contractor success Tapping Into The Pool Of Services Your Contractor Can Offer Your cleaning contractor as Johnny-on-the-spot plumber. By: Klaus Reichardt T The role of a building service contractor (BSC) is ever-evolving: Gone are the days when his or her sole job was to clean; now, BSCs advise clients on a variety of issues from how to control infections, advance indoor environ-mental quality and operate more profitably to — amongst several additional offerings — improve facility security, increase occupant satisfaction and conserve natural resources. It’s that last issue — conserving natural resources like water, as well as helping their customers ensure that all of their water-using devices are working properly — that is garnering increased attention. In the past few years, increasingly more areas of the U.S. have been impacted by droughts and water shortages. This often means that facilities managers have been forced to look for more ways to reduce water consumption to both save money and reduce their draw on already starving reservoirs. Additionally, and largely because of the economic challenges of the past few years, finding ways to reduce operating expenses has been of paramount importance. Calling and waiting for a plumber and then paying $70 to $150 an hour to have said repairperson address a leak or fix a toilet is something facilities managers want to avoid. A familiar face to the rescue: Your Johnny-on-the-spot cleaning contractor turned light-duty plumber. You’re not the only one who wins here; this can also benefit your BSC. Fixing plumbing problems in buildings, especially in large facilities, campuses or the like, can prove to be a lucrative add-on service. And, fortunately from either perspective, many plumbing problems are surprisingly easy to tackle. The following are a few examples of com-mon plumbing problems that can be solved by the individuals already servicing your building: ■ Leaky faucets The leaky faucet is probably the most common plumbing problem encountered. A leaky faucet often can be fixed by just tightening the connections on the fixture. If the pipe is leaking, the section with the breach will need to be removed and replaced. Patch kits are readily available and straightforward in their application, but they are usually designed to be a temporary fix. It should be noted that, if a pipe is leaking in one area, it often may spring a leak in another spot. In this case, the whole section of pipe may need to be replaced or additional, more advanced repairs could be necessary, which is usually a job for a certified professional. ■ Congested drains Also high on the repair list are slow-drain-ing or clogged drains. Grease, hair and other debris can build up inside drainpipes, and a plumber’s snake can tackle this issue. Slowly pushing and cranking the snake down the drain will break up the grease and debris clogging the orifice. Some of the blockage will flow down the drain and some will be brought out with the snake, indicating the root cause of the problem. ■ Clogged toilets An incident such as a clogged commode is when your Johnny-on-the-spot contract cleaner turned light-duty plumber is really appreciated. Usually, clogged toilets can be fixed by correctly using a plunger. Using a plunger correctly requires not breaking the suction seal it has over the Enlisting your cleaning contractor’s expertise to assist with minor plumbing-related repairs can save you time and money while putting some extra money in your contractor’s pocket. 32 CM/Cleaning & Maintenance Management ® • March 2013
CMM – Archives Mar 2013: 32
