This publication originally appeared as a GBAC case study, October 2021. The original article can be found here.
Opportunity
CCS Facility Services is an integrated facility services provider with thousands of cleaning and building engineering professionals serving a wide variety of industries, including commercial real estate, manufacturing, medical/healthcare, education, distribution centers, data centers, and corporate campuses, among others.
In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, CCS Facility Services determined that introducing new solutions, like electrostatic sprayers, could improve the quality of clean. Establishing specific cleaning protocols to respond to COVID-19 was also critical.
“With the pandemic, delivering facility services, especially janitorial work, took on a whole new meaning that clean equals healthy,” said Troy Coker, CEO, CCS Facility Services. “Our customers needed reassurance that we knew how to protect them with the right cleaning products and protocols, and we took that responsibility very seriously.”
Solution
Because cleaning and building maintenance are ongoing, everyday activities, CCS is committed to staying on the leading edge of the most effective training, tools, and processes. In early 2020, shortly before the threat of coronavirus emerged, two CCS employees completed the GBAC Forensic Restoration Technician program from the Global Biorisk Advisory Council™ (GBAC), a Division of ISSA.
In May 2020, GBAC introduced its GBAC STAR™ Facility Accreditation program, the cleaning industry’s only outbreak prevention, response, and recovery accreditation. Upon learning that a building service contractor accreditation was also in development, CCS committed to the process and became the first company in the world to earn GBAC STAR™ Service Accreditation in March 2021.
“GBAC STAR Service Accreditation provides third-party validation of a service provider’s cleaning, disinfection, and infection prevention protocols and procedures,” said Todd VanOpdorp, COO, CCS Facility Services. “CCS recognized this would add credibility to our infection prevention strategy and provide an extra measure of security to our customers.”
Results
GBAC STAR Service Accreditation enables CCS Facility Services to:
Establish a clear outline for cleaning, disinfection, and infection prevention. GBAC STAR Service has provided CCS a structure to tie together different elements related to infection prevention and response into a complete program as well as helps with benchmarking. Adds VanOpdorp, “GBAC Star Service Accreditation helped us formalize all the things we were already doing into an organized format. It also gives us a framework to continually evolve and improve our biorisk exposure response as industry knowledge and protocols grow.”
Strengthen its value proposition and differentiate its offerings. Because GBAC STAR Service is a unique differentiator and highlights that CCS has the knowledge and expertise to properly clean for health, the company is dedicated to teaching its employees how to effectively communicate its achievement to customers and prospects. According to Coker, “Our business development team always shares GBAC STAR Service in their sales explorations, and many customers have wanted to learn more about it. People remember how challenging those initial months were and appreciate that CCS has obtained deeper knowledge to benefit them.”
CCS also has numerous customers that have pursued GBAC STAR Facility Accreditation. The service provider has been able to support these efforts by providing information about current cleaning protocols that satisfy specific accreditation elements.
Enhance employee knowledge and morale. VanOpdorp also notes that during training for cleaning and infection prevention, “we educate teammates that our protocols have been informed and validated by the industry’s authority in this field.” CCS continues to offer the opportunity for GBAC Trained Technician training as new employees come on board and promotes that it was first in the world to achieve GBAC STAR Service. This reinforces that employees are part of a leading organization focused on continuous improvement and health and safety. In turn, they are very proud of the accomplishment and to work for CCS.
“We intend to renew GBAC STAR Service annually because it validates that CCS truly has the knowledge to help a facility clean for health and also has given us a rallying cry for our employees as another thing to be proud of,” added Coker. “Between GBAC STAR Service and our many staff who are certified as GBAC Trained Technicians, our team feels better educated and prepared to respond to infectious disease situations today and in the future.”