Best Practices

Hello Everyone,
My apartment company has started a new monthly company newsletter. My boss has asked me to be the writer for this publication. So, while we are in the slow season, I am trying to complete 12 months of newsletters. And I'm hoping to get some ideas from you fine people.

What I'm looking for are tips and information for the following items:

-Safety: Best Practices
-Maintenance: Best Practices
-Office Personnel: Best Practices

Here are some of the items from the first newsletter to give everyone an idea:

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Safety: Best Practices

Do not solder/sweat solder in wall cavities. Always use shark bite fittings. Make sure all contractors are aware of this practice.

Report & repair any damaged, mischarged or missing fire extinguisher casings IMMEDIATELY

Inspect playgrounds for broken parts & inadequate absorbent materials (mulch)

If you are in a resident’s apartment and notice fire hazards, instruct the resident on how to prevent apartment fires. Such as: 1. Do not overload circuits or extension cords. 2. Never place space heaters near flammable materials such as drapery. 3. Do not leave candles or incense unattended and place these items away from drapes, curtains, or other flammable materials. Your instructions may prevent an apartment fire!

Always consider flickering lights, frequently burnt out light bulbs, or surges an emergency. They indicate a short in the electric service or fixture, which could lead to a fire.
Immediately replace outlets showing any burn marks on them

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Maintenance: Best Practices

Always knock on door and announce that it is maintenance before entering an apartment

Always turn lights on so that if a resident is home, he or she can see that it is maintenance entering

Always put a door hanger on the door knob so that people know that there is maintenance in progress
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Office: Best Practices

Reply to resident emails within 1 hour or less if possible. Absolutely no later than the same day.

Check voice mail regularly. The top of each hour is a great time to do so.

Try and stay organized

If you are getting stressed out, take a few moments to regroup and calm down.

Use the 15/5 rule created by Marriott Hotels: when a resident is within 15 feet, acknowledge that person with a smile, wave or nod. When a resident is within 5 feet, greet that person with a friendly “hello,” or “good morning/good afternoon”
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Any ideas are much appreciated. Thank you in advance!

Firstly, I would advise that a newsletter written twelve months in advance is not really a "News" letter, it's and oldsletter. I might be able to help with the maintenance side if you could be a little more detailed about what you're looking for. Usually, best practices for maintenance folks amounts to "Shut up and do as you're told no matter how stupid it is." Otherwise they will be looking for another job.

Thank you for the reply. I've edited the original post to include the items from the 1st newsletter.

I strongly, STRONGLY, disagree about Shark bite fittings. They dig into the pipe walls, they seal with rubber fittings which degrade over time and are expensive as opposed traditionally sweated copper. Although shark bite type fittings have a great service record and have been around (although not used a lot) for 60 years, I still don't trust them inside a wall. I've never seen a sweated joint leak except in the case of poor application technique. If you're transitioning from copper to PEX or CPVC Shark bite are great but.... And the fire danger is almost nil from a torch if you're careful.

When entering an apartment if the tenant is not home:
Knock!
Wait at least 1 minute.
Knock again louder!
Wait.
No sound from inside, open the door a crack 2-3 inches.
Yell, "Maintenance" loudly through the crack.
Walk in and listen for the sound of the shower or faint music through headphones.
Put the notice on the door and get on with the repair.

Happy Holiday's Kurt,

Welcome to the wonderful world of writing for Maintenance! I've been writing various maintenance related articles for one publication or another over the past decade. A couple of tips I would pass along for any topic that you pick to write about are:

- Tailor the topic to your audience: A resident will not know the difference between HCFC's, HFC's,HFO's and how updated EPA regulations are increasing the steps required for a technician to repair their Air Conditioner quickly. They will understand the need to immediately turn the system off instead of leaving it running when it's malfunctioning or that we must replace the filter regularly as this can delay repairs due to an overheated compressor or frozen coil.

- Make it personal and real: Think about adding a story or anecdote that brings the abstract or technical into their lives. As an example: the story about not placing flame in the wall vs. sharkbite really doesn't have any impact on a resident's life or experience. Instead for a resident focused publication, tell about how to identify the origin of the leak, or how to minimize damage while maintenance is on the way. If it is an internal corporate article, tell how policy decisions were made or highlight a great idea that solves a common problem.

- Regional and building age differences: If this is to be distributed widespread across several properties or states that have communities in them; different locations have different requirements and regulations. In some cases vagueness is better than getting specific as your article may reference an illegal procedure or improper repair. For instance talking about burying a pipe 6" in the south may be acceptable, however that same advice in Minnesota would cause some major problems.

All in all the best advice I ever received about writing articles is that when you finish it, go back and read it out loud to yourself or even better to someone else. If it doesn't make sense as you have written it out loud you need some editing.