"Cost savings of 10% compared to other cleanroom cleaning solutions."

Daniel Cavelius, Sales Manager Germany, Hydroflex Group

Torsten Block

Daniel Cavelius, Sales Manager Germany, Hydroflex Group

Contractor meets Client. Daniel Cavelius, Sales Manager Germany, Hydroflex Group, interviews a good acquaintance with whom he has maintained close professional contact for years – Torsten Block, Regional Manager at SPIEGELBLANK Cleaning Company Heinz Kuhnert GmbH & Co. KG.

Torsten Block is one of the four regional managers of the approximately 2,000-employee cleaning company operating nationwide in Schleswig-Holstein. He is knowledgeable and thus a convinced fan of the Hydroflex Xtra concept. Someone who thinks about profitability further and keeps its facets in view. For Torsten Block, cleaning rooms also means turning routine service into an effective customer loyalty tool. That is economical. Because demanding customers, whose expectations and spatial conditions are well known, are easier and thus more time-efficient to serve.

With the Xtra concept, Torsten Block has the right instrument for the purest work. Here he explains since when and how he uses the Xtra concept, what he appreciates about it, and what advantages it offers SPIEGELBLANK customers and the company alike.

Daniel Cavelius
Mr. Block, since your company is very broadly positioned, the question: What is the importance of cleanroom cleaning for you?

Torsten Block
In my business area, cleanroom cleaning is number 1 in sales due to a major customer and also a flagship project. Additionally, there is another, but significantly smaller, cleanroom customer. Based on total sales, we rank second with our major cleanroom customer.

Daniel Cavelius
Since when has cleanroom cleaning been part of your service portfolio? And to what extent do you see customer expectations for cleanroom cleaning increasing?

Torsten Block
Cleanroom cleaning has been part of our service portfolio for 20 years. Customer expectations have increased significantly. They now require ongoing training, even retraining of our experienced, highly qualified staff.

Daniel Cavelius
Before we knew each other, you already worked with our products for about 6 years. What experiences did you have during that time?

Torsten Block
Yes, before deciding on the Xtra concept, we used your leasing reusable mops. Unfortunately, the laundry we commissioned did not sufficiently check their suitability for cleanroom use. Their deficiencies due to excessive use were only noticed by our supervisor. And no satisfactory solution was found with the laundry afterwards. Additionally, the overall concept was not sustainable. The reusable mops were washed over 550 km away – in The Hague. A large logistical effort. And because we maintained regular contact with you, Mr. Cavelius, and you always listened to our concerns, we turned to Hydroflex again.

Daniel Cavelius
Why did you decide on the Xtra concept?

Torsten Block
Before we learned about the advantages of the Xtra concept, we conducted various tests – with products from Hydroflex and other reputable competitors. None of the products convinced us – until Hydroflex recommended the Xtra concept. We have been using it successfully for a year now.

"Additionally, these disposable mops have better quality, as air measurements at the customer’s site have shown."

Torsten Block
First, you need to understand the scale: For our premium cleanroom customers, we perform cleaning twice daily, morning and evening, seven days a week. This results in 1,100 references per week. So far, this has involved not only washing costs but also high travel costs to the laundry. Now we pick up the mops with our own transport and wash them in-house. This way, quality control is also in our own hands. We take this self-responsibility very seriously.

We then use the disposable mops up to about 10 times for cleaning in certain suitable non-cleanroom rooms. Because repeated qualitative use depends on the condition of the floor. We handle the logistics for the entire process ourselves. Regarding the actual performance of the disposable mops: Although we have a slightly lower coverage area with the mops used in the Xtra concept, this is more than offset by a 10% cost saving compared to other cleanroom cleaning solutions. Moreover, these disposable mops have better quality, as air measurements at the customer’s site have shown.

"The XTRA concept is... a customer retention and security system."

Daniel Cavelius
Has the satisfaction of your premium customer, a semiconductor manufacturer, increased since switching to the Xtra concept?

Torsten Block
We have been serving this customer for exactly 20 years. Customer satisfaction has increased significantly since the introduction of the Xtra concept. The Xtra concept is thus more than an efficient cleanroom cleaning system – it is a customer retention and security system.

Daniel Cavelius
Will you use disposable mops with other customers or are you already doing so?

Torsten Block
Generally, we try to do so when appropriate. However, it requires a lot of convincing effort. Not only with the customer but also internally with us. For example, it was initially not easy to convince our supervisor and cleaning staff.

Daniel Cavelius
To what extent have the efforts for your cleaning staff, administration, and logistics been minimized by the Xtra concept?

Torsten Block
Handling has been simplified. With a disposable mop from the Xtra concept, a specialist can precisely detect when the mop needs to be replaced based on a fluid consumption check. Usually, this is after 15 to 18 square meters. If the specialist does not have such a disposable mop and relies solely on their own subjective judgment, additional errors are almost unavoidable: on the one hand, mops are used beyond their capacity. Then, cleaning efficiency suffers. Or their capacity is not fully utilized, which affects cost-effectiveness. However, the administrative and logistical efforts have not noticeably decreased.

"Hydroflex's typical performance is: Not selling standards, but developing the ideal solution through feedback loops with the customer."

Daniel Cavelius
Would you recommend Hydroflex or the Xtra concept?

Torsten Block
Yes, without restrictions, definitely!

Daniel Cavelius
Finally: Your opinion on Hydroflex and the Xtra concept in two to three sentences.

Torsten Block
We are particularly satisfied with the consulting service. They always provided us with the latest information, product samples, and updates. And made sure that the Xtra concept we now use precisely meets our individual requirements. By the way, this is a typical Hydroflex performance: not selling standards, but developing the ideal solution through feedback loops with the customer.