service & maintenance
how to look 10 YEARS YOUNGER
Donna Gregory asks industry experts for their views on how to keep gym equipment looking good and performing well after the first flush of youth
W
ith the economic downturn and the resulting tightening of belts across the country, there
has never been a better time to look at ways of prolonging the life of fitness kit. Here, service and maintenance experts share their knowledge on what can be done to keep kit performing well, and suppliers and manufacturers tell us what they do to provide customers with durable equipment that will stand the ravages of time.
all part of the service
“With the right level of service and maintenance, there’s no reason why even CV equipment shouldn’t last up to 10 years – and beyond,” says Rick Fowler, sales manager for service and maintenance company Servicesport. Good equipment should, Fowler
continues, be serviceable – although he acknowledges that equipment sometimes has to be put out to pasture due to manufacturers no longer producing the relevant parts. “We’re constantly trying to combat this by having things such as key pads and overlays made, refurbishing drive and lift motors as well as manufacturing decks, run and drive belts,” he adds. Physique, which has been in
business since 1982, specialises in remanufacturing Life Fitness equipment, and it gives guidance to clubs on simple day-to-day maintenance. This includes a mapped-out programme for staff within its maintenance contracts. Graham Bertrand, group managing director of Physique’s parent company – PTE Group – explains that keeping equipment in tip-
november/december 2010 © cybertrek 2010
top condition can add years to the life of CV kit, and he emphasises the role that fi tness staff have to play in this.
“There are very simple things that staff can do to prolong the life of equipment, such as vacuuming out treadmills and wiping down machines to stop sweat eroding the casing,” he explains. Bertrand has seen fi rst-hand what
lack of maintenance and care can do to equipment. “In today’s culture of recycling – both for economic and
environmental reasons – the fi tness industry can play its part by re-using rather than retiring quality equipment. At Physique, we refurbish old equipment back to a new standard, but we have had occasions where it hasn’t been economically viable to do it simply because the kit hasn’t been looked after. Like a car, if you don’t service kit regularly, it will end up on the scrap heap.” And of course, as well as affecting
performance and longevity, regular care
Keiser: “It’s very clear to us, when we’re called to a club for maintance visits, if the equipment has been well looked after”
Read Health Club Management online at
healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital 65
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