The First Facility Management Blog

ASTM International announces the publication of a new compilation, ASTM Standards on Erosion and Sediment Control Technology, 2nd Edition. This comprehensive new edition provides 72 of the latest standards relating to erosion and sediment control. It includes 28 new ASTM standards that did not appear in the first edition.

The standards included cover: turf reinforcement mats, erosion control blankets, articulated concrete blocks, soil loss, gabions, hydraulic applied products, geotextiles, geosynthetics, and more. This publication is a valuable resource for soil scientists, engineers, botanists, biologists, developers, landscape architects, excavating contractors, landscapers, and resource managers.

Copies of ASTM Standards on Erosion and Sediment Control Technology, 2nd Edition are available from ASTM Customer Service (phone: 610/832-9585; fax: 610/832-9555; service@astm.org).

The American Indoor Air Quality Council has announced that its certifications are compliant with international standards for program operation developed by the International Organization for Standardization.

ISO standards 9000, 9001, 9004, 17000, and 17024 apply to organizations conducting personnel certification programs. The IAQ Council is the first certifying body in the indoor air quality industry to comply with these standards.

“The IAQ Council is dedicated to providing the most credible certifications in indoor air quality,” said Charlie Wiles, IAQ Council executive director. “This announcement signals another important step in maintaining our credibility.”

ISO-compliant certifying bodies must meet rigorous standards for program operation and maintenance, including independence from certification-related training, exclusion of trainers from participation in certification decisions, and documented procedures for safeguarding impartiality and confidentiality.

“Compliance with ISO standards sets IAQ Council certifications apart,” said Wiles. “At the same time, it reflects practices that we have followed since the founding of our organization.”

The American Indoor Air Quality Council is a non-profit certifying body founded in 1993 to serve the indoor air quality industry. The IAQ Council operates independent, third-party accredited certification programs for indoor environmental consultants, microbial consultants, microbial remediators, indoor air quality administrators, and residential mold inspectors.

ISS Facility Services, Inc., a national provider of facility services has signed an agreement to acquire building services provider BGM. The closing is expected to occur today, March 31, 2008.

BGM, which does business as BG Service Solutions, has revenues of $105 million and provides cleaning services in six states including Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Minnesota, Florida and Utah. BGM was founded in 1972 by Ron Baker and Ron Goldsmith, and Goldsmith says, “Ron Baker and I are very pleased to place our company and dedicated employee team with the leading cleaning company in the world.”

Sonny Price, current president of BGM will remain with ISS as the president of the Midwest Region and will be responsible for the operations of the region within the ISS corporate structure.

“We are very excited to team up with BGM. I have known both Ron’s for a long while and have always admired the management team they put together and their approach to the business in building a great Company,” remarked Darrell Glover, CEO of ISS Facility Services, Inc., on the deal. “This acquisition is a great fit for ISS and gives us a very strong presence in the Midwestern states. It also gives us a strong presence in the Aviation sector which is important to us,” says Glover. With this acquisition, ISS Facility Services will have over 14,600 employees.

ISS Facility Services, Inc. is the United States company of ISS and offers a range of service solutions, from single services to fully Integrated Facility Services (IFS) that combine all of the customers’ service and support functions into one solution.

About the ISS Group
The ISS Group is a facility services group, providing integrated service solutions based on the core business areas of cleaning, catering, office support, property services, and security. The ISS Group had annual revenues of almost USD $13.4 billion in 2007 and employs more than 440,000 people in 50 countries across Europe, Asia, North America, South America and Australia.

About BGM Industries
BGM Industries has its headquarters in Kansas City, MO, and is a leading provider of cleaning services in the Midwest. In addition to cleaning services, BGM also provides property services such as building maintenance and landscaping as well as security. The company has more than 1,000 customer accounts, the largest of which are office properties and airports. BGM Industries generated 2007 revenue of about USD $105 million and has some 3,600 employees.