Home › magazine › february march 2013 › special features › ECJ looks back on 20 years Cor van der Velden, consultant
ECJ looks back on 20 years - Cor van der Velden, consultant
10th of April 2013
ECJ celebrates its 20th birthday this month. To celebrate our birthday we look back at the key trends affecting the industry over the last 20 years, with the help of some of the best-known names in the industry. Today, consultant Cor van der Velden.
Developments and trends in the cleaning industry in Holland have been the emergence of ‘advisors’, quality measurement systems and European tendering. While there are many bona fide advisors, there are even more charlatans, giving the cleaning industry a bad name.
The spiral of underbidding still continues, only the large companies being able to decline these tenders. Sometimes I get the feeling that the Dutch cleaning industry is more concerned with measuring quality than actually cleaning.
Positive changes have been codes of conduct, and a committee that concerns itself with those companies and (prospective) clients who do not obey the code. Also, the Dutch cleaners’ strike only a few years ago was a positive development They did not especially ask for more wages but for recognition, and an end to idiotic and impossible working speeds. The code of conduct followed this strike.
One way change has been lacking is interesting young people in the cleaning profession. When I stumbled into the cleaning industry 40 years ago they were talking about it, and they still are!
What I would like to see is the a breakthrough on price cutting and unrealistic underbidding.
Cleaning companies should not accept unrealistic working speeds or hourly rates. But clients are guilty there too, accepting tenders with unrealistic figures, from which they can be sure of being cheated.
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