What goes into a commercial cleaning quote in Colorado Springs?

A commercial cleaning quote comes from five things: the square footage to be cleaned, the scope of work, the condition of the space, how often you want service and the time of day the crew works. Extra services such as carpet or floor care are priced on top. At CRM, those details come from a walkthrough and go into a written proposal with a monthly price.

The five factors that set the price

Every building CRM quotes is priced from the same inputs. Knowing them helps you give useful details on the first call and read a proposal with a clear eye.

• Square footage: the area that actually gets cleaned, which may be less than the whole building if some rooms are locked or out of scope.
• Scope: which rooms and tasks are included, and how detailed each visit is. Restrooms, kitchens and break rooms take more time than open office space.
• Condition: a space that has been well kept needs less work than one that is catching up after months without regular cleaning.
• Frequency: nightly service five to seven days a week, weekly, biweekly or monthly.
• Time of day: after-hours and weekend cleaning, or daytime coverage from a day porter.

Why CRM doesn’t quote by the hour or the square foot

The most common questions about commercial cleaning are about rates: what does it cost per hour, or how much should a 6,000 sq ft office cost. Square footage is only one input. Two offices of the same size can need very different amounts of work depending on the number of restrooms, a busy kitchen, carpet versus hard floors, foot traffic and how often you want the crew there.

That is why CRM prices each account from a walkthrough. Per-hour or per-square-foot figures you find online can’t account for your building, and a number that looks low can leave out tasks you assumed were included.

What happens at the walkthrough

CRM walks the building with you, notes the rooms, surfaces and traffic, and asks about access, alarms and anything that is going wrong with your current cleaning. Having a few things ready makes the visit shorter and the quote more accurate:

• Approximate square footage or a floor plan
• The rooms and tasks you consider must-haves
• How often you want service and the hours the building is empty
• Entry, key and alarm arrangements
• Any periodic work you want priced, such as carpet cleaning, strip-and-wax or windows

What the proposal includes

After the walkthrough, CRM sends a written proposal. It sets out the scope room by room and a monthly price, along with CRM’s insurance details and the service agreement. Periodic services such as carpet and floor care or window cleaning are listed separately so you can see what each one adds.

CRM builds each proposal for the specific site. A school, an office and a property with several buildings get different scopes even when the square footage is similar.

How to compare commercial cleaning quotes

Line up the quotes you receive and check the same things in each one:

• Is the scope written room by room, or is it a single line?
• Is the frequency the same in each quote?
• Are supplies and equipment included? CRM brings its own.
• Is the company licensed and insured? CRM is.
• How will you know the work was done? CRM’s crews clock in at the property through a GPS-geofenced app and take before-and-after photos.
• Who do you call if something is missed, and how quickly is it handled?