Building the Right Expectation within your SOW
We believe that there can be a healthy balance between cost, brand, and exposure to liability that will allow you to achieve your goals while still controlling your budget.
The trickier part is balancing the expectation of the local sites concerning this goal. For example, the level of service you define will inherently determine the liability risk you will experience.
If you want trucks parked outside when the first snowflake lands, there’s a price to pay for that. However, if you would like to lower your cost by 30%, you’ll likely see the number of services reduced proportionately and likely see the quality of the work performed impacted negatively.
Defining your SOW’s (Scope of Work) expectation is the first step towards building the right services to fit your portfolio.
Service Triggers
So, when creating that scope of work for your sites, one of the most critical items that drive both quality and price is the service triggers.
The industry defines service triggers as the snow’s accumulation level and when your suppliers should begin to deliver services, and at what frequency they should continue to provide those services during the entire snow event.
The question is, when should your service provider show up to begin service? It all depends on the aggressiveness of the event and your facility’s space.
There are three traditional service triggers within the industry: 1, 2, and 3-inch triggers. To learn more about the differences in service triggers and the difference in their pricing, visit our Snow RFP Best Practices: Quality & Price Through Service Triggers.
Call Ferrandino & Son at (866) 571 – 4609 or email
sales@ferrandinoandson.com to learn more about our snow programs and services.
Deicing Expectations
We all have a common goal which is to keep the sites as safe as possible. However, we understand that no one wants to pay for deicing services every three hours, which can be unnecessary.
Still, to put limits on when your vendor can deice has the potential to remove the liability burden from your supplier and move it back to your own company.
In addition, many clients feel this most negatively impacts their budgets, and they struggle year after year to level-set and manage the costs. The silver lining in all of this is that if you selected seasonal as a pricing model, you could tell your providers to deice away with no worry to your bottom line.
Discover the best deicing strategies to fit your budget by continuing to read here.
Service Validation
With more than 17 years in the industry, one of the things that have changed the most has been the way we validate service. The industry has come a long way from using the outdated practice of paperwork order tickets.
Most clients have moved towards more modern validation tools in today’s space, including certified weather totals from independent agencies and geo-fenced mobile applications.
While the technology is highly advanced, there’s still a learning curve at the local level, so you expect to see usage run as low as 70% depending upon your footprint to as high as 90% as your program matures.
Used in conjunction with certified snow totals—and quality control calls to the local managers, inspections in the field, and direct communication with the suppliers—we’ve now taken the industry to where validation for today’s national snow programs are streamlined and accurate.
Building the proper foundation for your SOW can become an easy process. With the help of a strong partnership, you’ll be on your way to experience quality services paired with the best outcomes so your portfolio can continue to do business regardless of what comes this winter.
CONTACT US
Looking for the right partner to help manage your snow removal needs? Click HERE to learn how Ferrandino & Son can help initiate your Snow RFP today! To learn more about Ferrandino & Son, visit https://ferrandinoandson.com/ or email us at sales@ferrandinoandson.com.
866-571-4609
sales@ferrandinoandson.com