Winters in Northeast Ohio can certainly bring a wide variety of conditions. One day, you’ll get a dusting of snow, and the next you get many feet of snow with a thick sheet of ice beneath.

As such, managing the snowfall and ice buildup on your commercial grounds is a big priority on your facility management to-do list. Whether you take care of a college or university, industrial site, health care facility, retail center, office park, or homeowners’ association, you want to keep your property looking good and – most of all – you want to keep everyone who visits your property safe. No one wants liability issues from site visitors slipping and falling on ice or heavy snow and ice breaking tree branches and damaging buildings or vehicles.

Just like you hire experts to manage other important areas of your facility, such as window washing, building security, or landscaping, you also want to hire a commercial property snow removal service so you limit your liability and elevate security on your site.

Let’s review some ways you can choose the best commercial snow removal contractor for your business so you can save time and money and make a confident choice.

Key Priorities You Should Look For in a Commercial Snow Removal Company

During a light winter in Northeast Ohio, you might have minimal worries about snow and ice on your commercial facility.

But when are we ever guaranteed light winters? Unpredictable weather can be quite frequent in Northeast Ohio, and that can cause quite a bit of trouble on your site. How will workers make it into your office park on time for a day of work after a long and brutal overnight storm? How will essential health care personnel and their patients safely get in and out of hospital grounds when the parking lots and sidewalks are covered in sheets of ice? You don’t have time for delays and your business properties certainly don’t want to be shut down just because of a winter storm.

loader pushes and removes snow

When snow and ice arrive, you want to feel confident that you made the right choice in securing a commercial snow removal partner that can show up when you need them to and keep your businesses running smoothly and safely.

Not sure how to pick the best company for your needs? Focus on these key traits when you’re looking to secure a snow removal contract and that should help you make the right choice.

Professional Knowledge & Commercial Snow Removal Experience

Sure, anyone can jump into a truck with a snow plow attachment and push some snow around your commercial property. But this doesn’t ensure the job is done right, considering your property’s needs and your needs as a facility manager for the best management and safety of everyone moving about your site on a daily basis.

HIring a commercial snow removal service company with educated personnel who know snow and ice management best practices can make a big difference in how your winter progresses.

commercial snow removal company shoveling snow off sidewalks

Every snow and ice storm is different, and your professional will use various techniques and tactics to ensure the job is done efficiently.

For instance, at Turfscape we keep quality control and customer service levels high by maintaining regular employee training initiatives. This means every morning we conduct morning huddles, discussing best practices, weather updates and predictions, and safety reminders. Our account managers and field supervisors are also out in the field all day checking on crews, critiquing and teaching snow and ice service techniques.

Commercial Snow Removal Capacity

Since commercial snow removal is considered an emergency service, similar to police, fire, and emergency medical professionals, it needs to be conducted using a sense of urgency. While we aren’t arresting criminals, putting out fires, and providing life-saving care like police officers, fire fighters, and EMTs, we are removing a weather element that can bring about safety issues and concerns.

loader gets salt from large pile

To do this work effectively and efficiently, your snow and ice removal professional must not take on too much work or else they won’t be able to service your commercial property in a timely fashion. This can cause delays for your business and create unsafe conditions on your facility.

Specific and Specialized Equipment & Resources

If you operate or manage a large commercial site in Northeast Ohio, then you likely need larger equipment to handle massive amounts of snow and ice. This means skid-steers, loaders, and sidewalk snow removal units. You also need larger amounts of salt, calcium, and deicing agents.

You must find a commercial snow removal service company that has enough equipment and resources to service a property of your scope and size. They also must have the experience and knowledge using that type of equipment.

loaders and snow plow trucks on commercial property

On top of that, in the middle of extreme storms or massive snow and ice events, if one of their pieces of equipment shuts down, do they have enough backups or mechanics on hand to maintain and replace equipment swiftly to minimize downtime and keep your property open and operating?

If your site is large enough, you may even include provisions in your contract to keep some larger equipment on site to streamline snow and ice management even further. In your contract, this can be called a monthly “ready fee” that ensures equipment is ready to use when needed.

Finding out the answers to these questions can ensure you choose the right commercial snow removal contractor for your specific needs.

Top-Notch Responsiveness & Communication

When you’re a facility manager juggling multiple areas of your commercial property, you want to know you can count on your partners for service and feel confident important work will get done when it needs to.

Keeping you in the loop can ensure your worries are limited and give you confidence that you know what’s going on and that work is progressing as it should.

Because your property has many moving pieces and parts, as well as many people who care about access and movement in and out of the site, you want to hire a commercial snow removal professional who know how to work with and respond to inquiries from people on your site, as well as keep in touch with you about this feedback and any suggested next steps and budget impacts.

snow removal on commercial football field

Having the same crew members working on your site can also help them learn about your property specifics and build great working relationships, ensuring they remember your top areas of concern.

Communication is something you appreciate. You don't want to guess what was done or what’s going on or if something will be done on your property. That’s why you are hiring a professional.

At Turfscape, we appreciate consistent and regular communication, too. Because we know this is a priority for you, we guarantee same day communication with our customers. This doesn't always mean we can solve your problems in 24 hours, but we will text, email, or call you back, depending on your preference, and let you know we’re aware of your issue and that we’re working on it.

We also take this level of communication very seriously internally. We won’t mark a job or issue as complete until it’s completed and communicated to you. This is to ensure that communication is not forgotten or neglected in the process. We like to call this process “closing the communication loop.”

Hire the Right Commercial Property Snow Removal Professional For Your Needs

Choosing the right commercial snow removal services company is not always an easy decision for a facilities manager. First of all, no two companies are the same or offer the same service. On top of that, the weather is never the same every year. And you just want to make sure your needs and budget align in the best way possible.

And you certainly don’t want to be caught off guard in the middle of winter.

As you seek to choose the best commercial snow removal contractor for you, remember to ask potential service providers a lot of questions so you can properly vet them and their work. This way, you also can best understand every option that’s available to you and get an understanding of how each business works and communicates. You want to build a partnership for winter services to ensure you are never surprised or left in the lurch when a snowstorm hits.

If you still find yourself having a hard time choosing a snow and ice management company that will fit your property’s needs best, give Turfscape a call. We know trying to find a service professional you trust can be challenging. We’ve offered snow and ice removal services for over 30 years in Northeast Ohio, so we have experienced many different winters and can help you navigate this unpredictable season, ensuring your commercial site remains open and safe throughout winter.

Turfscape would be happy to discuss some specific ideas that can ensure safety on your site this winter, as well as fit within your budget. Request a proposal today. We’ll review your options together so you can make the best commercial snow removal service choice.

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