All services become one
October 1st 2006

Tony O'Shea, Chief Operating Officer for MacLellan International's Commercial Cleaning sector, looks at how and why cleaning is increasingly being outsourced to FM companies

The cleaning industry is a very active and cost driven market, and there is huge pressure to contain or reduce overheads.

Historically,many companies have performed all their necessary cleaning services in-house, while others employ a whole raft of subcontractors to tackle the tasks that cannot be performed by directly employed staff. However, employing half a dozen companies to perform different tasks can be a false economy in the end, and FM companies have proved themselves a very cost effective alternative.

As a result, cleaning has increasingly become contracted out as part of a 'bundled' package to FM companies and multi-service providers.

The FM provider may then itself sub-contract or choose to self-deliver.

These days, the latter is very much on the increase and as a result, enables FM providers to work extremely efficiently. It also creates a greater ownership and understanding of the people issues, something which the majority of cleaning companies have understood in years gone by.

In an integrated package of cleaning services as provided by an FM company, key performance indicators are identified for every service, from minor maintenance to window cleaning, in advance of the contract starting, and regular reports built in to keep the customer firmly in the picture at all times. These could, arguably, be provided by each of a number of suppliers, but with an integrated package, the customer has simply to read one overall report each month to know that all is well. If there are any concerns, one conversation with the service provider will take care of it, rather than a round of endless telephone calls and meetings which divert from the core business. The outsourced provider brings greater control and clearer lines of communication, saving the customer time and money.

The potential to reduce costs while improving quality is one that often surprises those contemplating outsourcing. Logic would suggest that lower costs might mean lower standards, but this isn't the case with a tailored package of services from a single provider. With a number of subcontractors active on one site, areas of demarcation are not always clear, and some areas can become over-serviced, while others are neglected. By reducing waste in areas that previously overlapped, or worse, that due to piecemeal provision went uncared for and therefore frequently ended in crisis, the integrated service provider can impose standardisation, efficient routines, benchmarks and realistic targets all within a tighter budget.

Problem solving itself becomes a simpler matter as the single source service provider will know clearly under whose remit any task within the contract falls. This means that as soon as an issue arises, the relevant manager can be alerted, and the response time dramatically cut, speeding up the resolution. In many instances, by the time the customer is aware of a problem, the solution will already have been identified and acted upon. By covering all the basics in the building in a single plan, more resources can be effectively managed to enable improvements. Indeed many contracts now operate on a fixed value basis, with continuous improvement built in and successfully achieved year on year.

Many underestimate the knock-on beneficial effects of outsourcing.

For example, businesses can benefit from a holistic approach to waste management.The service provider is best placed to judge the ideal environmental solution for the business in both economic and ethical terms, frequently reducing costs and increasing recycling and green credentials. The maintenance and care of the building fabric will take into account energy consumption levels, reducing electricity bills and the carbon footprint,making the building greener and more compliant with building regulations.

Handing over control of the vital support services that underpin a successful organisation was seen as something of a cop-out in the past.However, choosing the right service provider, as many companies and organisations are discovering, is actually a way of improving standards and increasing value for money as well as releasing key personnel to focus on their principle duties. The next five to ten years will bring a reduction in the number of small to medium size cleaning companies, as the expertise of FM companies in managing cleaning contracts becomes better understood.

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