than simply how much your paint job will cost. You need to know where the funds for maintaining the paint job will come from and how they will be managed efficiently. If these funds come from stockholders whom you will need to convince, then consider having mockups of the freshly painted building done to convince them of the need.

Managing your budget is a critical part of ensuring your facility is well-maintained. Reviewing the information regularly will prevent overruns and ensure you have funds on hand for projects.

Work with the Right Commercial Painting Company

Make sure to take the time to interview your commercial painter; that ensures you get the most professional painter for the job. Check the company’s history and online photos of past work. Ask for and contact their references, check Google and Yelp reviews as well as testimonials before hiring your professional painting company.

Are There Certain Do’s and Don’ts When It Comes to Interior and Exterior Commercial Painting?

Do’s

Unless you are a professional painter by trade, consider hiring a commercial painter to paint the exterior of your facility. This can be a messy job, and it is also complicated. Mistakes can be costly. There is usually a large amount of ladder climbing, which can lead to injury for those who are inexperienced. The right paint selection also needs to be made. Latex offers UV resistance and doesn’t often fade, crack, or peel. Water-based paint dries quicker than oil and is easier to clean up.

Make sure to check the weather before starting this project. Wet or windy days should be avoided because it will make the painting much more challenging or potentially ruin it, costing you time and money.

The adage that the correct tools make the job easier should be applied. Double-check that you have the correct brushes for trim and shutters, as well as other areas. Get the best rollers and check with your paint shop or commercial painter to confirm which will suit your exterior and paint the best. Avoid sprayers unless you have extensive experience with them. Have eye protection, hats, rags for clean-ups, and secure all ladders.

Consider small areas to highlight your creativity. For example, consider a rich, glossy blue door. These statements can be trendy and eye-appealing.

We’ve mentioned hiring professional commercial painters, but this is an important “do” worth repeating. Hiring a pro will give you better-quality, longer-lasting results. It will help you avoid issues in the future, as they are likely to spot any potential problems. It will also give you time to focus on your other tasks as a facility manager.

Don’ts

Don’t skip the prep work. Using a commercial painter will ensure that all your paved areas, flower beds, decks, and bushes have drop cloths to protect them. Scrape all old paint and sand the surfaces so that the new paint will adhere properly. This is not the area to skimp on. Make sure everything is clean and prepared well before you apply new paint. Use the correct amount of primer.

Don’t buy economy or cheaper paints. Premium paints will provide you with better coverage that lasts longer and looks more professional.

Don’t stray from the area’s color scheme. Your neighbors won’t appreciate an exotic paint job. Try to select colors that blend with others in the area while expressing a sense of style.

Don’t get lazy moving your ladder. It can be dangerous and cause injury.

Don’t start the job unless you have set aside enough time to finish. Half-painted buildings are not appealing.

If you want specialized work, make sure to hire a commercial painting company. They will take the time to get the job done to your specifications.

How Can an Integrated Facilities Management Company Assist with Commercial Painting Projects?

An integrated facilities manager needs to wear many hats to keep up with the interior and exterior of buildings. Because of all the different ways they must keep an eye on their buildings, it can be easy to imagine that no two days are the same.

Each building may have certain requirements, such as zoning laws. Because of this, there may be varying degrees of guidelines when it comes to commercial paint jobs for your facility. In any case, project managers will run across common problems that have similar solutions.

Assessing the Project

From small touch-ups to entire exterior paint jobs, you will need to understand what the job entails before you decide to hire a painting team. Consider the area to be painted. Is it the exterior? Interior? High traffic? These details will help you decide when to paint and the type of paint needed. The answers to these questions will also determine how much time you will need to set aside for the project. Ventilation and safety factors must also be considered.

Preparing the Surface

This is the most critical step to ensuring you have a quality paint job that will last. You need to consider the current condition, the size of the area, and what state it is in before starting the project. All these factors can affect the amount of time needed to prepare the area as well as the primer used.

Quality Products

Selecting high-quality paints will produce better results, and the paint job will also last longer because it will be done correctly. There may be more upfront costs, but in the long run, you will not have to pay as much to maintain the property.

A professional painting company may recommend paints that block stains, have better washability, are quick-drying, or are low in odor according to the area to be painted. Likewise, a professional may suggest colors to evoke certain moods or neutral colors in high-traffic areas because they are easier to clean.

Ventilation

Understanding that interior paint jobs have different requirements than the exterior is a basic fact. That being said, in every case, having the correct ventilation in an interior commercial paint job is a critical step that will protect the health of your staff in addition to your commercial painting team.

Trust the Professional Commercial Painting Company

One of the most important things you can do for your commercial painting projects as a facility manager is to trust the professionals that you hire. Of course, you have to take the time to hire competent commercial painters to be able to do so, which is why we already touched on the importance of carefully choosing your painters.

But there are several important factors when it comes to trusting these professionals.

To start, they will be able to advise you as to which type of paint works best for your facility, how long the project should take, and approximately how much you need to budget for it. This will help significantly with your planning.

Perhaps more importantly, trust them to complete it without hovering over them. Remember that in addition to the work being done to a higher standard, you hire professionals to save yourself time. You have plenty of other important tasks to do, so let them handle the painting while you focus on those.

Branded Group Can Help Find a Commercial Painting Company

Branded Group, a trusted facility management company, understands the significance of first impressions in business. The expertise of commercial painting companies can help facility managers maintain a professionally appealing environment. With guidance on top-quality paints and reliable services, Branded Group becomes a valuable resource for astute facility managers. Elevate your facility’s appearance and reputation and schedule a consultation to learn more about how Branded Group can help you today.