Clean It Up
UK Floor Cleaning Forum => Carpet Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: david_claxton on May 23, 2012, 06:24:25 pm
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Hi,
I've been asked to quote foe the cleaning of 343 cinema seats split over three screens (102, 198 and 43). They're in good condition but they want them cleaned using HWE. Each one has a seat and a back but both the seat and back have about a three inch depth which will need to be done as well. I'm not sure how to price this. Has anyone cleaned cinema seats before and does anyone have an idea of how much they would charge. It should be possible to stagger it over a few days without any evening or night work.
Any replies would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Dave
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Charge alot!! You'll soon be glad you did! ;D
It's back breaking work doing that volume of upholstery work in a tight area. Specialy when you cant move the seats about to a better postion. Lightening will also be a problem, as the lights in a cinima even at max anit that bright.
Do they need it done for a set time period? Have you mentioned to them the drying times when using HWE method? If you are going to use HWE i just bring a friend to help out with water fetching and also one or two airmovers to aid in drying times and to cool you down!
I suggest you offer them a dry foam method of cleaning. Sell them the benefits of quick drying.
I've done it twice and never again.
Good luck.
Tony
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As for what to charge, I'd suggest doing the screen with 198 in one day then, screen 102 and 43 on another day. Either charge them day rate or work out how long it'll take you and decide on an hourly rate that you want to achieve.
I've done over 500 seats in one day on my own, so it is possible to do the whole lot in one day. But as I said it takes alot longer than you think!
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500 in one day :o wow i thought i was a fast worker. If you took only one minute per seat that would be a straight 8 hours none stop :o
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Paul, it was 8am till 9pm!!! ;D that was my own cockup up though, I promised too much. Got it done by the deadline though! :P
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Ha, Tony, that's what I thought when I saw it, and the lighting isn't good. Using a TM is gonna require some airmovers as I think they're used regularly (it's one of these arty cinema places). I think I need to put a per chair rate in and was thinking of £3.00 each 'cause the sides are fine. What are your thoughts given your previous experience?
Paul, nice maths.
Thanks,
Dave
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Ha, Tony, that's what I thought when I saw it, and the lighting isn't good. Using a TM is gonna require some airmovers as I think they're used regularly (it's one of these arty cinema places). I think I need to put a per chair rate in and was thinking of £3.00 each 'cause the sides are fine. What are your thoughts given your previous experience?
Paul, nice maths.
Thanks,
Dave
"arty" as in 'bring your own Kleenex'? 'Cos I think I'd have to charge double if that were the case..
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£3 a chair is a good price, thats £1,029 for a couple of days work or one day if your a nutter like me! lol
If you really want the job round it down a bit. Show them them costings then tell them your giving them a bulk discount.
Have you done work for them before? Do you have a low mositure hand tool?
A truckmount will save alot of time filling and empting.
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Not quite. More those films that no one normal goes to see. Ones with ballet, and opera, and period costume rather than ones with guns, explosions, hostages and fast cars.
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David, 3 quid would be the lowest, in the past ive done them for between 3 and 10 quid a chair. Again dependant on condition,access, if there bollokst charge a tenner if there dead easy then three quid. Dont forget you can always multi price and i sometimes do that as they will only want you to clean certain chairs because of there condition. So the really bad ones i charge a tenner and then a lower price for the less grotty ones.
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Ha, Tony, that's what I thought when I saw it, and the lighting isn't good. Using a TM is gonna require some airmovers as I think they're used regularly (it's one of these arty cinema places). I think I need to put a per chair rate in and was thinking of £3.00 each 'cause the sides are fine. What are your thoughts given your previous experience?
Paul, nice maths.
Thanks,
Dave
"arty" as in 'bring your own Kleenex'? 'Cos I think I'd have to charge double if that were the case..
Enzall is great on protein stains! :-X
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Tony, not done any work at this place before. I will use your figures...ish and see what happens. Thanks for your help.
Dave
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Sorry, I meant Paul.
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Ha, and Tony
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I have done lot of cinemas over the years and there are a lot of advantages in as much as you do not have to move the chairs or anything whereas if you were doing 500 banqueting chairs you would spend as long moving them around as you would cleaning them. Also because they are rigid they are erasy to work on. The largest cinema we worked on was 3500 seats. With a truckmount you should be able to do the lot in a long shift and £3 per sesat would give you a good rate. As for backbreaking work, this is what we do is nt it ! Go in expensive and never do any work good advice? From past experience the majority of cinemas have cleaner in through the night so this is when most would want it doing. This is part and parcel of contract work it should be no surprise. I would rather do one long shift than waste timer travelling and setting up to do multiple visits. I would price the job at 50 p per seat extra for an additional visit, this give them a choice. If they do not want complete auditoriums cleaned then price it a lot higher so that it is attractive to have them all done. If you wanted to rent one of their auditoriums from them it would cost the same no matter how many people turned up.
Peter
wwwcarpetcleanercardiff.com (http://wwwcarpetcleanercardiff.com)
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wow, what a bawbag ;D
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I would go in at £5.50 per seat, this gives you room to show a discount if required to get the job. You will have abit of room for negotiations and if sold right you will get the job.
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And get yourself a couple of site work lamps.
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Thanks everyone for your feedback.
Dave
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Done loads of these. I wouldn't extract them. Takes too long.
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if you use a tm take into acount the fuel you are using ,you could easily do £60 notes on that job
gary
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I have 2 x von schrader machines and have used all the different systems on the market and in all honesty and from experience of when the cinemas, hotels, and restaurants want their seats doing and the soil state present, I cannot see any quicker way of doing it than with a truckmount without cutting the standard that a truckmount can give. It is the same as low moisture cleaning if you are faced with dirty greasy carpets then to get a good result low moisture takes just as long as wanding.
Operations vary in their productivity and what may seem a massive job to one, is just a normal days work to another. I am lucky enough to have all the diffeent methods at my disposal and can cut the cost of the job considerably by using methods other than truckmounting but the important thing is getting the result and my time is a very precious commodity.
Peter
www.carpetcleanercardiff.com (http://www.carpetcleanercardiff.com)
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i would do it for a pound a seat job done in a day job sorted ;D
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White nylon pad
Enzyme Carpet Shampoo - Energizer & Traffic Lane Cleaner Boosted
Loads of towels
GO
... remember to wear gloves
To be fair I have never owned a truckmount so cant say if the above would give better results or not. All I can go on is the fact that I have been paid for the previous work without any problems and I was pleased with the results.
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I charged £3 for regular chair with sitting and back pad (front only) and it was great price for the customer. My back was killing me and I only done 120 of them. I would tell them £5 and offered %15-20% off
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the heat of a truckmount cannot be underestimated, in cinemas apart from the soft drink spills, chewing gum, hard boiled sweets, etc. If you are not extracting at temperature then you are going back over to get the required result. With a truckmount you can do a cinema seat in a couple of minutes but once done it it dusted. We have a lot of dilemas on a lot of jobs where you might get an area amongst a lot of areas that is just not going to respond to low moisture and by the time you look at how to overcome that and how long the solution will put on the job, we just use the truckmount. I would love to just skim over everything quickly and effortlessly but sometime that is not possible. The other thing with having ongoing contracts for years is if you do not do it properly one time it will be a lot harder the next time you do it.
Peter
www.carpetcleanercardiff.com
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i do a cinema on a fairly reg basis seats are hard work if your using a tm take a helper to move hoses etc . I have got it down to a fine art now but the first time i did them was a real pain job . people will tell you all sorts of price figures but £5 a seat i think you would be very lucky to get this . £1.5 to 3 would be more realistic
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I would say you have little or no chance of getting £5 a seat especially if its one of the major chains, we did a few Odeons and the most we could prise from their clenched fists was £1.50.
We gave them up, the Poles took it over a £0.50 per seat and used damp sponges and clothes to clean them, Odeon did not care, it was all just down to cost and the end of the day.
By the way Odeon on grounds of safety would never have allowed a TM to operate unless we had employed about 10 hose watchers, it may be different in different areas but certainly in ours it was portables only.
Good luck, get a back brace to wear your are going to need it ;)
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Odeon did not care, it was all just down to cost and the end of the day
Some real good posts in this thread. As Peter says if you are going to get repeat work from it then the time invested will pay off in the long route.
If they are looking for a freshen up, which has been my experience, other methods can be employed.
On any commercial I would be quoting for the cost to keep them clean for a year rather than a one off wonder. This is a good habit to get into. Whether it be carpets, upholstery, floors I always offer them the one off and a cost for the initial clean + ongoing maintenance weighting the quotation so that with the maintenance the initial clean cost is spread out over the coming months/quarters.
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White nylon pad
Enzyme Carpet Shampoo - Energizer & Traffic Lane Cleaner Boosted
Loads of towels
GO
... remember to wear gloves
To be fair I have never owned a truckmount so cant say if the above would give better results or not. All I can go on is the fact that I have been paid for the previous work without any problems and I was pleased with the results.
sounds like a lot of work ,
1. pump spayer
1. towel
1. very hot truckmount
done
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We regularly clean either vast areas of carpet, or enormous numbers of chairs very quickly and to an exceptionally high standard. The secret is to have the correct system in place, that's the right men, chemicals, tools, machines and procedures to make them all work seamlessly together, which takes a great deal of organisation and forethought to make it work. We've cleaned 850 dirty restaurant chairs in an 8 hour shift, that's seat cushion, front and rear panel and had them dry in an hour. Attaining that level of efficiency (which by-the-way gives you a huge competitive edge) is the result of looking back at previous jobs to see how the overall system can be made more streamline, or the result even better, or both. It is also important to choose the cleaning system that fits the circumstances and not opt for a lesser system that compromises quality for the sake of speed.
The trouble with cinemas is jobs like that often go to the lowest bidder, but with a well thought out system, you needn't skimp on quality to make the cleaning and the time taken fit the price tag, which if corners are cut could cost you repeat business.
Simon
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White nylon pad
Enzyme Carpet Shampoo - Energizer & Traffic Lane Cleaner Boosted
Loads of towels
GO
... remember to wear gloves
To be fair I have never owned a truckmount so cant say if the above would give better results or not. All I can go on is the fact that I have been paid for the previous work without any problems and I was pleased with the results.
sounds like a lot of work ,
1. pump spayer
1. towel
1. very hot truckmount
done
Remember the fuel :)
-
White nylon pad
Enzyme Carpet Shampoo - Energizer & Traffic Lane Cleaner Boosted
Loads of towels
GO
... remember to wear gloves
To be fair I have never owned a truckmount so cant say if the above would give better results or not. All I can go on is the fact that I have been paid for the previous work without any problems and I was pleased with the results.
sounds like a lot of work ,
1. pump spayer
1. towel
1. very hot truckmount
done
Remember the fuel :)
at 60p a lt my truck mount can rev its guts out allday for less then 20 pounds ;D
-
White nylon pad
Enzyme Carpet Shampoo - Energizer & Traffic Lane Cleaner Boosted
Loads of towels
GO
... remember to wear gloves
To be fair I have never owned a truckmount so cant say if the above would give better results or not. All I can go on is the fact that I have been paid for the previous work without any problems and I was pleased with the results.
sounds like a lot of work ,
1. pump spayer
1. towel
1. very hot truckmount
done
Remember the fuel :)
at 60p a lt my truck mount can rev its guts out allday for less then 20 pounds ;D
;)
-
White nylon pad
Enzyme Carpet Shampoo - Energizer & Traffic Lane Cleaner Boosted
Loads of towels
GO
... remember to wear gloves
To be fair I have never owned a truckmount so cant say if the above would give better results or not. All I can go on is the fact that I have been paid for the previous work without any problems and I was pleased with the results.
sounds like a lot of work ,
1. pump spayer
1. towel
1. very hot truckmount
done
Remember the fuel :)
at 60p a lt my truck mount can rev its guts out allday for less then 20 pounds ;D
That's a lot better then the £60 mentioned earlier anyway
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everyone harp on about the cost of running a truckmount but in 1 day with a good labourer I can achieve with a truckmount what it used to takes 4 or 5 portables and 6 people to do and to a much higher standard. I cannot afford not to run a portable.
I am always looking at doing things cheaper and more effectively but so far have not found such.
Peter
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What a great thread; Simon definitely has it sorted!................now it would be great to chat to him at a Truckfest!
It amazes me so many mention the energy costs of running their truck-mounts. Personally I worry more about the whole vehicle running costs per mile i.e. the cost of getting to the job and back.
On the other hand if you think the running costs of your CC machine are a problem for energy / safety/ maintenance and that sort of stuff you should check out Bane Clene. It does what it says on the can. We run a couple and I did a blog about them yonks ago on our website. Good kit if you can get hold of a system.
It would be interesting to find out how much people are factoring into their quotes for transport for particular types of vans? I know ours range from 45p - £1.10 / mile, that includes everything from small Vauxhall vans to LWB Mercs.
Just to put mileage costs into perspective, petrol was 75p a gallon when I joined the industry. It's an important threat.
PhilD
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I think that a lot of people are missing the point here a truckmount does noit make you uncompetitive it gives you the productivity to do far more than with other equipment. WE are doing areas at rates a lot less per sq mtr than others will charge but the volume of work makes it very viable. When we travel to a job we are travelling to do much lrger quantitiies so the actual running cost of the vehicle goe down in proportion to your turnover. My setup in nothing to Simon but I do have the ability to do 5oo cinema seats or 1500 sq mtrs of carpet a day in the right situation. Simons productivity is that in an hour. If you are going to quote ££s per sq mtr or £10 per seat you are not going to get any work in the contract sector. We do not add costs on to customer we need to be competitive and productive and clean to an extremely high standard.
We can offer customers a cheaper alternative with low moisture cleaning but that is not what most of our customers want.
I could not contemplate the majority of my work withoout the truckmount set up.
Peter
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What a great thread; Simon definitely has it sorted!................now it would be great to chat to him at a Truckfest!
It amazes me so many mention the energy costs of running their truck-mounts. Personally I worry more about the whole vehicle running costs per mile i.e. the cost of getting to the job and back.
On the other hand if you think the running costs of your CC machine are a problem for energy / safety/ maintenance and that sort of stuff you should check out Bane Clene. It does what it says on the can. We run a couple and I did a blog about them yonks ago on our website. Good kit if you can get hold of a system.
It would be interesting to find out how much people are factoring into their quotes for transport for particular types of vans? I know ours range from 45p - £1.10 / mile, that includes everything from small Vauxhall vans to LWB Mercs.
Just to put mileage costs into perspective, petrol was 75p a gallon when I joined the industry. It's an important threat.
PhilD
PhilD a very good point. But you have to get to the job in a van whether you have a porty or a truck in it. At the end of the day the cost for doing the job with a truck is far out weighed by the price point. As long as your not charging a low rate per chair to do it :)
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to do these seat with a porty there would have to be two people one to do the work and one to emipty and refill the dam thing as there wont be a tap near buy , on big jobs like this you can lose hours with this filling up and emitying thing :P so you may have two wages to pay ???
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I wonder how the OP got on..
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The cost of running a TM, even something as powerful as the 875 is a mere 4% and yet the productivity is double / treble and more what a portable can do. A dining chair takes 1.5 minutes with a TM and 2.5 with a portable, that's without factoring in all the stops for emptying and refilling, so the cost of running the TM is actually peanuts in comparison to how much it is earning. You could ask yourself, 'Can I afford not to have a TM?'
Simon