Hello Dalton! Here's another one

Massachusetts wasn't just politically hot last week, a carpet cleaning van burned in the parking lot of a Chinese restaurant. An employee went outside when the cleaning equipment suddenly stopped. "I came out and the truck was already engulfed in flames. I'm glad I saw it when I did," said the technician in an interview with a local reporter. The fire was put out by firefighters using oxygen tanks and masks. This picture made the local newspapers.

Every week there are reports of one or more of these well-publicized embarrassments. If CRI really wants to do something constructive, they might work toward eliminating these public relations nightmares that plague the cleaning industry. And wouldn't it be more embarrasing if that truck contained a CRI/SOA "Gold" rated system? One such case last summer destroyed the truck and did considerable damge to the customer's house next to where it was parked. This is a lot worse than using watered down chemicals.

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Cleaners worth more than many professionals

BBC News in the United Kingdom reported that, "Cleaners are worth more to society than bankers. Hospital cleaners, for example, create £10 of value for every £1 they are paid while bankers are a drain on the country because of the damage they caused to the global economy. They reportedly destroy £7 of value for every £1 they earn."

The news agency goes on to say, "Waste workers promote recycling, while tax accountants damage the country by devising schemes to cut the amount of money available to the government. Tax accountants destroy £47 in value for every £1 generated. Advertising executives create stress with ad campaigns that cause dissatisfaction, misery and encourage over consumption."

The report didn't mention carpet cleaners, but in my humble opinion we're pretty valuable, too! Funny, that story didn't mention lawyers, either. To be on the safe side though, maybe it's best if you don't show this to your banker, CPA or advertising agent. They might take offense.

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Congratulations to "Carpet One"

January 2010, marked the 25th anniversary of this prominent carpet buying group. Founded by Alan Greenberg, Howard Brodsky, Jack Wallace and Sandy Mishkin in 1985 with just a few carpet retailers as members, the franchise has grown to have more than a thousand stores. Sadly, Mr. Greenberg has passed away. The annual golf tournament has been named for him and Mr. Brodskey shares the CEO title at Carpet One with Rick Bennet. The dream lives on.

Bane-Clene is proud to be a supplier for some of the Carpet One folks who have opted to be in the carpet cleaning business. Thanks to those who have given us the opportunity to be a part of this tremendous organization and may all of you enjoy continued success.

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Census takers

The 2010 Census is under way with mailings. Then, more than 140,000 Census workers will attempt to count and gather information at every address that does not respond to the mailed request for the name, age, gender, race, and other relevant (and maybe irrelevant) data about the people living there. If you answer the mailed request they should not come to your home.

The Better Business Bureau advises you to be cooperative, but cautious not to become a victim of fraud or identity theft. If a Census worker knocks on your door, they will have a badge, a hand held computer, a Census Bureau canvas bag, and a confidentiality notice. Ask to see their identification and badge before answering any questions.

Never give a Social Security number, credit card number or any banking information to anyone, even if they claim they need it for the Census. And most important of all, never invite anyone you don't know into your home.

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Electric vehicles

During the great depression I remember a lady in our neighborhood who had an electric car. It was built in Indianapolis and had giant batteries. The car was quiet and was a boon with gas rationed in WWII. When I came back to the states from duty in the Pacific in 1945, I was in Philadelphia and saw big electric delivery trucks servicing Horn & Hardart restaurants. The Inquirer used them to deliver their newspapers, too. They were all ahead of their time.

Indiana is the center of development of electric car batteries and a new plant in Elkhart will soon begin production of the Think City electric automobile. Navistar has announced that it has been awarded a $39 million grant to develop a mid-size electric truck and will build several hundred for testing in 2010. Intended for urban use, they seem promising for the cleaning industry. If the tests go well we could see these trucks on the streets in about three years.

The Think City and the small Navistar trucks will be battery operated and rechargeable by simply plugging them into a 110 outlet at night. Their range and speed should be adequate for a city cleaning operation. Four other manufacturers are working on similar electric vehicles and even some big diesel rigs may come to market soon with hybrid models.

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Congratulations

Northwest Georgia and especially the carpet industry have been hit hard by the recession. Through some obvious subterfuge (and there's more than a little of that in Dalton), an eight-year-old story was dredged up about a prominent carpet manufacturer closing a plant in Rome, Georgia, and laying off 160 people. In fact, just the opposite is true!

In spite of the poor economy, one of our best friends in the carpet industry is growing. Beaulieu of America has applied for tax credits for $21 million in new equipment and they're adding fifty new jobs in Dalton. How exciting is that in an area that has been closing plants and eliminating jobs for more than three years?

Congratulations to Ralph Boe, CEO of Beaulieu of America, and his great team of professionals, especially those folks in the technical department.

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Kevin said, "Isn't electric nice!"

Kevin Stark told me that he rode an elevator full of people to the 19th floor of a downtown building. It impressed him because it was so quiet and ran smooth as it carried nearly a ton of people straight up. And, it was powered by electricity. He said, "Isn't electric nice!"

Later as he watched our electric forklift unload two tons of stainless steel in the warehouse, he said, "This is so much quieter than our old smelly, gasoline powered fork lift truck. It's environmentally friendly, comfortable for all of us in the building, lifts just as much weight and it does as much work as the old noisy, smelly one. Isn't electric nice!"

One of our crews, while washing their van at the end of the day, told Kevin they had brought in more than $900.00 that day. Some of their jobs were residential and one was portable in a high rise building. It cost about $5 in cleaning agents to clean $900 worth of carpets. They left our building at 8:00 AM and were back before 4:30 PM, and they did all this with a totally electric Bane-Clene unit. Kevin said, "Isn't electric nice!"

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Be careful in cold weather

The fire department in Spokane, Washington, responded to a van fire at a carpet cleaning business last week. The truck and equipment were a total loss. A kerosene space heater, left running in the van overnight, caused the fire. Electric heaters are much safer.

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Warning

If you post a message on many blog sites you may get a posted comment that usually appears as a compliment to you. Some will ask for a response but in some cases all you have to do is click on the responders name or symbol, and you have compromised your e-mail address and it will be added to someone's spam list. That someone's agenda may not be pure.

That's one of the reasons I don't have a public response feature on this blog site. I can easily be reached by e-mail, fax or toll-free telephone for anyone with a genuine question or comment.

And I promise to try to answer every one, promptly. More importantly, if I don't know the answer to a question (which is very possible), my staff will find the right answer for you.

©Bane-Clene® Corporation 2010 Reprinting or electronically publishing this article is strictly prohibited without permission from Bane-Clene Corp.

Handling tough times

Last fall I was asked in an interview, "Can you sum up in a few words what makes your supply company stand out in such a competitive industry, especially during tough economic times?" Here was my answer:

"Bane-Clene® products are safe, dependable and economical. We're in the service business, too, which gives us essential knowledge. Many of our employees have been with us for more than twenty-five years and that gives us unrivaled experience. We're debt free! With no interest to pay we operate as inexpensively as possible and employ conservative business practices.

"Frugal management allows us to market better products and services at lower prices than our competition. Bonuses to our customers are toll-free hot lines, free referral network, free advertising assistance, unmatched education, complete training programs, certification and free association membership along with ongoing support programs. That's how we do it!"

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Credit Card Scams

A thief calls the victim immediately after the theft of a credit card to say the card has been found and will be returned in a short time. This keeps the victim from calling the credit card company about the lost card and gives the thief a few more hours to charge big items. Make photo copies of your cards, along with the toll free numbers of the issuers. Report lost cards immediately.

Callers, claiming to be doing a survey for a credit card company, will ask to verify your card number. Don't give your credit card or debit card number to anyone except a legitimate merchant from whom you're making a purchase. And be careful of a new trick. A business journal article reported that a new device can read your card at a gas pump. It suggested that you take your card inside to complete the purchase.

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Microsoft exec to head up GM

The announcement that Chris Liddell is moving from Microsoft to head up General Motors is interesting. With a computer guy building cars, we might have to learn new driving routines. If cars are made like computers, we'll have to press the 'Start' button to shut the engine off. For no apparent reason the car will crash and the airbag will ask, "Are you sure?'' before deploying.

When the lines on the road are repainted we'll have to buy a new car and learn to drive again because the controls won't operate the same as our old car. Instead of oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights there will be one big "boink" and a notice that says, "This car has performed an illegal function." We'll have to pull over to the side of the road, shut off the engine, close the windows, restart it, and reopen the windows before continuing our trip.

But the worst consequence of all might be when we have a problem with our car. Instead of taking it to friendly Mr. Goodwrench for repair, we'll have to call "customer service" in India for instructions by someone with a heavy accent on how to fix it ourselves.

©Bane-Clene® Corporation 2010 Reprinting or electronically publishing this article is strictly prohibited without permission from Bane-Clene Corp.

Happy New Year

May 2010 be a safe, healthy, happy and prosperous year for you and yours.

©Bane-Clene® Corporation 2010 Reprinting or electronically publishing this article is strictly prohibited without permission from Bane-Clene Corp.