Prochem Europe Equipment Product Manager, John Hattersley, looks to the top end of the professional cleaning machines market and analyses cost and effect.
You are a successful independent cleaner winning new and repeat business. So you may be asking yourself some key career questions.
How can I increase productivity without taking on staff? Drying times are keeping me waiting – how can I reduce them? I really need much more heat and pressure for some of these jobs – how do I get them? I could really do with more commercial work – how do I get it?
There really is only one answer to this problem and that’s to use a truck mount unit. As the largest supplier and installer in Europe, Prochem Europe has a wide range on offer under the Prochem and Sapphire Scientific brands.
By way of illustration, let’s look at the two top selling models in the USA: the Prochem Blazer GT and the Sapphire SS370.
Each machine has different characteristics and varies in pressure and suction. Smaller units like the Blazer GT give great all round performance that’s ideal for domestic and small commercial jobs.
The Legend GT
There are eight more truck mount units in the Prochem programme, ranging from the Legend GT up to the Everest 650HP – a dual-operator unit with a high pressure system capable of giving a 3000psi output and utilising a 1.6 litre Hyundai fuel-injected power unit.
The only diesel-powered unit on the market, the Apex GTX Diesel is a dual-operator unit using a three cylinder Kubota engine that gives outstanding performance and reliability.
The Sapphire range is similarly diverse, scaling from the SS370, up to the SS570, with the SS460 sandwiched in between.
The SS460 and SS570 are both dual-operator units and all have electronically controlled thermostats to keep the heat required at the right temperature. The SS570 uses the petrol version of the 3 cylinder Kubota while the SS370 and SS460 both use Kohler V Twin units.
The Sapphire units also utilise the innovative all-stainless steel heat exchanger/heat well system, giving reliability and longevity.
Hose lengths vary, the smaller machine using up to 200ft and the larger machines up to 800ft split between two operators, or a single run if using only one operator. It’s worth noting that these are not maximum but ‘suggested’ lengths in that they offer no loss of pressure or suction.
With on-board sub-mount or saddle water tanks, these machines allow you to be self-sufficient with no need for buckets to fill and empty as with your portable, no need to use the customer’s electricity or water supply. And the drying times are reduced simply by moving more air and offering greater water lift and better indoor air quality.
A Sapphire sits snug in its van
It’s at this point the penny drops in terms of what’s being offered here.
The sheer power to take on larger, commercial jobs that can be remote from the van thanks to those hoses; completely self-contained (no hunting about for power or water); no extractor motor noise on site, so you can clean as others work; fast-drying so you can get the job done and get out and on to the next one.
These truck mount machines offer other accessories too: the auto-waste pump-out system allows for automatic emptying of the waste water tank making flood restoration work easier; the high pressure units can operate a spinner hard surface tool; all of the units can use a pressure washing gun and an in-line sprayer to easily put down presprays and protectors without the need for pump up sprayers.
-ends-
Issued August 2015 on behalf of Prochem Europe Ltd by
petermuir public relations
Whiteleaf Business Centre, Buckingham Industrial Park, Buckingham MK18 1TF, UK
tel 00 44 (0) 01280 308010 www.pmpr.info
About Prochem Europe
Founded in 1974, Prochem Europe Ltd. is a British manufacturer of cleaning and maintenance products for carpets, fabrics and floors. Chemicals solutions are made at the company’s headquarters in Chessington, Surrey and are available through an extensive network of national and international distributors along with its carpet, fabric and floor cleaning equipment, accessories and spares. Britain’s leading commercial provider of training to professional cleaners, Prochem Europe also offers a range of industry-recognised training courses for carpet, upholstery and floor cleaning and maintenance at Chessington, covering the latest techniques and maintenance methods.