The following are sites in which savings and service level improvements were achieved by using similar tools and philosophies as those used by 1Class Consulting:

Cost Reductions

Tokyo -  This was a multiple site offering consisting of a manufacturing plant and an office building.  For the office site a 56% reduction in spend was realized.  For the manufacturing site, 37% was realized.  In both cases, new specifications were developed, frequencies were adjusted, and a competitive bid for services was held.
 
End result:  With the new contract, the incumbent service providers retained the business, but at a reduced cost.  Subsequent audits continued to reveal that service levels improved through "right sizing" of needs and expectations.

 California- This is a manufacturing site which has been bid twice in 4 years.  The first time yielded a 21% cost reduction, while keeping the incumbent service provider under new specifications.  The second bid for service yielded another 55% reduction, and a new service provider.  An associate's perspective...

End result:  Service staff was cut in half to more efficiently meet site requirements.  Site audits reveal no loss in service.  Quite the opposite is true, service levels have improved.  Site staff has been so impressed with the quality of service they are receiving, that they have extended the service providers contract to include 5 additional service areas.

Texas - This was a multiple site offering consisting of a manufacturing plant and multiple office buildings, to be bid as one.  The subsequent bid for service yielded significant savings of nearly 40% for both sites.

End result:  The service levels have been maintained at a very high level through proper supplier management.  Additional savings have been realized through partnering with the service provider to establish additional efficiencies.  This has led to the same supplier being in this site for going on 5 years.

Process Improvements

 Cleaning Service Provider - A cleaning service provider was having issues with consistency and, therefore, client retention.  It was agreed that a detailed data analysis process (Six Sigma) would be used to measure cleaning processes and ultimately customer satisfaction.  In the course of this analysis it was discovered that several of the "sample" accounts varied widely in both products and procedures used.  It was also found that even on the same account processes were varied.

End result:  New processes were developed with specified products.  Those processes were then presented to the sample staff for a design of experiment.  After a period of getting used to the new processes, the same data points were collected as in the analysis portion of the project.  The results were as follows:  62% improvement in cleanliness, 28% improvement in "right" product use, 34% reduction in procedure error, 33% improvement in productivity, 17% increase in employee satisfaction, and a 40% increase in customer satisfaction.  All of this translates into bottom line "cost of service" and customer retention.


 Supplies Distribution (Consumables & Chemicals)- 3M began reviewing it's spend on supplies used to clean their facilities in the US.  As part of this project, we also examined the use of consumables since the two were closely associated.  In conducting an audit of all of it's US locations we learned that for as many locations as 3M had (roughly 90), there were just as many or more suppliers providing us with these products.  It was deemed prudent to examine the possibility of having 1 supplier provide us with product nationwide.  A bid was structured, and suppliers with the capability to provide us product were identified.  The supplier's perspective...

End result:  Cost savings have been substantial as a result of this project.  While it is impossible to quantify exactly how many dollars have been saved, suffice it to say that of the 500+ items that were included in the bid, a cost reduction was posted on the greatest majority of them.  More importantly, by having 1 provider for all products, 3M is now in a position to more effectively control spend.  In addition, with the help of the new supplier, the right products are now being used.  No more using glass cleaner to clean an entire building - even as a disinfectant.  There have been, over the years, several modifications to the contract for distribution.  Having selected a solid, knowledgeable business partner (distributor) has made a once chaotic program run efficiently and continue to provide cost benefits.

WILL YOUR BUSINESS BE NEXT? 

IMAGINE THE POSSIBILITIES!!!