2011-01-AU Limited Scope Performance Audit of the Department of Parks and Recreation’s Facilities Asset Management

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Chapter 3: OPERATIONS CHART #1 THE "CRAZY CYCLE" OF REACTIVE MAINTENANCE Standards Dr( I110 1. 0r'� 'o MGM Morale eclirien Failure"; .I ,ad/Bud ��t, take ti by Reductions Bre.akdowcis iid-a i d More Ppn -I "; Maintenance Source: OMCS Asia-Pacific Sdn. Bhd. It should be noted that the current Parks and Recreation Administration and maintenance staff inherited the situation of deteriorating recreational buildings. When preventative maintenance is neglected, more unplanned repairs inundate the maintenance staff. A "crazy cycle" develops where maintenance workers are busy trying to patch problems resulting from neglected maintenance that have become repair or safety issues that can no longer be ignored, leaving less time for completing preventative maintenance, which results in more problems that become repair or safety issues. A backlog of deferred maintenance and repair grows, and the "crazy cycle" continues to inundate maintenance staff with more unplanned repairs. Over time, roofs without adequate maintenance and repair begin to leak, and rainwater leaking through roofs may then cause corrosion, wood rot, mold, or other problems. This "crazy cycle" of reactive maintenance accurately describes the current situation within the Parks Maintenance Division, in which quick fix or band-aid repairs prompt repeat work, which makes its way back into the deferred maintenance backlog. INSUFFICIENT WRITTEN POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR The Auditors requested all written policies and procedures that pertain to facilities maintenance and repair from the Department and its Divisions. However, very limited written documentation has been provided. During interviews, Department personnel provided their own definitions for "regular maintenance", "repair", and "preventative maintenance", which were all somewhat similar. In general, the examples given for "regular maintenance" were custodial activities (such as power and tractor mowing, cleaning picnic grills and refuse containers, and cleaning walls and ceilings), and the examples given for "repair" were generally responsive activities (such as service calls, emergency calls, acts of nature and vandalism), and examples given for "preventative maintenance" were generally contractual outsourcing activities (such as rust mitigation, priming and painting, and termite fumigation and tenting). 15