Scale Your Landscaping Capital Projects

Scale Your Landscaping Capital Projects

Scale Your Landscaping Capital Projects

OVERVIEW

When venturing into your next capital projects, whether you want a full portfolio refresh or a standalone location update, partnering with a trusted landscape vendor will help you achieve the right information to structure the right budget across multiple sites in your portfolio.  

 Knowing and utilizing these capital project best-practices for your landscape will protect your capital budget while delivering other saving opportunities.  

Let's Scope It Out!

The scope of work is essential to complete for any landscaping capital project.  

 You need to level-set your landscape, see what’s available, and begin to identify opportunities to improve your current project’s objectives. To do this, you need a Territory Manager to physically walk your properties to identify the areas of opportunities needing repair.  

 Once a scope is submitted, it’s up to your stakeholders to review and ensure they capture the essence of what you wanted to accomplish. It’s good practice to have a reliable Project Manager (PM) to take the reins to ensure communication and outcomes accurately.  

Call Ferrandino & Son at (866) 571 – 4609 or email sales@ferrandinoandson.com to learn more about how we maximize our landscaping crews’ performance.

Permit the Permitting Process

A separate critical step when committing to your capital projects involves engaging with your local municipality.  

 Across the United States, municipality codes vary within landscaping refreshes. Obtaining your permits is necessary, even if you’re replacing an existing plant material or removing mulch.  

 If a permit isn’t required, that’s actually an added benefit and convenience. Unfortunately, this is never the case.  

 The entire permit process will often go through several board reviews before approval, requiring lengthy waiting periods. A more straightforward solution is letting your landscape partner manage the permitting process for you. 

Additional Tips to Keep in Mind

The following few details incorporate several other factors into your landscaping capital projects.  

A Purchase Order (PO) is needed, so items are clearly defined and approved to establish the project’s cost. Additionally, to keep track of your finalized project plans, software solutions, like Jira or Basecamp, should be used to ensure your project planning and process visibility.   

Additionally, checking Irrigation is a critical component of any landscaping capital project, especially if you’re installing any plant material.  

Remember, running multiple projects in parallel can often deliver a greater bang for your dollar! 

Completing your capital projects can be a great ordeal. However, it doesn’t have to be.  

 Before starting a landscape capital project, confirm and execute your project goals with your national contractor from the start so you can safeguard your process.

CONTACT US

Call Ferrandino & Son at (866) 571 – 4609 or email sales@ferrandinoandson.com to kick-start your landscaping capital projects today!   

Best In Class Snow Programs Through Best-In-Class Scopes Of Work

Best In Class Snow Programs Through Best-In-Class Scopes Of Work

Best in Class Snow Programs through

Best-in-Class Scopes of Work

Previously, we outlined and communicated ways in which to build the right expectation within your SOW. 

Here, we will discuss another important factor when building out your SOW. This part falls outside of the service delivery requirements and into Program Management. However, one of the more critical pieces of a consolidated program is the field support your awarded supplier will provide.  

Snow Program Resources

Technology is critical as it relates to validating services in real-time during a snow event. Yet, technology alone won’t solve your snow removal program, delivering it all nice and neat with a bow on top. It’s an essential tool but not the overall answer.   

Your provider’s boots-on-the-ground and hands-on resources are what truly delivers a best-in-class snow removal program.    

Now, snow removal needs vary for every client and every portfolio—from oversized individual locations where you need an on-site PM for every event to smaller footprint clients like retail banks. 

Thus, specific field support is often intermittent based on storm size or need.  

Best-in-Class SOW

One of the fundamental requirements that we believe should represent a best-in-class SOW while leveraging those field resources is a pre-and post-season site inspection. Building a service plan requires a hands-on approach for every property and can only be accomplished through proper on-site due diligence. 

We recommend setting this requirement as part of your SOW and defining your goals around the requirement completion. Traditional goals are 45-60 days from the award date, considering how that award date relates to the actual start of the snow season.  

One benefit of site walks is the amount of data that is collected.  We would strongly recommend an offline discussion with your national snow removal partner for details on the mechanisms that go into documenting tracking and utilizing this data. Theres significant value that you will absolutely want to leverage.

Call Ferrandino & Son at (866) 571 – 4609 or email
sales@ferrandinoandson.com to learn more about our snow programs and services.

Pricing Models in Your Best in Class Scope of Work

Let’s change gears and move to a new topic and discuss pricing models. There are four traditional pricing models from per push, event, seasonal, and time and materials. But what are the differences between them, and which model is best for you?  

Your pricing model all depends on the event and the size of your footprint. To find your best value, visit our online RFP Pricing Model Best Practices resource.   

Again, I recommend discussing which solution may deliver the best value for your portfolio with your national snow removal management partner with these models. But understand, regardless of the pricing model you select, you can use the same SOW for each one.  

Pricing models do not dictate your scope of work; they only dictate how you will see the costs billed back from your suppliers. 

Selecting the most suitable pricing model that most closely aligns with your service goals helps create a definitive SOW that defines what your expectations are.   

Level the playing field to the metrics that will drive value and outcome. Every hour of work put in before your service launch will reap significant dividends on the back end when your snow removal program goes live.  

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

Building The Right Expectation Within Your SOW

Building The Right Expectation Within Your SOW

Building the Right Expectation within your SOW

We believe that there can be a healthy balance between cost, brandand 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

Detention and Retention Pond Maintenance Tips

Detention and Retention Pond Maintenance Tips

Detention and Retention Pond Maintenance Tips

OVERVIEW

Are you currently worried about the upkeep of your retention or detention pond? Are you unsure of where to begin or what to look out for regarding your maintenance care? 

Pond maintenance can make you feel like a fish out of water. However, with the right partnership and information in your hands, caring for your ponds can be effortlessly and affordably manageable.    

 Below you will find four critical tips to help you improve your pond care needs for your portfolio without breaking the bank, all while avoiding costly fines from the local municipalities.  

Know the Difference

So, why is it a good idea to have ponds on your properties?  

 One way to help manage your stormwater around your locations is by building a pond or a water basin.  

There are two different kinds of ponds. Knowing the difference is the first step towards proper maintenance care.   

 A retention pond is a pool of water that changes when reacting to rain or runoff water. These pools collect the rain or runoff water and then release it slowly (at a controlled rate) to prevent flooding or property erosion. 

 A detention pond is a dry pool but quickly fills during rainfall. These ponds temporarily hold the excess water and then slowly release it to another location. 

 Regardless of the type of pond you have on your property, it will need proper attention. 

Routine is Huge

If you fail to have a routine maintenance plan in place for your ponds, or if you ignore it, your ponds will fail.  

The number one cause of pond failure is trash or organic debris clogging your pond’s natural draining process. Clogged ponds are not only an unsightly eyesore, but you’ll have some annoyed property inspectors or landlords if they notice the neglect.  

 Why would this be a concern? As required, your pond must pass occasional inspections by either your municipality, state environmental, or water department to make sure it’s working as intended. 

Some of the checkpoints in your audit may incorporate the following: 

  • If vegetation or debris is obstructing the water flow  
  • If there’s any sign of erosion  
  • If surrounding concrete or brick is structurally safe and strong  

Typically, if your assessment does find some issues, you’ll be given a warning or a set time frame to repair your pond. One way to help streamline your repairs is to first connect with a stormwater partner who’s experienced and licensed in these services.  

 A national partner will have the resources to detect and provide immediate services to help avoid some of your pond maintenance concerns. Additionally, you don’t have to worry about the consistent upkeep since they’ll be able to provide a program that does it all for you.   

Take Care of Your Landscaping

Did you know that your landscaping provides additional support for your ponds?  

Grass and plants around either a retention or detention pool help filter out pollutants from the collected stormwater. However, landscape overgrowth can pose a problem as well.  

 One of the few allowances is Bermuda grass. Often, Bermuda grass is allowed to grow because of aesthetics, and it usually doesn’t cause any problems. Also, it’s less mowing. 

Properly maintaining your landscaping should be considered because if not handled with care, the banks of your pond can pool water in the same spot, which causes erosion, and erosion is a big deal since soil and sediment can wash into the pond affecting the water quality. 

Other landscaping issues can involve other invasive plants like weeds that can block your pond’s water flow and crowd out the beneficial greenery. 

Partnering up with a national landscape partner makes things easier because they have the right turnkey services and a network of professional crews that understand the correct pattern to mow around your pond to support your routine retention and detention pond maintenance care.  

Trust Your Partnership

Your retention and detention pond maintenance will be budget-friendly and seamless when you place your trust with your national partner.  

 Your partner will expertly tend to all the details that will keep your pond working beautifully while ensuring it passes all inspections. 

 To start planning your pond maintenance care, connect with a commercial landscaping expert today. They’ll assess your property, create a custom plan, and get you on your way to enjoying a worry-free portfolio. 

CONNECT WITH US TODAY!

Ferrandino & Son, Inc. delivers commercial stormwater management services to multi-site portfolios across the country. To learn more about Ferrandino & Son, visit https://ferrandinoandson.com/ or email us at sales@ferrandinoandson.com. 

866-571-4609

sales@ferrandinoandson.com

Building Best Management Practices (BMPs) For Your Stormwater Programs

Building Best Management Practices (BMPs) For Your Stormwater Programs

Building Best Management Practices (BMPs) for your Stormwater Programs

Detention & Infiltration Inspections

Best Management Practices (BMPs) helps to reduce pollution in stormwater runoff, so your waterway areas become protected. However, the efficacy of stormwater control depends upon regular inspections and maintenance of all aspects of your facility.  

There are two types of BMPs, commonly referred to as routine maintenance and corrective maintenance.  

Corrective maintenance repairs a defective part identified during an inspection, while routine maintenance actions return the area to the original conditions for suitable function. 

Below are some maintenance items for your Detention and Infiltration Programs to help identify critical components that require maintenance and timelines of occurrence.  

Inlets & Outlets

When inspecting the inlets and outlets of your Detention and Infiltration systems, you must consider several things. 

First, evaluating the structural integrity of your Detention Pond includes looking at whether or not your pipes are broken, separated, or crumbling. At the same time, your inspection should assess the structural integrity of the system to naturally divert the stormwater runoff flow to areas where it can percolate. Both should take place annually.  

 Your Detention BMP has requirements to review the condition of your pipes annually as well. For example, if noticeable changes have occurred, the report needs to detail the size, type, material, and other relevant information. 

Furthermore, other annual inspections include checking your inlet riprap, any clogged stones near your outlet, or any signs of physical inlet/outlet erosion, and making sure your inspecting and cleaning your upstream catch basin.  

Lastly, monthly surveys typically focus on making sure trash, light debris, and any overflow of spillways are clear.    

Pretreatment

When initiating your annual pretreatment maintenance—whether it’s applicable for your sediment forebay, catch basins, bioswales, rain gardens, or swirl concentrators—be mindful about ways to reestablish or set devices to trap and remove sediment, and look for any signs of erosion to your side slopes, berms, and emergency overflow. 

Removing accumulated sediment and any other excess blockages helps prep the area for any required pretreating devices. Also (on an as-needed basis), check for surrounding native vegetation that has eroded and needs replacement.  

Overall Functionality

To ensure proper functionality of your pond, outlet, and infiltration devices annually, it’s good practice to involve a PE (Professional Engineer). An engineer has the know-how to detect and repair specific parts accurately and on time to mitigate problems or delays.  

For Infiltration Only

We note that your Infiltration checklist varies slightly from your Detention checklists in addition to the other previously mentioned guidelines. These points focus on your BMP Infiltration Surface, aggregate, and vegetation (if applicable).  

Ensuring your sediment and erosion are non-present and that aggregate is replaced properly helps proper stormwater function along with maintaining your vegetative cover, especially after a significant storm.   

 

Optional Enhancements

Optional annual enhancements that add to your BMP include establishing limits on intrusive components near your ponds and instituting no-mow zone areas. Maintaining a 15-20 ft. no-mow or chemical-free space helps keep your pond natural and systems healthy.   

Keeping your stormwater systems eco-friendly includes adding no fertilizer (unless testing requires it) and limiting landscaping services only when necessary. Also, making sure to avoid unauthorized plantings and other invasive species helps preserve your pond or systems aesthetics and mitigates residential complaints.  

 If, in the event, you must utilize a herbicide, contact a qualified commercial application specialist that selectively uses herbicide for invasive species. These experts can also aid in increasing your plant diversity by sowing vegetation that promotes the health of your pond and the infiltration basin area. 

We recommend performing your BMP inspections by a licensed PE or specialized commercial contractor to safeguard the design and function of your ponds or stormwater drainage system.  

Contact your partner or specialist to discuss your options and for other necessary next steps.   

CONNECT WITH US TODAY!

Ferrandino & Son, Inc. delivers commercial stormwater management services to multi-site portfolios across the country. To learn more about Ferrandino & Son, visit https://ferrandinoandson.com/ or email us at sales@ferrandinoandson.com. 

866-571-4609

sales@ferrandinoandson.com

5 Stormwater Management Solutions

5 Stormwater Management Solutions

5 Stormwater Management Solutions

The best way you can control your stormwater runoff is by implementing Best Management Practices (BMPs).  

Whether you have them in place to meet permit requirements or for simply reducing the overall effects of stormwater runoff from your facility grounds, below you will find our five expert solutions to manage your stormwater runoff. 

Dry Ponds

Dry detention basins, also known as dry ponds, are stormwater solutions designed to contain water for a short amount of time while releasing it away slowly. In addition, the basins help purify the water.  

For example, during and immediately following storm events, the basin becomes filled with runoff water, and its short stay in the pond lets particles and pollutants settle to the bottom. Then, the outlet structure slowly releases the water into a sewer system when it reaches a certain level.  

During significant storm events, emergency spillways carry the water away from the basin. However, it’s best practice to monitor this action due to the risk of erosion. 

These basins are a great asset when managing stormwater, mainly due to their ability to be sustainable in any U.S. climate or region. However, one limitation you may notice is the amount of space needed to construct one.  

If your facility space turns out to be too small, the outlet system can become faulty due to constant clogging during storm-related weather events. 

The EPA [Environmental Protection Agency] recommends having a minimum of about 10 acres to construct one. Additionally, you shouldn’t install one alone in areas prone to highly contaminated runoff, otherwise known as “stormwater hot spots.”  

Nevertheless, dry detention basins are among the best flood control systems for stormwater.    

Artificial Lakes & Ponds

Retention basins are artificial lakes and ponds which treat stormwater runoff by mimicking natural watersheds. The excess water then undergoes a natural treatment process.  

For example, sedimentation allows the removal of particles, organic matter, and metals, while biological elements—plants, algae, and bacteria—work to remove pollutants. They hold a constant water level, unlike dry ponds, and only release the water to receive more after a storm.  

Although retention basins can be used in almost any application and easily retrofitted for existing detention basins, they require special care. They’re not suitable for every location, and you’ll probably have to pay a hefty upfront cost.  

In addition, it’s not wise to build these basins in permeable soil since the water would pass through, decreasing the water level. Also, these basins require periodic inspection due to the surrounding vegetation and for routine maintenance.

Before even building the basin, you also have to consider the potential disturbance it may cause to surrounding wetland areas and how it may contaminate groundwater because any design flaw can decrease your water quality.     

However, these artificial ponds function as another solution to manage your stormwater and add an aesthetic appeal to your properties. They’re also sustainable (on average more than 20 years) with proper maintenance. 

Chamber Filtration System

Sand filters are not only effective stormwater management systems, but they can also effectively remove pollutants from stormwater runoff. They are typically two or three chamber systems. 

The first chamber holds the sediment and helps reduce large and heavy residues that float in the water. Additionally, as the water filters through the sand bed in the second chamber, more pollutants are left behind.  

The treated water then passes through the discharge chamber, releasing it into a storm drainage system or directly towards surface water. 

You’ll see sand filters in developed urban settings that have water-resistant surfaces, like paved parking lots, garages, and driveways. These systems also act as an additional infiltration option in drier climate regions. 

However, they do have less capability to remove nutrients and metal from runoff and typically handle only small areas. In addition, you need regular maintenance to prevent clogging, and you may have to replace the filter matter often.  

Another drawback is that sand filters don’t protect against erosion. Still, sand filters do a great job reducing most runoff pollution and help protect groundwater quality. In addition, they take up far less space compared to artificial ponds and detention basins. 

Vegetated Channels

Vegetated or grassed swales are shallow, open channels specifically engineered to slow stormwater runoff while also removing pollutants. You can build swales in any area that supports dense vegetation, and they function exceptionally well in residential and industrial sites that maintain a small population with lower than average water flow. 

Unfortunately, these swales are not as effective in flat or steep marked areas and cannot withstand high water flow. In addition, since there’s no barrier below the swale, pollutants have a greater potential to reach and contaminate groundwater. 

However, these systems can be used alone or with other BMPs and encourage infiltration while reducing overall water flow. 

Temporary Solutions

Anything that is stored outside or exposed to rain and runoff should be covered if it has the potential to contaminate stormwater. Coverings can include anything temporary, like plastic, tarp, or something more permanent such as a roof or shed. 

Coverings are very common since most facilities house either raw materials, byproducts, or other goods that could pollute stormwater runoff. 

Some disadvantages include frequent inspections, and at times, they’re not as effective. However, coverings are extremely easy to apply in many situations and are a cost-effective solution. 

These five general stormwater BMPs are only a few ways to keep your runoff under control. Though, we do note that every project and situation requires different methods.  

If you have any questions regarding what stormwater BMPs may be best for your current project, connect with your stormwater management partner today. 

CONNECT WITH US TODAY!

Ferrandino & Son, Inc. delivers commercial stormwater management services to multi-site portfolios across the country. To learn more about Ferrandino & Son, visit https://ferrandinoandson.com/ or email us at sales@ferrandinoandson.com. 

 

866-571-4609

sales@ferrandinoandson.com