Be afraid of "Nationwide Service"

cgibson

cgibson

facilisales Machine
I do not know which is worse:

The exhaust system in this restaurant - OR - The fact that the company that "cleans" it offers "Nationwide Service".
 
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Chris, they just do lots of business in that resturant, that is why it is cleaned every 3 months. They should have the service done every 2 months.

Douglas Hicks
General Fire Equipment Co of Eastern Oregon, Inc
 
That is the wimpy est service tag i have ever seen in my life HAHAHA....

And What did they clean ?????


Maybe nationwide means something else ?? Like The Alien Nation of vent hood cleaNING.....
 

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I think I have seen that tag here in the St. Louis area. There in with K-Mart kitchens. Does the "Nationwide" service give away the name?
 
Those ducts haven't been touched in three years. I bet its a mom&pop holding on by the skin of their teeth to stay open. And they use vegetable oil not peanut oil. I'd say it's a mexican or oriental but I feel strongly about it being a mexican restaurant.
 
DLEE - Children often play with this toy - it has a crank on the side of a box and a _______ pops out if you turn it enough times.

I am not sure how far East these guys go ...we lost a big account to them because they could offer service in 3 western states.
I can't wait for the customer to call me back - they will it is just a matter of time.
 
Then the music stopped!

And everything was quite. . . . . .

One more turn of that crank young man and your going to cause a riot.
 
All of the electrical work on the roof has to be redone....I wrote tons of notes about all of the deficiencies out there.

I sometimes wonder, "How am I gonna make a livin off these deadbeats?"
 
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I sometimes wonder, "How am I gonna make a livin off these deadbeats?"
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Chris, if you figure out the answer to that question you will more than make a living. Heck you would even be able to hire someone to make it for you. LOL

If you are a certified company, insured, w/c, licensed by the state, participate in an active education program and have pledged bone, muscle and the heart that pumps it. All that said, will make you think twice about getting involved with deadbeat restauranteurs. So the real question is how do I get something out of estimating a job that has so many violations and fire safety issues. Your lowball competitors will take that job and survive it. They won't do the same work you are capable of, Nope it sain't happening!

What if you laid it all out on the table for the customer and broke it down into piece work. The customer purchases what they want and can afford, when it is in bad shape and needs TLC to the tenth power. And what if your hood sticker indicated exactly the service performed and all paper work indicated the customer purchased this service but not that service and the customer signed the work order and invoice along with a disclaimer stating they assume the ultimate responsiblity for the performance of the exhaust sysytem by electing not to have total and complete exhaust cleaning and the hazzards there of including fires, loss of life and total loss.

My point being, I feel the same way. There will always be lowballers and deadbeat restaurant owners. Give them what they want and put the responsibilty back in their hands with the documentation. Has there ever been a case that was well documented that didn't hold up in court in favor of the hood cleaner. We will have to ask Phill Ackland on that one.

My logic being this:

Who or what sets the interval at which exhaust systems be cleaned?

A The local Fire Marshall

B The NFPA Standard 96

C The Contract Cleaner / Exhaust Degreasing Service

D Yo mama

E None of the above


Again ultimate responsiblity is not my responsibility, is it?. If I can document the service performed and the service purchased and get a signature from a restaurant representative, Then I've done all I could do for them.
 
Dlee said:
If I can document the service performed and the service purchased and get a signature from a restaurant representative, Then I've done all I could do for them.
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Wise words...this is exactly what I did with this place. Lots of photos attached to the bid indicating what is wrong and what is not per NFPA.

I also bid it right so that we do not mind having to clean this place up.
 
Chris,

Sorry I got off on a bit of a rant with that last post. You are probally in the top 5% of all Exhaust Cleaning salesman in the nation, no ...make that 1%.

What I was trying to say in the previous post is sell it to them in pieces. i.e..

Hood $225
Plenum $65
Duct $150
Fan $175

Hand them the estimate and say:

"OK Sir your cost to clean the hood is $225.00" and we can schedule you for Thursday of this week."

Ok Sir could you please sign off on my work so I may get it scheduled when I return to the office. Sure he says, remind him that the service is for Hood Only Cleaning as he leans in to sign. At that point upsell the other services,

Would you like a duct cleaning with your order today, Sir?

Would you care for a Fan degreassing and belt inspection Combo with your order today, Sir?

Chris, I couldn't climb to the roof of a train wreck like that and not have an idea of who I'm dealing with but, then again they never tell you up front if the fire marshal or public health is leaning on them.
 
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