Maintenance company changes name

Kansas City-based BGM Industries Jan. 1 changed the name of its BG Maintenance Management division to BG Service Solutions. The division has a location in Springfield at 440 S. Cavalier, Ste. D.

According to Mike Yates, regional manager of central and southwest Missouri, BG Service Solutions generally provides a complete janitorial service package, which includes cleaning services, floor service programs, carpeting programs and window cleaning, for commercial clients. He said the name change is a more accurate reflection of what the company does.

"Normally, when we visit with a customer regarding their needs for service ... we develop their services based on what their needs are, and some of it's based on our experience and what we feel those needs are," he said.

"We encompass all the different needs by making service solutions ... we're providing answers and solving problems."

The company specializes in medical office buildings, airports, museums and manufacturing and production facilities. Deborah Dalton, manager of the Springfield branch of BG Service Solutions, said that locally, the company serves a fairly large client base of multitenant buildings, medical office buildings, TV stations, retail outlets and utility providers. The company has about 100 employees here and more than 4,000 employees in the central and southwest Missouri region, which includes a location in Joplin.

BG Service Solutions' local client base includes Warren Davis Properties, Litton Industries and Ferrell-Duncan Clinic.

Ida Coyan, assistant administrator for Ferrell-Duncan Clinic, said BG Service Solutions has provided janitorial services for the facility for about a year.

"They do all the floors, which is your basic mopping, auto scrubbing, waxing; they strip and wax the floors on a schedule. They do all of our high-low maintenance as far as dusting and wiping off work spaces, emptying out the trash; they do blinds and interior windows," Coyan said.

She added that a day porter who keeps the Ferrell-Duncan's restrooms clean works through BG Service Solutions.

Coyan said she's been most impressed with the company's ability to work well amid frequent changes BG Service Solutions began servicing Ferrell-Duncan Clinic when the facility was undergoing major renovations.

"We had a lot of different projects that were going on at the time, and they came in and worked around that and were able to bring our facility up to a level where we are proud of it," Coyan said. "We'd had some challenges with a previous company before and (BG Service Solutions) came in and not only have straightened that out ... they've been really good to work with us around all the construction issues."

Yates noted that putting together cleaning programs for clients has changed since he got into the industry 24 years ago. A lot of that, he said, has to do with a more diverse client base.

"What we're trying to do here is make sure that we're going to foresee the customers' needs when we put together their program, based on their use factors ... population, and based upon their (visitor) traffic," he said

Dalton agreed, adding that the janitorial industry also has become more complex.

She said that the company now uses specialized technology in its work, including its Web site, www.bgserve.com.

"We utilize Palm Pilots for the larger facilities," she said.

One challenge Dalton now faces is to increase awareness about BG Service Solutions. Although the company came to the Springfield market in 1983 as BG Maintenance Management and moved to its current location in the early 1990s, Dalton wants to make more people aware of the company's capabilities.

"There are not a lot of companies that can take on (cleaning) a large facility, and we are one that can," she said.

To ensure consistent quality for clients, BG Service Solutions typically has work crews assigned to specific facilities, and it tries to have at least one associate based in the larger facilities whenever possible to address problems quickly.

Dalton added that BG Service Solutions also provides services other than janitorial.

"We have people who run forklift trucks, people that have to do other things, not just cleaning." She said handling recycling programs is one example of extra services the company will provide at customers' requests.