Managing maintenance 

Everyone working in marinas and harbours knows that the top priority is customer, staff, and visitor safety. Any environment with expanses of water, trip hazards like cleats and ropes, slippery launch ramps, boats, cars and heavy moving machines like boat hoists and forklifts will be hazardous, especially when we invite customers and visitors on-site to have fun.

Detailed risk assessments, regular staff training, and external inspections all contribute to a safer environment. There are simple ways in which the day-to-day marina management system can support a culture of safety first.

Capturing assets

An asset register is the basis for a reliable maintenance and inspection regime. The first step is to capture all assets, such as finger pontoons, launch ramps, swinging moorings, shower blocks and telehandlers, in the database.

Which assets to include will differ from site to site. Having a comprehensive record means a marina can allocate an occupancy (like a boat onto a berth), establish bespoke inspection and maintenance plans, flag faults and allocate tasks associated with the asset.

Scheduled inspections and maintenance

Once the assets are captured in Harbour Assist, the manager or maintenance team can set individual inspection and maintenance regimes for each. For example, monthly deep-clean of the washrooms, daily inspection of the boat hoist or weekly fire alarm test in the restaurant.

Each asset inspection or maintenance plan can be as detailed as required, specifying the actions, parts to be checked and even the consumables needed for the job.  Each task has a timetable and is assigned to a team or individual. Your team will see the tasks in their calendars and get automatic alerts for overdue actions.

Fault logging

A systematic approach to recording and actioning faults is vital for running a safe site. Not only can problems be rectified quickly, but it is crucial to record the timeline and people involved.

In Harbour Assist, any user can log a fault, such as a loose cleat, leaky toilet or a blown light. Dockside and boatyard teams can use their tablets to log defects while doing their daily checks or while undertaking an inspection, rather than calling it into the office. Or the admin team can record a problem, if, for example, a boat owner reports his electricity point isn’t working.

Because all users have individual logins, there is a record of who first reported the issue and when, who was assigned the repair and completion date. Each asset has a complete history, making it easier to identify and rectify recurring problems.

Staff training

Lots of organisations like to say that their staff are their greatest assets. Well, there’s a way to make that reality in Harbour Assist. Creating team members in the asset list makes it easy to set-up training programmes and to check certification is always in date.

The maintenance regime process can be applied to first aid training, banksman certificates or even lifejacket inspections.

Single point of truth

One of the worst things that can happen is a customer getting injured because of inadequate maintenance or an unrepaired fault. Insurers, health and safety experts and even lawyers get involved.

Because the system is accessible to all staff (at no extra cost), and because every action is logged automatically, Harbour Assist becomes the single point of truth. No more diaries, spreadsheets and external software operating in parallel. No more lost Post-it notes or forgotten conversations.

With the inspection dashboard, managers have complete oversight of what is going on, whether procedures are being followed and tasks completed on time. There’s also a comprehensive reporting suite that includes asset inspections.

With everything captured in one place, there is a full record of what was required and what actually happened, who did it, and when it was done. There’s less opportunity for maintenance to slip or faults to remain outstanding, and that means there’s less chance of injured customers and lawsuits.

How can we help your business?

If you’d like to talk about how Harbour Assist can help your business to manage maintenance,  email Nick direct nick.gill@harbourassist.com