[L.Doubtfire - The Blade Runner]

Can any of the older generation tell me if Patent Steam Carpet
Cleaning Co are still in business?
They are or were a Birmingham based company offering full
In plant/works facilities.
As I understand it,they were or are the largest carpet cleaning
Company in the country.
Up to them having a dispute with the NCCA they did hold some
Of the NCCA training courses at their works.
I`ve done a search on Google and there`s nothing at all.

Thanks for replies.


Lewis  Doubtfire

[Shaun_Ashmore]

Was it steam Sam carpet cleaners?

Shaun

[garry22]

Lewis, I'm not sure about this.

Were they not based in Golden Hillock Road (Sparkhill?) and actually had a Royal Seal / by Appointment?

[L.Doubtfire - The Blade Runner]

Hope your not trying to `extract the urine`are you Shaun?
If your not please ignore the above,and I apologise.
As I understand it,they made WE Franklin`s look like a
`one man band`.
I also recolect they had a special water rate arrangment with
Birmingham City Council for their massive amount of water
They used in a year for their plant cleaning operation.
Don`t know what that was though.
Anyone?


Lewis  Doubtfire

[Shaun_Ashmore]

No definitely not, I just remember steaming Sam being from Birmingham.

Shaun

[L.Doubtfire - The Blade Runner]

Hmmm,Garry, Hillock Chase it does ring a bell slightly,
Only slightly.
Googleing it has`nt done anything for me.

Anyone else ?


Lewis  Doubtfire

[feldon]

Steaming Sam is still going, i did some work for a letting agent recently and gave them my card and asked if they had a regular carpet cleaner who they use and was told it was Steaming Sam, also he advertises on a local mag, think he is based in Solihull near Birmingham. Not sure if they are anything to do with Patent Steam Carpet Cleaners though.

[wmidsgw]

Patent Steam Carpet Cleaners did have the Royal Seal of Approval and were certainly well known in the 1960s / 70s, in particular for offsite carpet & upholstery cleaning. They operated out of premises in Coventry Road Sheldon Birmingham towards Birmingham Airport. I could be mistaken, but I believe they were bought out by one of the larger 'office cleaning companies' many years ago but can't remember who. I took the odd carpet to them for cleaning in the early 1970s.

[wmidsgw]

Think it was OCS Group who bought them out.
As I remember, when they traded as an independent company in Coventry Road, there were onlly two or three staff members there, with one girl in a front reception office so only a small business. Can't remember any connection with the NCCA. Maybe things changed when OCS bought them out.

[Adrian Walton]

Patent Steam used to be in wandsworth south london,when i worked for paul pearse in the 80s we used to clean all of there rugs when they closed there factory.He brought all there machinery and moved it to his factory.

[Len Gribble]

Think Levison took them to the cleaners 

[richie]

WOW i have not heard the name Steaming Sam for a long time.  Shaun, when i first met you all those years a go at Bed Night Club i was a part of Steaming Sam.  The franchisees had a very good reputation and so did Head Office untill a certain person became a partner.  She ran the company in such a bad way they lost a lot of contracts and began to give the name Steaming Sam a bad name. I left Steaming Sam due to how this person ran things.  I moved on but stayed within the CC industry.  In 2002 i got a call from Steaming Sam asking if iwould have a meeting.  The company (originally Head Office) was on its knees. I was asked if i could help bring it back to life.  Originally i said no but after further meetings it was agreed i would take a cut of the company.  At that point the turnover was merely around £1500 per month.  I began to contact some of the night club managers that i knew from previous years working for them.  I went out had meetings and offered these clubs a whole new experience.  It wasnt long before the turnover went upto £7.5k a month.  All was going well when i found out (on the day the Twin Towers were hit) that i was been shafted so i threw in the towel and left.  Within 3 months of me leaving the company closed down.

I first started (1989) in carpet cleaning working for Steaming Sam franchise in Walsall.  I then went on to work at Head Office based in Walmley, Sutton Coldfield.  At one point there were 13 or 14 franchisees plus head office.  The franchisees were post coded whereas Head Office branch worked National.  All the franchisees ran Prochem Cubs / Cub XL's and Head office ran a Prochem Cub XL and a Performer 800A.  

As the years went on the franchisees either closed down or went independant. Head office closed down in 2004.  Two or three guys continued to trade as Steaming Sam and still do.

The link below is to one of the guys still trading as Steaming Sam.  In the top left corner you will see the Steaming Sam logo which was on all the vans originally.  When i get chance or if i remember i will sort some pictures of some of the vans.  Originally the company traded as Truckmount UK before changing to Steaming Sam.

http://steamingsam-cleaning.co.uk/

[richie]

As for Patent Steam Carpet Cleaning Co......i have never heard of them.

[L.Doubtfire - The Blade Runner]

I`m just wandering down memory lane a bit here perhaps.
This company I`m refering to invited and took on the board of directors
A millionaire individual ( forgot his name now) with an
Impressive army record and obviously CV.
He invested mega money into a massive piece of machinery to
Power beat and extract carpets brought into the works.
The company had to remove the roof from the main building
To drop it into by crain before it could be used and be operational.
There was a photo of it and the crain in the Birmingham local `rag`at the
Time,which in turn the NCCA duplicated and showed it the monthly
Newsletter.
On my original training course I had to attend for NCCA membership
I had the choice of going there or Thames in Oxon ( Cecil Aigin).
I went to Thames.So they were connected with the NCCA at some time.
I think I`m showing my age here too much perhaps.


Lewis  Doubtfire

[richie]

When was that Lewis?  I know / knew most truckmount companies in Birmingham.