ForConstructionPros.com

Universal Building Services was founded more than 40 years ago as a two-person, "mom-and-pop" cleaning company operating out of a garage. But the company's commitment to high quality and cost-effective service created an avenue for growth. And it has grown both in size -UBS is now a major regional entity with corporate headquarters in Richmond, CA- and in scope of services. One of those services the company began to offer, or offered more, was sweeping.

"The company got into sweeping because they had customers who needed to keep their parking lots clean," explains Bill Godfrey, manager of the UBS Power Sweeping Division. "When I came on board 22 years ago, sweeping was still a secondary service; the primary focus was cleaning."

Today, Godfrey oversees one of the largest sweeping businesses in the Bay area. The UBS Power Sweeping Division maintains an extensive fleet of power sweepers of all sizes and types and works with a full range of municipal, parking lot, warehouse and construction customers. The business is split, roughly half construction and half contract sweeping.

Godfrey admits that the company's dedication to high quality and cost-effective service did not lead to UBS's growth on its own. The willingness to try new approaches and a commitment to measure the results had to accompany that commitment in order to achieve growth, he says.

One opportunity for trying new approaches and measuring results came when United Rotary Brush Corporation came to Godfrey looking for his opinion on its new UnitedPro Strip Brooms. "Nationwide Wire and Brush (which merged with United Rotary Brush in 2002) was our broom provider from the time I started with Universal," Godfrey says. "When they came to me and wanted an opinion on a new strip broom product, I figured we could put it through the paces for them."