Spruce Industries Blog Page

Pre-Spring Cleaning: Removing Ice Melt Residue

February 8, 2012 – 11:28 am by Sean De Clercq
Temperatures are picking up, the snow has already come down, and Spring is on its way.  The concerns over the winter season are fading as snow becomes less and less likely.  It’s has been a relatively mild winter but we know how even a little bit of snow can affect businesses in our area.  The use of ice melt is a necessity for people who need to ensure that their walkway is unobstructed and consumer access to their location is unimpeded. Ice melt, even our best and safest brand, is not without its drawbacks.  The ice melt compounds contain various minerals and chemicals ranging from NaCL (rock salt) to CaCL (Calcium Chloride).  These chemicals when put on top of ice (or when it is pre-spread to prevent ice from forming) will dissolve slowly.  Pure water has a much lower freezing point than salt water, the ice melt works by mixing the ...

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Internship

June 8, 2010 – 2:21 pm by David Kraus
My name is David Kraus. I'm interning her at Spruce Industries. So far I have met with many company reps that have told me all about their products.  Each day I'm seeing a new innovative idea that I could see myself selling to many different companies in the future.  I plan on starting with company's i'm familiar with, some of which are owned by my family or by friends.  I have learned so much from the company's owner Hank Josephs.  I had the privilege of hearing from Hanks clients what they thought there relationship should be like with a sales associate.  They explained there relationship with Hank and why they would only buy from his company.  It was very helpful to listen to the clients.  It seems that there's something about honesty that wins a customers business.

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Paper or Plastic

March 30, 2010 – 1:14 pm by Danielle Esposito
So I was doing my usual weekly shopping at my local supermarket yesterday and had one of the most hypocritical experiences of my life. My household consists of my water guzzling boyfriend and my forever pooping cat. Needless to say, I go through 5-6 gallons of water and a 10lb box of cat litter a week. So on my weekly excursion, I picked up the necessary items amongst other things and proceeded to the self-checkout. While I was checking out & bagging, I broke out the brown paper bag to use in addition to the plastic one for easier transport. The lady behind me started huffing & puffing; rolling her eyes. I figured it was just her annoyance at me for taking my time bagging up my groceries. Well I really must’ve got under her skin because she had the nerve to say "Excuse me but do you really need ...

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Scared Touchless

March 24, 2010 – 9:50 am by Donald Reynolds
About six months ago, my wife and I vacationed in Florida.  On one of the nights we were out to dinner, we had chosen a restaurant that had just recently opened.  We were seated at our table and after ordering from the menu, I excused myself to go to the men's room to wash my hands.  I was trying to be proactive because of H1N1.  While I was in the men's room I noticed an elderly gentleman, guessing about eighty-five, just standing in front of the mirror.  I asked him, "are you OK?"  He said to me, "I just want to wash my hands, but I don't know how to turn on the water."  It was a "touchless faucet".  I showed him how to get the water on.  He then asked me how to get the hand soap.  I showed him how to wave his hand under the dispenser to ...

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From Jack’s Point Of View

March 17, 2010 – 10:54 am by Hank Josephs
Another TV show, another reality check!  So I'm watching my favorite show 24, taking place between 1am and 2am.  Jack is in this building trying to figure out how to get his hands on the nuclear rods and save NYC.  What do I notice, a custodian is using a polisher to spray buff the floors.  Also down the hall another custodian is moping the floor with a mop bucket and maids cart next to her. Once again real life cuts into another of my favorite shows.  This time I'm sure Jack didn't notice or care.  But I did, so whose is more observant.  Did you see it at all?

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Your Inner Circle

March 15, 2010 – 9:21 am by Linda McGowan
I just read an article about a woman janitor working for a large cleaning company.  She has had some financial hardship and was told that her and her family will be evicted from her home due to non-payment of the mortgage.  She is a member of the Service Employees International Union and they were doing everything in their power to help her and her family stay put in their home.  The janitor did some research and it turns out that one of the homes she takes care of is the CEO of the bank that bought her foreclosed home!   After some phone calls were made, the mortgage company reached out to the janitor with the effort to put together a loan modification program.   The contract cleaners association of the town in which she lives negotiated a new contract which increased the wages as well as the quality of the health ...

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From Down Under

March 12, 2010 – 9:34 am by Tony Fevola
Here are my Jan/San observations from Melbourne and Sydney Australia. Waterless urinals abound.  But they all stink!  Any suggestions? Best hand dryer is the Dyson I saw at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney.  Check out those airblades. Hand sanitizing not as prevalent as in the states. Overall, very clean facilities.

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CSI: Miami Out of Purell?

March 9, 2010 – 11:10 am by Hank Josephs
A couple of weeks ago I was watching an episode of CSI Miami, one of my favorite shows.  They had a scene in a hospital setting, as the camera panned the corridor, I noticed a Purell dispenser on the wall. As I’m trying to follow the plot and all the medical clues, I’m thinking "I wonder if the dispenser is empty", because I know not too many weeks ago, any one of my customer would have killed for just one case of Purell.  That’s how much in demand it was. It’s crazy how our industry dissects all walks of life, even my favorite T.V. drama and my problems transcend into a T.V. show!  I wonder what "H" would say?   "I guess they've been caught empty handed!"  (cue removal of sunglasses)

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4th Grade Teacher

March 8, 2010 – 11:28 pm by Linda McGowan
As a mother of 3 school-aged children germs and sickness are always a big concern for me, as they are for any parent.  However, it does put my mind at ease knowing that hand sanitizer dispensers have been installed in the classrooms, corridors, lunchrooms and restrooms of our schools.  Let’s face it - we all know that there are kids out there who are inclined to skip washing their hands... it’s just not "fun".  According to a friend of mine, Carrie, who is a 4th grade teacher, the kids love to use the hand sanitizer dispensers and will always find a reason to get out of their seats to use them!  To the children, it might be just an amusing diversion, but to caring parents everywhere it means healthier children in a healthier environment.

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Experience With Enzymes

March 1, 2010 – 11:07 pm by Leigh Tyluki
For decades enzyme based products have been an important tool in our cleaning arsenal.  While these products tend to have multiple uses, it is important to use them properly.  Let me give you two recent examples: I recently visited two school districts of mine and was reminded of how important it is to use our chemical properly.  At the first school, I was going over product usage and performance with the head custodian.  He proceeded to tell me the following.  He said, "The enzyme product we are using to eliminate four odor and deodorizer our bathrooms is incredible effective but it doesn’t appear to be a very good polish for metal fixtures."  I think you can image the look I had on my face. The second school I visited, I actually had a brief meeting with the principal.  They were having an issue with odors coming out of the bathroom and it ...

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