Fabric maintenance deals with all aspects of property asides from mechanical and electrical maintenance services.

It serves an important role in upkeeping the safety, comfort and aesthetic appeal of a building and, in the long run, can help to avoid the need for emergency and unplanned repairs. Because of this, similar to any preventive activities, it is considered a far more cost-effective and efficient approach to maintaining a building.

Fabric maintenance can be integrated as part of a Planned Preventive Maintenance (PPM) programme, covering a vast range of assets, both internally and externally. This includes building assets such as roofing, external walls, windows, doors, cladding and insulation.

As a property service partner, we are able to provide bespoke fabric maintenance solutions that work around our clients’ properties and budgets. For properties of special interest, such as listed and heritage buildings, Axis takes particular care to appoint the right operatives with the skills and experience to handle maintenance work appropriately. We can source a range of period-appropriate materials that are in keeping with the style and heritage of a building.

We specialise in carrying out a comprehensive list of internal and external preventive repair and maintenance works for a range of commercial, heritage, social housing and public sector properties. Our capabilities include:

• Internal and external structural repairs
• Roofing repairs
• Landscaping
• Moss and plant clearance
• Drainage
• Cladding work
• Windows and doors
• Brickwork
• Ironmongery
• Joinery
• Timber work and carpentry
• Asbestos removal
• Mechanical and electrical installations
• Heating and plumbing
• Gas and boilers
• Fabric repairs
• Installations (including kitchens and bathrooms)
• Softwash and Doff specialist cleaning

We have a reputation for long-term contracts offering planned repair programmes. We work alongside our clients to formulate detailed maintenance plans that work around properties’ maintenance needs and requirements. We’ll consider the use of the building and its assets, assess how this impacts long and short term wear and tear before adding a priority level to each project on the maintenance plan.

Axis will appoint and brief skilled, experienced and capable operatives who will be responsible for carrying out maintenance work to a high standard. They will be fully equipped to complete projects in an efficient and safe manner. We’ll always aim to carry out work around occupants calendars and schedules, minimising disruption where possible.

Planned maintenance helps to extend the life expectancy of assets, thus reducing the need for frequent replacement or repair. This is a far more cost-effective approach in the long term. Well-maintained assets and equipment will also run more efficiently and sustainably.

Because equipment and facilities are continually well-maintained, the chance of breakdown is significantly less with a planned maintenance programme in place. Year on year, clients whose properties are well-maintained experience less sporadic downtime than those who do not have assets regularly maintained.

Axis will work to ensure the smooth running of both planned maintenance programmes and reactive maintenance programmes. 

Problems associated with asset and equipment breakdowns such as disruption, inefficiency and health and safety risks can be avoided with a cyclical repair programme.

Old and outdated equipment is more likely to fail than newer equipment. By replacing or repairing equipment before it reaches its expected end-of-life, landlords and housing providers can help occupants to avoid being impacted by sudden, unexpected failures which could cause inconvenience and frustration.

Cyclical repairs and replacements are often a far more sustainable approach that can aid in the reduction of long-term costs.

Cyclical repair and planned maintenance programmes often run in parallel. The key difference is that planned maintenance works to keep assets and facilities working before they reach end-of-life. Cyclical repairs involve replacing assets, or components of assets, as they reach end-of-life to avoid problems related to outdated and old equipment.

Planned maintenance works by continually monitoring the wear and tear of assets on a scheduled basis to proactively avoid future outages and keep facilities in good working condition. Cyclical repairs involve repairing or replacing assets on a set schedule as they reach end-of-life.

Planned maintenance can occur on a weekly, monthly, or annual basis. It may involve regular cleaning, checking of parts and fixing or replacing components that are becoming worn. A cyclical repair timetable will depend entirely on the individual shelf life of each asset. This could range from one to 25 years.

Maintenance that is planned in advance, scheduled and documented is classed as planned maintenance. The primary aim of this style of property maintenance is to reduce the likelihood of outages that can cause disruption. It’s a proactive approach to keeping a building and its assets working and looking in full-working order.

Unique assets have different planned maintenance time tables. Some mechanical and electrical facilities may require monthly maintenance, whilst other assets may be maintained annually.

Axis supports clients to create effectively planned maintenance schedules, based on properties, assets and use.

Reactive maintenance, sometimes referred to as breakdown maintenance, occurs when fabric, mechanical or electrical assets and facilities become damaged or broken.

It may involve fixing repairable assets or replacing equipment that cannot be repaired. Reactive maintenance is usually an unscheduled property maintenance service that solves problems as they arise to restore assets back to full working order. Repair and maintenance teams aim to respond as quickly as possible to reduce outage time.

Equipment and assets that lack regular maintenance checks and care may have problems that have gone undetected are more likely to incur unexpected breakdown and require frequent reactive maintenance.

Repairs and maintenance occur on a regular basis in response to wear and tear, breakdown or damage. Work can be carried out reactively to fix faults as they occur, or scheduled to prevent future faults. Our repair and maintenance services help to protect the longevity of our client’s properties and assets. This plays a vital role in reducing long-term costs, enhancing efficiency, avoiding outages and disruption to occupants.

Whilst capital improvements achieve similar benefits, it’s a service that takes a slightly different approach to repair and maintenance. Properties undergoing capital improvements are adapted or enhanced structurally to improve a building and its assets, adding value to the property. Generally, these projects occur less frequently than repair and maintenance work, which is often ongoing. Capital improvements are planned in advance and may take place over several years as part of a development project.