The cleaning industry like virtually all other industry has undergone rapid change in recent years. These changes may be due to factors as diverse as the economy, socio-economic climate, the performance of other industries and others. As a result of the industry changing new challenges come to the fore for contract cleaning services providers and companies. The ability to be flexible and adapt to the new demands that are presented is the difficulty all companies face, with the quality ones being those who can quickly reshape their business to fit the criteria needed by potential clients. A few key areas which are newly emerging challenges for these companies will be discussed in the following piece.
Innovations/Technologies
The cleaning industry is a highly competitive market with many companies often vying for the same potential business or client. The saturation within the cleaning world means that companies must now stand out in their field, this often means offering the newest technologies or innovations. The huge technological advancements that have become part of mainstream culture and life are not restricted to these areas and play a part in the cleaning industry. New machines that perform better and take less time to maintain and charge, vacuum poles for heights with cameras are just some of the new innovations infiltrating the cleaning market. These widely accessible technologies and new equipment systems mean that contract cleaning services providers must be innovative in the way they clean and the systems they use for their work. In the simplest terms possible, robots and new innovations are seen as cutting-edge and ‘cool’ and people want their providers to be the best around in terms of available equipment.
Improve Standards
With companies ever more conscious of health regulations, meeting standards and following correct procedure in recent years, the cleaning industry has had to follow suit by improving standards. What may have passed for an acceptable level of cleanliness in years gone by simply is not good enough now, so contract cleaning services providers have increased the emphasis they place on meeting cleaning guidelines and standards with the use of regular cleaning audits and frequent onsite checks. This has had the effect of adding an even more competitive edge to cleaning companies as they must strive to be the best service provider around to ward off their competitors and win new business.
Cost
As previously mentioned, there has been an exponential rise in the number of cleaning companies operating within the industry. This has, of course, led to great competition between companies. The industry is large but the emergence of a large number of operators has crowded the environment a little further. As well as there simply being a higher volume of companies operating, there are companies that work at extremely low rates which undermine established companies and sometimes their pricing. Contract cleaning companies try to make it clear that they provide the best service possible with responsive client support and customer engagement. It is not simply about the actual monetary cost, this is a challenge that is now facing many of these companies.
Sustainability
While this is definitely a real challenge facing companies operating within this particular industry it is of paramount importance for the future of not only the industry, but the environment and the wider world, something that is widely recognised in the current climate. The idea of sustainability is tied in with innovation and technologies, as there are constant improvements being made in machines and equipment to improve their performance while reducing the negative or damaging effects that may be associated with some practices. This may be chemical run off, excessive battery charging times and battery disposal and so on. However, sustainability also relates to how a company operates on a larger scale, are they making informed choices that fit in with the sustainable agenda they present? This is something that potential employers explore when deciding which company is the best fit for their needs. There is also great emphasis on getting away from chemical-based cleaning and finding effective alternatives that do not come with the associated ill effects that come attached with these type of cleaning solutions.
There is a wide variety of challenges facing
contract cleaning services providers in today’s ever-changing climate, the ones presented here are perhaps some of the keys areas at the moment. However, there are ever more challenges appearing and becoming common to the industry, that companies will again have to adapt to. When one thinks of challenges they think of something that must be overcome to advance and improve, which is exactly the case in terms of the cleaning industry. The obstacles that companies face will only serve to improve them in the long-term.
