As we begin a new year, it’s time for green industry professionals to start preparing for the spring rush. Lawn and landscape work follows seasonal cycles, and for most of us, the spring and summer months are the busiest times of the year. The more you can get done before the whirlwind busy season starts, the less you’ll need to worry about fitting everything in during the spring rush.
Before the spring rush begins and turns into the summer busy season, take time to get your company ready. Winter is a great time to focus on equipment tune-up and maintenance, employee training, stocking up on essential inventory, and marketing and scheduling for the new year.
Tune-Up and Maintenance
Winter is an ideal time to complete any necessary equipment maintenance before the spring rush. Performing inspections, tune-ups, and maintenance early ensures you’re not wasting time that you need to spend elsewhere during the spring rush. Pre-spring maintenance for lawn equipment includes:
- Check equipment for potential dangers like loose bolts, faulty electrical connections, cracked components, rusted metal, or leaking hoses.
- For mowers with bags and shredder/vacuums, check the bags for rips, gaps, or other issues.
- Check tire pressure and tread wear for mowers and other wheeled equipment. Also, make sure the wheels are securely attached.
- Inspect belts, spark plugs, air filters, fuel filters, and other parts to make sure they are not damaged or worn, and replace them if needed.
- Check the hydraulic and electrical systems for any issues.
- Inspect cutting blades and sharpen if needed, or replace them if badly damaged. Refill cutting line for string-line trimmers.
- Grease any lubrication points, such as spindles.
You can do this in-house, or you can work with a local service center. Richardson Saw & Lawnmower’s service professionals have lots of experience working with commercial-grade equipment. We can help get your fleet ready for the new year. Since we stock one of the largest parts inventories in North Texas, we can provide a quick turnaround on most maintenance and repair jobs.
Employee Training
Once the spring rush starts, it’s going to be hard to find time for employee training. Scheduling employee training during the winter makes it much easier to manage time during the busy season.
If at all possible, onboard new hires a week or two before the busy season starts. If you plan to change anything or add new services this season, make sure to train existing employees as well. If you do need to have training days during the spring rush, that’s a good thing to schedule on rainy days when you can’t work outside.
Here at Richardson Saw, we do several operator training sessions every year with commercial clients. This training includes topics like how to properly use the equipment and what to look for each day to get ahead of any problems that might occur with further use. If you’re interested, let us know and we can discuss more details about the schedule and topics covered.
Stock Up On Inventory
You don’t want to run out of anything important during the busy season. Before the spring rush starts, take stock of your inventory. Stocking spare parts and consumables (filters, blades, belts, etc.) can help you save time when performing routine maintenance and upkeep. Items that you might want to keep on-hand at the shop and/or on fleet vehicles include:
- Extra mower blades
- Blade bolts and hardware
- Blade sharpening tools
- Drive belts for mowers
- Air filters
- Fuel filters
- Spark plugs
- Trimmer line
- Trimmer head replacement parts
- Edger blades
- Carburetor diaphragms and gaskets
- Engine oil and hydrostatic fluid
- Grease and a grease gun
- Fuses and electrical connectors
Having these items on hand also helps crews avoid downtime, finish routes on schedule, and avoid emergency trips back to the shop or dealer. You’ll also want to check if you need to stock up on any other products needed for your company. That includes advertising materials like lawn signs and business cards as well as fertilizers, herbicides, and other essential lawn and landscaping products.
Marketing and Scheduling
Marketing during the winter is a great way to attract new clients and remind current clients to renew their contracts. As you get ready for the spring rush, encourage clients to start scheduling their services for this year and book early spring lawn and landscaping appointments.
One of the big things you can do to help your company is invest in your online presence. Maintaining a Google Business Profile, having a website that’s easy for clients to use, and sending out a regular newsletter all support your company’s success.
The start of the year is also a good time to review your contracts, pricing, and policies. It’s much easier to communicate changes to your pricing models and any updated service offerings to existing clients before the season starts. Make sure that you have a contract with every client and that your pricing model accounts for inflation and increasing back-end costs.
Local Dealer Support
As you get ready for the spring rush, remember that your local equipment dealer is here to help. As already mentioned, we provide operator trainings to support your team. Our service center has one of the largest parts inventories in North Texas. This helps us deliver a fast turnaround if you bring equipment to our service center, and you can also purchase parts for in-house maintenance and repairs.
We also carry top-quality commercial equipment for lawn care professionals. We offer expert knowledge, long-term support, and competitive pricing. When you buy new equipment for your fleet from us, you know you’re getting equipment designed for professional use and backed by a guarantee to service what we sell.
