Businesses spend an average of $10,000 to haul snow off each site.
Wednesday, 17 February 2010
NORRISTOWN, PA– Back-to-back snow storms have blanketed the Mid-Atlantic and Mid-West this snow season. Philadelphia has already seen over 3 times its ten-year average and, with more snow on the way, the season isn’t over yet.
Snow plow crews have worked around the clock during these past storms to clear thousands of tons of snow from roads and parking lots to ensure businesses can open and people can get back to work. But what do they do with all that snow?
Some of the snow is pushed to the side of the road, but with center city Philadelphia getting more than 15 inches and up to 26 inches of snow falling in the suburbs, snow piles can get too high, preventing drivers from being able to see.
Because of the high volume of salt and chemicals in the snow, snow removal crews are prohibited from dumping the snow into water ways like rivers or lakes. And piling snow onto commercial property owners’ landscaping will damage shrubbery and cause chemical burn out to the landscaping. But retailers especially can’t just pile the snow into parking stalls.
“For major retailers, each parking space is worth an estimated $500,” said Sean Hartnett, Certified Snow Professional (CSP) from USM, a leading provider of facilities maintenance and management services that specializes in snow and ice management. “But snow also poses a significant threat, not only to top line revenues, but to business operations and the supply chain. “
Instead of piling snow into these valuable parking spaces, snow crews have been hauling the snow to designated dumping sites, empty lots, and empty municipal fields where they have to pay a storage fee. Hauling and removal of snow can cost any where from a few hundred dollars upwards to over $10,000, depending on how much snow needs to be removed. Many property owners have invested in hauling and removing snow in hopes of recapturing those dollars in revenue.
It is extremely important for retailers and other businesses to maintain their facilities, not only to ensure their supply chain operations run smoothly, but also to ensure a safe atmosphere for customers and staff. This includes all aspects of the facility, both internal and external. If retailers do not maintain safety standards and are forced to close their doors due to bad weather conditions, it can cause detrimental effects to their revenue and reputation. If a store has to close due to the affects of weather, it will cost thousands and thousands of lost dollars.
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Six of the nation’s top ten retailers depend on USM to uphold a consistent brand image and improve their customers’ in-store experience with facilities maintenance and management solutions. USM delivers non-core, yet mission critical interior and exterior facility services to over 80,000 client sites throughout North America in various industries with geographically dispersed assets including retail, restaurants, banking, real estate investment trusts, education, telecommunications, and utilities.
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USM specializes in providing non-core, mission critical facilities maintenance and management services to large organizations with geographically dispersed properties in various industries such as retail, restaurants, banking, telecommunications and others with multi-location business operations.
Regardless of the type of service - whether it’s electrical, HVAC, Repair and Maintenance, Landscaping, Snow & Ice Management, or Janitorial and Floor Care - USM takes a unique, total supply chain management approach to delivering the outcomes that their clients desire.