How Commercial Cleaning Services Help with Boston Winters

If there’s one thing that Boston is known for, besides its rich history and world-class research institutions, it’s the merciless winter weather. From drastic temperature swings and heavy snow accumulation to freezing rain and sleet, winters can be quite the operational challenge for Boston commercial building managers. However, with an experienced building management partner, winter weather doesn’t mean that work stops.

Why Are Boston Winters Tough on Commercial Buildings?

To ensure your building remains fully operational during winter weather, your commercial cleaning company must understand the risks winter weather poses to buildings.

Most Greater Boston commercial buildings face the following challenges during the winter season:

• Slip and falls: The primary concern during winter is the risk of slip-and-fall incidents, which have been exacerbated by people distracted on their phones and potential ice hidden under snowbanks.
• Building wear and tear: With the build-up of sand, salt, and moisture, Boston-area commercial buildings are at risk of exterior surface damage. During heavy snowstorms, building managers also need to be mindful of snow accumulation on the roof to avoid structural damage.
• Snow disposal: Another related challenge is finding locations to pile and haul away massive amounts of snow, especially in urban environments.
• Increased germ spread: With winter weather comes cold and flu season, which necessitates the need to combat the increased spread of germs.

It’s important to note that some winter challenges are unique to certain areas of the region. For example, commercial buildings in Boston and Cambridge present distinct challenges due to high pedestrian, bicycle, and scooter traffic in bike lanes and sidewalks. On the other hand, suburban areas, like Waltham, have less direct interaction with snow removal.

The other critical issue with winter weather in Greater Boston is the microclimates. Snowfall and temperatures can vary significantly even within a mile or near water, drastically affecting conditions. Recognizing and being prepared for such variances are important in successfully addressing Boston winter challenges.

How Can Commercial Cleaning Services Address Boston Winter Challenges?

For Boston-area commercial cleaning companies, the best way to tackle winter weather is ample preparation, which starts long before the last leaves of fall have hit the ground. In fact, the team at Janitronics begins winter weather preparation as early as August.

During this preparation time, our team is inspecting and prepping snow equipment, including:

• snow brushes
• walk-behind machines
• ride-on tractors
• brushes
• plows

Early preparation is crucial for a massive fleet to avoid last-minute servicing issues.

Starting in mid-November, Janitronics’ Matthew Quinn begins monitoring the weather daily. He ensures that all internal teams and clients are apprised of approaching storms.

Once winter weather officially hits, addressing a storm is more than applying ice melt. To truly prevent winter from causing harm to your building (and its occupants), you need to consider everything from the type of ice melt you select to carpet protection.

What Does a Winter Weather Cleaning Plan Include?

A comprehensive Boston winter weather cleaning plan includes the following steps:

• Ice melt pre-treatment before the storm begins.
• Continuous snow removal to ensure pavements are clear down to the surface.
• Deep cleaning of entryways and foyers.
• Floor and carpet protection measures put in place.
• Application of disinfectant to reduce germ spread.
• Exterior cleaning for winter grime.
• Maintenance of regular interior cleaning services (trash, recycling, restrooms).
• Ice melt application at the end of the storm to clear the pavement.
• Removal of ice melt post-storm.

Even though today’s workforce includes some work-from-home or hybrid workers, public areas and building exteriors still require the full snow removal services. In many cases, hybrid workers have open seating plans, which means the application of disinfectant is even more critical to prevent the spread of germs.

What Should You Look for In a Commercial Cleaning Company That Handles Boston Winters?

Boston commercial property owners want a cleaning team that can effectively maintain entryways, floors, windows, and high-traffic areas during wild winter weather. But the right commercial cleaning company will far exceed those expectations. The best partner will give you peace of mind when the first flake hits the ground.

In addition to experience with New England winters, you want to look for a janitorial team with proper training. Other key benefits to look for in your commercial janitorial team:

• Highly responsive during storms: Has management onsite to oversee and staff at-the-ready to assist during extended storms.
• Consistency in staffing: The same crews should be assigned to specific locations to ensure familiarity with the site, trouble areas, and efficient operations, avoiding constant retraining.
• Staff well-being kept top of mind: During long storms, you want a team that ensures their staff receives food, hot coffee, and breaks to manage manual labor in harsh conditions.

As a Boston commercial property manager, you want to know that all winter challenges are being handled by a team that truly cares for your building and its occupants.

What Makes Janitronics a Trusted Choice for Boston Winters?

As a premier commercial cleaning service in Greater Boston, Janitronics has five decades of experience weathering many winter storms, from 2015’s “snowmageddon” to the cold snaps of recent years. As a result, our team has a deep understanding of the region’s geographic variations and the unique challenges that city commercial buildings face compared to sprawling suburban campuses.

In addition to our local roots and extensive experience, we offer the most comprehensive 24-hour emergency response system in the business. With this system in place, we have access to our labor pool of 1,600 staff members, ready to address everything from the next big nor’easter to a short flurry. Staff are organized two to three days in advance for long storms, preparing them for multi-day stays on site. We pride ourselves on staying ahead of the curve by having our team in place before the storm starts.

Janitronics also brings the following benefits to our client partners’ commercial properties:

• Science-based cleaning protocols.
• Reliable, well-trained teams equipped with continuous education and training.
• Management present on-site during storms, providing direct experience with the conditions.
• Exterior and interior cleaning that holds up through storms.
• Post-storm assessment, requiring a thorough wrap-up and potential touch-ups to address refreezing.

Properly addressing a Boston winter as a commercial cleaning team includes a combination of preparation, experience, and training. Beyond that, it’s trust. Our client partners trust our judgment for appropriate staffing and service decisions, which is crucial at any time of year but especially during those unpredictable Boston winters.

If you need a trustworthy and highly experienced commercial cleaning company for your Boston-area building this winter and beyond, please contact Janitronics to learn more.