Facilities Management During Economic Uncertainty: Why Challenging Times Are the Best Times to Transform

In times of economic uncertainty, facilities budgets often face increased scrutiny. A recent CRBE survey of industry experts showed that 77% identified “cost and value for money” as the top facilities purchasing driver for 2025. While cutting back or pausing investment may seem like a logical response it can often backfire, leading to higher costs when emergencies inevitably do strike, whether its a failed HVAC system in peak summer, a refrigeration breakdown that spoils inventory, or a plumbing emergency that shuts down a location.

Tariffs are just one example of economic uncertainty with real operational impact, creating new pressure points for facilities leaders — especially when it comes to capital planning and preventive maintenance. As equipment and parts costs rise unpredictably, budgeting becomes more difficult, often forcing delays in asset replacement and increasing the risk of costly failures. In response, many are turning to data-driven planning and expanding preventive maintenance programs to extend asset life, reduce emergency repairs, and control spend. On the service provider side, rising costs for materials and equipment are squeezing margins. At the same time, price-sensitive customers may resist rate increases or look elsewhere. To adapt, providers are refining their pricing strategies and prioritizing cost transparency to maintain trust and long-term relationships.

Facilities management is especially critical during times of economic uncertainty because it helps avoid expensive breakdowns, keeps equipment running longer, and manages repair and maintenance costs when budgets are tight.

In this blog post, we’ll look at three practical strategies that help facilities leaders turn day-to-day operations into a driver of resilience and improvement — especially during economic uncertainty, when challenges like tariffs and rising costs create a strong case for change.

Strategy 1: Prevent Costly Emergencies and Extend Asset Lifecycles

When managing facilities spending, the real choice isn’t where to cut back, but where to invest. Without a dedicated budget for preventive maintenance, business leaders often unknowingly create the perfect conditions for costly system failures down the line. Critical assets like HVAC, refrigeration, and plumbing are especially vulnerable, and deferring maintenance in these areas can lead to expensive, business-disrupting emergencies. And in an ever-changing economy, these failures can hit your bottom line when you can least afford it.

To preserve cost and asset performance, facilities leaders should be doubling down on preventive maintenance. According to 2024 ServiceChannel insights, proactive facilities management reduces overall repair and maintenance costs by 20% or more, and work order resolution time by up to 44%.

With servicing and parts costs rising, waiting until the last becomes a costly risk. But when you address asset performance before it becomes an emergency, it ensures operational continuity and reinforces financial performance.

However, it is important to focus your efforts during leaner periods. Prioritize assets by:

• Service impact: Which systems or equipment directly affect sales or service delivery?
• Failure cost: Which assets have the highest emergency repair expenses?
• Compliance risk: Which equipment failures could trigger regulatory issues?
• Replacement timeline: Which systems or assets are nearing the end of their lifecycle and will be costly to replace?

By protecting your most critical assets first, you can prevent expensive failures that undermine business performance when you need stability the most.

Strategy 2: Protect Revenue and Manage Risk

When budget constraints are top of mind, your customers naturally become more discerning about where they spend. If their experience is subpar, due to unplanned breakdowns or other operational disruptions, it can drive customers away. An out-of-commission treatment room, for example, can lead to excess wait times and unhappy patients. Or consider a disrupted dining experience with uncomfortable temperatures or broken equipment that might make a guest think twice before coming back. That’s revenue you can’t afford to lose.

To keep operations running smoothly and customers coming through the doors, it’s important to embrace risk management, which starts by understanding the connection between facilities performance and business continuity. Peak asset performance means that you can provide consistent, high-quality service and keep revenue generation steady.

Focus your risk management strategy on:

• Revenue impact: Which customer-facing areas directly influence purchase decisions and brand perception?
• Business continuity: Which equipment failures would halt sales and impact continuous operations?
• Customer experience: What assets directly contribute to positive customer experiences and how would they impact foot traffic if they were down?
• Asset protection: What systems protect you from inventory loss?

By maintaining these revenue-critical assets during economic uncertainty, you’re able to tie facilities performance to positive customer experiences and revenue generation. That brand loyalty will help keep you afloat even during the most challenging times.

Strategy 3: Leverage Technology to Do More With Less

As budgets tighten, efficiency becomes an essential consideration — and a compelling reason to invest in technology. With the right tech, facilities leaders can optimize resources, automate routine tasks, and make data-driven decisions that will protect the bottom line when every dollar counts.

During times of economic uncertainty, facilities leaders have to contend with both growing demand and shrinking resources. But implementing facilities tech can help accelerate ROI without additional lift. According to a Forrester report commissioned by Johnson Controls, leveraging eco-friendly, smart building technologies can boost returns by 155% over three years.

Beyond sustainable optimization, advanced tech can also help cut down on costs in other areas. One recent study found that artificial intelligence-driven leak detection systems can reduce insurance premiums by 8-20%. And when luxury retailer Louis Vuitton implemented facilities management technology across its locations, they were able to reduce the time store managers spent on facilities issues by up to 96%. That freed personnel to focus on revenue-generating activities rather than maintenance coordination.

To get the most out of your technology investments, focus on solutions that address:

• Resource optimization: Which solutions help you make smarter decisions about asset maintenance prioritization?
• Process automation: What routine tasks can be automated to reduce manual effort while increasing accuracy to save time?
• Performance visibility: Which asset metrics do you need to identify cost-saving opportunities in real time?
• Verification capability: How can you validate work order quality and ensure you’re getting what you paid for?

The right technology solutions expand facilities capacity without requiring additional headcount or effort. You can more easily reach efficiency goals without having to compromise your bottom line — and often see ROI that will last as economic conditions shift.

Turn Strategy Into Results With ServiceChannel

When it comes to optimizing facilities for peak performance, economic uncertainty isn’t the time to hold back. It’s the moment to move forward with purpose. ServiceChannel can help facilities leaders implement the key strategies we’ve explored to prioritize budget while ensuring exceptional, uninterrupted operations.

• Proactive, preventive maintenance
  ServiceChannel provides full visibility into asset health and service history, so you can prioritize high-impact work, reduce downtime, and avoid surprise expenses before there’s an emergency.

• Operational excellence
  Our platform provides the data to ensure asset uptime across locations, while our managed services and provider marketplace help connect you with top service providers to help protect world-class customer experiences and revenue generation.

• Advanced technology solutions
  ServiceChannel’s solutions help you automate routine workflows while delivering real-time insights into performance so you can improve efficiency and make smarter strategic decisions without extra lift.

By choosing a facilities partner like ServiceChannel, multi-location businesses can reduce costs, defend budgets, and operate with confidence.