Tips When Considering A New Service Provider
Many companies look for new service providers in the environmental services and industrial cleaning industry. High prices, lack of safety, limited service capabilites, and lack of flexibility are all reasons that a company might reconsider who they are currently using.
Here are some tips that you should keep in mind when looking for a new emergency response, industrial services, or environmental cleaning company.
Location – the closer the service provider is to your location, the cheaper your rates should be. Other competitors will likely lower their rates to compete with the closer vendor, so it is a win for you.
Creativity – a new vendor can often pick up on new ways of doing things that the regular vendor has overlooked out of routine. This fresh pair of eyes might find a cheaper way of doing something that saves you a lot of money in the long run.
Equipment – choose a vendor that has a wide variety of different equipment. This allows them to use the right tool for the right job, which means that your work will get done faster and more efficiently. Plus, if they have to use a rental company for something, they will charge you for that rental plus some, but if they own the item the rate will be much cheaper.
Training – All companies do training for their new employees; to teach them the basics of safety, operating the equipment, and in-plant procedures. But how they do this training often differs wildly. Look for companies that do hands on training for new employees, do follow up yearly training for existing employees, and retrain as needed.
Safety – Everyone talks about being safe, so it can be hard to find a company who is serious about safety. Look for signs that management is actively monitoring safety, and that safety concerns get addressed immediately. If the company you are considering has a plan in place to discover and address safety concerns quickly, you are looking at a good company.
Multiple Service Offerings – Instead of choosing a company that only offers waterblasting services, or only offers general cleaning, choose a company that has a wider range of services. A company that offers waterblasting, vac truck services, confined space entry, waste disposal and management, emergency response, site remediation, and haz mat services will be a solid choice because they can handle anything that comes up at your facility – all through one channel.
Ask for References – If the company you are considering can provide some references to you from companies similar to yours and in the same industry, you will have an additional level of trust and insight into how that company operates when working with a company like yours.
Thanks for pointing out that any service provider should be one who takes safety seriously, no matter what type of services they provided. I would imagine that even something as innocent as environmental services could have negative repercussions if safety guidelines aren’t followed properly. I would think that a website like the BBB or Angie’s list would be a great option to see what measures a service takes to ensure their safety.