Cleaning in the USA
Watch Pro-Team Inc.
This month I got a behind the scenes look at Pro-Team Inc. in Boise, ID. Pro-Team is famous for it’s backpack vacuums and as the originator of the Team Cleaning process. Although I have previously toured their manufacturing plant and offices, I’m always amazed at the efficiency of the operation. This time I was particularly impressed with how much the company has grown and expanded its line of backpack vacuums over the last four years.
Here’s the shocker. President Larry Shideler has announced that the company, in cooperation with Electrolux LLC, will soon introduce a new line of commercial UPRIGHT vacuum cleaners know as the Prolux Line. Further, in the near future Pro-Team has plans to introduce a canister vacuum called the Robby and as yet an unnamed tank type wet vacuum. The company also recently redesigned it filter bags to reduce the cost to those who purchase in bulk quantities, and at the same time increased the square inches of filtration area of it’s bags. In addition, the company will soon introduce a new and improved vacuum wand for use with its backpack vacuums.
Pro-Team has always been known as an innovator and a company that listens and responds to user input to improve it’s products, but news that the company will produce an upright vacuum cleaner is definitely a change of direction for the company and a surprise to even this veteran industry watcher. For more info contact Pro-Team at www.pro-team.com or call 1-800-841-8606
Revolutionizing Floor Care
I first heard and wrote about the Multi-Clean Ultra-Violet Floor Care System and machine, the UV 22, a couple of years ago. Since that time, the company has continued to improve it’s equipment and chemical formulations to make the process easier to use and the product more resistant to wear and abrasion.
Recently on my way to get a late night pizza, I came across a crew of workers using the process in a new Staples Office Supply store in Seattle, WA. It seems Staples is using the product in a number of its store across the country. According to my sources, once put down, as long as the floor is dust mopped daily, and damp mopped regularly, no other maintenance is needed for up to 18 to 24 months, after which traffic areas are screen disked and recoated. The exception being high traffic areas at check out counters, which may need to be screened and coated after about a year.
If this system actually lives up to it’s promises, it has the potential to revolutionize the way we do floor care today. Can you imagine any customer who wouldn’t be interested in doing away with burnishing, scrubbing, stripping and recoating of their resilient, wood, or stone floors for a two-year period. The potential cost savings to end-users is tremendous, not to mention the impact on contract cleaners, as well as chemical and equipment manufacturers. Keep your eye on this one. An interesting side note, it wasn’t a contract cleaner who sold the process to the Staples Chain, it was Overland Supply Co. out of Pawtucket, RI. For more info contact Multi-Clean at www.prosealproducts.com or call 1-800-349-7325.
Big Bucks House Cleaning
I had occasion to interview Dan Bishop, CEO of The Maids, a national housecleaning franchise. With about 250 franchise locations, the Maids, according to Bishop will surpass $100 million is sales this year. I was surprised at how sophisticated the company is when it comes to tracking the performance of each operation. The company is totally computerized and downloads data from each operation every week to monitor profits and other critical performance factors. Now who says there is no money in dirt. Certainly not Dan Bishop. For more info on the Maids, visit: www.maids.com or ph-1-800-843-6243.
AmSan Buys Easterday Supply Co.
American Building Maintenance Industries in San Francisco, CA has after many year of struggling to turn around its in-house supply division, finally sold the operation to AmSan.
Pulire Cleaning Show Draws Huge Crowd
This year’s Pulire 2001 Cleaning Show held June 5 to 8 in Verona Italy drew record crowds and exhibitors. It was a good show. The isles were full of attendees and every exhibitor that I spoke to had high praises for the quality and number of exhibitors plying the booths during the four-day event. I came across a number of new and innovative products that I’m sure we will see showing up in the U. S. and around the world over the next couple of years. Among this years Innovation award winners were a variable speed floor machine with a sealed brushless motor, a new dry vapor escalator-cleaning machine, and a hands free soap and towel dispensing system.
This year’s show was truly an International event and with some 17,000 visitors Pulire is in the big leagues with the ISSA and INTERCLEAN shows in the U. S. and Amsterdam. Additional Pulire Shows are planned by the sponsor, Afidamp, for Spain and other countries over the next couple of years. My compliments to the group for providing the press with excellent digs, complete with computers, Internet access and plenty of food, drink and activities to keep us comfortable, happy and smiling for all four days. Great show guys, your efforts will have an impact on the cleaning industry around the world. Keep up the good work and see you again in 2003. For more info on this year’s or upcoming Pulire shows visit: www.afidamp.it or email: tdandrea@afidamp.it or call Brigitte Auteri at the Italian Trade Commission at ph-312-670-4360
Home Depot Enters the Residential Cleaning Market
That’s right your local big box hardware store has recently started using subcontractors to clean carpets and upholstery in its customers homes. At this point it’s just a test, but realizing that Home Depot, with some 1200 stores, is now the nations largest floor-covering retailer, it’s no surprise that the big orange HD would enter the residential cleaning market to service the products they sell. As a professional company with a strong customer satisfaction guarantee, Home Depot will bring a new level of professionalism, promotion and funding to the carpet cleaning industry and the consumer. And, although this action certainly makes many carpet cleaners nervous, Home Depot isn’t the first company to go after the residential carpet cleaning market. Sears, Shaw, Dupont and others have, over the last ten years, made several attempts to penetrate and tie up this evasive market with limited success and in some cases failure and egg on their face.
What these big companies often have trouble providing is the quality service and a personal touch that independent owner operators have mastered over the last thirty years. I’m sure all eyes will be on Home Depot over the next few years to see if they can figure out the puzzle better than those who have gone before them. Good luck to Home Depot.
Cut Backs Continue to Be the Word
Regardless of interest rate cuts and a new tax package, the word on the street is that people are loosing their jobs by the thousands and it’s not a good time to raise your prices if you want to keep a customer. Everybody is again looking for ways to cut costs and get more done with less. Seems we go through this every couple of years and then forget it for a while when the economy picks up again. With the bust of the .com world, along with higher energy and labor costs, we are once again looking for internal cost saving and increases in production to maintain profits and hold on to existing customers.
My advice continues to be, tighten your belt, suck it in and look hard for additional efficiencies in your operation and forget for now about asking your customers for a price increase.
Don Aslett’s Cleaning Centers
While traveling last month I came across one of Don’s new cleaning center stores in Boise, ID. Seems Don has three stores in operation so far and would like to open 40 such stores over the next couple of years. The stores, which are aimed at the residential consumer-homemaker market, take an upbeat and fresh approach to selling cleaning supplies, equipment and of course books. Good luck Don on your new venture and thanks for shedding a positive light on the importance of cleaning supplies, processes and equipment.
