Gym Owner Guide to Machine Servicing and Maintenance

gym owner guide machine servicing workout equipment maintenance

The number one problem for gym owners is retaining members. The average gym sees about 28% of its members cancel, leaving gym owners scrambling to replace that revenue each year.

The one way you can prevent members from leaving is to give them a great experience while they’re at your facility. No one wants to constantly see “Out of Order” signs on equipment when they want to use it.

Your job is to have a machine servicing plan to ensure that your members have the equipment available when they want to use it. You also have to provide your members with a safe environment to workout. That takes on new meaning as gyms reopen in the middle of a pandemic.

Read this guide to find out all you need to know about machine maintenance and crafting a maintenance plan.


Developing Your Maintenance Plan

Your best method to repair machine equipment is to prevent them from happening. Developing and sticking with a maintenance plan is the best way to ensure that you stay on top of your equipment.

You’ll want to start by making a list of all of the maintenance tasks that need to be done at your gym. You’ll then break them down into how often they need to be done.


Inspecting and Cleaning New Equipment

Do you inspect the equipment when it first arrives at your gym? Some gym owners like to purchase used gym equipment because it saves money.

You’ll want to make sure that you have a system for cleaning used gym equipment and inspecting it before a member touches it.


Hourly Maintenance Tasks

There’s nothing worse for members to see than your staff sitting behind the check-in desk staring down at their phones. That doesn’t make members feel welcomed and it shows that your employees aren’t engaged.

There should be tasks that your staff does every hour. These tasks will help keep machines clean, maintained, and will help your employees become engaged with your members.

Tasks that can be done every hour include checking machines to make sure they’re on and operating. They should also pick an area on the floor to wipe down equipment that’s not in use.

This ensures that your equipment is cleaned several times a day and employees can spot issues before members do. Have your staff walk the floor regularly and listen for machines that are making funny noises.

For example, a treadmill may seem fully operational, but there’s a strange noise that happens when the belt runs. This can be a sign that the belt is out of alignment. That can cause the belt to wear down faster and break.


Daily Maintenance Tasks

The main thing you want to look for each day is that the machines are operational. The daily tasks are most important to do when you open your gym and when you close the gym down in the evening.

In the morning, power on all of the machines and do a quick inspection to make sure they all turned on. In the evening, give all of your machines a thorough cleaning after you power them down.


Monthly Tasks

Every month, you’ll need to do a thorough examination of all of the machines in your gym. Not just the treadmills and rowing machines, but the weight benches and cable machines as well.

You’ll want to take a close look at the cables of the machines. Fraying cables will need to be replaced. Benches that are ripped will need to be reupholstered.

Rowing machines that run on battery displays should have the batteries replaced. You do need to inspect the bikes and treadmills for things like broken pedals or belts.


Have a Machine Servicing Protocol

What happens when one of your machines breaks down? Do you have a procedure in place to make sure that a member doesn’t use that machine? If you or a staff member know that a machine is out and a member gets hurt using the equipment, you can be held liable.

The first thing that an employee should do is notify members not to use that machine by printing an “Out of Order” sign and placing it on the machine.

Many machines are computerized, and they just need a reboot to come back to normal. The employee can do this on their own. If the machine still isn’t working, then they need to report it.

There should be a system in place for employees to report the broken equipment. That will prevent machines from being out of order for a long period of time.

For larger gyms, you can have a computerized system that creates work orders and sends them to management. The manager can then take ownership of the problem and get it resolved immediately.

Smaller gyms may skip the computerized work order system and have employees tell you or the fitness manager about the problem.

The manger’s next step is to call someone to have the issue resolved.


Hire a Machine Servicing Company

Who will you call when machines break down? You may have to contact the manufacturer first if the machines are under warranty. They may also recommend an approved servicing company in your area.

You could also work directly with a servicing company and have them come out on a regular basis to help you maintain the equipment.


Gym Maintenance and Servicing for Happy Members

You became a gym owner because you’re passionate about fitness. You believe that you can help your members be healthier and have a high quality of life.

You can’t do that if you keep losing your members. You want to keep your members happy by providing them with clean equipment that works. The best way to do that is to have a machine servicing plan.

It’s easy to do once you have a process in place for your health club equipment. You’ll save money on replacing your gym equipment because you’re taking care of issues right away.

Ready for more frugal tips for the gym? Visit the Frugal Fitness section of our site right now!

New Frugal Finance Blog Posts & Articles