IRRIGATION: Maintaining Fluid Profits

For Bob Keating, a successful irrigation maintenance division is all about trust. Years of respectable service in the landscape and irrigation industries has helped Keating reach the point where experienced technicians wait in line to work for him and clients don’t question his word.

“When you tell a client their irrigation system needs a $500 underground repair that they can’t see, it can be a challenge,” he says. “You have to gain a client’s trust and educate them about what you’re doing and why.”

NECESSARY ADDITION. Keating, owner of Liberty Land Management in Palm Harbor, Fla., added irrigation system maintenance to his company’s mix out of necessity about seven years ago. As the former owner of several other landscape and irrigation companies, Keating sought the expertise of his past irrigation technicians to create an educated, experienced team. The company is known throughout Florida’s bay-area apartment complex and condominium circuit, and serves, on average, buildings 400 units and larger.  

“Maintenance is a division you simply have to have, especially in Florida where irrigation systems are everywhere,” he says. “When you get into large commercial properties, it’s impossible to sub out this kind of work because a regional property manager doesn’t want to write three different checks to three different companies – they want one company to take care of the entire system.”
 
For Keating, the equipment necessary to start up his irrigation maintenance division was minimal. Aside from knowledgeable personnel, a wire tracker was the most important investment and cost around $800. The maintenance crew also drives an all-terrain vehicle to navigate around the large properties more quickly. This has increased productivity by 50 percent, Keating says. He also utilizes the company’s inventory of piping, heads and fittings. 

“Maintenance is a very inexpensive division to start,” he says, adding his initial investment into irrigation maintenance was less than $10,000. “It’s more expensive to train people to use the equipment than it is to actually buy it.”

PEOPLE PRIORITIES. Quality labor was Keating’s biggest investment. Knowing what a challenge it can be to find dependable employees in the landscape industry, Keating makes sure to take care of the ones he has. A good irrigation division manager is worth at least $35,000 to $40,000 a year, he says. His investment pays off, as he has absolutely no turnover and has a few employees who have been with the company for 18 years or longer.

“I bribe them,” Keating jokes. “I do have the luxury of being in the business for so long and a reputation of being a good employer. The group I have now runs like a well-oiled machine.”
 
The company’s irrigation maintenance division consists of a manager who does troubleshooting and wire tracking, and a supervisor and a technician who do walkthroughs and repairs. Keating assigns at least two technicians to each walkthrough, as he feels two heads are better than one. He acknowledges that some owners who have embraced new irrigation technology will send one tech with a remote control to conduct walkthroughs, but Keating has yet to buy into the benefits of this. Dependability of these devices is a concern, he says, and the initial programming costs can be $400 to $500 for each controller, and some of Keating’s properties have nine irrigation controllers or more.

DOWN TO BUSINESS. Keating’s regular irrigation maintenance contracts include 12 walkthroughs a year, or one visit to each property per month. However, October to April is usually a busier time of year because things tend to dry out after the area’s rainy summer months, he says.
 
When a client signs a contract, Keating negotiates with them a specified amount of money his technicians can use toward necessary monthly repairs without having to get approval from the property owner before the work can take place. An average amount is a few hundred dollars, he says. If repairs exceed the set amount, his technicians have to get the client’s permission before the repairs can take place. This saves time and money for everyone involved, Keating says.

“The usual procedure would be for technicians to conduct a walkthrough, flag problems, send the information to the office to get it typed up, send a copy to the client for approval and finally send the work order back to the crews,” he says. “You’re doubling the cost of the repairs and taking much longer than necessary. With our system, we can keep everything up and running without major delays.”
 
The first thing Keating does when he closes a maintenance contact is an initial walkthrough, which he tells his clients “won’t be pretty.” He has never taken over maintenance of a system that’s been in 100-percent working order, and has seen clients spend as much as $10,000 to $20,000 just to get the systems up to par. An average walkthrough costs $400 to $500, but the cost of repairs varies based on factors like how big the property is, how old the system is and how well it’s been taken care of.
 
Clients can also schedule individual service calls to take care of any problems that occur outside of the 12-visit contract. This is another significant source of revenue for the company, Keating says. Each visit costs an initial $65 plus the cost of repairs. In all, Keating’s irrigation maintenance division brings in between $350,000 and $400,000 each year and makes up about 20 percent of the company’s annual revenue. 

His truck logos are his only form of marketing, which Keating says create a sharp presentation and brand image. Not only do Keating’s industry relationships help maintain current business, but they also help generate new business. 

“Between my maintenance manager and me, we know just about everyone in the business and have gotten a lot of work through word-of-mouth recommendations and referrals,” Keating says.