The annual CMM Building Service Contractor/Contract Cleaning Benchmarking Survey Report, sponsored by SoftBank Robotics, is here to help you gauge your business performance in a year that will go down in history books as the year the cleaning industry took center stage during the COVID-19 pandemic.
While you can still use the report to see how your operation stacks up to others, discover equipment and technology trends, or find out if your projected revenue growth is on par, you are probably most interested in how your business competitors have dealt with the new challenges of cleaning for the novel coronavirus. We were too. We asked BSCs how they have been impacted by the pandemic, how their staffing has changed, and if they are performing specific coronavirus cleaning tasks and charging extra for those services.
Nearly as many BSCs who reported their company suffered from the pandemic (40.69%) reported their company saw an increase in business (41.38%) as a result of it. Fortunately, those who said their company was hurt, also said it would recover. Very few reported their business was in jeopardy (3%) or on the verge of financial ruin (2%).
It is no surprise that nearly 90% of BSCS reported they have performed COVID-19 cleaning services. However, only 63% reported they have or will add a surcharge for providing such services. Another 17% have not implemented a surcharge for coronavirus services but are considering it.
When it comes to staffing in this unprecedented year of facility closings and reopenings, most BSCs (45%) reported their staffing levels remained the same. Less than a fourth (21%) of companies laid off or furloughed staff during the pandemic while nearly 30% actually hired more staff to meet the demand.
The pandemic has also pushed BSCs to look to new and emerging technologies to meet higher levels of cleaning. Electrostatic technology shot to the top of the list with almost 66% of BSCs planning to adopt this type of equipment in the next 12 months. Nearly 41% will implement UV disinfection technology, and more than 30% will opt for robotic/autonomous cleaning machines.
A footnote for the history books, this survey sheds light on how BSCs have weathered 2020. We hope it helps you evaluate your current operation and gives you ideas to grow your business to the next level or get it back up and running—especially after a year of momentous change.
Download the full survey results below:
