How Do You Find a Reliable, Professional Office Cleaning Company?

Want to know a secret? You CAN find an effective, affordable office cleaning service that you don’t have to micromanage AND it doesn’t have to involve hours and hours of time searching that you just don’t have. Finding a solid office cleaning services provider that provides both effective service and a real value is an important component of your responsibilities as Facility Manager. After all, not only would the overall quality of cleaning in your building improve with the right office cleaning company, but you wouldn’t have to continuously stay on top of them to make it happen.  That these companies exist isn’t the real secret, the real secret is how to sort through the giant pile of low performing office cleaning companies to find the small handful of commercial cleaning companies that will follow through on their claims. What is more, a trial and error approach to finding this effective and professional office cleaner is often time consuming and imprecise at best. So, how do you sort through the crowded office leaning marketplace filled with snoozers and losers to find a real diamond?  Fortunately, there are a couple of tricks that can make finding the right partner for your facility a clearer and more straightforward process.

CIMS Certification Saves Time & Money Identifying High Performers

Fortunately, the secret to finding the right commercial office cleaner does not involve an oracle, a map, or an Indian Jones style quest for the holy grail of office cleaning services. The time saving, sanity saving secret for finding the right Detroit office cleaning service provider is simply checking to see if your prospective cleaner is CIMS certified. But what exactly is the CIMS-GB certification? Simply put, it stands for: CIMS, or the Certified Industry Management Standard as determined by the ISSA’s demanding accreditation program for office cleaning companies that choose to stand above the rest by implementing the industries best practices in every aspect of their operations. Confirming that your next office cleaning company is CIMS certified will assure you that you are partnering with a commercial cleaning company whose business model is to offer the most efficient, consistent and effective services.

How CIMS Certified Office Cleaning Companies Stand Above the Rest 

I’m sure we have all seen industry accreditations that are given out by the handfuls like free candy at a parade. However, acquiring  CIMS certification is no such easy feat. While the program for certification is voluntary, it requires that the company in question complete a comprehensive analysis of their business practices and meet stringent benchmarks laid out by the ISSA. As such, the CIMS certification can be a powerful tool in finding a good partner. First, any company that seeks out the CIMS certification is evidently dedicated to improving their business and responsiveness to their clients. Second, the companies that receive this accreditation clearly have systems in place that provide consistent and effective service. Finally, while CIMS can not guarantee that a prospective company is a good fit for your facility, it does significantly shorten your list to only the industries top performers as shown through a multifaceted analysis conducted by a third party assessment program. Use the CIMS certification to help shorten your list of prospective commercial cleaning companies and then start looking at price and fit for your facility to help make your job easier. Hopefully this secret can help make the process of finding an office cleaning service significantly easier. Facility Managers we talk to just like you consider CIMS certification to be their “easy button” in terms of helping them cut throw a crowded building services marketplace and make the selection process both more valuable and less time consuming.

CIMS Certification Isn’t A Participation Trophy, It Leads Directly to Better Service

We’ve discussed how the CIMS and CIMS-GB certification is a difficult to achieve accreditation and how to use it to narrow down your list of prospective commercial office cleaning companies. But how does it really benefit your facility and its cleaning? The certification is based upon five core principles:

• Management Commitment: Management must not only be effective, but also have a vision for what the future of the company and the service they provide will look like.
• Quality Systems: Has a demonstrably effective framework for delivering consistent and professional service.
• Human Resources: The best companies manage their greatest asset the best, their people.
• Service Delivery: Practices and systems to consistently deliver the highest levels of service.
• Health, Safety, and Environmental Stewardship: Always follows all required regulations as well as promotes workplace safety for their workers as well as their clients

Following these core principles means that the company you contract with will be operating at the highest levels within their industry. The ISSA has already done all the heavy lifting to help you find a professional office cleaning provider faster. The best part? This “secret” tool is entirely free to you! While the company has to pay to become certified, this useful tool is entirely free for you to use. Just by cross checking prospective office cleaning companies, you can cross eliminate the losers and snoozers off of your list and winnow it down to those companies most likely to be a great fit in your facility.

The Secret Revealed

So now you understand the secret. The process of finding the right commercial office cleaning companywill always have its challenges. However, using CIMS certification can help you narrow down your list of prospective companies and take a lot of the guesswork out of the process. While you’ll still need to do your due diligence with whichever company you decide to partner with, ideally this tool will help cut down on the time you have to spend looking and save you stressful, painful and expensive hiring mistakes. To find a janitorial company in your area ISSA CIMS-GB certified, visit the ISSA here.

Is Your Facility Up To The Scrutiny Of Patients & Their Families?

Medical office cleaning requires a great deal more from a commercial cleaning company than general business office cleaning. When a consumer goes into a retail establishment, they want to buy something. When a consumer visits a restaurant, they want to eat something. When a consumer visits an office building, they typically want to do something. But when a consumer visits a medical office or other healthcare setting, they are putting their health and safety in your hands. The expectation of cleanliness and care is entirely different. And the trust inherent in the relationship between a patient and your staff and facility is easily broken if your medical office isn’t clean and welcoming. When patients and their families walk through the doors of your medical facility, they want to see and be reassured by a clean, professional setting. Without even being aware that they are doing it, they will judge the quality and safety of the services they receive, in part, by the appearance of your facility. They will look over your offices, waiting areas and examination rooms. They will notice mystery stains, wear, trash and worse as they wait to be seen. Is your medical facility up to the scrutiny? Is your medical cleaning company doing all they need to be in order to protect patient health, attract and retain quality medical staff and safeguard the reputation of your facility? Quality medical office cleaning services in Detroit should clean and maintain your medical facility at a level that will assure patient comfort and reduce the spread of disease-causing germs. If you are looking to outsource medical cleaning or replace an existing medical cleaning service that has flat lined, what do you need to know to make the most sound decision for your facility?

What You Need From Medical Cleaning Services

As you go through the process of identifying and vetting healthcare cleaning services, it can be helpful to consider the endpoint of what you want from them. While individual medical janitorial services may take slightly different approaches in your facility, there are some service basics you should always be getting without fail. What do patients and their families scrutinize when they visit your facility? What specific areas do you and your healthcare cleaning team need to be acutely aware of?

First - Your healthcare facility must have a clean, welcoming entrance. This space creates a first impression and nothing can destroy that faster than greasy germ laden fingerprints on glass doors, dark, unknown stains on carpeting, dog eared, ripped magazines and worse. Your medical cleaning services should help you send the right message and make a positive first impression with a clean and inviting entrance that sets the tone for professional, trusted medical care.

Second - Grubby, grimy carpets and dusty, dirty hard flooring are easy to notice. Dirty carpets look and smell bad and hard flooring that isn’t regularly maintained can lend to an overall sense of insufficient maintenance in your medical facility. Floors in your healthcare facility should always be clean and safe even if that means more regular cleaning than you might have to do in for general office cleaning. Regular dry carpet cleaning and hot water extraction carpet cleaning can not only keep carpeting looking its best, it can even extend the lifespan of this expensive building asset. Likewise, regular, professional hard floor cleaning keeps flooring looking good and keeps slipping hazards to a minimum. In addition to carpet cleaning and hard floor cleaning, your medical office cleaning services should also help you with a matting program. More and more companies are enhancing their medical janitorial programs with floor and entrance mats. A recent study from the International Sanitary Supply Association (ISSA), demonstrated that up to 90% of the dirt that enters a facility comes in on people’s shoes. A quality matting program, regular hard flooring maintenance and periodic carpet cleaning can keep the floor in your medical facility looking good and sending the right message to patients, staff and visitors. 

Third – Clean, sanitized restrooms are a critical part of the overall impression of cleanliness in your facility. While medical visit and procedures do not happen in the restroom, the state of your restrooms can make or break the perception of overall care and professionalism of the actual health services offered. Think about how you feel when you visit a restaurant and see the restrooms dirty and in disarray. You immediately become suspicious about the state of the kitchen. The same is true in healthcare facilities. A dirty restroom lends an unfavorable impression that everything might be dirty. Furthermore, restrooms are a chief source of disease causing environmental pathogens that pose health risk to patients, staff and visitors. Prospective medical cleaning companies must understand the science of cleaning in order to deliver the level of you deserve.

Fourth – The condition of your furnishings is a noticeable element when patients and their families are sizing up your facility. The reality is that the heavy traffic in a busy healthcare facility can quickly take a toll on furniture like waiting rooms chairs, sofas, table and treatment room chairs. Periodic cleaning on the part of your medical cleaning service is key as well as replacement of office furniture that has reached the end of its lifespan.

Fifth – Treatment rooms must be clean and inviting. Think about it, most patients are checked in and spend several minutes waiting in a treatment room. With little more to do than look around waiting for their physician or health care provider, patients are quick to notice dirt, grime and worse, especially in a medical setting where stains and gunk take on an entirely different level of threat. No one wants to see a dark smear across a cabinet door or splattered vinyl baseboards. Prospective medical janitorial services must be prepared to detail clean these patient rooms in order to provide a clean, healthy, inviting space.

Sixth – No one likes to see filled or overflowing trash in any building but it is infinitely more suspect in a medical office or healthcare facility. This is because the waste generated in a healthcare setting is in many people’s opinions, just grosser. Any medical office cleaning worth their salt will keep trashes empties, clean and even be diligent about refilling important hand washing supplies like soap and hand towels to assure your facility is clean and welcoming.

Seventh –Cleaning for health is a critical component of all commercial cleaning but nowhere is it more important than in a healthcare facility. Disease causing germ spread like rapid fire in a healthcare facility that sees more sick people than other general offices. Nowhere are germs more likely to congregate and spread than touch points and hot spots. Touch points and hot spots are those areas frequently touched by many hands, think door knobs, switches, faucet handles and even shared computer and office equipment like phones and computer mouses. If your medical cleaning isn’t up to speed on the principles behind cleaning for health, they are not capable of delivering the healthy, safe clean you need to create a welcoming patient environment and a healthy workplace. 

How to Find Medical Cleaning Companies That Have the Right Prescription

Whether you manage an urgent care center, medical clinic or specialist offices, keeping your facility clean and welcoming is a big task. If this list of must haves and must dos sounds tough to find in a commercial cleaning company, it is. There is a great deal that goes into offering professional, effective medical office cleaning. While many janitorial companies would love to have your business, only a small few are really up to the level required for healthcare cleaning. SO how do you discern the pros from the quacks? First, partner with a Detroit commercial cleaning company that specializes in cleaning medical facilities. This should include verifiable experience working with other medical facilities. Similarly, a prospective medical cleaning company should be able to provide you with documented training in areas specific to medical facilities. Furthermore, the most professional and experienced medical cleaning companies should be able to provide you with references from other area medical facility managers. Finally, the best commercial cleaning companies will also offer other building maintenance services that can help you with one time projects or special needs that may arise in your facility.

Certified Industry Management Standard or CIMS, is the Medicine You Need

Finding the right medical cleaning company to cure what ails your facility can be overwhelming. The amount of information you must verify and checklists to check off can simply take more time than you have. Professional certifications like the ISSA’s CIMS, Cleaning Industry Management Standard, offer you as a Facility Manager a free and useful tool in finding your next medical office cleaning services. Like board certification can distinguish added training and specialization with physicians, CIMS offers additional training and benchmarks for commercial cleaning professionals committed to best practices and excellence within their industry. The process is demanding and the requirements are steep. And unlike a sales pitch in which a janitorial company can SAY anything they want about the professionalism of their services, with CIMS certification, all of the information is independently verified. This means CIMS isn’t just a participation trophy handed out to whomever paid for it. It is a hard won, rigorous management standard that measures business areas that directly impact you as the Facility Manager of a healthcare facility. CIMS offers a great way to put together a preliminary list of medical cleaning companies from which you can then use walk throughs, meetings and request for proposals (RFP) to make your final decision picking a medical cleaning partner that will help you and your facility operate at the highest level.

Your Industrial Janitorial Services Cannot Be A Bunch Of Clowns

Don't mess around with clowns, from the front office to the line, to the warehouse and everywhere in between, you deserve industrial cleaning that delivers results. Maybe your industrial cleaning service started strong but slipped before long, or maybe they were never quite on track to begin with. If you manage an industrial facility of any kind, you know that the quality and effectiveness of your industrial cleaning and janitorial services has a significant impact on your overall operations. The right industrial facility services will have you running like clockwork providing you with a clean, well maintained facility with minimal interruptions to your operations. The best industrial maintenance services understand that with regulatory scrutiny, demanding production schedules and relentless competition, it is more critical than ever that your Detroit industrial cleaning is efficient and effective. You chose to outsource industrial cleaning in order to save time and money, but if you are working with an industrial cleaning company that is basically a joke, you have likely lost control of quality, consistency and cost. Industrial cleaning is significantly more complex than basic commercial or office cleaning. The space is different, the work is different, the compliance is different. If your Michigan industrial cleaning company doesn’t understand the specifics needed to deliver consistent, effective service in your industrial facility, your facility maintenance is likely to become a circus.

Find an Industrial Cleaning Company That Won’t Make a Circus Out of Your Facility

No matter what kind of industrial facility you run: industrial, manufacturing, fulfillment and distribution, machinery, automotive, high tech, food and beverage and more, you need industrial janitorial services that deliver. As a Facility Manager in an industrial facility, you have a great deal on your plate. You are worried about speed, productivity, productions schedules, compliance and of course, safety. You need to maximize your building services budget, increase operating efficiencies and of course, curb escalating operating costs. And you need an industrial cleaning and janitorial company that can help you juggle all of this. Industrial cleaning has goals, compliance issues and regulatory requirements that go well beyond what is required in most other facilities. You don't need to settle for one size fits all commercial cleaning "solutions". If you want to reach your goals, increase productivity, reduce costs and meet all compliance and safety goals, you need to work with a building services company that makes your business their business. You need a janitorial company that is intent on getting to know your pain points and specific needs in order to deliver effective, efficient, individualized industrial janitorial service and provide the integrated facility solutions you need. 

When It Comes to the Requirements of Industrial Cleaning, You Can’t Clown Around

Sure, everyone has to start somewhere, but you DO NOT want to be the training ground for a janitorial services company just breaking into the industrial cleaning market. When you are looking for new industrial cleaning services, you will likely find a great many cleaning companies that WANT your business but only a few that can really handle it. Industrial cleaning requires heightened awareness of safety issues, a solid understanding of compliance requirements, a knowledge of pertinent regulatory constraints and more. Do your prospective industrial cleaning companies fully grasp the critical nature of safety and compliance issues? Are they familiar with ISO 9001 or the Global Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS)? Are they well versed on Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requirements and how they pertain to your business and their own? The most effective industrial cleaning companies not only understand their compliance requirements, they have, at the very least, a basic understanding of yours. It is in your best interest to consider commercial cleaning companies that utilize industry best practices and even go beyond with professional certifications like the ISSA’s CIMS. You need industrial cleaning services that offer consistent, professional teams equipped with the training, tools and technology to assure consistent, effective, efficient service delivery.

CIMS Certification Helps the Pros From the Jokers

One of the most critical pieces of finding the right janitorial services company for your industrial cleaning is to whittle down your list of prospective companies to those ready and able to deliver results in your industrial facility. But the process of doing this can be costly and time consuming. Sure you can ask the hard questions but is that the best use of your time if there is a better way to prequalify janitorial companies? If you are anything like many of the Facility managers we work with everyday, you already have more than enough on your plate. If there was a way to prequalify industrial janitorial companies and it was FREE, wouldn’t it be worth trying to make the process of finding your next industrial janitorial company just a little bit easier? There is a way to get the information that can make all of the difference when it comes to finding the right industrial cleaning company, whether that’s here in Southeast Michigan or around the world. ISSA CIMS certification offers you a no cost shortcut to sift through the crowded janitorial marketplace to create a shortlist of only those janitorial companies already set up to deliver on their promises of quality, effective, responsive service. CIMS certification is a voluntary certification process that requires a building services company to demonstrate their competencies in a variety of areas critical to the delivery of high levels of cleaning and maintenance. CIMS or the Cleaning Industry Management Standard demonstrates a industrial cleaning company’s commitment to industry best practices. These best practices are the yardsticks that predict and measure success. They are the  systems and methods proven to correlate with quality, effective service and consistently satisfied customers. CIMS certification can help you narrow your focus to those janitorial companies most likely to succeed in your facility. Then you can use that short list combines with on site walk thrus, RFPs (Requests For Proposal) and meetings to decide who on your short list offers the best value and fit for your facility.

People Are the Single Most Important Component of Effective Commercial Industrial Cleaning

People are the single most important component of effective, efficient and responsive industrial cleaning services. After all, no matter how good the tools and technology are, if the TRAINING isn’t there, the work, and your facility, will suffer. People are the frontline service deliverers and who they are, how they are trained and managed matters. Does your prospective industrial cleaning company prioritize attracting, screening, hiring, training and managing great people who are a great fit for the requirements of industrial cleaning? Are your would be industrial cleaning services companies doing what they need to in order to assure the people in and out of your facility are prepared and equipped to do their best? How are they training their teams? Do they use onsite training, web based training, visual inspections and documentation to get people up to speed or do they wing it? How do they handle errors and issues when they come up? Do they ever take shortcuts with their people or people processes? Do they ever illegally hire or subcontract? Industrial cleaning companies that take shortcuts anywhere likely take shortcuts everywhere.

Do Your Industrial Janitorial Services Build In Quality From the Start?

Quality industrial cleaning services don’t happen by accident, they happen by design. Those companies poised to deliver are likely to have:

• A documented standard for employee safety training
• Complete compliance with required AND recommended specific training
• CIMS Certified procedure manuals or other relevant industry certification
• A grasp of your individual security needs and carefully vetted employees
• A proven track record of adherence with industry best practices
• The processes and systems in place to guarantee responsive service
• The capability to customize maintenance scheduling to fit your requirements and keep operations moving
• The capacity to offer both contract and on-demand cleaning services and a host of other maintenance services
• Green cleaning & sustainability initiatives that help you stay ahead of environmental regulations
• The ability to add or remove staff as your peak times and needs change
• A wealth of systems, procedure and tools to keep service delivery on track. These might be things like regular client communications through apps and reporting, financial documentation, service request tracking and a 10-minute response guarantee to get you the information you need quickly.

ISSA CIMS certification offers confirmation of these systems and processes saving you the time you would have spent asking the questions and verifying claims. CIMS confirms meaningful hiring processes, effective and complete training, consistent, valuable management practices and the systems in place to all but guarantee results. While there is no guarantee of great service from ANY company, CIMS and systems, processes and safeguards all make it more likely that you will find the professional, consistent, effective Detroit industrial cleaning services you need while steering clear of the clowns that are out there.

Janitorial RFPs

RFPs, or Requests For Proposals, are documents that detail a facility’s janitorial needs and ask for proposed plans from qualified contractors. Similarly, RFPs provide guidelines to contractors on how to best meet the needs of an organization as detailed in the request. They are intended to open up the process to a range of janitorial companies in order to find the right contractor and value for your facility. The better the RFP, the better chance you will find the commercial cleaning company that offers the best fit and value in your facility. But while the Request For Proposal process can help you find the right Building Services Contractor, the process can quickly go off track. From imprecise specifications to hacked together RFPs to bids that are not grounded in reality, problems with RFPs can sometimes make it harder to find the right janitorial services company. But there are some ways to guide and manage the Request For Proposal process so that you as a Facility Manager can get an RFP grounded in reality and specific to the needs of your facility.

Don’t Cast Too Wide a Net

Sure you want to open up the process to a range of companies and allow them to compete for your business, but using RFPs to assess every possible contender is unnecessarily costly to both you and the janitorial companies. Think about it, you are asking for complex RFPs from a number of janitorial companies that are likely unqualified. These RFPs take time and money to put together and tremendous time on your behalf reading and sifting through so much information. You should prequalify prospective janitorial companies and the RFP shouldn’t be your first prequalification tool. When anyone and everyone are invite to bid, often the most effective, professional commercial cleaning companies will concentrate on other business that they know they have a better shot at, leaving you with perhaps lots of janitorial companies that want your business but few that are actually set up to deliver professional, consistent janitorial services at a good value.

Use Industry Certifications Like CIMS to Prequalify Janitorial Companies

A sound way to cut through the crowded janitorial marketplace is to use industry certifications like the ISSA’s CIMS to prequalify contractors before you invite them into the bidding process. CIMS can help you get the basic, and not so basic, information that can make all of the difference when it comes to finding the right janitorial services contractor. ISSA CIMS certification offers you a free shortcut to sift through the crowded janitorial marketplace and identify those companies most equipped to provide the kind of cleaning and maintenance you really need. CIMS certification is a deliberate certification process that requires a building services company to demonstrate competencies and proficiencies in a number of areas that directly correlate to the delivery of high levels of cleaning and maintenance. CIMS or the Cleaning Industry Management Standard demonstrates a janitorial company’s commitment to industry best practices. These benchmarks are all predictors of competency that can at the very least, give you a healthy starting point in the search for a janitorial services contractor. Our suggestion is use CIMS as a starting point to develop your short list of qualified janitorial companies, then do a RFP (Request for Proposal) including on site walk thrus using price and your feel for which company will ultimately fit your needs best. If you are looking for a CIMS certified partner in your building maintenance, check in with ISSA for a complete list of CIMS certified cleaning companies and building services companies in your area. 

Where You Can, Simplify the RFP

Information is good but there is a tipping point where too much information begins to be present a handicap. Look, there is some information you really need and some that you don’t. Some RFPs can be a cobbled together version of older RFPs with new information included without the requisite editing. This can create organizational RFPs that get bigger and more complex without actually providing or requesting better information. Again, overly complex RFPs can create unnecessary work on both sides. Of course you want to be detailed, specific and thorough but it can be wise to pare down your RFP to the most critical, pertinent information. What kind of information is important in making a decision on your next janitorial services provider? Cleanable square feet by floor type is critical because different flooring requires different processes that are completed at a different speed. If all you include is gross square footage without breaking it out by specific flooring type, it will be more difficult for janitorial companies to accurately estimate. Second, accurate building occupancy is important in both pricing consumables like toilet paper and hand towels as well as getting a good understanding of how many janitorial hours will need to be allocated based on the amount of people using a space.

Identify Your Issues & Pain Points & Look For Janitorial Companies That Focus On Solving YOUR Problems

We often see RFPs where an organization will go into great detail presenting solutions for their existing problems, when really, the burden for solving your cleaning and janitorial issues should be on your prospective janitorial company. They may not even share the actual problem with prospective contractors. Were you disappointed with your last commercial cleaning company? Are you facing budget cuts? Share this with qualified janitorial companies. Not only will you get to see their problems solving skills in action before you give them a yes, they may have better, more efficient, effective and even less costly solutions to the issues plaguing your facility. Isn’t that why you outsource your janitorial services to experts or specialists in the first place? You know your business but if a prospective janitorial company is good, they know their business. They know and have the most practice solving issues just like yours in other facilities. Help them help you by identifying your issues and pain points and sharing them with would be Building Services Contractors. In structuring your Request For Proposal around actual business problems and allowing prospective janitorial companies to present solutions, you get the benefit of free advice from a number of seasoned pros, the opportunity to compare cleaning companies with regard to expertise, problem solving skills and competency and a much better chance that you will end up with a company poised to help you solve your most pressing, costly and time consuming problems.

Extend Site Visits to Prequalified Janitorial Services Companies

All too often site visits are quick and cursory because everyone is afforded one. What is much better than a lot of bids is a handful of qualified bids based upon very good information. For this reason it can be helpful to offer site visits to would be commercial janitorial services after some thinning of your list. This way, you can allot more time to fewer contractors saving you time on-site while allowing increased time for qualified companies to accurately assess your facility. You’ll get a more accurate cleaning bid as well as better insight on the company itself.

Get the Building Services You Need

As a Facility Manager, one of the most difficult things you must do is find the right janitorial services company to help you manage your building’s maintenance. Put in the time adjusting and refining your RFP and you set your facility up for success. It certainly isn’t easy sifting through the crowded janitorial marketplace but it is important to set yourself up to more easily compare potential cleaning companies and get solid information on what they can offer you. Here at Stathakis, we have served the businesses of southeastern Michigan for over thirty years. We provide commercial cleaning, janitorial services and commercial handyman services to the following Southeastern Michigan Counties: Genesee County, Livingston County, Washtenaw County, Monroe County, Wayne County, Macomb County, St. Clair County. We offer effective, professional facility services to the cities of Detroit, Ann Arbor, Farmington Hills, Dearborn, Farmington, Livonia, Plymouth, Downriver, Royal Oak, Southfield, Troy, Auburn Hills, Novi and more. For more information on our services and how we can help you, please contact us at 1-800-278-1884.

The Upcoming School Year Looms, Are YOU Ready?

As we head into the dog days of summer, it’s hard to ignore that the upcoming school year is right around the corner. Maybe you already have your school cleaning plan in place or maybe you are still struggling to figure out a workable plan for the approaching school year. Having a clean and ready to learn campus is important to every school and sets the right tone for a productive, positive learning environment. If your school cleaning services is getting consistently low marks, it is as good a time as any to reevaluate what you need to effectively maintain your school. If you are grappling with an ineffective school cleaning service, know this, there is still time to switch gears and find school cleaning services that really make the grade.

What Makes For A+ School Cleaning Services?

If your school cleaning company isn’t at the top of their class, you really owe it to yourself and your staff and students to look at all of your options and look at school cleaning companies willing to put the work into making your school great. Cleaning schools requires a great deal from a janitorial company, it isn’t just about a mop and bucket. Are you are reevaluating your current school cleaning company? If you are in a position of either trying to get more from your current janitorial services or shop a newer, more capable commercial cleaning company, there are some areas you should focus on to get the best chance of finding a capable partner in your school cleaning. The best school cleaning companies:

• Maintain a consistent record of high levels of safety & security
• Offer transparent pricing making it simple to compare janitorial bids
• Exhibit a strong grasp of how to get you real value from your school cleaning budget
• Employ the systems and consistently deliver effective service
• Have green school cleaning options and Smart cleaning resources for your facility
• Provide customized school maintenance solutions,flexibility & responsiveness
• Demonstrate specific experience & a proven track record in school cleaning
• Complete professional certifications like the CIMS-GB Certification

Does Your School Cleaning Company Have A Graduate Degree Or Are They Still In Kindergarten?

When it comes to school cleaning, you cannot discount the importance of experience. Just like kids get smarter and more capable as they go into the next grade, janitorial companies become better, more efficient and more effective when they have solid experience with school cleaning. Sure, everyone has to learn somewhere but do you really want to be a training ground for a commercial cleaning company that doesn’t yet really understand what you need from a school cleaning company? Schools, campuses, colleges and other learning facilities simply have different requirements than an average business or office. As such, they need a professional janitorial services company that is experienced and understands how to effectively maintain a school. Trying to work with a cleaning company that doesn’t have this experience leads to headaches, frustration, confusion and ultimately impacts the overall functioning and reputation of your facility.

Why Security Must Be Paramount With Prospective School Cleaning Companies

Sure when it comes to school cleaning, everything is important, yet nothing matters so much in an environment with children and young people so much as safety. Any potential Detroit school cleaning company must go above and beyond when it comes to screening employees. That means reference and employment verification, multi panel drug screening, criminal background checks and more to assure that anyone entering and working on your campus is safe. Likewise, commercial cleaning companies that wish to work with schools should be cognizant of finding people who are not only safe, but a good fit in a school environment. Finding a janitor or custodian who fits in with your students and staff can make a huge difference and really help create a partnership that is beneficial everyone.

Don’t Settle For Fuzzy Math From Your School Janitorial Services

Budgets matter and in a school, meeting targets and budgets is important. This means that securing a good price AND a good value from your school cleaning company is critical. So when janitorial services companies dabble in cloudy pricing and fuzzy math, it makes it nearly impossible to get a straight answer on price or compare school cleaning prices in order to get the best value. For these reasons, transparent pricing from a prospective school cleaning company is critical to a successful school cleaning program. Whether you are looking for private school cleaning, university cleaning or any other learning environment, you cannot work with a company that either doesn’t know how to clearly price their services or just won't in order to extract as much money from you as possible. Transparent janitorial pricing not only affords you the opportunity to compare school cleaning quotes and set benchmarks for the work to be done, it gives you the chance to measure progress and define success. And while you want clear, understandable pricing, steer clear of quotes that seem priced  well below what you are getting from other school janitorial services. Overly low pricing, while tempting, is often a sign of illegal hiring, illegal subcontracting and/or cutting corners and future add ons and up selling.

Go to The Head of The Class With Industry Certifications Like CIMS-GB

It can be challenging as a Facility Manager in a school setting to get the information you need to make sound decisions about your school cleaning. Not to mention, the time it takes to qualify and dig into multiple commercial cleaning companies can simply take more time than you have. For these reasons, professional certifications like the ISSA’s CIMS certification can be a valuable tool and shortcut to make the process of finding just the right school cleaning company that much easier. Industry certifications like the CIMS-GB Certification, or Cleaning Industry Management Standard give commercial cleaning companies the chance to prove they are among the best their industry has to offer. These kinds of challenging professional certification processes offer a clear indication that a potential school cleaning service is committed to industry best practices and continual improvement. We always suggest that you start by looking at companies that are CIMS certified and then qualify from there to find your best value and best fit for your school facilities. And the good news is these high level school cleaning companies often cost no more than their less effective counterparts.

Your school cleaning services should keep your facility looking great, stay on track budget wise and be a true partner in managing your school’s maintenance. Outsourcing school cleaning to a qualified janitorial services company can benefit your bottom line by providing professional, innovative and responsive commercial school maintenance. Anything less is shorting you, your students and your staff of the clean, positive and productive learning environment they deserve.

Does Your Office Cleaning Service Have You Ready For Business?

Office cleaning seems like such a straight forward service and yet, it can be perplexing why so many office cleaning companies seem to get it wrong. As a Facility Manager, finding the right office cleaning service can be nebulous. Part of the issue is there are just so many office cleaning services out there that separating the real pros from the rest can be taxing. Then if you do find decent office cleaners, all too often what started okay slips quickly into a familiar pattern of mediocrity. Or maybe your office cleaners were solid but a revolving door of new people keeps you in a constant cycle of training your cleaning company’s people. There are so many obstacles that get in the way of finding a true partner in your commercial office cleaning, but you can overcome these hurdles. Arm yourself with the best information and selecting office cleaning services for your facility won’t be effortless, but is certainly worth the effort. 

Office Janitorial Service Services Impact Productivity, Absenteeism & More

Sure everyone appreciates a clean and tidy office but it isn’t just about aesthetics and image. Office cleaning has a notable impact on important business metrics like productivity, absenteeism, employee engagement and even profits. When you have mediocre office cleaning services, revenue and sales drop off, productivity declines, staff morale collapses, quality standards fall and absenteeism and attrition grow. Poor office cleaning will eventually hit your facility right where it matters most, your bottom line. A poorly maintained facility sends the wrong message about commitment, performance and professionalism. A properly maintained office sets a standard and expectation. It tells your employees that you expect a high level of performance and it tells customers, you care about details. Likewise, when an office is cleaned well and regularly, employees and tenants are far more likely to contribute their own time and effort to keeping things clean and tidy, impacting the overall condition of your facility. And you shouldn’t disregard the studies that tell us a well maintained workplace has a significant beneficial influence on employee retention and satisfaction. Additionally, research demonstrates that clean buildings offer an impression of reliability, quality and trust to our customers and prospective customers.

Has An Office Cleaning Company Let You Down?

One of the challenges in finding commercial office cleaning services to partner with is that there are just so many in the very flooded cleaning market. The perceived low cost of entry means that each year, new office cleaning companies pop up. Now every company starts somewhere but add these new entries into the market with other startups, small mom and pop operations, one man and a van set ups, medium sized office cleaning services, mid to large size local commercial cleaning companies and franchise and national office cleaning operations and you can see how hard it isn’t hard to find an office cleaning company but it can be hard to find the RIGHT office cleaning company. And as is the case in any industry, some of these commercial office cleaning companies are great and some are not. At a real pro level, an office cleaning company must have an established service record and reputation for consistent, reliable service. Solid office cleaning requires no less planning and strategy than any other business. The best service is built on plans and systems that guarantee reliability though accountability. Wanting to be great isn’t enough, you have to plan for it. Even if you find an office cleaning service that has their heart in it, if they are not equipped with the knowledge, experience and strategy to deliver the highest levels of service, they simply won't be able to.

Some Office Cleaning Services Get It Right

In the crowded office cleaning marketplace, there is no shortage of mediocrity. In fact, it is probably among the industry’s most significant problems, quality control. The good news is even though there are many companies that will let you down, there are plenty of office cleaning services ready to deliver. What do the best office janitorial companies do differently? What do they know that other janitorial services do not?

The most effective, efficient, responsive, consistent and professional office cleaning services: 

• Are clear about your security requirements
• Never use illegal labor of illegal subcontracting
• Can provide documentation of employee screening & training processes
• Have industry certifications like CIMS
• Operate using industry best practices
• Utilize systems and processes to guarantee quality and responsiveness
• Employ quality control processes like janitorial inspections
• Have comprehensive green office cleaning services
• Use technology to streamline process, and create efficiencies and value

Finding A Commercial Cleaning Company That Will Have Your Facility Ready For Business

Finding a commercial cleaning company that will have you ready for business isn’t easy, but it is worth it. But how do you choose when as we have noted, there is a crowded marketplace filled with different levels of professionalism and experience? First, don’t buy based upon price alone. On one hand, a low low price should a red flag. And yet, paying more doesn’t always net you more. Your goal should be a reasonable, livable cost and value over price. Price is what you pay, value is what you get. Unusually low office cleaning quotes are likely to be too good to be true. Either the company is inexperienced with accurately pricing their services or they are purposely lowballing hoping to recoup costs down the road, neither good for you, your facility or your budget. Only consider office cleaning services or general office cleaning with clear, straight forward pricing so that you can compare office cleaning bids in a meaningful way. And look for those cleaning companies that can back up their claims of solid, professional processes. Commercial cleaning companies that have put money, time and resources into great employee training will be more than happy to tell you all about it and even show you. They WANT you to know what they do differently that makes them better. It is also useful to check in with fellow facility managers, vendors or contractors you know and trust for referrals.

Making the Search Easier For You

Professional certification is not only a sign that you are dealing with a seasoned pro, it can be a useful way to draw up your short list of prospective office cleaning companies. Professional certifications like CIMS offer a valuable shortcut in finding a real partner in your office cleaning. CIMS stands for the Certified Industry Management Standard and is a certification offered through the ISSA or International Sanitary Supply Association. This leading professional organization for Building Service Contractors offers a rigorous certification process that only the most serious and professional cleaning contractors even attempt. Certification covers integral elements like:

• Quality Systems: A framework to ensure effective operations & continuous improvement
• Service Delivery: Processes & systems in place to deliver consistent, quality service
• Human Resources: Best practices for managing any service industry’s greatest asset—their people
• Health, Safety, & Environmental Stewardship: Ensuring regulatory compliance, workplace safety, and health and environmental management
• Management Commitment: Establishing our Mission, Vision, and Values and ensuring that the organization's continuity is secured.
• A commitment to quality green office cleaning.

Want to know whether your prospective office cleaners are set up to succeed? These benchmarks can be a solid indicator of a plan and commitment to the highest levels of service. And while CIMS certification is difficult and costly for a building services company to achieve, it is free for you to use as a shortcut to finding the right office cleaning company that will work hard to keep your facility well maintained.

Here at Stathakis, office cleaning has, and will continue to be, a hallmark of the services we offer the businesses and industries of Southeastern Michigan. Not only are we committed to following industry best practices with regard to our office cleaning services, we have been at the forefront of developing and setting the standard for professional, effective, affordable and customer focused building services for over thirty years. From state of the art equipment to green cleaning products to professional systems and processes that assure reliability through accountability, we are committed to keep your offices clean, fresh and helping you create a healthy, productive work place.

As a Facility Manager, you would like to have effective, consistent, reliable janitorial services. Not only would it make your building look better, it would make your life easier. While you know that there has to be a commercial cleaning company ready, willing and able to offer the level of service you seek, finding them can seem like an impossibility. First, the janitorial marketplace is crowded with all kinds of companies that want your business. But wanting your business and being able to deliver are two very different things. You cannot sacrifice the level of work or upend your carefully planned budget. Second, trying to validate the claims of multiple contenders is both time consuming and imprecise. You cannot afford to make vetting prospective commercial cleaning companies your new full time. Last, while you have some understanding about what YOU need from your janitorial company, you don’t know exactly what THEY need in order to deliver. You go through the paces talking to prospective cleaning companies--site visits, janitorial bids, trying to understand their systems and if they will be able to do the work as promised at or under your budget. Wouldn’t it be nice if finding the right janitorial services company to partner with had a shortcut that makes the path to effective service shorter and more straightforward? 

There Is A Simple Shortcut to Finding the Most Effective Janitorial Services Companies

Thankfully the shortcut to finding the right janitorial cleaning service need not involve a crystal ball, genie’s lamp or speaking with a troll that resides under a bridge. The shortcut to the great janitorial companies is far simpler. The time saving technique for finding a better Detroit janitorial company is the ISSA’s CIMS-GB. It is quite the acronym so let’s spell it out: 

• The ISSA is the International Sanitary Supply Association, an international industry association for building services contractors.
• CIMS, or the Certified Industry Management Standard, is the ISSA’s demanding industry certification offered to janitorial services companies and commercial cleaning companies that want to distinguish themselves by adopting industry best practices throughout their business.
• GB is the Green Building element of this certification and offers janitorial companies a certification that helps them help their customers earn points under the LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance (LEED EB: O&M) Green Building Rating System.

So the ISSA’s CIMS-GB gives commercial cleaning companies a framework with which to design and adjust their operations to deliver the most efficient, consistent and effective services.

How CIMS Lights A Path to Great Service

We all know of certifications or industry awards that are indiscriminately given away like floral arrangements at the end of a wedding. CIMS is not that. CIMS is a challenging program that while voluntary, is not meaningless. Companies that seek CIMS certification agree to a comprehensive, independent assessment of their compliance with the required CIMS elements. In order to achieve and retain certification, a cleaning company must meet all of the mandatory elements and at least sixty percent of the suggested benchmarks in order to become certified. As a tool, CIMS certification is valuable in part because it IS so difficult. First, companies that seek CIMS certification are actively engaged in working to make their businesses better and more responsive to their customers. Second, those building services that achieve certification have the systems and practices in place that are most predictive of effective service. While one element cannot guarantee effective service on its own, CIMS makes it more likely you will get what you need from your cleaning service by weeding out those companies operating at a lower level. And again, CIMS isn’t a self performed ‘test,’ it is a challenging, multifaceted assessment carried out by an ISSA-accredited third party assessor. This makes CIMS is a credible shortcut for creating your short list of prospective janitorial companies. We suggest you start with CIMS certified companies and then look at services, price and fit to determine which company is best suited to create a partnership with. CIMS takes a huge chunk of the guesswork in finding janitorial services out and offers a useful, free shortcut.

ISSA CIMS –GB Leads to Effective, Responsive Commercial Cleaning Services

ISSA’s CIMS and CIMS-GB is a challenging process for building services contractors but how exactly does that translate into benefits for you and your facility? The documentation, processes, systems and checks are all centered around five core areas that can make or break your commercial cleaning services.

• Quality Systems: A framework for effective operations & continuous improvement
• Service Delivery: Processes & systems in position to deliver consistent, quality service
• Human Resources: Best practices followed for managing people-a service businesses single greatest asset
• Health, Safety, & Environmental Stewardship: Assuring regulatory compliance, workplace safety, and health and environmental management
• Management Commitment: Establishing a Mission, Vision, and Values that assure an organization and their customers will continue to thrive.

These five benchmarks are directly correlated to successful outcomes and the kind of responsive, effective service you and your facility deserve. The ISSA, in creating and executing the CIMS, has done essentially the most time consuming part of the search for you. And the best part of it is it is a free tool. While there is cost involved with becoming certified, there is no cost for you to use this invaluable tool to narrow your search.

Letting the Certified Industry Management Standard Cut a Clear Path For Your Facility

Finding the right janitorial company is challenging and there is no way to take every difficult decision and make it clear. And yet, with CIMS certification, you can clear a path by removing a great deal of the unknowns from your decision making process. You can view a prospective company through the lens of an industry association well acquainted with what makes the best cleaning companies different. Then you can do your homework and make the best decision for your individual facility. To find a janitorial company in your area ISSA CIMS-GB certified, visit the ISSA here.

What You Don’t See Still Matters When It Comes to Janitorial Services

There is the appearance of clean and then there is clean, a deep, thorough clean that goes well beyond the surface. Sure, a surface clean is nice; looking clean is important, but equally important is what you cannot see. If you see overflowing trashcans or empty paper towel dispensers in the restrooms, you know your commercial cleaning company is slacking. But what about things you can’t see like a commercial janitorial service neglecting to disinfect touch points like door handles and such that can spread disease and impact serious business outcomes like productivity and absenteeism? There are things you can see and things you can’t that all contribute to deciding whether your commercial cleaning services is ready for award season or about to take their final curtain call. Find out what you need to know to get the most out of your janitorial services and even plan for a new and better partnership with a new commercial cleaning company should it come to that.

Visible Signs It’s Time To Show Your Commercial Cleaning Service the Door

How do you know when it might be time to look for a new commercial cleaning company in Michigan? What visible signs clearly point to it being time to audition new talent for this starring role in your facility? Visible signs can include work not being done. Look, even the best janitorial services will miss something from time to time, but when yours is getting more misses than hits, it might be time to move on. Restrooms are often the area we see problems adding up first. From infrequently stocked supplies to lingering funky odors, to the level of detail and deep clean going down hill, this important communal area can show the early signs of a commercial cleaning service slipping. Visible signs that your janitorial service is slipping can go unnoticed for a time because sometimes, you can become so familiar with your building that you just don’t see the downward spiral in your overall maintenance services. If you seem to be getting more complaints than usual or have noticed a few issues, try to look at your facility with a fresh set of eyes. Enter where your employees and visitors enter and really look at things. Are your entry doors and handles clean and smudge free? Is your lobby or entry clean and table tops and surfaces free of coffee cup rings? Are objects like plants or furniture collecting visible dust? Are carpets clean, vacuumed and free from stains or excessive wear? Then check your restrooms. How do they smell? Are stall doors clean and free from gum, graffiti and the various yuck they seem to be a magnet for? Are hand washing supplies well stocked? Are trash and sanitary disposal containers regularly emptied? Sit where your occupants sit and look around. Sometimes a fresh set of eyes, looking at your building the way others might, can uncover a downturn in service from your commercial janitorial service.

The Signs of Subpar Commercial Cleaning Services That Are Harder to See

Along with the things you can see with your own eyes are the other, less visible signs that your commercial janitorial services are slipping. First, are you receiving more complaints about the cleanliness of your building than usual? When your complaint box fills up faster than your email, it’s probably time to take a closer look at your commercial cleaning company in Michigan. Second, are there noticeable odors in areas of your building? Obvious odors are a sign that while a space may look clean, it really isn’t. Smells are often a sign of bacteria, so when food and waste odors linger in kitchens and break rooms and funky smells hang in the restrooms, something important is being missed. Likewise, while it is normal to have issues come up even with the best Janitorial services, the right thing to do is address and rectify them immediately before a little issue blooms into a big problem. If you aren’t hearing from your commercial cleaning service regularly about issues you are communicating to them, something has to give. Communication paired with regular janitorial inspections is a big part of providing the consistent, reliable service you and your facility deserve.

Recognizing Commercial Janitorial Services That Hit the Mark

What do the most effective commercial cleaning services companies do to set them apart and deliver the kind of deep and lasting clean you need to keep your facility running full steam ahead? First, they set expectations ahead of time with transparent pricing and a clear spec or janitorial bid to delineate duties in a way that keeps everyone accountable and on track. They task employees with specific duties to get a high level of service and instant accountability. They train and manage their teams to the specific needs of your industry and your facility. When mistakes happen, and they do, the best commercial cleaning companies often know before you even do and are quick to remediate problems and make sure the same mistakes don’t happen over and over again. They conduct regular janitorial inspections to keep on their teams, reward great work and correct deficiencies before they impact your overall maintenance. Finally, they use systems and processes to readily notice all of the things that might cause problems in your facility, seen and unseen.

Using Industry Certification To Pick the Right Cleaning Services Company

Finding the right partner for your facility isn’t easy. There are a great deal of factors at play and seeing beyond the sales pitch requires a level of digging most of us don’t have the time to do. Industry certifications like the CIMS, Certified Industry Management Standard, can help identify those companies that are committed to the best practices that match most closely with high service delivery at a reasonable cost. Finding a company that delivers value, consistency and a thorough clean in your facility makes your whole building run better. If you are looking for a CIMS certified partner in your building maintenance, check in with ISSA for a complete list of CIMS certified cleaning companies and building services companies in your area. If you are locate here in South East Michigan and would like a review of your current janitorial services, please contact us at 1-800-278-1884 today for a no obligation review and quote.

Is Your Restroom Maintenance A #1 Or #2?

A clean restroom is one of the most important components of a well maintained facility and yet, it is often also one of the most overlooked areas of a building. Restroom cleaning can be challenging because the expectation is that when you use a restroom, it is clean but the reality of facility restrooms is they see a great deal of activity and can become dirty and gross very quickly. With a high frequency of use, many touch points and hot spots for transferring germs, and increased exposure to bio-hazardous wastes combine to make restrooms one of the scariest places in any facility. Restroom sanitation must be a priority for your commercial cleaning company. And restrooms don’t just have to look clean, they have to BE clean. Because restrooms that harbor germs and bacteria make people sick and sick employees cost companies resources and poor business outcomes that can translate directly to the bottom line. So are your restroom cleaners scoring a #1 or #2 when it comes to commercial restroom cleaning? And if you are unhappy with the level of service your restrooms are getting from your commercial office cleaning company, how can you find a janitorial services company that will deliver the level of clean you really need?

Does Your Janitorial Services Company Really Know How to Clean Restrooms?

There are really two ways to evaluate your current janitorial company to decide whether their restroom cleaning services are cutting it. You can look at what makes for great commercial restroom cleaning or you can for the signs that your office restrooms need more attention. So what are some signs that there may be trouble brewing in your restrooms? If you can see soil, smudges and dirt on or around restroom door handles, your restrooms could be the perfect breeding ground for disease causing germs. If you can detect funky, “bathroom” odors, your restroom isn’t truly clean. If restroom sinks look soiled, harbor deposits and grime or your commercial cleaning company has allowed spilled soap and soil to collect around sinks, your restrooms need a second opinion. If wetness, smears, streaks and mystery moisture cling to restroom mirrors, your restroom cleaning is not delivering. Dirt visible on restroom floors and an overflowing trash receptacle are both signs your office restrooms are not getting the attention they need. And finally, if critical hygiene supplies like soap, paper towels and more are not fully stocked, your commercial cleaning company is phoning it in.

Restroom Cleaning Is About More Than A Mop & Bucket, It’s a Science

In the janitorial industry, there has been a shift from the old bucket and mop to science based cleaning. A growing awareness of the need for high standards of hygiene and the prevention of cross-contamination, particularly in restrooms, is something every professional janitorial company should be familiar with. If your commercial cleaning company is serious about eradicating pathogens and toxins lurking in your facility, they must acknowledge that rest rooms, sinks and yes, toilets, are the seat of the problem. With splashes, drips, standing water and dampness, your office restrooms can quickly become an unhealthy breeding ground for germs and bacteria and the funky odors that come with them. Old school restroom cleaning, like the mop and bucket, ignores the science that tells us these dated restroom methods just spread germs and dirt around rather than truly clean. Better methods like microfiber floor cleaning and color coded rag systems to prevent cross contamination are both effective at reducing the spread of germs and don’t have to cost any more than the old school, ineffective restroom cleaning. And science based restroom cleaning also extends to the products used to clean your spaces, whether or not they are used correctly and whether or not your janitorial services’ people are properly trained to use them. Industry best practices like cleaning first, then disinfecting with proper dwell times effectively reduces disease causing germs and bacteria. Your Detroit cleaning company should be well aware of things like hot spots, touch points and dwell times that all impact the level of clean they can deliver.

Making The Restroom Cleaning Checklist Work For You

We have detailed what some restroom cleaning companies are doing wrong, but what do we know about restroom cleaning done right? Is there an ultimate restroom cleaning checklist that you can either provide your janitorial company or use to evaluate the job they are currently doing? What exactly does great office restroom cleaning look like? Commercial cleaning companies are different and often do things very differently, however, there are some commonalities when it comes to solid, healthy, germ conscious restroom cleaning. What do the best janitorial companies do better? They assure mirrors are clean, shiny and streak free. Effective restroom cleaners make certain the areas behind toilets and other hard-to-reach areas are properly cleaned to destroy odor. They clean "hot spots," and high contact “touch points” methodically in order to reduce the transmission of disease causing germs in all high transmission areas. They carefully clean, disinfect and dry toilets and toilet seats. Your janitorial services company should assure dryers, paper dispensers and other restroom fixtures are regularly inspected to confirm they function correctly. Likewise, feminine hygiene dispensers should be cleaned, disinfected and restocked with new liners as required. Your office cleaning team should likewise clean, disinfect and dry urinals making certain that screens are cleaned and urinal cakes are replaced. Additionally, supplies like toilet paper, hand soap and paper towels should be restocked as needed. Moreover, trash and sanitary disposal containers should be emptied regularly as a habit, before they are full or overflowing. You should NEVER see stalls and partitions with old grime, fingerprints, gum, gunk and graffiti or dirty, dusty air vents. Finally, your office restrooms should smell fresh and clean.

Finding Restroom Cleaning Services That Will Always Be a #1

While getting effective, consistent restroom cleaning can seem impossible there are janitorial service companies that get it right. They understand that deep cleaning must be done periodically to eliminate long term issues piling up and protect your building’s assets. They know that state of the art cleaning equipment and environmentally friendly products do the best job for the best price delivering great service, great value and a healthy work environment. The best Detroit cleaning companies also know that regular janitorial inspections identify needed maintenance and keeps everyone on the same page as to delivering on expectations. So these industry leaders are out there but how do you, as a Facility Manager find them? The great news is that the most effective janitorial companies who understand how to REALLY keep your restrooms well maintained won’t necessarily cost any more than those companies that aren’t delivering. The reality is that often the most effective janitorial companies are able to deliver lower cost services to you because they understand how to price their services and they use state of the art equipment and methods that offer greater efficiency and therefor reduced costs. When looking for effective restroom and office cleaning, CIMS, or the Cleaning Industry Management Standard offers a shortcut to finding solid building services contractors. CIMS is a voluntary certification process that assures a building services company meets a number of markers that directly link to overall success and satisfied customers. CIMS entails developing and following processes that support best practices. While CIMS doesn’t guarantee you will get the promised service, it is a valuable, free tool to help you create a short list of janitorial companies, weed out the less than stellar companies and get the service you and your facility require.

Effective Industrial Janitorial Takes Knowledge & Understanding of YOUR Facility’s Needs

Industrial cleaning carries with it a more complex set of compliance issues and requirements than general office cleaning. The work is different, the facilities different and the needs of facilities different. Ranging from manufacturing to distribution, tech and more-- all buildings vary tremendously in their specific requirements. So not only does a commercial cleaning company have to understand the business of industrial maintenance services, they must have the insight and experience to understand the complex individual needs of YOUR industrial facility.

Hitch A Ride With an Industrial Cleaning Company That Won’t Steer You Off Course

Industrial building maintenance services come with their own prerequisites, goals, compliance requirements and regulatory issues. You shouldn’t have to settle for one size fits all commercial cleaning services. There are commercial cleaning companies that go out of their way to make YOUR business THEIR business by making themselves familiar with your pain points and needs in order to keep you in compliance and keep your industrial facility in tip top condition. How can you leave the so-so commercial cleaning companies in the rear view mirror and hitch a ride with a Michigan industrial cleaning company capable of delivering responsive and effective maintenance services? While any janitorial company certainly WANTS your business, only a small few manufacturing cleaning services are set up and PREPARED to do the work required in industrial cleaning. The question becomes, how do you as a Facility Manager identify those companies up to the work?

An Industrial Janitorial Company Must Understand the Requirements of Industrial Cleaning

Industrial facility management certainly has some commonalities with general office cleaning. There are janitorial budgets, floors to be cleaned, restrooms and more, however, as much as they have in common there are things that set industrial cleaning apart. Industrial and manufacturing cleaning bring with them a complex set of compliance, regulatory and health and safety issues. If a commercial cleaning company wants your business, they need to make your issues their issues. If you are looking for prospective commercial industrial cleaning services, be prepared to ask the tough questions, inquire what kind of experience the janitorial company has had with similar accounts. Ask what they do to train their teams to handle the unique needs of industrial facilities. Ask what processes they use to custom tailor their services to the unique needs and requirements of YOUR facility. Any Detroit industrial cleaning company that has resources into preparing themselves and their teams to serve industrial facilities will be pleased to share this with you.

CIMS Certification Points to COMMITTMENT From Your Industrial Cleaning Service

As a Facility Manager, sure you know how to ask the tough questions and yet, grilling a bunch of commercial cleaning companies is probably not your idea of a good time. Is it anyone's? If you are anything like many of the Facility managers we work with everyday, you already have plenty on your plate. There is a way to get some of that basic, and not so basic, information that can make all of the difference when it comes to finding the right industrial janitorial services to partner with. ISSA CIMS certification offers you a free shortcut to help ‘sort’ through the crowded janitorial marketplace to find your ‘needle in the haystack’ of sorts.

CIMS certification is a deliberate certification process that requires a building services company to demonstrate their competencies in a variety of areas critical to the delivery of high levels of cleaning and maintenance. CIMS or the Cleaning Industry Management Standard demonstrates a manufacturing cleaning company’s commitment to industry best practices. These best practices are systems and methods proven to correlate with quality, effective service and consistently satisfied customers. These benchmarks are all predictors of success that can at the very least, give you a healthy starting point in the search for industrial cleaning services. Our suggestion is use CIMS as a starting point to develop your short list of qualified janitorial companies, then do a RFP (Request for Proposal) including on site walk thrus using price and your feel for which company will ultimately fit your needs best.

Industrial cleaning Requires Quality People Who Are A Good Fit For The Job

People are the benchmark of the service industry. Industrial cleaning, really any kind of cleaning and maintenance service business, is only as good as their people. People are the frontline service deliverers and who they are, how they are trained and managed matters. This being the case, your prospective industrial cleaning service should prioritize attracting, screening, hiring, training and managing great people who are a great fit for the work. Companies that take short cuts with their people, like illegally subcontracting, insufficient screening and poor training, will take shortcuts everywhere. Are your prospective industrial janitorial services doing what they need to in order to assure the people in and out of your facility are prepared to do their best? How do they train their teams? How do they handle errors and issues when they come up?

With Industrial Janitorial Services, Quality Must Be Built In From The Get Go

Effective, responsive, predictably consistent service doesn’t happen by accident. The best Michigan janitorial companies build it in by design. ISSA CIMS certification offers confirmation of the systems and processes a cleaning company needs to effectively manage high level industrial cleaning accounts. CIMS confirms meaningful hiring processes, effective and complete training, consistent, valuable management practices and the systems in place to all but guarantee results. While there is no guarantee of great service from ANY company, CIMS and systems, processes and safeguards all stack the deck in your favor, making it more likely that you find a true partner in your Detroit industrial janitorial contractor.