Window Cleaning News With Shepherd's, Ferrari's, Jim Beam & Pitted Glass

State drops complaints against Shepherd’s: The Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations has dropped its two-year investigation of prevailing wage law complaints against the Shepherd’s Co. of Fulton, a faith-based construction company. Shepherd’s Co. also operates as a window cleaning firm and does business in Fulton, Jefferson City, Columbia, and the Lake of the Ozarks. It has more than 2,000 commercial and residential accounts in Central Missouri. The state agency has reached a non-monetary settlement with Shepherd’s Co. Under the settlement, the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations admits its long and costly investigation of the Fulton company failed to find any violations of state prevailing wage laws.
Tom Mahaney, Shepherd’s general manager, said last year the firm had expenses and lost business costs of at least $1.5 million that are associated with the state agency’s investigation of the firm. Scott Charton, a spokesman for Shepherd’s, said he believes total expenses for the firm, including costs associated with forming a new company and legal costs, eventually will total more than $2 million. The settling parties admit to no violations of state or federal law or authority in the agreement, Charton said. The settlement agreement provides that no notice of violation of Missouri’s prevailing wage or minimum wage laws will be made by the department on Shepherd’s projects that have been under investigation.
Shepherd’s Co. issued a statement saying that the “essential faith underpinning the Shepherd’s Company partnership has not changed, nor will it change. Shepherd’s Company is hopeful the settlement with the state satisfies any concerns or possible concerns that any public governmental bodies may have, or have expressed in the past. In the spirit of Christian forgiveness and fellowship, Shepherd’s is moving on, and looks forward to continuing its high quality service and workmanship for all clients, private, corporate and governmental.” Shepherd’s will continue operating as a partnership but will also form a separate corporation that will be used to bid on government contracts that are covered by state prevailing wage laws.
During the investigation, Labor Department Director Larry Rebman had written letters to Columbia Public Schools and the Missouri Department of Transportation telling them that the firm was the subject of a wage hour violation investigation. That prompted both government agencies to discontinue projects with Shepherd’s. After asking for extensive records from the firm, Shepherd’s Co. filed a federal lawsuit against Rebman and Carla Buschjost, director of the department’s Division of Labor Standards. In their federal lawsuit against the state agency, Shepherd’s Co. accused the state agency of  not providing due process to the company under the U.S. Constitution.
Based on unnamed complaints, the state agency began the investigation in 2009 that Shepherd’s Co. was outbidding union competitors. The state asked Shepherd’s to turn over virtually all of its financial records, customer lists, payroll records and numerous other documents. Shepherd’s fought the requests for a year and then turned the records over in 2010. It later filed the federal lawsuit against the state agency. Mark Comley, a Jefferson City attorney representing Shepherd’s Co., said Wednesday as part of the settlement he has dropped the federal lawsuit.
Comley said the company is now organized as a general partnership. Comley said as part of the settlement agreement, the firm will become a subchapter S corporation. “That will create a better paper trail for payroll and record keeping. Shepherd’s Co. has agreed to do this as part of the settlement,” Comley said. Shepherd’s Co. is operated by Shepherdsfield Community, a faith-based group that lives in a communal lifestyle. Members of the community voluntarily contribute their earnings to the community and they all share in proceeds from business ventures.
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Dragon slayer Tony Earnshaw driven by Ferrari fantasy: As a 12-year-old lad Tony Earnshaw was in the back of a police car waiting to be taken from his foster parents to a council care home when a Ferrari sports car flashed by. He told the officer: “I can’t wait to get one of those.” According to Tony the officer replied: “Son, where you are going, there is only one way to get one of those - you would have to steal it”. He said the words have has stayed with him ever since. Fast forward 13 years and he is on Dragons’ Den, the hit BBC TV programme for wannabe entrepreneurs - although more often, a graveyard for dreams. He and colleague Steve Pearson deliver a smooth presentation asking for £100,000 so they can take their commercial cleaning business nationwide.

On the panel was North East-based tycoon Duncan Bannatyne, who offers the full £100,000 for a 35% in the business, which they accept. A further 12 months on, with Duncan’s regular input, the company has won new contracts worth around £2m and the future is looking very bright for Tony. A far cry from when he walked into the council care home. He described how there were metal bars on the windows while in the pool room the cues were chained to the floor so they couldn’t be used as weapons in fights. Tony said: “Don’t get me wrong, the staff were very good and tried their best to make you feel at home. But at that age it is still the last place you want to be.”

Without naming names, he said one fellow resident at the time suffered a drug-related death while others have fallen into a life of crime. But Tony went a different way. He persuaded the man in charge of the care home in County Durham to let him go to Biddick Comprehensive School near his former family home in Washington, Tyne and Wear. As he had been bullied and taken into care after his single mum was taken into hospital, Tony was barely able to read or write but progressed rapidly. By 15, he had a milk round and his first taste of working life. At 16 he left school with eight GCSEs to go into sales by day, flipping burgers by night in his first business venture - a £50 fast- food trailer. With a brisk nightclub trade, he made £3,000 in a matter of months - then sold the business for £2,000. He bought a window-cleaning round for £300 which made him his money back in the first fortnight. Six months later, he sold that business for £6,000. Tony said: “I turned up to buy the round with an two big drums of water in a clapped-out old van which was like something out of Only Fools and Horses.“But my entrepreneurial spirit was really taking hold by then and I knew that I wanted to pursue my dream - and get that Ferrari. Despite all my problems I was always business-minded. “I told the window-cleaning business man I was going to build up the biggest cleaning company in the North East and he just laughed and said: ‘I will be watching you.’ But within six months I had my own depot, two vans and I was the biggest, taking £6,000-a-month.” He again sold that for a healthy profit, taking £16,000, before an HND in business helped him establish UK Commercial Cleaning Services in 2007. The company has expanded, now covering Newcastle, Sunderland, Teesside, Leeds and London, with franchises in the pipeline for Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

The Dragons’ Den appearance helped him pick up the Institute of Directors North East Young Director of the Year Award. He now employs 40 staff, has a £200,000 house in Durham and a £30,000 Range Rover as he bides his time for that long-awaited Ferrari that cost between £140,000 and an eye popping £1.2m brand new. Probably in red,” he said. “I am not there yet, but I will get it,” said Tony, who is single, and whose mum Sandra, 42, is now well again and studying to be a chef while his younger brother Gavin, 21, is at university. “Just because I went into care did not mean that I was going to be a loser. I was there for two years and there were some bad boys who had been kicked out of mainstream school. Many may have ended up in prison, but by 14 I knew I had to change and stand on my own two feet. “Nobody was going to do that for me, but I did not want to go to jail. The key is ambition but problems in your past do not mean you cannot do something with your life. “Everyone is born the same way - there is no reason why you cannot achieve the same things.”

Residents claim bad propane ruined homes: Consumers, who had purchased what they believed to be a safe and reliable product, have discovered the hard way that may not always be the case. Bob Eskew and Linda Maxwell, Margie Southern Woodrum and Jackie and Shirley Jiles are among the growing list of local consumers who know the problems of dealing with propane gas allegedly contaminated by fluorine. Contaminated propane allegedly caused etching in the glass in their homes, but even worse are the health issues involved. Eskew and Woodrum have lost most of their vision. Both have undergone significant health concerns in the last few years, including ongoing respiratory problems and flu-like symptoms. For years they have unsuccessfully fought a battle to get the company responsible for the sale of the allegedly contaminated fuel, Green Country Propane Sales Inc., to pay for damages to their homes and medical expenses. Green County Propane purchased the propane from Coffeyville Resources and Refining and Marketing LLC of Kansas.

Pictured above: The window may look like a good washing would help, but Linda Maxwell tried washing the glass in picture frames and in the windows of her home, west of Sallisaw, to no avail. Maxwell claims glass and metal objects were pitted and etched by contaminated propane gas.

Too much Jim Beam in the Kitchen? Dan Kitchen withdraws from council appointment race: Whiskey apparently played a part in Dan Kitchen’s decision to throw his hat in the ring for a soon-to-be-vacated Aspen City Council seat, and the fact that he has too many good ideas is why he withdrew his application on Tuesday, Kitchen said. “They aren’t going to pick you,” said Kitchen, quoting the feedback he got from family and friends on his decision to pursue a temporary appointment to fill Councilman Dwayne Romero’s seat. “They said, ‘you’re a caveman, you have too many good ideas.’”
Kitchen jokingly admitted on Tuesday that when he considered serving in public office and subsequently submitted his application earlier this month, he had been drinking Jim Beam and wasn’t thinking clearly. Add that to his belief that since the planet is going to self-destruct anyway, Kitchen, 58, said traveling for the next year, and spending time with friends and family, sounds like a better plan. Besides, the window washer said he’d be too frustrated with the slow bureaucratic pace of government - noting that he first suggested bear-proof trash cans in 1992 and it took years for local governments to require them, and he’s been waiting for a solution to the entrance to Aspen for decades. 

He also said he wouldn’t be a good candidate because he’s technologically illiterate. “They’d have to have special meetings for me,” to follow along, Kitchen said. With Kitchen out of the running, there are eight Aspen residents vying for the two-month appointment. Romero will vacate the seat on Monday so he can take a job as Gov. John Hickenlooper’s economic development director.

Equity Investment For Window Cleaners Starts Trend

Dragons are angels for small businesses: With the BBC to start filming the eighth series of Dragons’ Den this week, Business Editor Owen McAteer looks at why small firms increasingly look to investment rather than bank lending to drive forward their companies.

Equity investment in small businesses may not sound glamorous, but it is the basis for one of the most popular programmes on television today. The dragons in the title of BBC’s Dragons’ Den are actually more widely known as business angels. These are business people willing to invest their money and expertise in a small company in exchange for an equity stake. And with banks more reluctant to lend money, it is becoming an increasingly popular way of doing business.

It is something that even the public sector has seized upon, with Finance for Business North-East established by regional development agency One North East, hoping to match local businesses with investors. One of the BBC dragons Duncan Bannatyne, who runs his business empire from Darlington, invested £100,000 in Tony Earnshaw’s company UK Commercial Cleaning Services when the young entrepreneur appeared on the programme.

Mr Earnshaw (pictured) was 19 when he established the company in Washington, Wearside, six years ago with £300, growing it to a £1.5m-turnover business, that is being franchised across the UK. He said he felt an investor would take more of a personal interest in his company than a bank, which was simply wanting to ensure a loan was repaid. He said: “If someone has invested their own money, they are going to make sure the company does not fail and have a personal approach to the business.” He also believed that, for someone to be able to invest in a business, it showed they had previously done well themselves to be able to afford to do so.

Mr Earnshaw said: “With an investor you get two birds with one stone – someone with an ability for business who has done well and, secondly, a bit of money that will allow you to grow the business at a faster pace.” Mr Earnshaw also said he felt having an outside investor helped small companies to become more disciplined in the way they worked. He said: “I have become more disciplined personally – it is not just my money in the business and you have agreed targets to hit. I have someone else making sure I follow the agreed business plan.”

Hugh Morgan Williams (pictured), chairman of North-East Access to Finance, agreed that the benefits of having equity investors were not only financial. He said: “They bring two things. They don’t just bring money, but the expertise they have accumulated in running businesses.” He continued: “I think investment does give discipline. I only have to look back into my own business in the early Nineties. “We carried out monthly management meetings and compiled monthly reports, whereas before we did it quarterly. “It does give a discipline to the business and helps to spot problems arising before they become real problems and will lead to greater success.”

North-East Access to Finance is the legacy fund supervising the returns on investments by the £125m Finance for Business North-East super fund – formerly called Jeremie – which was launched earlier this year, and which reinvests them in other businesses. The £125m fund, a mixture of private and public money and the first of its type in England, will provide not only loans but also equity investments to 850 smaller firms in the region over a five-year period. It will target business startups, technology-based companies and growing smaller businesses.

The private investment of £62.5m comes from the European Investment Bank, alongside public funds from the European Union of £42.25m, and £18.25m from regional development agency One North East. One of its aims is to bring business angels on board through its Angel Match Fund, worth £7.5m. The fund manager may itself try to put a company coming to the fund in touch with a business angel, the company may ask the fund to find one, or business angels can approach the fund themselves, looking for suitable companies to invest in.

Whatever the approach, Mr Morgan Williams pointed out that the funds were not just handing out money. He said: “They are not grants, we are giving out investment and want a return.” But he said he believed that providing smaller North-East companies with finance was vital to the region’s growth at a time when banks were more reluctant to lend money. He said: “They are incredibly important to the North-East economy. They comprise about 95 per cent of private sector businesses in the North-East.” “Bank finance is much more difficult to obtain and the cost of bank finance will be huge, as well as the security the companies have to put up to get the money. “It is true to say companies in the past have tended to rely on bank borrowing when they would have been better having equity solutions, so the new funds are designed to help. “We have £125m to invest over five years and at the same time you have a reduction in bank support, so the pressure on these funds will be quite significant. “When banks make a loan it is not a gift. I don’t think people will return to the banks in the way they used to – some businesses have gone bust as a result of the banks wanting their money back.”

Mr Morgan Williams said he believed that if the North-East fund was successful, it would become an international template for other such schemes around the world. He said: “It is the first region in Europe to do this kind of thing, so I think we will attract a lot of attention to see how it goes and will be seen as a kind of role model going forward. Other areas of the world will be copying what we do.”

Dragons’ Den has provided examples of where someone will give a bigger equity stake in their business in exchange for a particular Dragon’s expertise in that field, showing it is not just about the money. But Mr Morgan Williams said he believed there was one area of equity raising where the North-East could definitely improve. He said: “In the North-East, we don’t have enough business angels. If you go to Scotland, there is more of a business angels culture – that is something we need to encourage here.”

Window Cleanings News

How do you keep more than 6,300 people fed, housed and having the time of their life while floating in the middle of the ocean? The Oasis of the Seas—the world's largest cruise ship—aims to accomplish that feat nearly every week. Almost five times as large as the Titanic, it has a population during its seven-day Caribbean sailings that is larger than many American small towns—more than 8,600 when it is fully booked and including staff. The Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. ship, which first set sail last December, is almost as long as five Airbus A380 airplanes, or about four football fields. It has 24 restaurants and its own leafy "Central Park." During the weeklong sailings, about 700 tons of new supplies are needed, all loaded aboard each Saturday. Guests consume about 20 gallons of maraschino cherries and 80,000 bottles of beer.
Ensuring a floating city the size of the Oasis operates smoothly is challenging. Cleaning the ship, doing laundry, and fixing things are a 24-hour job for crew members. One of the popular acts, an outdoor Aqua Show with divers, gymnasts and synchronized swimmers, gets canceled about once a week because of rough seas. And the task of cleaning salt water off window exteriors is never done.
Dozens of people and 18 robots wash windows each day. "It's like painting the Golden Gate Bridge. Once you're finished, you start again," says Chris van Raalten, ship manager for marine operations, the group of employees that steer the ship and maintain the ship's exterior and mechanics like the engine. Robots take care of hard to reach places and metal baskets move crew along the upper decks where there are no balconies to support them. Scheduling the cleaning can be tough. The washing can't be done in every port because of environmental regulations, so it often happens while sailing, Mr. van Raalten says.

A 77-year-old woman died when she fell out of a third-floor window in Mór (Fejér County), Hungary. Police say she had been cleaning the window when the gas heater she was standing on collapsed, sending her sailing out the window and plunging to the frozen ground below.

PARIS LETTER: Just as you settle into the timeless ritual of the Parisian bar, you read that the institution is under threat. It reveals its charm in its own good time, this plain old cafe I know, but after my third or fourth visit it had wound me in without even trying. In fact, its effortlessness almost defines it, by which I mean, not that great effort has been skilfully concealed, but that its owner isn’t really all that bothered about the effort side of the business. The other morning, a window- cleaner who was at work inside the cafe stood up on the chair next to me and leaned over to reach an awkward spot on the pane, flicking water all around us. His expression said: what do you expect when windows must be cleaned? Even in a country where shop-owners seem to be guided by the credo that the customer is always, incontrovertibly wrong, this was still quite something.

OAP's 32-year misery in Sheffield neighbourhood: A Pensioner today made a desperate plea for action to tackle fly-tipping and prostitution which he says has been plaguing his neighbourhood for the last 32 years. William Wood, aged 67, said he and wife Freda, 72, both disabled with arthritis, feel "prisoners" in their own home by the problems affecting derelict land on Whitwell Street, Darnall, behind their Main Road home. Houses which used to stand on the site were cleared in the late 1970s and the area has been empty ever since. It has been used as a dumping ground by fly-tippers, who have abandoned items ranging from rubble to used nappies - and even a bag containing a goat's head. And the retired window cleaner has also found needles and used condoms which he believes are from prostitutes taking their clients onto Whitwell Street because it is dark and secluded. He said: "The problems have been going on for the last 32 years since the houses were pulled down.

Expat with that magic touch: On first meeting Todd Plaster, it's not unusual for sparks to fly - from his fingers, and even from his ears. In fact, the American magician has been making memorable first impressions performing in Shanghai for the past four years. Not content to just perform as Master Plaster, a wizard who entertains for children, corporate events and private functions, the canny entrepreneur also manufactures bag-of-tricks products for export to magicians around the world. The gimmicks include devices that can be attached to a performer's fingers or ears and shoot sparks or smoke. The Alaska state native has been even working with Shanghai Jiao Tong University to design a long magician's coat fitted with a sound system that plays sound effects.
During his time in Shanghai, Plaster has worked his magic at events ranging from weddings and children's parties to high-end corporate events for multinational companies such as car makers BMW and Audi and pharmaceutical giant Bayer. Plaster describes himself as a close-up magician who does a comedy-style magic act using a mixture of sleight-of-hand and custom-made gizmos. A close-up magician typically performs to a small group or an individual rather than on a stage. Unlike a stage magician who can rely on props and illusions, a close-up magician commonly uses sleight-of-hand and dexterity developed through years of practice.
Plaster's tricks can take anywhere from a few hours to two years to master. One of his most demanding tricks is the so-called "muscle pass" of a coin. The magician will make a coin "leap" up to a foot out of his hand with no discernible movement of the wrist or arm - claiming his magic coin can defy gravity. The muscle pass is considered by magicians to be one of the most demanding coin tricks. "Whether they be hobbyists or professional magicians, most people know this trick and each year the Japanese have a magicians Olympics where this is one of the events," says Plaster. "It is like the high jump: the person who can make the coin go the furthest wins." Plaster says he was taught by another magician and practiced until his hand was blistered and bled from the effort.
Pursuing the magic behind making a buck in Asia is nothing new for Plaster, who went to Japan as an 18-year-old. Inspired by the 1980s martial arts blockbuster "Karate Kid," the young Plaster launched a window-washing business that earned him enough money to head off to Japan in 1986 to learn karate. Comfortably performing in Chinese, Plaster has made guest appearances at popular Chinese shows since arriving in Shanghai in 2006. One his more notable guest spots was on the popular talk show "Lu Yu You Yue" (A Date With Lu Yu) that has an audience in the hundreds of millions. Plaster is also expanding from magic to frights, planning to open a haunted house in May near the entrance of the World Expo 2010 site on Luban Road in Huangpu District.

Janitors’ union reaches agreement: The day before a planned janitors’ strike by members of the Service Employees International Union Local 26, negotiations between the union and contracting companies ended after 26 hours of bargaining. The strike was planned to begin Monday, but the union and the Minneapolis-St. Paul Contract Cleaners Association reached a tentative agreement early Sunday morning. SEIU will vote to finalize the agreement March 6. Contracts between the companies and the union, which is made up of more than 5,000 janitors, security officers and window cleaners in the Twin Cities, expired at the end of December. Proposed contract changes didn’t meet the union’s requests regarding less expensive health care, green cleaning and retaining full-time employees.

Glass memorial to Sunderland miners: A memorial to mark the 25th anniversary of the end of the Miners' Strike will be unveiled in Sunderland on Friday. The three-metre long and three metre-tall glass panel is being installed above the Civic Suite entrance to the main council chamber at Sunderland Civic Centre. At nine sq metres and weighing more than 150kgs, it is one of the largest pieces of printed toughened glass in Europe and its images are symbols of the strike and the region's mining heritage.

U.S. picks secure glass box for new London embassy: The new U.S. Embassy in London will be a modernist glass cube protected from attack by an earth bank, a semi-circular lake and bomb-resistant glazing, U.S. officials said on Tuesday. The embassy must move from its current central London location because the 1950s building is too small, outdated and hard to defend from security threats, U.S. Ambassador to Britain Louis Susman said. The U.S. government chose Philadelphia-based architectural firm KieranTimberlake's design from 37 submissions. The remit was to build a modern, welcoming and secure base for the United States' biggest diplomatic headquarters in western Europe. Work is expected to begin on the new embassy in 2013 and it should open its doors in 2017.

A window cleaner walked free from court despite leading police on a high-speed chase through Bristol. Stevie Wassell sped off after police recognised him driving in Hartcliffe and tried to pull him over. The 32-year-old, of Craven Way, drove on the wrong side of the road and reached speeds of 70mph in a 30mph built-up zone. The defendant managed to outrun pursuing officers who gave up the chase. He phoned police the same day and claimed his car had been stolen but pleaded guilty to a charge of dangerous driving later after accepting he had been recognised at the wheel. He appeared for sentencing at Bristol Crown Court on Friday. Wassell was handed a 52-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, ordered to carry out 180 hours of unpaid work and pay £300 costs. He was also disqualified from driving for two years and will have to take an extended retest before he drives again.

A clean sweep for Dragon's Den-backed entrepreneur: Tony Earnshaw has cleaned up again. The young entrepreneur first came to public attention when he was seen on TV's Dragon's Den making a successful pitch for £100,000. Thanks to his ambition and business acumen, he managed to secure a £100,000 investment from Duncan Bannatyne. Now, the man behind Washington-based UK Commercial Cleaning (UKCC) was named the first winner of the Institute of Director's (IoD) 30 under 30 Young Director of the Year award at a ceremony in Durham.
Twenty-five-year-old Tony, who launched his first business at 18, today runs a company which employs 20 staff and has ambitious plans for further growth. "I was over the moon," he said. "I never thought I was going to win, so it felt great. It is the first award I have ever won – I don't think I even got a 25m swimming badge at school." IoD North East chairman Richard Elphick said: "Those vying for the award prove the region has a depth and breadth of go-ahead young directors involved in a wide variety of roles, all making a crucial contribution to our economic well-being. "We felt Tony should be named as the winner as he has demonstrated outstanding vision, drive and business acumen."
As part of his prize, Tony will receive £1,000 worth of consultancy services from leading accountants and business advisers, RMT. Senior partner Anthony Josephs said: "The 30 Under 30 listing turned the spotlight on some stunning successes and exciting entrepreneurs, which made it difficult to choose just one for our Young Director of the Year Award. "In the end, Tony was selected because he is shining example of a dynamic young entrepreneur. "The judges were impressed with his exceptional ability to seize business opportunities and turn ambitions and plans into reality." Tony first demonstrated his entrepreneurial flair at 18 when he bought an old burger van for £50. In just over two months, he made £3,000 selling burgers and eventually sold the van for £2,000. He bought a window cleaning round for £300 and within six months, was turning over £6,000 a month. Tony eventually sold that, as he had ambitions to set up a firm with bigger potential. Washington-based UKCC was born, at first providing commercial cleaning services across the North East. Within two years, a second depot had been opened in Leeds.

College students 'use road as carpark', claim fed up residents: People living near Bridgwater College say they are fed up with students parking on their road. Bridgwater College has its own on-site car park with nearly 700 spaces, but people living in Fairfax Road say students regularly park there instead, and they fear things will get worse when the college's new Energy Skills Centre is built. Window cleaner Kevin Gamblin said: “It's a day-to-day problem. They use the back entrance to the college so park up outside our houses, which is a nightmare when I bring my ladders home. “They just drop litter from their cars, and the verbal abuse I get off some of them is awful.”

Early voting begins Monday in city: Gainesville residents will go to the polls March 16 to elect a new mayor and a new District 4 city commissioner. There are 72,627 registered voters in the city of Gainesville who are eligible to vote for mayor and 16,188 registered voters who can vote in the District 4 race. Marsh, who has owned a local window cleaning business for 29 years, told the 4As the top three critical needs to him in the black community are jobs, clean air and clean water. He said he would work to "soften up" mixed-use zones to create more opportunities for businesses to develop that could provide needed services within neighborhoods.
Don Marsh countered that for the past three decades he has built up his window-cleaning business. "I know something about having the will to do something," Marsh said. "I am used to serving the public. I am used to solving other people's problems." As most of the others did, Marsh accused commissioners past and present of dragging their feet on cleaning up the site at Main Street and 23rd Avenue that has been declared a Superfund area, meaning the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has found hazardous waste in the soil or drinking water. "Bureaucrats have been watching this thing for years," Marsh said.

A bioethics expert is suggesting that women rethink possible plans to donate their eggs to fertility clinics for research or use in pregnancy. Jennifer Lahl of the Center for Bioethics and Culture Network says egg donation is potentially harmful for women. Lahl says egg donation is a "risky business" and unlike a high-risk job where employees receive appropriate compensation for the dangers (think skyscraper window washing) the egg donation process is inherently risky, from beginning to end.

Glass houses: light fantastic - You could say that Jessop and Kay Price live in a glass bubble. “We have glass walls all the way around. It is like living in the garden,” Kay says. Their sitting room has uninterrupted glass, floor to ceiling, and looks out over evergreens, a lawn, pond and a little piece of English woodland. Such are the views from their dining-room that it may as well be in a tree-house. It takes perseverance to create a house like this. Jessop and Kay spent nearly four years finding the magical spot near Peaslake in Surrey on which to build Fulvens Hanger. “We wanted no noise, no light spill,” Kay says. “Up came this dilapidated Twenties house that had been used at one time by the suffragettes. The garden was so overgrown, it would have made most people run away. But Jessop could see beyond it.” Developers have cottoned on to the allure of glass and are using it accordingly, especially now that it comes in many forms, double- or triple-glazed, strengthened, heat-resistant or even heated. “Glass is sexy and smart.”

Window Cleaning News

Week of snow days, no school lunches leave mid-Atlantic students, families struggling to eat: As back-to-back snowstorms shuttered schools for the week across the mid-Atlantic states, parents fretted about lost learning time, administrators scheduled makeup days and teachers posted assignments online. But Marla Caplon worried about a more fundamental problem: How would students eat?
The two snowstorms that pummeled the region, leaving more than 3 feet of snow in some areas, deprived tens of thousands of children from Virginia to Pennsylvania of the free or reduced-price school lunch that may be their only nutritious meal of the day. The nonprofits that try to meet the need when school is not in session also closed their doors for much of the week, leaving many families looking at bare cupboards. And many parents working hourly jobs were unable to earn any money during the week, as the snow forced businesses to close.
Otto Tambito, a Fairfax County father of two, said his family burned through much of its savings during the week off from school and work. Tambito works as a window cleaner and an electrician, but was unable to travel to jobs. His wife, who cleans houses for a living, was in the same boat. "We hope that thing melts down and we start again," he said.

Where there's muck there's brass...Six months ago, Washington lad Tony Earnshaw left TV's Dragon's Den with £100,000 in his pocket and the backing of Duncan Bannatyne. Now he's heading for national business success. "The only way you'll drive a car that nice is if you pinch it."
It was a throwaway remark, but it propelled Tony Earnshaw to take action and prove the speaker wrong. Very wrong. Tony, who grew up on the Glebe Estate, explained: "I was talking to someone outside once and a lovely red Ferrari went past. "I said I'd love to have one and the person I was talking to said the only way I'd have a car like that would be to pinch it. I took it as an insult and decided to prove them wrong." Today, Tony is the owner of UK Commercial Cleaning (UKCC), one of the country's leading suppliers of industrial and commercial cleaning services.
And in case you're wondering – he drives a very nice Range Rover. A turbulent childhood has not held him back, quite the opposite. Tony said: "I didn't have the best of upbringings because my mother was ill with mental health problems from a young age. "I had to be put into care for a few years and I never met my father. "My mum is doing well now and training to become a chef.
"It disrupted my life quite a lot and I found it hard to settle into full-time education." But despite this, Tony realised he wanted more from his life. "When I was 14 I realised it was time to stand on my own two feet and grow up. "I got back into mainstream school, went to Biddick Comprehensive and achieved good results, which was part of my plan of action to the long road to success. "What happened made me the person I am today."
The 25-year-old's entrepreneurial spirit started at a young age. When he was 10 he used to walk around the estate washing people's cars for 25p a go. And way before eBay he used to flog his old books and videos by setting up a stall in the street. But after the Ferrari comment he started scanning the Ad Trader looking for a business which would earn him the money for a car. In the end he sprung for a £300 cleaning business. Within six months he transformed the window-cleaning round, boosting its earnings to £6,000 per month by working 90 hours a week. Tony said: "That's when I decided I wanted to be the biggest cleaning company in the UK. "I worked 90 hours a week for that six months to make the business a success. "Eventually I sold it to a local guy who's doing very well with it. I wanted to move onto bigger and better things." The next step was an appearance on BBC2's Dragon's Den. Tony applied to go on the show in 2007 but heard nothing back. A year later his childhood friend Stephen Pearson joined the business and applied again. "We got a phone call from the BBC one cold morning in February where we had to pass a one hour phone interview," he said. After a trial run in Manchester the pair passed with flying colours and entered the den in April. Until the show was aired in August, they had to keep a tight lid on their success.
Tony and sales manager Stephen had pitched their business to the Dragons, asking for £100,000 in return for a 20 per cent stake in UK Commercial Cleaning.After a long negotiation, Duncan Bannatyne's investment bought him a 35 per cent stake in the business and he was made a company director. "I was dead confident, I wasn't scared at all," says Tony. "Me and Stephen were bored waiting in the green room. We wanted to get in there and make a deal. "I wasn't going to embarrass myself on national television – I decided I wouldn't leave until they invested in the company." There are some striking similarities between the two Tony and the dragon who put his money where his mouth was. Duncan Bannatyne's business career had humble beginnings, too – it began in Stockton-on-Tees after he bought an ice cream van for £450 which he turned into a fleet and eventually sold for £28,000. The pair get on well and business is booming – they even appeared on Children in Need last year together, renovating a community centre. "He's a very down-to-earth guy and I can ring him any time for advice. You wouldn't think he was a millionaire, " said Tony.
UKCC now has 30 staff based at its Washington and Leeds depots with services reaching as far as the North Coast of Scotland. The company turned over £370,000 last year – this year, they are aiming to hit £1.5 million. "I couldn't be happier," says Tony. "We're moving forward and Duncan gives very good advice. "That was the reason we went on Dragon's Den. "I could run the business as it was easily but needed that extra support and knowledge to turn it into a national business." Duncan Bannatyne knows Tony wants his firm to be the largest cleaning company in the country and is obviously keen to support ambition like that. "This is a man who started as a window cleaner and has worked his way up," he said. "His story has a lot of similarities to mine and his work ethic deserves reward." Six months on from the Dragon's Den, Tony is well on the way to going national – but he is still a Washington lad at heart. He said: "(To celebrate Duncan's investment] We went out on the drink and to a comedy club in London. "I fell asleep on the tube and ended up in terminal five and Stephen got trapped in the doors of the tube!" Eventually, Tony hopes to open seven depots, with the first London depot opening this year. He said: "Everything changes when you're moving from semi-national to national. "We've got the support of Duncan's head office, in Darlington, which is excellent, and we're focusing on building up our profits to support the change. "We don't plan to run before we can walk!" While the work rolls in, Tony is keen to make a difference back in Washington. The company recently offered 13 weeks of training and work experience to 10 unemployed people by joining up with training programme ESG Senica. Two have now been taken on full time at UKCC.
Tony said: "I am a local lad and it is devastating to think that people from the North East are struggling to find work especially after some have been employed for most of their lives."By offering this training, we hope to show people that their skills can be transferable across a number of business sectors, and that it is not difficult to take the bold step of applying for jobs in a completely different industry." This Washington lad has come a long way, but he's not ready to rest on his laurels yet. "Even if we went bust, which would never happen, I'd find something different to do," he says. "Every morning when I wake up I'm excited, I'm ready to go. I have a lot of energy – I think it annoys some people but there you go!"

The film Gehry's vertigo offers to the spectator a rare & vertiginous trip on the roof tops of the Guggenheims Museum of Bilbao. Through the portrait of the climbing team in charge of the glass cleaning, their ascensions, their techniques & their difficulties, this film observes the complexity & virtuosity of Frank Gehry's architecture.

I'll fight all way to court over parking ticket: Driver claims £60 fine is wrong - A window cleaner has vowed to fight a parking fine he says was unfairly slapped on him after taking his family to and from Halifax. Self-employed Denis Goodwin, 56, says he dropped partner Karen and their two children off at the Pennine Centre car park in Horton Street, Halifax, before driving to a job at The Works, Sowerby Bridge, on December 23. He later drove back to collect them at the same car park – which he says is their usual meeting point – and was shocked to get a letter two weeks later that said he had been caught on camera – and he owed £60 for a 94-minute stay. It showed photos of his car entering the car park at 1.44pm, and leaving at 3.18pm, and said he had not paid.
Mr Goodwin, of Industrial Road, Sowerby Bridge, said: "It is selective photography. I was there for about two minutes in total. There's absolutely no record at all of the car being parked in a bay and that car park is absolutely riddled with cameras." A spokeswoman for Excel Parking Services Ltd, which maintains the site, said the notice had been issued correctly. "Mr Goodwin's vehicle was only seen by our cameras entering and exiting the car park once that day. "Excel Parking Services Limited ensures that all cameras are checked on a regular basis to assure correctness," she said. But Sara-Jo Cooper, owner of The Works, said she had an invoice for work done at her pub which will vouch for Mr Goodwin's account. "He's a straightforward man – he's not dishonest and he's not a chancer," she said. Mr Goodwin, who is now launching a written appeal, said: "I have never had a parking ticket in my life. If I had done it I would pay up – it is the principle. I will fight this all the way to court."

Lead rules may impact window replacement costs: New lead paint regulations mean it may cost more to replace those old windows. The new regulations take effect April 22. The regulations require workers who remove windows from buildings older than 1978 to be certified and they must have special gear to protect themselves and anyone else in the building against lead paint and dust. The measure, which will be stricter than the Environmental Protection Agency’s standards, aims to protect those living and working in older homes and businesses. Contractors say reducing exposure to lead is a responsible move, though it may mean bigger bills for consumers. “It costs a business like us thousands of dollars (to comply with the new rules),” said Ken Oberdorf, owner of Wrightway, N6688 Wrightway Drive. Oberdorf said expenses include employee training, special equipment, lead-safe practice areas, lead barriers for the home and warning signs. The requirements could drive up the price for window buyers by 5 to 10 percent.

A Cumbrian window cleaner who was jailed for glassing another man in a drunken bar attack failed to get his sentence cut at court yesterday. Mark Andrew Broatch, 25, of Fieldside, Heads Nook, near Carlisle, was sent to prison for 15 months at Carlisle Crown Court in December after pleading guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm. Broatch admitted smashing a glass into the face of 42-year-old plumber, Ian Little, during a row at the Nag’s Head pub, in nearby Brampton, during May’s Champions League Final between Manchester United and Barcelona. He ran his own window cleaning business and employed other young men who might not otherwise have found jobs, a pre-sentence report had said. And he had also shown true remorse, said he had been “ashamed” and “disgusted” at what he did and described his motivation as “utter stupidity”. But, after considering the arguments, Mr Justice Openshaw said the seriousness of the offence justified such a long prison sentence.

Front line services in Hampshire may be hit in future, warns authority: Front line police services could be slashed next year as the force faces a cash crisis. Up to £6m of cuts and savings has been drawn up by Hampshire Police Authority to protect services over the coming year. But number crunchers predict a Government spending squeeze and staff pay increases above 2.5 per cent will threaten future services. The forensics budget will be cut alongside with spending on conferences, books and magazines, window cleaning, stationery and energy bills.

Bright, clean rooms promote good behaviour: The smell of citrus promotes generosity, while dim rooms increase dishonesty and selfish behaviour, psychology researchers suggest in recent studies. Chen-Bo Zhong, a psychologist at the University of Toronto, and his colleagues in the U.S. have conducted a series of small experiments designed to test how changes in an environment — differences in lighting or smell — can affect human behaviour.

Magnetron coating deposition: The invention of glass coatings has altered the influence of glass as it used in architecture. Today?s coatings can be practically custom-made to fit into any environmental conditions and offer a specific look and performance. The applications of coating technology are endless, so it comes as no surprise that coated-glass production and research increase every year.
There are two major processes used to produce coated glass: on-line and off-line. As its name suggests, the on-line process consists of applying the coating during production while the off-line process indicates that the coating is applied when the glass has already cooled down.
The method used to produce thin films and coatings in the off-line process is referred to as magnetron sputtering, which indicates the spraying on of a coating to a glass surface. Magnetron sputtering was introduced in the seventies and increased the effectiveness of glass produced in the off-line process. When performed off the float-line, the glass passes through a series of vacuum chambers where metal oxide coatings are deposited onto the glass surface.
The process works by passing an electrical current through ionised gas, thus bombarding the surface of a metal cathode with ions. The atoms of the desired metal are vaporised and then deposited in a thin film on the surface of glass. Magnetron sputtering is an environment-friendly technology, as it does not produce any waste or ecological damage.
This type of coated glass is often referred to as 'soft-coated', because the coating is more susceptible to damage than with hard-coated glass. Due to its fragility, this soft-coated glass has some special handling and processing requirements. For example, glass produced by magnetron sputtering deposition is used mostly in double-glazed units, must be heat-threaded prior to coating deposition, and edge removal of the coating is required to allow a proper seal.
The major advantages are a highly-visible transmission of light, good thermal performance, and no color haze. Today magnetron-sputtering deposition is the most important vacuum process used in the glass sector.

HW Glass Ltd Is A Revolutionary Player In The Fabrication Of Tempered Glass: This is solely due to the innovative and diversified array of glass solutions including fire resistant glasses. Stronger than toughened glasses, these light weighted glasses bear outstanding light transmitting power. HW Glass Ltd. is a BS EN and ISO 9001:2000 certified company, engrossed in the fabrication of various kinds of glasses. Incepted in 1972, it has undertaken streamlined production process, state-of-the-art manufacturing unit, strict quality paradigm and thorough research strategies in manufacturing glasses. Fire resistant glasses help in attaining fire resistance of varying degrees. Widely used in buildings that are more prone to catch fire, these get shattered into small fragments when broken without leaving pointed edges that may cause injury. Appropriate surveillance is undertaken prior to the installation of such glassesTempered glass is also known as toughened glass. These bear high strength owing to the series of chemical and thermal process undertaken in the treatment and fabrication. Titanium dioxide coating on its outer surface allows two mechanisms namely photo-catalytic effect and hydrophilic effect that leads to its self-cleaning properties. Moreover, durability, easy cleaning & maintenance, eco friendly features makes it ideal.

Glass federation to lobby for standardised codes: The Glass and Glazing Federation (Gulf) is aiming to target a 25-strong membership to form a body and lobby the UAE Government for standardisation of glass codes, according to its chief executive. "One of the issues here is that manufacturers and processors work to very high technical standards but they are all different - American, Japanese, British or European. The idea of the federation is to bring the industry together and give them a single set of standards that everyone works to - so that it becomes easier for architects and specifiers to understand how they were comparing companies and it is a way of promoting those companies that promote themselves as high quality as opposed to those outside the grouping," said Nigel Rees, Chief Executive and National Secretary, Glass and Glazing Federation.
The aim is to find a single voice. "We can be a single voice in the Middle East. In the UK, if a single company tries to go and speak to the government, it will not be heard. But when we go as federation and say that we speak for the industry, it will be heard," he told Emirates Business in an exclusive interview. The Gulf chapter of the federation was set up two and a half years ago. It has 12 members [companies] from the industry in the GCC. "There is also some interest in Egypt and Syria. The aim is a single standard that the glass industry can work with in the region and hence there is no boundary to the membership in the region. We had a workshop yesterday and got around 15 participants," said Rees, who was speaking on the sidelines of the Facade Design and Engineering 2010.
"The industry is very open to the idea and we have still not met a company that has refused to hear us. We are hoping to reach 20-25 companies to be a strong and sound base, which would take us another 18 months to two years. We have sat down with the Abu Dhabi Standardisation Authority and had a positive response. The next move is to look at meetings in Dubai but more towards the regulation side, namely Dubai Municipality. We have used the knowledge of our members within the region and can assist in the overall technical work and the standardisation but it will be an open debate as to what will really be needed in this part of the world."
Meanwhile, Richard Gulliver, Chairman, Technical Committee, Glass and Glazing Federation, Gulf, said that clients need to look at using high performance glass. Cutting down construction costs in the initial run does not help in a good return on investments in the long run. "Since the start of the downturn, we found that clients don't want to spend as much as they wanted to on the cost of the building and glass is the area that they reduce costs," said Gulliver. "They want something that will save them costs in the initial run but will cost a lot of money in the long run. These studies show that a building with a 10,000 sqm façade and using high performance glass will save around Dh24 million over 20 years based on today's energy prices."

Window Cleaning News

Dragon’s cash leading to national success: A cleaning firm boss who won backing from celebrity entrepreneur Duncan Bannatyne on television’s Dragon’s Den plans to launch a national franchise network to help grow his firm’s annual sales from £370,000 to £2.5m by 2011. Tony Earnshaw entered the Dragon’s Den with his Newcastle-Based Uk Commercial Cleaning Services Company last year and got £100,000 investment from Darlington leisure tycoon Mr Bannatyne in exchange for a 35% stake in the business.
Mr Earnshaw is now planning to use the cash to set up offices in London to complement his site in Leeds, and wants to franchise the business to prepare for large national contracts that are in the pipeline. He said: “This is a massive step for us as it allows us to not only expand nationally but to service large contracts which are in the pipeline for this year.
“This opportunity is fantastic for anyone looking to start their own business, as it removes the risk of them starting from scratch because they have the advantage of our brand, materials, and current workload. The cleaning industry is worth an estimated £10bn in the UK and we are giving people the opportunity to get a slice of the cake by starting their own franchise.”
The firm, which will employ 40 staff once its London operation opens for business, expects to employ 60 staff by 2011 to help with its growing portfolio of contracts, which includes window cleaning for Ladbrokes, Sunderland City Council and the Bannatyne’s Health Club chain. Mr Earnshaw has also set up a crime-scene cleaning division.
Duncan Bannatyne said: “Franchising is an excellent option for anyone looking to expand their business and UKCC has a sound business and profit model, which gives people the opportunity to invest in a solid franchise option.
The company’s humble origins make its future aspirations all the more impressive, with Mr Earnshaw starting out in 2004 after buying a window cleaning round for £300. As a 19-year-old, he quit his role at waste management company Biffa and proceeded to transform the window cleaning round from a handful of houses into a £6,000-a-month business in just six months. Expanding his cleaning enterprise nationally is something which Mr Earnshaw has been working towards since 2004 when he bought a window cleaning round for only £300.

Cleaning business launches franchise: A young entrepreneur who won the backing of Duncan Bannatyne on the BBC’s Dragons’ Den, is to franchise his industrial cleaning business. UK Commercial Cleaning Services (UKCC), which founder Tony Earnshaw grew from a window cleaning round in Washington, Wearside, to a £1.5m turnover business, is to be franchised across the UK. UKCC, which Mr Earnshaw established in 2004 with £300, when he was 19, is making the move in order to increase its workforce and prepare for large national contracts that are in the pipeline. Mr Earnshaw operates from depots in Leeds and Washington, and is using franchising as a way to expand the business, with ambitions to deliver services to Scotland, Wales, the South of England, and Ireland. North-East based entrepreneur Mr Bannatyne, who backed the company with a £100,000 investment in the last series of Dragons’ Den, has backed the move, saying: “Franchising is an excellent option for anyone looking to expand their business.” Mr Earnshaw said: “This is a massive step for us as it allows us to not only expand nationally but to service large contracts which are in the pipeline for this year. “This opportunity is fantastic for anyone looking to start their own business, as it removes the risk of them starting from scratch because they have the advantage of our brand, materials, and current workload.”
Mr Earnshaw is working with franchise experts to firm-up plans for the venture, which is due to launch next month. Estimates suggest that it would cost an individual around £30,000 to take on a franchise. Franchisees will be given machinery, a branded vehicle, a depot, and key contacts in which to generate business. They will also be given work from national contracts which have been secured by UKCC. Anyone interested in starting a franchise can call Mr Earnshaw on 0191-415-5610 Previous Blogs: Here & video here.

Villages want ban on cold calling: Work is under way to get villages around Corby designated as 'no cold calling zones' following the arrest of a bogus salesman. The group of doorstep salesmen – known as the Nottingham Knockers – were stopped recently in Weldon and one man was arrested. A spokesman for the Corby Rural Safer Community Team said: "One of the group was wanted by two other police forces. The team has been giving presentations to various locals to raise awareness about doorstep crime and PCSOs have visited vulnerable residents in the parishes. "We are also consulting with all parish councils to try to agree to a 'no cold calling zone' being established in the parishes." The safer community team trialled the scheme in October last year in Gretton, Cottingham, Middleton and Weldon in a bid to protect the most vulnerable and elderly residents from scam-artists and distraction burglars. It is hoped other villages will soon follow their lead and adopt the ban.
Corby rural councillor Stan Heggs said: "The police have been really on the ball with this one. We have worked hard in the villages around Corby and why should people come from Nottingham and fraudulently take things from us? It is concerning, particularly for elderly residents." Joy Smith from Stanion said: "I think there should be a total ban. There was an old lady in the village who had someone who said he was a window cleaner and then took £120 from her and another claimed to be from the water company and took £100 from her bag. "I think these people can tell if people are living on their own and target them."

MELBOURNE, Victoria (Australia): Madewell Enterprises has introduced BillsTrust, an innovative and secure online bill payment web service. Uniquely BillsTrust requires no data entry and can pay any bill, whether handwritten or printed – meaning more obscure bills can be easily paid without any chasing around like fines, plumbing, garden maintenance, school fees, suppliers or window cleaning. The service is suited to businesses and busy individuals that receive large numbers of bills and who find it a pain to remember and shuffle upcoming bills in order to pay them manually closer to the due date.
BillsTrust has been running in Australia since September 2009, and has been developed by former MYOB employees including Craig Winkler, co-founder and former CEO of MYOB who understand the financial and lifestyle challenges faced by businesses and busy individuals. “BillsTrust is like having a virtual cash flow assistant working for you, as bills will only be paid at the last possible moment by the due date, or you can delay payments to your own payment terms,” said Craig Winkler, Managing Director of Madewell Enterprises. “We provide clients with personalised barcoded stickers that they stick onto the front of their bills as they receive them. They simply fax or scan & email their bills to us and that's all there is to it...send and forget. When a bill is paid, our client receives an SMS and email notification of what bills have been paid and how much.”
BillsTrust aids clients to avoid late payment fees while saving them time, yet without sacrificing control of their bills. When they sign into their BillsTrust account clients can see their bills all queued up ready for payment, view a timeline of upcoming bills to be paid, and view historical payment information and digital copies of bills in an archive. As such BillsTrust provides visibility of clients bills all in one place, rather than individually.

More States Require 'Green' Cleaning Products: More states are requiring schools and government buildings to use environmentally friendly cleaning products, raising debate about their costs and benefits. After a burst of legislation last year, 10 states including Connecticut, Illinois and New York require or encourage "green" floor waxes, window cleaners and other products in schools, according to Green Seal Inc., a nonprofit that certifies the products. Similar bills are expected to be debated this year in at least five states.
Critics say that while the measures are laudable, states should not mandate which products schools and agencies must buy, especially if they increase costs for governments that are struggling financially. But supporters say the laws protect the environment and reduce the use of harsh chemicals that can harm workers' and children's health. "The goal of the bill is to make schools and other public space less toxic and healthier for kids and the general public," said Democratic Rep. Cory Mason, sponsor of a bill in Wisconsin.
Nevada lawmakers watered down a bill last year that would have required green cleaning products in schools after school officials raised concerns about the cost and their lack of expertise in such cleaning. The bill signed by Republican Gov. Jim Gibbons only requires schools to use environmentally sensitive floor cleaners.
In Hawaii, Republican Gov. Linda Lingle last year vetoed a bill that would have required the Department of Education to give preference to products approved by Green Seal. She said it was inappropriate for the state to rely on certifications from "a single private organization." The Democratic-controlled Legislature overrode the veto.
Mason's plan, like those in other states, would require public buildings in Wisconsin to use cleaning and paper products certified as environmentally sensitive by the federal government or several private groups. But it also would encourage agencies to apply the products in ways that reduce water use and the amount of chemicals released into the air.

Local gov't cancels open bid after embarrassing e-mail blunder ICHIKAWA, Chiba: A local government here announced Tuesday it has canceled an open bid for its school cleaning contracts after mistakenly sending Cc (carbon copy) e-mails to participating bidders. According to the Ichikawa Municipal Government's educational facilities division, the bidding was for contracts for window cleaning at 63 elementary and junior high schools in the city. The bidding was to be held without designated bidding companies and without prior notification of planned prices and the lowest bids. Last Friday, however, when sending a question-and-answer form to 17 participating bidders, a person who was in charge of the bidding process accidentally sent e-mails to all of them via Cc instead of Bcc (blind carbon copy). The mistake was revealed on Saturday night when one of the bidders contacted the municipal government. In an attempt to prevent collusive bidding, the municipal government canceled the bidding that was scheduled for this coming Friday.

A body builder who battered a teenage reveller to death has been jailed for at least 14 years after “trying to get away with murder”. He confronted Mr Lund, a window cleaner of York Road, Eastbourne, in the basement of the venue, in Pevensey Road, which has since closed down, on the night of July 11 last year. Nicholas Sitko (pictured), 24, was convicted last week of killing Ben Lund at the Funktion Rooms nightclub in Eastbourne, because he suspected the 19-year-old was chatting up his girlfriend. Appearing at Lewes Crown Court Judge Richard Brown sentenced the burly digger driver to life imprisonment and told him he would serve a minimum of 14 years behind bars before he is considered for release. The judge told Sitko he had tried to get away with murder by lying to police that Mr Lund had started the fatal fight. Judge Brown said: "No sentence this court can impose can ever start to reflect the value of a life lost or bring comfort to family and friends devastated by the loss of a loved one. "In a moment of alcohol-fuelled jealous rage you attacked a respectable, bright, intelligent man. He had done nothing to justify any physical response from you. "Ben lost his life as a result of your totally inexcusable, uncontrolled violence.

About CleanPower, LLC: Clients include corporate headquarters, multi-tenant buildings, medical clinics and offices, schools, financial institutions and industrial facilities. CleanPower, has offices in Milwaukee, Madison, Eau Claire, Stevens Point, Wausau, Racine, Sheboygan, Appleton and Green Bay and serves clients at over 700 locations statewide, cleaning over 38 million square feet of workspace for more than 100,000 individuals. CleanPower, LLC is a member of Marsden Holding, which provides contract-cleaning services in Illinois, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, Ohio, Michigan, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Utah, California and Arizona. With the recent acquisition of Al’s Window Cleaning, CleanPower, LLC.’s annual revenues will exceed $40 million.

Ten candidates qualify for two city races: A crowded field of candidates will vie for the two Gainesville city offices up for grabs in the March 16 election. One of the candidates is Don Marsh: Owner of Marsh Window Cleaning; Republican candidate for Alachua County Commission in 2002. Campaign Web site here.

A Fair Trade: Bartering gains momentum as economy sags and businesses seek ways to retain cash. An age-old practice spanning centuries and continents, bartering, the simple swapping of one service or product for another, is enjoying a contemporary resurgence spurred by the economy’s tumult. As restaurants struggle with declining customer counts and seek ways to stir traffic and boost revenue amid fixed costs, bartering is gaining increased appeal and acceptance.
Though traditional bartering takes place between two parties, third-party bartering companies witnessed growing membership numbers in recent years and spearheaded a barter renaissance. Unlike one-on-one bartering, members of exchanges are not obligated to barter directly with a seller. Rather, members can have their account credited with fair market value for a sale and then use those credits for future purchases. In effect, the exchange creates a savings account based on trade dollars versus traditional currency.
John Kubisiak, owner of three Toppers Pizza locations in Wisconsin, did not know such exchanges existed when he opened his first Toppers location in 2005. Two years later Kubisiak joined the bartering service International Monetary Systems (ims), a publicly traded, Wisconsin-based barter company serving 50 U.S. markets. Barter dollars started coming into Toppers immediately and Kubisiak has since used his credits for equipment maintenance, window cleaning, and employee incentives, including spa and restaurant gift certificates. He enjoyed a pair of Caribbean vacations on barter as well.

Sell your home RIGHT NOW: Prepare for viewing daily, especially if your agent has keys. Wash up after every meal, keep bins empty, and put away laundry. Above all else keep your place spotless. Running the vacuum cleaner around is one thing, but dusting and keeping windows gleaming will make a difference. Viewers really will be scrutinising every inch.

Art Gallery abuzz sorting out plethora of pre-opening bugs (Alberta, Canada): In the front entrance, they were repairing a drip in the ceiling. (Don't worry, you won't get wet.) In another room, they were creating a drip in the ceiling. (Don't worry, it's part of an art installation.) Last-minute preparations at the Art Gallery of Alberta had the newly renovated gallery abuzz Thursday with activity and noise. Dave Perrott, a window cleaner, admitted his job has gotten tedious. No wonder -- he's been at it since October so that the building would look nice during construction, too. "It's been, 'Do it, gets dirty, do it again,' " said Perrott. At this point "we get kinda ticked if someone else messes it up." The big challenge, he added, was cleaning the borealis, the metallic swirling accent piece on the front of the building. "No one really knew how to clean it properly. Every time something touches it, it changes colour." The solution was handwashing the borealis with a rag and CLR to get rid of grease and "make everything blend."