As PROs plan to attend the upcoming Pumper & Cleaner Environmental Expo, thoughts turn to new products and services they may want to shop for at the show. Whether it’s technical improvements to existing tools, new products to help make maintenance faster and easier, or completely new equipment, every PRO will have an eye out for one or two products or services that will add to the bottom line next year.
These PROs share what they’ve picked up to help do their jobs better and more profitably, and how they’re employing these new tools in their everyday business.
“We build our own equipment, so we follow trends,” says Marcial Dieguez, owner of the large portable restroom company in South America. “We attend the educational seminars, watch what’s emerging at the show and try to see what improvements we can put into our own work.”
One of those trends is the use of larger pumps to enable longer routes. “We watched floor demonstrations and listened closely to sales pitches at the show, and learned how to improve our own pumps.”
Since 1982, Disal has also built its own portable restroom units. “We took notice when PolyJohn (Enterprises Corp.) came out with a unit that had a rounder, more attractive appearance, and redesigned our units along those lines. We wanted to improve our image, and these units look better. We want to set ourselves apart from the competition.”
In 1999, Chile began to regulate the industry, and restrictions made Disal take another look at the wisdom of continuing to build its own fiberglass units. “We’re still building our own, but quality tends to be poor down here,” Dieguez says. “South of the border, we’re the leader, and we want to set a higher standard.”
So, at the turn of the century, Disal began ordering American-made units. Out of a total of 11,000 portables, about 3,000 have been purchased in the United States.
The company strives to continue holding a leadership position in its market. In 2007, Disal sent seven staff members to the Expo. “We’re bringing the new generation,” explains Dieguez, “so they get to know the industry better.”
Tammy Logan, whose company has only been in the portable sanitation side of the industry for a year, found herself surprised at the tool she found most important for American Portable Restrooms.
“Oh, the Internet, hands down,” she says. “I’m on it all the time, researching the competition and locating vendors. It’s just such an incredible time-saver. I have Yahoo! as my home page, and we use Google a lot.”
She also plans to employ the Web in a marketing capacity very soon. “We’re building a Web site and will make a point of directing potential customers there with our Web address on all our cards, invoices and trucks. That’s just how people are finding contractors these days. And you can see the other ways it can help you if you check out all the Web-based software demonstrated at the shows.”
