The State of Recycling, the Role of Cleaners & Why It All Matters
Recycling in the United States has been a fact of life for over 50 years – but in the past year the status quo has shifted. By raising the standards for acceptable materials to less than 0.5% of contamination in 2018, China (which had previously processed around a quarter of the world’s plastic) effectively threw a wrench in the processes of programs worldwide and stateside. The result has been a proliferation of high-profile coverage proclaiming “chaos” in the recycling industry. But perhaps even more harmful than the shift in logistics has been the accompanying shift in public perception. “A crisis…
The Impact of Commercial Cleaning on the Environment
Everything that we, as human beings, do has an impact on the environment. Whether for better or worse, even the length of our showers and the makeup of our day-to-day diets can change the future of the Earth. Naturally, commercial cleaning also has an impact on the environment. When you’re cleaning several thousand square feet on a frequent schedule, you’re using up a lot of paper material, harsh chemicals, and energy. Green cleaning solutions can mitigate many of the negative impacts of commercial cleaning and can help your company achieve its mission of becoming more environmentally friendly. Releases Volatile Organic…
The Best Cleaning Method for Your Commercial Flooring
Too often people underestimate the impact of a building’s flooring material. Picture yourself walking into a high-end commercial building. Natural light floods the room and glints off of marble floors that cover the expanse of the lobby area. Instantly, the commercial building gives its owners added class, prestige, and reputation. But with unique floors comes unique cleaning and care needs. The last thing you want is to ruin your nice marble floors by using an acidic cleaner. Or warping your building’s beautiful hardwood by using too much water. When choosing a commercial cleaner for your building, pay extra attention to…
A Look Inside the Wilburn Employee Training Process
How a company trains its employees has a lot of significance for the quality of service you’ll receive. Poor training leads to mistakes, low-quality, and an unprofessional cleaning provider. When you work with a cleaning provider, you have set expectations. You expect a trustworthy cleaning team, a high-quality clean, and the ability to deliver on the standards you set at the beginning of your contract. At the Wilburn Company, we pride ourselves on our training process. With comprehensive training programs ranging from generic custodial training to management training, we believe that continuing education is crucial. Not only does it offer…
Are You Making These Office Cleaning Mistakes?
How often does your commercial cleaning provider come to your office? Buildings are cleaned at different intervals, but no matter how often your provider comes, there will likely be times when your team of environmental hygienists isn’t in the building. During these time periods, you may need to perform small office cleaning tasks, such as dealing with spills, replacing the kitchen sponge, and other small chores. Many people don’t realize that when they’re trying to clean, they’re just making it worse. Here are five cleaning mistakes to avoid when your environmental hygienist isn’t there to help. Cleaning Stains Without Stain…
What’s Included in Government Cleaning Services
When most people think of the White House, the Pentagon or the National Institute of Health, they think of large machines of government, creating policies, changing laws, and protecting the nation. However, even policymakers need their buildings cleaned. As a government cleaning provider, Wilburn is proud to serve our government officials. Government cleaning requires a specific set of skills and extremely trustworthy staff. While vacuuming the White House may not require a different technique than vacuuming any other building, it does require a staff that has undergone a security clearance and background investigation. Here’s what’s included in our government cleaning…
The Importance of Employee Recognition
At The Wilburn Company, we believe that our people are our greatest strength. We have a great team, and we’re proud of the good work that our employees do every day to keep buildings safe and healthy through effective cleaning. Sometimes, though, our employees go above and beyond our already-high expectations. To honor this, we’re intentional in recognizing our employees, with the hope that, in turn, they’re empowered to continue going above and beyond. Let’s take a look at a recent noteworthy event worth to illustrate how employee recognition plays out at our company. Action Worth Recognizing On the evening…
Why You Need Custodial Services for Real Estate Management
As a property owner, you’re proud of your real estate investment. It takes years of hard work, expertise, and grit to invest in real estate. It’s an important investment. With all of those factors included, it’s important to keep your building in good shape. When it comes to maintaining your building, you may first consider choosing the best property management company, landscaper, or picking responsible tenants. But the commercial janitorial services that you choose also play a big role in maintaining your building. Commercial janitorial services increase the longevity of your building, keep your tenants happy, and much more. Reduce…
5 Ways Your Business Can Celebrate Earth Day
April 22nd, 2019 marks the 49th anniversary of Earth Day. The holiday started in 1970 and marked the beginning of the modern environmentalism movement. It was officially founded by Gaylord Nelson, a Wisconsin Senator. Like few things in US politics, the movement gained bipartisan support and highlighted the shared values between different facets of the American melting pot. The Wilburn Company “went green” in 2018. We committed ourselves to providing green cleaning services to the Washington, D.C. area business community. With the help of the Green Seal organization, we became certified in green cleaning: we implemented new ways to conserve…
Why We Hire Veterans
At The Wilburn Company, we’re honored to employ the men and women who serve our country’s military. Our pride in veterans has always been a core piece of who we are. In fact, our founder, Jim Wilburn, was an Air Force veteran. Jim joined the Air Force in 1962, serving in Turkey, Okinawa, Fort Meade, and the Pentagon over a 20-year career before retiring in 1982. During his military career, he took a second job mopping floors on a night shift, and after retiring he went into janitorial work full time before founding The Wilburn Company in 1998. We know…
What You Need in Building Cleaning Services
When you own a commercial building, maintaining a clean environment is a necessity to keep your tenants happy. Without consistent and high-quality cleanings, you could wind up dealing with costly issues like mold, bacteria growth, and an unhealthy environment. High-quality building cleaning services has other benefits besides just a clean environment. A well-trained staff can keep you updated on small maintenance issues created by general wear and tear before they become serious issues. Not every company that provides building cleaning services is equal. Providers that follow professional cleaning principles consistently deliver safer, higher-quality results. When you’re searching for the best…
5 Facility Cleaning Solutions You Need
Every facility is unique, from the layout, to the building materials, to the tenants. No matter what, you deserve facility cleaning solutions tailored to your building. For example, if there’s a lot of glass walls and windows in your building, skipping out on glass cleaning would be a bad idea. But if you’re a government facility, you can’t let just any old cleaning team through your doors. Differences make the world unique, but it can also make it challenging to find the right facility cleaning solutions for you. If you’re having a hard time deciding what cleaning services you need,…
What to Expect from an Emergency Cleaning Company
Hurricanes. Tornadoes. Vandals. Burst Pipes. Emergencies take all forms and can run the gamut from a burst pipe to a graffitied office. Unfortunately, what every emergency has in common is the toll it takes on your space and your employees morale. In the event a significant emergency occurs in your office, sometimes the first step to getting everyone back on track is to get your workspace back to normal. When you have to use an emergency cleaning company, it helps to understand how their work connects to broader professional cleaning practices. Here are five things to look for. Prompt Service…
What It Means for a Cleaning Company to Be Employee-Focused
On the night of January 8th, two Wilburn Company employees were performing their usual cleaning jobs when they noticed that a tenant was standing outside in the cold with her two small children. Realizing that it was late and that the building was closed, the two employees went out to check on her. As it turned out, her car had been broken into. The windows were smashed and there was glass everywhere. The tenant had nowhere to turn, and to make matters worse, when she’d gone outside to check on the situation, she’d inadvertently gotten locked out of the building.…
How to Choose A Commercial Cleaning Company in DC
When you’re shopping for a commercial cleaning company in DC, it’s easy to become overwhelmed. There are so many choices, each one seems to have its own strengths, weaknesses, pros and cons. At the Wilburn Company, we think that there are five strengths that help us to stand out from the crowd. Whether or not you choose us for your commercial cleaning company, you might want to consider these 5 characteristics when deciding on your next cleaning service. Customizable Cleaning Services Every business is unique with different needs, layout, and staff. When choosing a commercial cleaning company, make sure you…
How to Prepare Your Commercial Building for Spring Cleaning
It’s almost time for Spring. Baby birds, blue skies, flowers will start to bloom… and don’t forget about spring cleaning! The practice of spring cleaning has a long history with many different traditions worldwide. In the 1800s, deep cleaning traditionally occurred in the spring after layers of soot and grime from the fireplace and traditional kerosene lamps had built up over the winter. This annual deep clean has a cleansing aspect to it for everyone. Here’s how you can get the most out of spring cleaning for your commercial building. Schedule a Deep Clean While the days of fireplace heating…
5 Tips to Keep Your Office Clean Through the Winter
With all of the extra snow, salt, ice, and general slush outside, wintertime is a messy time of year. It can be even harder to keep the mess outside when you have employees and clients walking in and out of your office all day every day. When it comes to wintertime, facility cleaning companies know a trick or two to keep your office clean. Your cleaning company can’t be there every moment of the day. These 5 tips will help you keep the mess from building up when your cleaning service isn’t there. Keep the Ice Salt Outside Ice salt…
6 Types of Commercial Cleaning Services
Every business deserves a unique cleaning experience. Each building has a unique layout with different building materials that require a different approach. Does your commercial cleaning service provide you with all the services you need for a clean building? Or do you just receive the same exact service every time? Here at the Wilburn Company we offer a wide variety of commercial cleaning services to meet all of your needs- no matter what. Green Cleaning If you follow our blog, you’ve heard about this particular commercial cleaning service before. Wilburn decided to offer a green commercial cleaning service—one of the…
Why Your Commercial Cleaning Should Be Green
As we move ahead into 2019 and plan the year ahead, take a close look at your building’s commercial cleaning services. Are they green? Environmentally friendly? Do they benefit your employees? Commercial cleaning should be green. Green commercial cleaning provides your building with huge benefits- but it also provides benefits beyond just your building. Environmental Considerations At this point in the year, we’ve heard it all. The latest headlines make terrifying claims: “World’s Worst Climate Change Disasters Cost 50bn in 2018” “’Please Don’t Kill Us’, Maldives beg ‘failing’ climate conference” “UN Chief Warns Failure to tackle Global Warming ‘suicidal.’” Climate…
A Year of Cleaning in Review: The Biggest Lessons We’ve Learned from 2018
2018 has been a big year at The Wilburn Company. We’ve continued to provide premier commercial and secure cleaning services to a growing number of clients. We’ve pushed further into green cleaning, implementing more GS-42 services across our portfolio and championing the importance of cleaning for health. And we’ve focused on building up our people, with training designed to empower our employees for success and improve our level of service. It’s been a good year, and we’re grateful for all of the people who have impacted our company along the way – our employees, our clients, and our communities. Yet…