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**You’ve been approached by an outsourced cleaning service. You currently manage an in-house team. Obviously in-sourcing is cheaper, right? Let’s take a look…**

We know what you’re thinking, obviously a $15/hour in-house custodian MUST be cheaper than a $30/hour outsourced solution. It’s simple arithmetic!

**Unfortunately, wages are just the tip of the iceberg…**

Consider the following hidden costs:

●       Payroll taxes – 10% of base pay, $1.50/hour
●       Benefits – The BLS estimates this to be $6.84/hour for a $15/hour wage earner
●       Vacation Time – 3.8% average downtime, $0.58/hour
●       Sick Time – 1% average downtime, $0.15/hour
●       Turnover Costs – $7,000 – $10,000, $3.36/hour
●       Equipment Acquisition & Repair Costs – $400/annually, $0.19/hour
●       Chemical Costs – $4,000/year average, $1.92/hour
●       Insurance (WC/Liability) – 6% of base pay, $0.90/hour
●       Management & Oversight – 10% of payroll, $1.50/hour

Taken together…you can conservatively add $16.94/hour to the baseline $15/hour figure to arrive at the true cost of a $15/hour in-house custodian.

**Total Cost to In-Source: $31.94/hour**

Still not convinced?

Outsourcing your cleaning provides these added benefits:

●       100% Service Uptime
●       Management team steeped in facilities maintenance knowledge who spends all of their time thinking about commercial janitorial solutions
●       Professional employee supervision & training modules aimed at improving outcomes and overall efficiency
●       Enhanced flexibility to ramp service up/down based on internal facility usage patterns
●       After-hours option – can provide service outside of currently managed windows
●       Ancillary services expertise – carpet/tile/windows etc.

**Next, let’s take a look at a real-life example…**

In 2018 BCS Facilities Group was approached by a large uniforms distributor based in West Philadelphia, PA. This uniforms company had been running a team of two in-house custodians for over a decade. The team was working fine, but the second shift person was about to retire and the first shift person decided they didn’t want to shoulder the burden of the extra work and quit.

The company was in a pinch and so for the first time in a decade decided to pursue an outsourced solution to their cleaning needs. The customer estimated their total cost of labor for these two positions as follows:

●       Base Hourly Wage: $13.75/hour
●       Hourly Benefits Cost: $4.28/hour
●       Hourly Vacation/Sick Time Cost: $1.00/hour
●       Hourly Management Cost: $3.25/hour
●       Total Estimated Cost: $22.28/hour

BCS consulted with the customer to help identify the following additional costs specific to their business:

●       Employee Turnover Costs: $3.00/hour
●       Equipment Costs: $0.25/hour
●       Chemical Costs: $2.10/hour
●       Excess Insurance Costs: $1.10/hour

Resulting in an all-in estimated cost per hour of $28.73

BCS Quoted $28.00/hour, won the bid and has been working with this customer ever since. Their facility is consistently look great, and the Plant Supervisor’s time has been freed up to pursue more meaningful work in the plant.

**Interested in learning more?**

**Want to retire from the “cleaning business” in your facility?**

**Give us a call today!**

A Peak Behind The Curtain: Methods Used When Pricing Janitorial Services

April 7, 2022

When looking at daily janitorial services, it is important to distinguish what these services are, and what would be considered an extra, or additional service. These daily tasks typically consist of a few main elements: dusting and wiping down common surfaces (desks, tables, counter tops, ledges etc.), vacuuming, sweeping, dry and wet mopping, removing of trash, cleaning restrooms as well as kitchens/breakrooms.

Additional “extra” services not included in the daily janitorial work would be full window washing, all types of floor restoration (strip and wax for VCT tile, carpet shampooing etc.). These services would all be priced separately from the regular janitorial services.

Below, we will take a look at pricing methods for each.

Daily Services

Time/Labor

When taking a look at this method, janitorial contractors, when evaluating your facility will determine how much time it would take in man hours to complete the cleaning scope. Based off of their hourly rate and number of hours required will determine a fair estimate to bill the customer. This typically includes all labor related costs, supplies, equipment, cleansers, mark-up etc.
Some pros and cons to this are that for the customer, you are essentially only paying for the hours worked. The con of this for the janitorial contractor is it can be tough to add increased effort/motivation for increased productivity. Depending on each company’s respective margins, this can cause a tight window to work with by adding extra time and pay to the front-line employees without increasing the price. This could also result as a pro with increased revenue for the janitorial contractor as increased hours by increasing the price for the customer. A con for the customer obviously from this is increased pricing for the extra work necessary to meet expectations. But, if these fluctuations present no issues, then this would be a good model to follow for the customer to get the most out of services.

Monthly Fee

One other popular method used is the fixed monthly fee model. After gathering as much information as possible and utilizing various calculation methods, a set monthly fee is determined. This usually consists of everything EXCEPT paper products and all types of consumables. This can provide more value to both the janitorial contractor and the customer. In most cases, this will present one of the most competitive prices to the customer as well as the servicer benefiting from possible efficiencies gained rather than going the price per square foot route.

Square Footage

This model is ultimately just as it sounds. There is a set fee for price per square feet, and gets multiplied by the square footage of the service area. For example, if the servicer provides a price of $0.25/square foot and there is a total of 50,000 serviceable square feet, your monthly cost would be $12,500. Some negatives to this model are that it can be easier to cut corners during the services. Given the set monthly price, and the typical industry production rate being roughly 4,500 square feet/hour, it should take roughly 11-man hours for work to be completed. A great janitorial servicer will spend ample amount of time to ensure the job is done right. However, lesser experienced cleaning companies can underquote at say $0.20/square foot which promotes less pay to their team just to earn extra profit (aka cutting corners).

Special Services

Special project services are more often than not priced differently. These should always be priced separately away from the regular services. One special project is window washing. Depending on the size of the pane, and if both sides are to be completed, pricing can vary. Typically, the price per pane can be around $4/pane (one side), or $8/full window if both sides are to be completed. For floor restoration services, it is mainly based on price per square feet, but varies for the flooring surface. For example, VCT strip and wax runs at about $0.50/square foot, VCT scrub and recoat is $0.25/square foot. Meanwhile, carpet shampooing can range anywhere from $0.20-$0.35/square foot depending on how heavily soiled the carpeting is.

Most Popular Commercial Cleaning Trends For 2022

March 31, 2022

Terry Sanson

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In 2022, the way businesses or companies work has been changed all the way down to the basic day-to-day fundamentals. As we are in the midst of slowly but surely making our way back to some sense of normalcy, there are some new popular trends starting to emerge in the commercial cleaning industry.
Check out our list of most popular trends that we are seeing that will benefit you and your business in the coming year.

Consistency

Arguably one of the most important trends to follow with your servicer. Consistency, what is it and what does it mean? To put it simply, its staying on schedule and never missing services and sticking to the scope of work properly. Maintain those high standards originally agreed upon. If a cleaner calls out, have back-up plans in place to ensure the cleaning always is completed. This will not only leave a clean and safe working environment, but establishes that ever so important trust factor and eliminates any stress or anxiety with employees.

Be Transparent

We get it, there can be a lot of confusion and uncertainty when returning back to the office. As this process takes place, whether it is all at once, or in phases, it is imperative to be briefed as the cleaning servicer on any new or updated requirements and best practices to follow. Everyone should have that peace of mind of feeling safe when returning back to work after extensive periods of working from home.

Employee Focused

Whether you are a Facilities Manager, Warehouse Manager, Property Manager, Operations Manager etc., it your responsibility to make sure your co-workers and employees have a safe working environment. Have a conversation with your employees! Ask them, what are their needs that can help outline a solid cleaning schedule, or just anything that possibly makes sense for the culture of the environment you are trying to build. Get everyone involved to help improve best practices. Some questions to ask could be:
-Are there any suggested cleaning methods to ensure additional safety (allergies to certain cleaning products etc.)? – Any tips or pointers to share? – Is the cleaning schedule currently or going to be interruptive? What is a realistic schedule to follow to prevent any decreases in productivity? -Any internal suggestions for cleaning companies/Which is the best cleaning company near me?

At the end of the day, your commercial cleaning service needs to be aware and understand your specific unique needs and pains to provide you with the best personalized service.

A How To On Cleaning Commercial Floors

March 10, 2022

Terry Sanson

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Wondering how to properly clean your commercial floors? Tired of constantly looking at dirty scuffed up floors? Below, we will go over some of the most common commercial flooring and how to properly maintain them looking the best they possibly can.

Tile Floors

Commercial tile flooring is meant for longer durability especially in high traffic areas such as warehouses or manufacturing plants. You have your VCT tile floors as well as ceramic tile flooring. This can propose a more unique cleaning challenge with the grout, that can, over time, accumulate the buildup of dirt. Using a professional cleaning company can help solve this issue to restore the appearance to look brand new! With heavy duty equipment such as the CRB machine, this can affectively pick up all of the dirt and collected grime inside the grout, making them look dirt free!

Laminate Floors

First, what are laminate floors exactly? Laminate flooring consists of multiple layers of synthetic materials. The very top thin layer is what requires the most care to ensure they stay looking at their best. Albeit most laminate flooring is waterproof – water can still cause damage overtime -, the cleaning process does not use as much water as you would think to make sure the top layer does not get damaged. Commercial cleaning companies tend to use equipment such as dry mops, wet mops as well as neutral pH floor cleaner (no scent) or scented floor cleaner, depending on personal preference.

Vinyl Flooring

This type of flooring can be a little more difficult to maintain with approach and frequency. Vinyl, also known for durability and cleaner appearance needs to be cleaned regularly to maintain that look and feel. These floors can be cleaned with a traditional mop as well with neutral pH floor cleaner or added scent depending on preference. However, a professional cleaning company has proper heavy-duty equipment as well to get a deeper clean. Depending on the color of the vinyl floors – whites and greys – it may require a little more time and care to keep them looking freshly polished. Some professional equipment that can be used on vinyl as well as laminate flooring to really bring that “shine” out are a power buffing machine, neutral floor cleaner, soft mops, vacuums, brooms, and floor finish.

Hardwood Floors

Cleaning hardwood flooring requires a more delicate approach to avoid damaging the wood itself. Using the wrong equipment or cleansers can prove to be extremely costly. Professional cleaning companies tend to use – depending on the finish – a dry mop and/or a soft wet mop. You want to avoid any type of scratch marks or distortions on the wood itself. You also want to ensure you are using the appropriate floor cleaner with the appropriate pH levels. Oversaturation of any type of floor cleaner or water will result in water marks, debris being pushed around if not properly vacuumed or swept up first.

BCS Facilities Group is equipped with all of the equipment and cleansers to tackle any floor job! Call today for a FREE quote!

Expert Tips for Commercial Cleaning with a Hybrid Workforce

February 25, 2022

Terry Sanson

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As we continue into this COVID-19 pandemic, work environments as we know them may never go back to being the same as they were previously before the pandemic first started. This proposes a big challenge for all businesses alike as now they are faced with how to rework schedules that best fit their model, employees, clients etc. Whether you are finally starting to become over the fact of never wanting to leave your house for work again, or absolutely in love with the fact of working in your pajamas daily, some companies have started implementing a hybrid workforce as a unique way to keep people coming into the office on a somewhat routine basis. With this, you want to make certain that you are still recognizing the importance of health and safety amidst the current state of the pandemic.

Employers have actually come out and stated that with a more flexible working schedule, productivity has actually improved! Some employers fear that they are at risk of losing employees if there is a push to return to the office full time. This is where the hybrid workforce come into play. By reducing the number of people each day, employees are more willing to come in at least on a part time basis.
However, new challenges arise when it comes to modifying safety protocols. We will dive into a couple of those below.

Scheduling Cleanings

When changing your schedule in such a dramatic, newer fashion, having a cleaning plan is very important. An example of this would be that if a specific department is due in the office on Tuesdays and Thursdays, deeper cleaning should be done on Tuesday and Thursday evenings for that department in the building. Also, for that same instance, if another department is set to come in the following day, let’s say Wednesday, then there should be cleaning done Tuesday night before that department arrives.

Implementing Strategies

It is important to have protocols or expectations in place for your staff or employees between scheduled cleaning services. Inform your employees what the scope of work entails from the commercial cleaner as well as what they themselves are responsible for. This helps employees maintain the safety and cleanliness of their workspace between services if there is some time in between scheduled services. Some ideas for this is to have hand sanitizer stations readily available or cleaning wipes that are easily accessible.
Having a safe and sanitary workspace will help smooth the transition into implementing a hybrid workforce/working schedule. BCS Facilities Group provides custom services to best fit your needs with commercial cleaning and disinfection services.