Funworld April 2010

Smooth Ride

Strong waterpark maintenance training helps to avoid problems down the line
by Mike Bederka

Maintenance work at a waterpark can be a thankless job. Guests typically don’t know what goes into keeping waterpark attractions safe and fun—they just expect it. “However, when you screw up on a maintenance issue, everyone talks,” says David J. Sangree, president of Hotel and Leisure Advisors, in Cleveland.

The biggest loss of value in a property occurs when the media finds out guests became ill, notes Sangree, whose firm specializes in analyzing the performance of indoor and outdoor waterparks.

To prevent such worst-case scenarios from happening, waterparks must stay on top of maintenance issues, and that starts with proper staff training and coordination between teams.

A Thorough Process
A key requirement to work for KeyLime Cove’s maintenance crew is a high energy level, says Dale McFarland, general manager of the Gurnee, Illinois, resort. “You can teach people how to do a lot of the technical stuff.”

Staffing five full-time maintenance personnel during the summer, KeyLime Cove follows a two-tiered education program, explains Bob Williams, the aquatic pool and equipment manager. First, staffers enroll in a course to earn their Certified Pool Operator (CPO) certification from the National Swimming Pool Foundation. The course covers topics like state and federal regulations, liability and risk management, filtration systems and recirculation, pool chemistry and calculations, water testing and sanitizing, energy conservation, and troubleshooting. (For more about CPO certification, visit www.nspf.org.) “Once they’re done with that, I take them under my wing,” says Williams of the nuances specific to KeyLime Cove.

He shows them the “fine, nitpicky things” like cleaning skimmer covers, tiles, floors, and decks and tying the rope knots on the fencing, and monitoring more complicated equipment like the pumps, motors, and filters. Along the way, he gives them helpful articles to read and water chemistry problems to complete.

“The more they learn, the more comfortable they are,” Williams says. He estimates it takes around six months for staff to become proficient in the core maintenance responsibilities.

McFarland credits Williams for the facility’s solid reputation. “His standards for cleanliness and air and water quality are bar none,” says McFarland, adding that waterparks need strong leadership if they want a well-kept and well-run operation.

‘The Highest Priority’
For Kevin Carr, it’s a plan and simple fact: “Water quality is the highest priority. If you have poor water then you will have no guests paying to come in,” says the waterpark manager at Alton Towers in Alton, United Kingdom.

Assistant managers, who handle most of the maintenance duties, must have experience, including their National Pool Plant Operators Certificate, he says. During the interview, Carr makes applicants draw a sketch of a plant room layout to see if they fully understand the process of filtration.

Maintenance staff then go through a “full-core induction process” when hired. The training covers their core duties of water testing, cleaning strainer baskets and injectors, backwashing, filling day tanks, water usage monitoring, and more.

Continuing education also plays an important part in keeping guests safe. Maintenance employees retake the National Pool Plant Operators Certificate every five years, and on a yearly basis, Carr randomly assesses their skills and brings in a water expert to explain the nitty-gritty details of water chemistry.

Staff Coordination
At Greek Peak Mountain Resort in Cortland, New York, three dedicated workers and a supervisor handle most of the large waterpark maintenance jobs such as monitoring the pool chemistry, checking the boiler system, waxing the slides, tinkering with the wave pool, and filling out the necessary paperwork to submit to the Department of Health and Department of Labor.

The facility, which opened in December 2009, purposely hired applicants with varying skill sets: One has his CPO certification, the second has a background as an electrician, and the third excels in general carpentry and mechanics, says Jared Troutman, the waterpark manager.

The three staff members didn’t undergo any formal maintenance training program at Greek Peak, but they had the advantage of being on board during the final stages of the venue’s construction, he says. They learned the ins and outs of all the equipment firsthand from the builders. “That made me feel a lot more comfortable with what they were providing for us,” Troutman says.

Also important to Greek Peak’s success is the maintenance coordination with the lifeguards, he says. Management trained them to pitch in during times of lower occupancy and before the shift starts. They handle scrubbing tiles and calcium spots, hauling out the trash, vacuuming the pools, and disinfecting the life vests and handrails. “Lifeguards are taking a lot of ownership of the facility,” Troutman says. “They’re protecting the water, and they’re cleaning the water.”

The lines of communication stay open between the aquatics and maintenance staffs. For example, a lifeguard will let a maintenance person know about any water quality issues or temperature problems.

To put everyone on the same page, both staffs complete structured maintenance checklists, which the managers frequently review. Having the same goal helps as well. “We want to keep this place as clean as it was when we first opened,” Troutman says. “If we let it slip away from us and it smells like a locker room, we’re not going to be able to get back to 100 percent.”

Contact Contributing Editor Mike Bederka at mbederka@IAAPA.org.