Why does response time actually matter in asset management?
We had an interesting conversation with a client last week. They were frustrated because their current maintenance provider kept talking about “industry standard response times” while their residents were dealing with heating failures and electrical issues for days.
Here’s the thing about response times, they’re not just numbers on a contract.
At Hybrid Asset Solutions, we don’t have formal SLAs for every building we work on. But we do have something better, a genuine commitment to actually showing up when things go wrong.
The reality from our last 11 clients:
– Every single one attended within 4 hours
– 5 were completely resolved on the first visit
– 6 were made safe with follow-up visits scheduled immediately
When a resident’s heating fails on a Sunday evening, they don’t care about your contract terms. They care about getting it fixed. When there’s an electrical fault affecting multiple flats, the building manager doesn’t want to hear about “next available appointment slots.”
Four hours might not sound impressive to some people. But in an industry where “we’ll be there this week” is considered acceptable, it makes a real difference.
Where we think most companies get wrong, is they focus on resolution time instead of response time. Sure, not every problem can be fixed immediately, but every problem can be assessed, made safe, and given proper attention within hours, not days. That’s what separates reactive maintenance from professional asset management.
When we can’t fix something on the first visit, we don’t disappear. We make it safe, explain what’s needed, and schedule the follow-up work properly. No wondering when someone will come back, no chasing for updates.
We’re not trying to save the day, we’re just acknowledging reality; buildings are where people’s actual lives happen. When systems fail, it’s not just maintenance data to be processed or scheduled around our convenience. It’s someone who can’t cook dinner for their kids, can’t work from home to meet a deadline, can’t feel safe in their own space. That human impact matters more than any contract term or spreadsheet entry.
It is true that quick response time costs more upfront. You need engineers available, you need local coverage, you need systems that actually work when someone calls at 6pm on a Friday.
But the alternative of residents complaining, building managers stressed, problems getting worse while you wait, costs much more in the long run.
In short, responsive maintenance isn’t a luxury service. It’s what professional asset management looks like.
Want to know what a four-hour response looks like for your buildings? Let’s have a conversation about what’s actually possible and what it takes to deliver it consistently.