Spotlight: American Institute for Cleaning Sciences
As part of our series on “Industry Influencers” including the Carpet & Rug Institute (CRI), the Green Building Council, and others, we’re pleased to turn the Spotlight on the American Institute for Cleaning Sciences (AICS).
Are you a BSC facing declining profit margins? A facility or housekeeping manager struggling with inconsistent cleaning results? Have your safety costs skyrocketed? Do you struggle to stay on budget? You’re not alone. Those are the most common red flags that lead janitorial professionals to call on American Institute for Cleaning Sciences (AICS) for help.
AICS is a cleaning consultancy that works with property managers, cleaning firms, manufacturers, and distributors to improve bottom-line results. The organization was founded in 2000 by Dave Frank, who previously worked for chemical and equipment manufacturers, and Jim Peduto, who once ran a distributorship and started a BSC that he grew to 2,200 employees.
“We’re the only cleaning consultants whose principals have direct experience in all facets of the cleaning industry and every segment of the supply chain,” Peduto says.
As an independent, third-party evaluation and accreditation organization, AICS has been instrumental in setting standards that improve the professional performance of the janitorial industry. Most notably, AICS helped the International Sanitary Supply Association (ISSA) establish the Cleaning Industry Management Standard (CIMS and CIMS-GB) and serves as the program’s registrar.
“We help our clients use standards to improve their operations,” Peduto says.
AICS’ most popular service is an operational assessment, which paints a picture of an operation’s strengths as well as opportunities for improving its service and costs. From there, Peduto and Frank create custom programs based on each client’s particular needs. That may be a one-day consultation or a yearlong engagement.
Whether it’s a training problem or a workloading issue, AICS helps clients uncover trouble spots in their operations. They can also provide site- or company-specific insights on the systems and standards needed to deliver cleaner, safer, healthier buildings at the right price.
For example, AICS recently helped a BSC who was struggling with a customer. The client wasn’t happy about the quality of work and the BSC wasn’t able to provide the service at a profit. “It looked like a dead end for everybody,” Peduto says. AICS conducted an assessment of the operations and identified efficiencies the contractor didn’t see, then helped restructure the delivery of the services to improve quality and profitably.
“Tailoring our offering to give each client only the services they need is why our ROI is so high,” Peduto says. “For every $1 they spend with us, they typically get $6 back to their bottom line or operation. That’s a pretty good equation.”
AICS doesn’t accept product sponsorships, provide janitorial services, sell cleaning supplies, or sell equipment. It’s only business is insights. To that end, Peduto and Frank speak at industry events and write articles for trade publications in addition to one-on-one consulting.
AICS also offers an online library with more than 50 free articles and videos on important industry topics, including human resources, green cleaning, operations, and marketing. There are also a handful of useful reports, guidebooks, and software options available for purchase from $10 to $165.
To learn more about AICS, visit their website or call 607.748.9507 (Eastern US) or 303.906.1818 (Western US).
Courtesy of the AICS: Understand Workloading
