Mr. Clean
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One Westchester environmental and consulting firm is plugging along in the face of adversity.
“The diversity of our client base and the services provided is what allows us to stand out from our competitors,” said Richard Stumbo, president of Goldens Bridge-based Environmental Maintenance Contractors Inc., a consulting and testing firm that also performs abatement services including asbestos and lead paint removal. “In the last year, our sales, with a staff of 10, have increased by nearly 50 percent, whereas on the other hand I have seen a number of environmental firms close their doors or reduce their size significantly. As I have heard everyone say lately, big is not better.”
Much of the consulting and testing work is done in Manhattan, but the company often performs abatement services in school districts across Westchester.
“Our sales are about two-thirds testing and one-third abatement,” Stumbo said.
Last summer, the Lakeland School District had an emergency at an elementary school in late August two weeks prior to the first day of school. There was PCB contamination within the duct work of the cafeteria and an immediate environmental clean-up was in order.
Stumbo, who was preparing to leave for vacation, took on the last-minute job and managed to get it done before school started.
According to Stumbo, EMC is “very efficient and extremely fast, but we don”™t come in and just try to bang out a job.”
Stumbo started the firm in 1994. He has a crew of 9 employees on the consulting end and up to 12 for abatement work.
“My confidence level has gone down slightly in saying, Wow, we’re going to have a great year, but we’re trying not to cut people and we’re trying not to cut their pay,” Stumbo said.
“This is our slowest period of the year,” Stumbo said. “February is a really bad month because everybody”™s in the buildings and nobody wants to go outside, so everything really slows down.”
EMC has performed services for churches, hospitals, architects/engineers, real estate developers, not-for-profits, property/building management firms, construction management firms, general contractors and local agencies in Westchester and Dutchess counties.
Some of EMC”™s largest projects include performing more than $250,000 in lead-based paint testing for properties owned by New York City Housing and Preservation and Development during a three-month period last year. EMC is currently involved with a complete gut rehab survey of 1775 Broadway (Newsweek building) that included inspections for asbestos and hazardous materials within the 24 story building.Â
“We have been working on the building for over two years monitoring the rehab and will be on site for the next two years monitoring the remainder of the façade rehab and interior gut of the building,” Stumbo said.
One of EMC”™s biggest clients is Newmark Knight Frank, a property and building management firm that has afforded the company the opportunity to work in some of the most exclusive and largest buildings in the metropolitan area.Â
“I believe that the success of our company is based on our staff”™s ability to follow up,” Stumbo said. “If there is something that needs to be done, then there is nothing more important than following up and making sure it gets done. You have to want to go to work to become successful. Work as a team, get the job done and you will have a place to come back to the next business day.”