The Ultimate Guide to Commercial Kitchen Maintenance
Any commercial kitchen operator knows the importance of maintenance, particularly for large-scale facilities and multi-site operations. However, you might be less familiar with the finer details and specific requirements.
- Which maintenance tasks are the responsibility of the operator and employees?
- Which requires the intervention of commercial catering engineers?
- What planned preventative maintenance (PPM) procedures does your kitchen require?
- And how regularly should PPM be carried out?
In this Ultimate Guide to Commercial Kitchen Maintenance, we cover everything from PPM schedules to in-house responsibilities and, of course, the reactive repair process when a commercial kitchen engineer is required.
Planned Preventative Maintenance
Planned Preventative Maintenance is arguably the most essential type of maintenance your facilities will receive. It helps to prevent breakdowns and, therefore, reduces the necessity of larger reactive maintenance.
What is Planned Preventative Maintenance?
Planned Preventative Maintenance describes maintenance activities that are scheduled in advance to ensure that different pieces of commercial kitchen equipment are running effectively and have a reduced risk of breakdown. Each piece of commercial kitchen equipment has its own PPM requirements and procedures.
At Airedale, we offer PPM contracts to our clients, meaning that you can expect regular, careful inspection and maintenance from our highly trained engineers at agreed intervals throughout the year.
Our guide to why planned preventative maintenance is essential for commercial kitchens explains why the activity is vital further.
Commercial Kitchen Gas Safety Checks
According to the UK Gas Safety Installation and Use Regulations (1998), gas-powered equipment must be inspected every 12 months. This helps to keep your staff and customers safe, prevents accidents, and keeps necessary insurance conditions valid.
If your annual gas safety check is due, Airedale’s nationwide team of engineers can help. We check each individual gas-powered piece of equipment and test the carbon dioxide levels in the air, with relevant gas safety appliances checked, too. It is recommended to keep a record of all gas safety checks as proof of compliance.
It’s important to note that not just any Gas Safe engineer can carry out commercial catering gas safety checks. Gas safety procedures for commercial catering equipment require specialist training for the type(s) of equipment and kitchens, which is why we employ engineers across a range of specialisms and expertise.
Commercial Kitchen Ventilation Maintenance
Ventilation systems within a commercial kitchen also require care. They’re instrumental in preventing fires, removing contaminants from the air, and regulating the temperature of your commercial kitchen.
Commercial kitchen exhaust hoods require professional inspection and cleaning every six months, with regular in-house cleaning in-between. Six-monthly inspections, cleaning, and repairs can all be provided via Airedale’s trained engineers, who operate across the UK.
Our blog on maintaining your commercial kitchen ventilation system provides more details about this activity.
In-House Regular Commercial Kitchen Maintenance
To prevent inefficient operation or damage to equipment in your commercial kitchen, there are a number of measures that you can take:
- Switch off appliances or close down parts of the kitchen when they aren’t needed
- Maintain high levels of equipment cleanliness with regular cleaning
- Follow the relevant risk assessment guidelines
How Often Should a Commercial Kitchen Be Deep Cleaned?
As a general rule, a commercial kitchen should be deep-cleaned every six months to prevent dangerous grease buildup and keep the space hygienic in accordance with the Food Safety Act 1990. However, for kitchens that operate more than 12 hours per day or cook with large amounts of grease, it is advised to do this every 3 months.
Regular cleaning, on the other hand, should take place daily, both during operating hours and at the beginning and end of shifts.
Reactive Commercial Kitchen Maintenance
Reactive commercial kitchen maintenance refers to responsive repairs in the case of equipment breakdown or malfunction. You’re more likely to need reactive maintenance if you aren’t carrying out regular preventative maintenance because you’re not proactively monitoring the condition of your equipment or kitchen.
Can I Carry Out Reactive Commercial Catering Equipment Maintenance Myself?
Commercial kitchen operators and staff should not attempt to carry out repairs by themselves without professional guidance.
We understand that waiting for an engineer’s arrival can mean downtime, as well as incurring costs. This is why we offer a triage flow system.
When you contact our in-office technical team, we’ll help you identify the problem. If we identify your maintenance problem as one we can discuss rather than sending an engineer, we’ll do so. We help clients to differentiate between maintenance tasks that require a commercial catering engineer and those that don’t.
Maintenance by Catering Equipment Engineers
A commercial catering engineer is a highly trained specialist who can identify the issue with your catering equipment and arrive at the most appropriate and effective solution. At Airedale, we have kitchen engineers based across the country, allowing us to send a specialist who is based near your area of operation for minimal downtime.
To decrease downtime further, parts can also be shipped prior to the engineer’s visit so that repairs can commence as swiftly as possible.
Before proceeding with repairs, a trained commercial catering engineer will conduct a thorough risk assessment for the safety of everyone in the kitchen. They’ll then run through a flow to reach the root of the issue.
Types of Commercial Catering Equipment Engineers
Commercial catering engineers have different specialisms, and it’s important to choose an engineer who’s experienced in your specific issue. At Airedale, we have generalist engineers with widespread knowledge of commercial catering. We also have specialists, including engineers who are experts in kitchen types such as QSRs or who have expertise in specific commercial catering equipment. This allows us to send the best engineer for your unique job, so your kitchen can be back up and running in no time.
If you’re a multi-site operator looking to keep your kitchen running smoothly, consider a PPM contract with The Airedale Group. Or, to handle the breakdown of commercial catering equipment, request one of our highly trained engineers.
Want to learn more about our maintenance offering for large-scale and multi-site kitchen facilities? Contact us today and we’ll be happy to help.
