When Chuze Fitness first launched in 2008, leadership was told the club’s cardio equipment would need to be replaced in less than seven years. However, many of those pieces are still in use 15 years later.
Nick Barshick, the co-founder and COO of Chuze Fitness, said this longevity is mostly because of two central strategies in maintaining cardio machines: daily cleaning and staying on top of preventative maintenance recommended by manufacturers.
“One thing that’s maybe unique about us is we do all of our cleaning internally,” said Barshick. “Our cardio equipment gets vacuumed and wiped down once a day every day so there isn’t continued buildup requiring deeper cleaning. We use a ticketing and reporting system called OpenWrench. All of our equipment asset IDs are in that system. If a piece breaks or goes down, there’s communication that occurs inside the OpenWrench app which we all have access to. That way, I can understand the exact status of that work order.”
It’s this level of intensive care, effective management systems and what Barshick calls a lot of “elbow grease” that’s necessary to provide members an adequate club experience.
Lisa Groft, the COO of Baptist East Milestone Wellness Center, said her club maintains cardio offerings through its staff of fitness specialists who clean equipment several times a day.
“Twice a year we take them apart to blow the dust out of the internal components of the machines,” said Groft. “We also have a full-time maintenance director who performs regular maintenance checks. When a new member joins our club, our fitness specialists orient them by showing how to properly use the equipment. They’re also encouraged to report any issues right away so the specialists can ask the director to fix them.”
However, if a machine is down for an extended period of time at Chuze Fitness, Barshick said they pull it off the floor and replace it through the vendor. While Barshick said most major equipment manufacturers they work with build durable, commercial-grade pieces, establishing healthy connections is still important.
“Matrix Fitness equipment has definitely stood the test of time,” said Barshick. “They do a great job of maintaining relationships with us so if we ever have a particular piece that’s breaking down a lot, they have always done the right thing because they know the relationship matters more than saving a few thousand dollars here or there. Find the people who share the same values and place a lot of importance on relationships.”
In comparison, Groft said finding an honest, reliable salesperson who doesn’t steer clubs in the wrong direction is essential to selecting a trustworthy vendor.
“We carry several brands of equipment to offer members variety, but we have found some to be more reliable than others,” said Groft. “We love Matrix Fitness, TRUE Fitness, Freemotion Fitness and Life Fitness, in particular.”
A love for Life Fitness is also shared by Nate Loftin, the senior director of facilities at VASA Fitness. He said the vendor has a great warranty service, parts are readily available and the equipment is very durable, which is extremely important in VASA’s high-traffic clubs.
“They have great solutions for our premium amenities and always welcome our feedback on product improvement or advancement,” said Loftin. “When considering our equipment partners, we look at a lot of different factors including the longevity and stability in the market. We also look at the average lifetime of equipment in use, service agreements, history of parts availability and service response.”
VASA’s cardio maintenance includes regular inspections of flooring underneath and surrounding equipment to prevent debris from interacting with moving mechanical parts. When repairs or replacements are needed, Loftin said his club uses original equipment manufacturer parts and well-trained technicians perform those repairs.
“In terms of regular maintenance, we make sure to clean the equipment inside and out, lubricate as often as the manufacturer suggests, inspect and tighten fasteners, and perform software updates as new versions are released,” said Loftin.
At East Bank Club in Chicago, Don Hughes, the fitness equipment supervisor, said the club’s daily upkeep includes tracking the usage of each piece of equipment, logging any issues and removing covers to clean out dust. They also replace drive belts and running belts on treadmills and other cardio pieces.
But perhaps the most important thing at East Bank Club is educating members on the proper usage of equipment.
“When we add any new machines on the floor, we have a staff member or vendor representative provide demonstrations on how to use it properly,” said Hughes. “This allows members to interact directly with staff or the vendor to learn exactly how to set up the machine, how to use it and how to maintain its lifespan for years to come. We also fully train our fitness floor team on proper use so they can assist members as needed.”
Equipment education is also a tenet at Chuze Fitness. Barshick said most manufacturers they buy from, like Matrix Fitness, provide pieces with QR codes. Members scan the codes and are treated to a showcase on how to operate the machine.
“We’re also working on getting that capability in our custom mobile app,” said Barshick. “Our staff has been trained to go out on the floor with members who have questions and help them feel comfortable using the machine.”
Barshick said with the hundreds of workouts completed every day within his clubs, it’s imperative to provide members with equipment that can withstand a bombardment of usage with minimum maintenance time.
“I don’t know if I would put all of my eggs into buying cardio equipment from a company that just started last week,” said Barshick. “However, when we started Chuze Fitness originally, our CEO wanted me to look at Matrix Fitness one more time when they were one of the emerging manufacturers back in 2008. We got in with them very early on, and most of our gyms showcase their equipment now.”
This years-long partnership will continue to pay dividends, as Barshick said cardio is actually trending down due to younger generations opting more often for strength-based workouts. Because of this, cardio machines must operate efficiently to maintain remaining user interest.
“It will be interesting to see where the trend goes, and we are adjusting,” said Barshick. “Caring for cardio equipment isn’t rocket science. Have a robust maintenance function in your organization. If you ignore that piece of it, you are losing years off the life of your equipment. Have a great reporting system so you can understand the analytics behind downtime.”
Overall, there are several strategies to employ in extending the lifespan of gym equipment. But when it comes to maintaining cardio offerings, the effort of club staff must match and surpass the effort exhibited in the health and fitness journeys of members.
