Using Data to Guide Capital Spending

Using Data to Guide Capital Spending

One of the many difficult aspects of managing a gym is knowing when and where to spend money. Facility improvements, equipment, labor costs, and supplies are just some of the many potential expenditures that gyms need to handle. These costs are highly vulnerable to fluctuations based on unpredictable failures and management issues, especially for bigger facilities in which tracking information gets increasingly difficult.

This blog article will dive into how implementing data analytics is a productive and economic remedy to such issues—upgrading gyms' business operations and cost management to set them up for long-term financial success.

1. Active Oversight of Asset Health and Usage

A key advantage that data analytics serves is that it helps managers keep track of asset health. For machines in particular, implementing a tracking service greatly boosts an understanding of how much a piece of equipment is being utilized. Data systems can report highly useful insights on usage rates and potential breakdowns. These same analytics can be applied to floor usage, allowing gym managers to understand which spaces have the highest traffic. The automation of such software allows for this data to be collected even without constant in-person monitoring, which not only provides more accurate results, but also improves convenience for gyms that are open for long hours.

Having a better understanding of asset health is crucial in enhancing business operations because it allows gyms to accordingly plan their capital expenditures. This is best evident in how equipment usage data contributes to measuring asset health. Utilizing the numbers, managers can project how much useful life an asset has before it likely needs to be replaced. Without data management software, facilities are prone to being blind-sided by sudden machine breakdowns and having to wait for new orders to come in, resulting in customer dissatisfaction and extended periods of poor floor optimization. On the contrary, planning for timely machine replacements and repairs ensures that all aspects of the gym are continuously operating.

2. Assisting Future Expenditure and Customer Retention

Implementing data tracking into gym facilities is also extremely useful in guiding purchasing decisions for new equipment. By aggregating usage trends over time and allowing employees to track what types of machines are most popular, gyms can reinforce customer demand with their capital expenditures. This applicability could look like buying new units of an evidently highly used piece of equipment or selling machines that aren't earning their floor space.

Without such data, gyms may be prone to making investments into assets that don't have high returns. As the price of high-quality machines continues to rise, having a solid understanding of member demand is critical in effective investment.

Catering capital usage to member usage data has benefits that stretch beyond the direct, quantitative returns that a gym receives from its machines. Ultimately, satisfying customers' needs lead to improved workout experiences and a higher likelihood of member retention. Utilizing data to tailor new investments establishes a desirable reputation for the gym: one that truly cares about their members. This personable image can help separate gyms, especially boutique ones, from poorly operated franchise competitors and may become the sole reason that customers decide to continue their membership long term.

3. Preventing Cost Aggregation

In line with these benefits in asset usage tracking, implementing data analytics also prevents cost aggregation. One nightmare that many gyms face is the exponential compounding of costs that result in high upfront payments. These are often the results of poor planning, unclear equipment tracking, and neglection of potential cost-saving operations. Implementing a practice of preventive maintenance is an easy solution, especially when combined with data figures.

By performing regular check-ups on gym equipment, gyms can save up to 40% on maintenance compared to reactive measures (relying on fixes after complete breakdowns). This practice can also extend asset life by up to 2-3 years, which significantly improves return on investment. Implementing a Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS) makes preventive maintenance simple—it provides constant, accurate updates that remove the necessity for abstract projections and human monitoring.

This illustrates that implementing a data-based software enhances gyms' business operations, which directly impacts capital expenditure. Streamlining facility management with preventive maintenance frees up extra money that was previously being wasted in sub-optimal procedures. This liquidity can then be spent elsewhere on future expenditures, all while improving profitability.

OnSight combines radar sensing technologies and a live dashboard to offer a simple, unified solution to maintenance for gym owners. Our service was built specifically to help gym owners with floor maintenance, member retention, and extending asset life.

The easily integrable, one-time install sensors allow gym staff to view maintenance schedules, machine usage, and a floor heatmap that offer live analytics at a single glance. OnSight also notifies workers with real-time updates when it detects irregularities, reducing the necessity for manual inspections with an integrated cloud solution.

Check out how OnSight can save costs in real time or book a free demo today to get started on improving your gym for the long-term!