Abstract
Lack of efficient maintenance programs for public school buildings has been sited as a major concern in California. The purposes of this study were to: (1) produce school preventive maintenance guidelines; (2) determine perceptual differences among superintendents, business managers, and maintenance administrators regarding factors to be included in preventive maintenance guidelines; and (3) determine perceptual differences among superintendents, business managers, and maintenance administrators concerning the practice of preventive maintenance factors within districts. Preventive maintenance is any action taken to prolong the life of a piece of equipment or facility. Procedures. The development of an instrument which would identify preventive maintenance guidelines was a major part of this study. A total of ninety-four unified school districts in California Association of School Business Officials' (CASBO) southern section provided the sample population. A total of 282 surveys were distributed. The chi-square statistical treatment was selected to analyze the results of the data using a.05 level of significance. Findings. The study produced fourteen preventive maintenance guidelines. Four were perceived as vital, nine were perceived as necessary, and one was perceived as desirable by the greater percentage of respondents. There were significant differences among the superintendents, business managers, and maintenance administrators regarding factors for inclusion in preventive maintenance guidelines and the perceived use of these factors within school districts. Recommendations. (1) The superintendent should support the business manager and the maintenance administrator in carrying out the function of preventive maintenance. (2) School boards should give serious consideration to the preventive maintenance program by providing adequate funds for that purpose. (3) Further research should be done to develop implementation procedures for the preventive maintenance guidelines developed in this study.