When you’re planning your capital improvement project, you’ll want to know exactly what results to expect, how much it will cost, and what your timeline is. After all, these types of projects are usually massive undertakings, and if care is not taken in the planning and execution phases, they can eat holes into your time, budget, and other resources. As you’re thinking through what types of capital improvement projects you want to complete this upcoming year, here are a few things to keep in mind – and why parking lot reclamation can be a valuable addition to your punch list.
Why Execute a Capital Improvement Project?
Not all improvement projects are created equal. Some projects you scope out might include minor maintenance upgrades and repairs. These are certainly well worth the time, money, and effort spent. Replacing patches of roofing, giving your facility a fresh paint job, repairing any leaks or other plumbing issues, and upgrading areas of your flooring are vital tasks and should be done regularly as part of your maintenance and repair programs. These projects are all about keeping things functional, usable, and aesthetically pleasing in the short term.
Other types of improvement projects may be more extensive, but they may also yield more notable and lasting results. These projects are often considered “capital improvements.” This is where jobs like asphalt paving, renovations to entire spaces like kitchens and bathrooms, total HVAC replacements, or additions to the property like pools, saunas, and sports courts lie. Just like other maintenance and repair projects, they’re about curb appeal, but they also address deeper structural issues or long-term considerations. Capital improvement projects add value to the existing property, create permanent changes, and greatly increase the property’s use for those regularly occupying the space.
But the value doesn’t stop there. Capital improvements don’t just address the aesthetic needs your facility might have; it also keeps your business safe in terms of liability. ADA compliance violations can mean hefty fines and disgruntled customers and employees. Do the right thing and choose to install van parking with access aisles, fix your ramps and curb flares, and stay up to speed on all ADA items so there are no issues with your facility’s accessibility measures (and no legal repercussions for your company). All of these reasons combined mean that if you haven’t considered a capital improvement project for your facility, now is the time to start.
What Is Parking Lot Reclamation?
Of all of the asphalt featured throughout your facility, the parking lot is perhaps the most important piece to keep preserved and sustained as best you can. Not only does your parking lot house your own vehicles – and those of your staff members and customers – it’s also typically the first thing people see when they arrive at your facility. Plus, parking lots are all about access. Think about snow removal services, delivery trucks, fire trucks, and other emergency vehicles – they all need a safe, well-maintained lot in order to access your facility. And when it comes to ADA compliance, broken, buckling, cracked, or otherwise damaged asphalt can cause a whole host of legal repercussions. Therefore, keeping your parking lot strong, maintained, and accessible is truly a non-negotiable item on your capital improvement to-do list.
When you start to dive into parking lot reclamation services, you’ll notice plenty of service offerings, including cut and patch repairs, overlay or resurfacing, and pulverizing and grading. Depending on the condition of your parking lot, any one of these may fit the bill for your capital improvement project. You may indeed need a fresh asphalt paving job on a short stretch of pavement – say, to repair cracking and potholes. If, in fact, you need up to 10 inches of pavement ground and resurfaced, then we recommend looking into pulverizing. This process involves grinding the outermost asphalt layer, leaving a recycled base, and laying fresh pavement without more extensive milling, digging, or grinding.
However, in the case that your parking lot may need more extensive repairing, you might consider a full depth reconstruction job instead. This is when an asphalt paving team removes existing asphalt or concrete, replaces the base material, and repaves the road. This type of capital improvement project is often recommended when deterioration is severe enough and there are structural issues that could wreak havoc on your parking lot – or even the drainage, sewage, or electrical lines beneath. You can expect such a significant overhaul to take some time and funds – especially if your pavement is to be ground down to the base layer – but it will ultimately strengthen your infrastructure against further damage.
What Should You Look for in a Lot Reclamation Service?
Don’t leave your capital improvement project to a team that won’t deliver exactly what you’re looking for. If you’re spending the time and money on a massive improvement project – not to mention redistributing resources or potentially closing your doors for a period of time – you certainly want the most bang for your buck. Besides trusting your gut on business relationships that feel solid from the start, there are also three primary things you should keep an eye on when vetting companies for your project: their experience, their equipment, and their people power.
First, there’s the experience of the team you hire. You don’t want to risk a big-ticket capital improvement project like parking lot reclamation on a team that doesn’t have a clue what they’re doing, so don’t be swayed by an appealing price tag. These jobs will ultimately take longer and the work will be of lower quality than what you’d receive by paying a little more for an experienced team. Plus, they could accidentally cause damage to your water lines, sewage, or electrical lines, which could mean big trouble for your budget. Look for subject matter experts who have decades or more of experience – specifically, asphalt paving experience in your climate – to complete the job to your satisfaction.
Next, seek out a team that has the top-of-the-line equipment to get the job done right the first time. Cassidy Paving, for instance, has a fleet of trucks, rollers, and paver screeds that deliver fast, high-quality results every time. Our work is not limited by faulty or outdated equipment, and your satisfaction with the job shouldn’t be either. Finally, look for a company that has adequate people power to complete the job in a timely fashion. There’s nothing worse than spending time, money, and effort on a capital improvement project only to be continuously frustrated or disappointed by days or weeks of delays due to understaffing. You should know exactly what you’re getting when you partner with an asphalt paving service. The team should be experienced with asphalt paving, abundant in the number of its members, and all fully insured and bonded – removing any onus on you for potential liability issues.
Choose Cassidy Paving for Your Lot Reclamation and Capital Improvement Needs
If you’re located in the New England region and looking for an experienced, top-notch team to help you complete your capital improvement project to perfection, look no further than Cassidy Paving. We’ve been performing asphalt paving and repair in New England for decades. As a family-owned and operated company serving customers throughout Massachusetts and Southern New Hampshire – and headquartered in Haverhill, MA – we know winter weather and all the elements that your facility may face in a 365-day period. Cassidy Paving has handled some of the largest commercial and industrial paving projects in our area, and has helped business owners better serve their community by staying clean, well-maintained, and ADA-compliant.
We know we’re just one piece of your capital improvement project puzzle, and we endeavor to remove the headaches of low-quality jobs and timeline frustrations from the equation. We’ve got the experience, equipment, and people power to handle any size or type of project, and our services span multiple industries from commercial to industrial. We’ve worked with clients ranging from small businesses to large industrial parks to government agencies and beyond. Our teams of subject matter experts will walk by your side each step of the way, remaining highly communicative so you know exactly what stage your project is in and how things are going. Plus, we’ll work with you on your budget and timeline. If you need a project completed in a specific window of time – say, during holiday breaks when your staff is mostly home – we can scope a project to meet those needs.
Cassidy Paving is highly committed to delivering excellence in all of our projects and services. While we trust you’ll be satisfied with the jobs our expert teams complete, if you’re not, we’ll work to make adjustments and repairs until you are. You can count on your capital improvement project being staffed with a full-time, bonded, fully-insured crew with over 100+ years of combined experience. We also offer a guarantee on all new paving services to ensure your complete satisfaction. Reach out to us today for a no-pressure sales quote and to speak with our team of representatives who can answer your questions clearly and knowledgeably.
