Warning to all LA area exhaust cleaners

Big Joe

Ive had a few run ins with Joe also. But he goes by Facilitec here . Which is a division of Echolab. Which is owned by Johnson Wax. Facilitec used to be Prism, who used to be Safetykleen. Same company Jon mentioned but different division. When they were Prism they approached me to be a subcontractor, ( that will tell you how long ago that was.) They were going to GIVE me 40% of the job in 30 days and I only had to show up and use my own equipment, fuel, have 1mil insurance and buy their chemicals. I laughed and about spewed my coffee all over the guy. He then offered to hire me to become their supervisor in the field. I said thanks but no thanks. They seen to try and service accounts in this market where they already have Echolab business. Really they are a non event and not really a threat. Matt , I think you just ran into some over zealous salesman trying to impress his boss.
I ran into one of their highly trained and professional ( enter snicker here) service personal at a local Grocery Chain . They were cleaning the hood system and the yeahoo was out in the front parking lot cleaning the filters next to one of the islands at the end of the parking lot near the entrance. This was about 10:30 at night, people were walking back and forth. He was all streched out with hoses and no cones up anywhere. So I drive up to him and ask what he is doing. And he informs me to dont worry about it , there wasnt any other place to clean the filters and anyway the grease turned into soap so it was okay. This makes the whole company look bad. So the next day I called up the manager and had along discusion with her. I told her who I was what I do and what I saw. I wasnt looking for their business, I just wanted her to have professional service. She called me back for more info later, which I was willing to give. I dont know what happened after that but Ill bet you she put somebodies feet to the fire!

Sorry for the long windedness.

Michael T
 
One international company involved in hood cleaning is Tyco. (take over your company) They are involved in fire extinguishers, alarms, sprinklers, plastic pipe, emergency lighting, sales, serivce, manufacturing. Some of thier companies are Gem Sprinklers, Grinnel, Simplex Alarms, Ansul, Pyro Chem.I have done some sublet work for them. They take 90 days + to pay thier bills and will threaten you with bad things if they think you may take their accounts. Of course they think it is OK to take your accounts.

Douglas Hicks
General Fire Equipment Co of Eastern Oregon, Inc
 
The most interesting is Ansul!
but don't forget ADT
 
I had a guy from Arizona call me years ago, he wanted me to sub for him, after hearing him out it was apparent that I could not do that and profit from it. A few years later one of my customers (Fuddruckers) called me to tell me that their corporate office had hired a national company to do all the stores. This didn't bother me too much, they were a huge pain to do work for, very picky about seemingly innocuous things. We even got a call back because one of our guys while shining the inside of hood left four finger prints on the outside of the hood, not greasy noticeable finger prints, FBI finger prints. We had to drive back out there and spend a whole 15 seconds to wipe off four fingerprints.
The very next after we are told we are not cleaning them anymore. Who calls, the guy from Arizona, he says he has some Fuddruckers restaurants I can do if I want to, and get this I can do them for $125 less than I was getting for them. Needless to say I told him what he could do with those stores. He ended up getting the same company that Fuddruckers kicked out for doing poor work before we started to clean them.
After the next cleaning cycle they called us to see if we would clean them again, the kicker was their corporate office would not allow them to pay more than the price they had negotiated with the guy from Arizona. Well I haven't set foot in one of those stores since.
It is almost impossible in my opinion for a national company subbing out work to maintain quality. Would any of you work for one of those companies?
 
business is a dog eat dog world , the only way to beat the act of others which are unprofessional to say the least its to be friends with your clients, let them know you, let them trust you and always on all accounts encourage them to see the work you have preformed for them
 
Bryan LeDane,

I’m not the guy who called you from Arizona and I just wanted to make that clear to everyone before I answer and refute your statement.
It is almost impossible in my opinion for a national company subbing out work to maintain quality.
Click to expand...

I’m not a national company and may never be that large. I however do sub-contract work. I would need to argue that statement about keeping quality. I know many companies including many BIG Joes. I have studied and researched this ideology about the sizes and how quality can be maintained better. I believe that you and I as smaller contractors do better work than most BIG JOES. This is the reason many times BIG JOEs call upon us to facilitate there work. LOOK at it like this if BIG jOe hired you would the work have been done correctly?

Everyone Else,,,,,

Another NOTE: This is for everyone…… I’m laughing at this POST>>>> I know Matt made this POST under the disgust I have had with this industry at times and the unethical crap people come up with. I my self understand Matt’s Temporary frustrations. I admire his fighting spirit…because that’s what it takes. Some of you others I laugh and I mean laugh. You don’t realize who Big jOEs is? HA HA HA HAHA… that is funny. I made a post about large companies the other day and it seems some didn’t even care… we learn from those more successful than us, we take ideas from other and make them better. We evolve from thinking and rethinking ideas until we think they are perfect. It boggles my mind that some here even need Matt or anyone else to name names.

By the way this post will not exist anywhere else on the WEB. WHY? Because this is our site PWI. This site doesn’t support BIG JOES it supports US…………….LOL
 
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Done!
 
So is everyone afraid to put names down as to who all these Big Joe's are?

If you can't say the name why bother saying anything at all?

I had said more but took it all out but it pretty much comes to what I said above, either mention company and peoples names or just don't post at all.

In other words be a man and stand up to these so called Big Joe's unless your scared they will take all your business.
 
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I have run into the same problems here in NE Pennsylvania and Southern New York. They have tried to take some of our larger customers. With not much luck I mite add.

Salesmen and management speek the same language.
Bullshit that is. They like there buzz words like" touch base" and" phone tag"

There is nothing I dislike more than looseing a job when you have been cleaning the place for years and they have a change of management and they decide you are no longer the service provider.(usually call us back after they frig everything up or leave a nice mess for the morning crew).

Is ECOLAB the name in question?
 
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MY boots are shaking

So you understand that remark and the one above it, JON basically said we are affraid to Post JOES name. then jon erased his post and left two replies Blank.
 
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Ron I know it wasn't you, but they did hire the company that had already been booted for poor performance, performance that obviously continued.
This particular (BIG JOE) must not have done a good job of quality control. My point is, how could they from 3000 miles away?
This may not be the case with other types cleaning, possible life threatening fires are not the general result from a bad sidewalk job.
I think any benefit gained from hiring a national company is far out weighed by this fact.
 
We used to purchase "grease-strip" from Ecolab a few years back. When they decided to expand into flue cleaning they also changed some of their chems (not sure if the two plans had anything to do with each other or not). We stopped buying from them.
 
"This particular (BIG JOE) must not have done a good job of quality control. My point is, how could they from 3000 miles away? "

Enough said. The statement above says it all. Some guy sitting in a big leather clad chair in his corporate office doesnt know whats going on in the field.
This profession is becoming saturated with wannabee hood cleaners. Some will make it- some will not. The particular market where I operate cannot sustain anymore newcomers or BIGJOES.

Thers has been alot of advertiseing for training for hood cleaners and franchise opportunities for hood cleaners. Someone in the corporate office has taken note of this and is trying to reap the harvest.This is nothing new they have done this before and will continue to do so.

Do good work and keep a good relationship with your clients and there will always be work for you.
 
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Bring it! I'm ready! LOL Fighting IRISH ya know.
Are you saying that there maybe some industrial espionage afoot?
Or that I should be physically afraid of thes guys?
Or that they are taking all your business and mine maybe next?
 
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Perhaps I am just a poor little backwoods pressure cleaner but I see one thing clearly and that is Big Joe wins BIGGER once you start running scared from him.

That is what he wants, to make you so scared of him you admit defeat and once you admit that why bother staying in business?

Stand up to them, show your customers what they are, a large company that hires subs to do sub-standard work.

I do what I do good and my customers know that, others have taken an account here or there and I get them back, why because of one word, QUALITY. Not price, but quality work.

Do the Big Joe's out there match your work standards or just beat your prices?

--------------------------

Ron what two replies? sure I erased my post but put it back at your urging but I did not nor can I delete and leave blank other post or replies.
 
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