Window Cleaning News

The six-man crew rappel down from the very top of the museum using two ropes as they wash the Dalí's iconic glass "enigma" windows.

'Tis the Season for Dalí window washing: St. Petersburg: It’s not spring but The Dalí Museum in downtown St. Petersburg is having its annual cleaning. Workers from Bay Area Window Cleaning donned Santa Hats in honor of the season as they washed the Dalí's iconic glass "enigma" windows on Friday. The process takes about three days. Friday is day two of the cleaning. Cleaning the Dalí glass "enigma" is tricky with its curvy surface. The six-man crew rappel down from the very top of the museum using two ropes (one is a backup safety line). The ropes are the kind used in mountain climbing. The crew includes Randy Spears, Anthony Holland, Michael Kott, Mark Reindeau, Allen Murray and Jessie Bradey.

New in the UK! The latest backpack from Window Cleaning Warehouse - the world leaders in the backpack revolution. Now introducing 'The Big Boy', it holds a staggeringly large 22Ltrs of water (This is around 25% more than most backpacks available - almost trolley size) you can now do more jobs with less hassle! Just make sure it's pure for window cleaning. Backpacks are proving to be a vital tool in a window cleaners setup. No matter how big or small your company, there is always a situation that a backpack comes in handy. Easy to fill, easy to use and with a battery life sometimes spilling into days. It's easy to see why they have proved so popular. With the new WCW big boy you can do more work than ever. Features include:

• LED charging lights
• Excellent robust electrical wiring system
• Covered and protected flow controller
• Easy empty release system
• Extra rugged straps
• Strong and sturdy carry handle
• Streamlined and contoured back and base
• Up to 3 days on one charge!
• Lifetime warranty on tank
• 6 month warranty on battery
• Sealed component base.

Wash your hands, it’s good for Northamptonshire business too: Firms across Northamptonshire are this week being told to ‘clean up their act’ as part of National Handwashing Awareness Week. According to figures, UK employers spend more than £9 billion every year in sick pay and associated costs and Northamptonshire business representatives are keen to get the message out that hand hygiene is a primary measure in reducing infection. David Lawrence, managing director of office cleaning company, LCS Northampton, said. ““Having a business with healthy staff is key to success in the current economic environment. National Handwashing Awareness week is a UK-wide initiative to improve a simple procedure in the workplace that can radically improve health.” “Annual costs of £9 billion are the equivalent of £692 per employee.

Together with the latest research from Business in the Community showing that healthier businesses do better than their competitors it is more important than ever to do all we can to improve health in the workplace.” Firms are being encouraged to encourage their staff, whatever their profession, to keep their hands clean, especially after using the toilet and before consuming food. Just a few simple steps such as having soap in staff washrooms and hand sanitizer available can make a big difference to staff sickness rates. Researchers this year also discovered that are more bacteria on the average mobile phone than you will find in a toilet. In tests there was up to 10 times the amount of bugs - which can cause nausea and stomach problems - than were present in a lavatory. Under the Environmental Protection Act of 1990 an employer has a ‘duty of care’ to provide washroom services for its staff. David Lawrence, Managing Director of LCS Northampton encourages representatives from a range of businesses to wash their hands this week. On the left Jamie Williamson-Graff, Managing Director of Wash n Clean Window Cleaner Services.

December temperatures 20 degrees warmer than average in Chattanooga... so far: Even though Matt Ballard, who works for True Shine Window Washers, was enjoying the weather as he washed windows on Broad Street, he said would rather have temperatures a little cooler. "When I'm not washing windows, I'm rock climbing, and cold weather is better for that," Ballard said. "It's nice washing windows when it's not too hot or too cold, but for everything else I do, I'd rather it be cold."

A shining example of scheme success: A Plymouth woman is hoping to clean up with her new business after coming through the Enterprise Coaching scheme. Nicola Sale, aged 48, from the Barbican, has launched Deep Clean and Gleam after completing the business start-up programme. Nicola left her cleaning job two years ago after becoming disillusioned with life working for a company and to have some time to look after her child. But, with the help of Enterprise Coaching, she's set up her business to offer cleaning services to domestic and commercial properties. The Enterprise Coaching scheme, delivered by Working Links and Outset on behalf of the European Development Fund and Plymouth City Council, has helped more than 1,000 people look at launching their own businesses during the past two years. Nicola was teamed up with Working Links business adviser Annette Lovell.

Nicola said: "When I was working for other companies I thought I could go it alone and received lots of encouragement from friends and family so I thought I'd just go for it. "Working Links and Outset have been great. They've been there every step of the way and helped me with ideas about trading and marketing as well as the important accounting information. "I've also updated my health and safety qualifications so I can work in a range of different properties. "It's going well so far. I have a few loyal customers but I'm always looking for more. I don't just dust and vacuum but clean until your premises gleam." Nicola has also formed a partnership with a window cleaner to offer a fuller service. She added: "I'm very lucky as I know three self-employed experienced window cleaners with their own successful businesses that specialise in cleaning fascias and guttering, so as a team we can give the whole package."

Duchess of Cambridge is not a brood mare: The unborn child might be third in line to the throne but first and foremost it is William and Kate's darling baby. It’s an early pregnancy, as fraught with risk as any other. The foetus currently measures about an inch and its feet are starting to lose their webbed appearance. Now the miracle of becoming human can begin. In the brain, nerve cells sprout branches and join up to make miniature trees where, one day, thoughts and feelings will blossom. The textbooks tell us that the hands can now bend at the wrist, though, obviously, it will be many years before the little prince or princess gets the hang of that weird, window-cleaning Royal Wave. Give it time.

New entrants into the payment market, such as Square, iZettle and mPowa, are giving retailers a whole new way to accept payment transactions via mobile devices such as tablets and smart phones. This is just as applicable to the large multinational retailers as it is to the local UK tradesmen. There will be less scrambling around for cash to pay the window cleaner in 2013, as mobile becomes an even more integral part of a transactional process for the digital and physical world. The launch of 4G will only accelerate this.

The British economy is set to contract this year, according to figures published by the Treasury which suggest that official growth forecasts will be downgraded sharply. Tomorrow the independent Office for Budget Responsibility(OBR) will issue its latest bulletin on the state of the economy on the day that  George Osborne presents his autumn statement. The OBR looks certain to lower its prediction in March that the economy would grow by 0.8 per cent this year and 2 per cent next year.

Mr Osborne will announce that a drive by the Treasury and local authorities to save money on 100 existing contracts in government buildings and schools has already achieved £1.5bn, with a further £1bn in the pipeline. The savings include £615m from better use of assets, such as wider use of energy efficient lightbulbs and higher occupation of buildings through “hotdesking;” £630m from bringing services in-house rather than hiring management consultants and £140m from reducing the frequency of services such as window cleaning.

But that wasn’t enough for committee members, who felt the belt could be tightened more: Newmarket Ward 3 Councillor Jane Twinney asked for window washing funding to be removed from the budget and requested staff take a closer look at ways to provide landscaping at the five CYFS buildings that doesn’t cost $5,000 per building. The operation and capital budgets, with the deletion of the staff additions and window washing budget, will be presented to Newmarket and Aurora councils for approval.

Special Assembly election to come in Waukesha County: At least three candidates are running to fill a Waukesha County Assembly seat being vacated by Rep. Paul Farrow (R-Pewaukee). Farrow won a special election Tuesday night to the 33rd state Senate district, which opened after Rich Zipperer left his seat to become Gov. Scott Walker's deputy chief of staff. Farrow is expected to be sworn in as soon as Dec. 14 and will leave his 98th Assembly district seat open. The Republican candidates running for the Assembly seat include Jeanne Tarantino, the former chief of staff to Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch; Adam Neylon, owner of a commercial window cleaning business and a former legislative and congressional aide; Todd Greenwald, a construction project manager; and Matt Morzy, a student seeking his master's degree in business administration from Marquette University. Spokesmen for Gov. Scott Walker and the Government Accountability Board had no immediate comment on when the special Assembly election might be held.

Children left terrified by Wallsend hammer attacker: Dazed children were left terrified when crazed raider Michael Harrison burst into their home brandishing a hammer. Hooded Harrison, high on drugs and drink, targeted the innocent family for valuables. Despite the fact three youngsters were present at the time, Harrison brandished a hammer and threatened members of the family. Newcastle Crown Court heard the children had been practising a dance in the kitchen when Harrison burst in and were left screaming and crying in terror. The family were left so terrified they have since moved house and changed their car. The youngsters who witnessed it were also left traumatised and still speak of “the naughty man with a hammer”, the court heard. Now Harrison, described as “high as a kite” and “spaced out” at the time, has been jailed for five-and-a-half years. As he was locked up, one of the family told in a statement to the court of the impact the attack had on them. They said: “I was frightened to return to my home in case this man returned. I have no idea why he came in the house and threatened me with a hammer. We keep ourselves to ourselves and since this man entered my home and threatened me I have been terrified.”

The court heard one of the family had popped out for some tobacco at around 5.45pm on June 5 and when another heard the door open they thought it was them returning. But Harrison had let himself in to the house in Wallsend and came into the living room and brandished the hammer above his head. The family begged with him that there were youngsters present but Harrison said: “Where’s Brett, I’m going to kill him. I need to kill him.” One of the family managed to get the children in the kitchen and held the door shut and rang police before they fled out of the back door. As they made the call, Harrison made off with an Xbox, gold bracelets which had been a 21st birthday present, a purse, bank cards, a driving licence and a camera. He was arrested the following day and was found to have a squeezy bottle filled with ammonia. Harrison, 35, of Canterbury Avenue, Wallsend, was originally charged with aggravated burglary but prosecutors accepted guilty pleas to burglary, affray and possessing an offensive weapon.

Jailing him, Judge Paul Sloan QC told him: “You were a stranger to them, had your hood pulled up and you were threatening and aggressive and produced and wielded a hammer above your head. “It is an aggravating factor that children were present when you were threatening with the hammer.” Window cleaner Harrison claimed to be looking for someone who owed him money but the victims were “entirely innocent”, the court heard. Jane Foley, defending, said: “It was a thoroughly unpleasant incident and he is disgusted with himself. It’s the worst thing he had ever done. “The background is money was taken by someone he had loaned it to and he realised he was not going to get the money back and was full of rage."

It rained all summer – but council staff got overtime to not water plants in ‘heat of day’ - It might have been a summer of torrential rain but Barnard Castle Town Council is worried it will be left “high and dry” after only one business responded to a call for someone to water their plants. And costs could increase even more because the work has to be done early in the morning or in the evening so it does not happen “during the heat of the day.” Despite the wet summer, the town council has spent more than £2,600 this year on watering its flower displays, with the high cost attributed to work being carried out in “overtime.”

But the price is likely to increase next year because Durham County Council, which currently provides the service, said it might not be able to do it next year because it is reducing the amount of overtime work it does to cut costs. If it does continue to provide a watering service, it will be at a significantly higher cost. If it does not, the town council will have to turn to a private company. But while local businesses were asked to put forward bids to take on the service, the town council was left disappointed when only one responded, making the process invalid.

Assistant clerk Helen Plant said: “Durham County Council has advised that they may not be able to do it next year but if they do, it will be at a much higher because its done on an ‘overtime’ rate – the watering needs to be carried out during quiet times of the day, first thing in the morning or early evening, partly to avoid watering during the heat of the day and partly to avoid traffic. “The fact they are saying that they may not be able to do is the worry as we don’t want to be left high and dry with the tubs planted up only to die off because they are not being watered. “We did a tender exercise in an attempt to find other businesses to carry out the service and at a reduced cost but only one company responded, rendering the tender exercise invalid.”

The town council is responsible for the maintenance of more than 40 tubs and barrels around the town, in Galgate, Market Place and The Bank. This year the service has cost £2,660 and is likely to increase next year. The floral and open spaced working group, which is part of Barnard Castle Town Council, has recommended the budget for floral displays be increased to £6,000. In this year’s budget £5,000 was allocated for floral displays, which includes the cost of watering as well as winter and summer planting.

Ms Plant added: “If any business wants to come forward they can. Some businesses might not have thought about it. It could even be a chance to diversify for a window cleaning company or maybe a farmer.” At least three tenders are needed to make the process valid. If any businesses are interested they should contact the town council on 01833 690970.

Washing windows isn't on anyone's list of favorite things to do, but imagine the job of washing the windows at CNN Center where soaring glass window walls enclose the towering structure. Well, Covington's Fred Franklin has done it, but that's only one of his high-rise, nail-biting accomplishments. When Atlanta hosted the 1988 Democratic Convention, it was Franklin who rigged and lifted to the roof the sound and lighting stages, hung the ceiling banners and raised thousands of balloons to the roof that would be dropped at the end of the convention. With high-flying experience like that, the daredevil Franklin went on to create a niche career as Franklin Restoration working on church steeples all over the Southeast. It's called steeple jacking, and there's not much he can't do, from repairing or replacing aging structures, to re-caulking and re-painting, to completely replacing roofs in a variety of materials. The job that puts him very close to God, literally and figuratively speaking, and one that Franklin calls "meditative" because he has to remain completely focused on both the details and safety. "I trust myself, but I trust my equipment more," he said. All his ropes, 50'x75' nets and pulleys are tested to hold 10,000 pounds. He works with only one helper, and, of course, tests his own rigging by jumping into it. "It's kind of like a big hammock," he said nonchalantly. He's never had an accident.

Alleged Mob Ties By O'Hare City Contractor Continues To Make Waves: The alleged mob ties of a new city contractor, who is costing more than 300 O'Hare workers their jobs right before the holidays, continues to make waves in the news. A $99 billion, five-year contract was awarded to United Maintenance, Inc. to take over custodial services for the airport. The company is laying off all the current workers, though it is encouraging them to apply for their jobs claiming that it will pay "the prevailing wage and better benefits than employees now receive”, according to a statement. But that is simply not the case, according to SEIU*, which represents the janitors. Currently, the workers earn between $12.05 and $15.45 an hour, based on senority. If rehired by United Maintanence, their wages will be $11.90 an hour, no matter how long they have worked at the airport.

“The mayor will pay airport janitors and window washers $11.90 an hour — a pay cut of 25 percent for the vast majority of the current workforce, who make more than $15 an hour," explained Laura Garza, SEIU Local 1 secretary-treasurer in a statement. "Most of these jobs will pay more than $7,000 less each year.” The union is calling on the mayor to rebid the contract and has been holding a series of protests in response to the impending layoffs. Meanwhile, eyebrows continue to raise over allegations that a United Maintenance official may have ties to the mob. Paul Fosco, vice president of United Maintenance's parent company, was sentenced to prison on racketeering charges related to a plot to defraud the Laborers Union via benefit plans. Alleged mobster Anthony "Big Tuna" Accardo was charged alongside Fosco, but was not found guilty. Mayor Rahm Emnauel has been questioned by the press about United Maintenance's mob ties, but continues to downplay it, saying Wednesday that the contract was competitively bid and that there will be oversight on the contract. SEIU says Emanuel's announcement yesterday of the bidding suspension of three city contractors for failing to follow contract guidelines and pay prevailing wages is nothing more than a ploy to pull attention away from the controversial O'Hare janitorial contract.