Trying to remove bed bugs can be a frustrating process. If they make their way into a home, individuals can spend a lot of time, money and effort trying to remove them. In an office environment, the presence of bed bugs can lead to diminished office morale or worse – penalties or citations from the government.
Not that long ago a Chicagoland company had a bed bug issue in several office cubicles on one floor of its building. Fearing the company’s future could be permanently damaged, management turned to South Elgin-based McCloud Services to assess what steps were required on both a short-term and long-term basis to eradicate the bed bugs.
The McCloud team responded quickly entering the building seeking out where the bed bugs were rooted. By using both humans and bed bug canines, the bed bugs were spotted, traps were put in place and chemical treatments were applied. After three months of vigilant monitoring, the bed bugs disappeared and the company did not face any government regulatory actions and employees were satisfied.
It was another success story for the venerable McCloud Services, which has been in operation for well over 100 years. Along with commercial property protection another focus of McCloud’s efforts is in the food supply chain, specifically working with food producers and protecting our food from farm to fork.
“We differentiate our company by providing the highest level of pest management services and customer care throughout the food chain,” said Chris McCloud, the President/CEO of McCloud Services. “We protect the U.S. food supply through a systematic, data-driven approach that delivers long-term protection against risk to our customer’s brand, property, employees, and profitability.”
However, while equipment changes, the fundamentals of a company do not.
“The pest management service is ultimately based on communication and partnership,” McCloud said. “Every company in our industry has access to the same tools and there are no exclusive ‘secret recipes’ used to eliminate pests. What we have been able to do is create lasting, generational relationships with many of our clients.”
That formula continues to provide impressive results evidenced by McCloud generating an average of nine percent revenue growth over the past five years.
“Our average commercial client rarely experiences what I would call a severe pest issue,” McCloud added. “Much of our work centers on assessing and preventing risk. When a client does have an issue, particularly in this age of heightened social media presence, we address it quickly and decisively. Delivering Excellence is one of our company values as a constant reminder of what our clients expect from McCloud.”
As his company continues to succeed, McCloud reminisced at how everything got started just after the turn of the 20th Century.
“Our business was started by my great grandfather William Bailey McCloud who sold insect control products to the Chicago stockyards in the early 1900’s,” McCloud recalled. “This was the start of our strong connection to the food industry.” The company continued to evolve when William’s son, Walter served as the initial chairman of Pest Control Operators of Chicago in the 1930s. Today there are relationships between McCloud and its clients that remain in place stretching back 80 years and McCloud’s customers can be found in ten different states.
Chris McCloud has followed the path of his father and grandfather, as he is active in trade industry activities. McCloud, along with several other company representatives, are actively involved in the National Pest Management Association.
Yet with the all the successes of the past and the present, McCloud is cognizant there are no guarantees for the future.
“Our clients trust us to protect their people, environments, and ultimately their brands and we do our best to deliver,” McCloud said. “As I remind our team it only takes a single negative experience to wipe out years of work for our clients. We take our clients brand reputation very seriously and it’s our mission to protect it.”
That being the case, McCloud is anxious to incorporate modern machinery and combine it with the company’s consistent dedication of the employees, as some have worked there for over 30 years.
“We continue to have an entrepreneurial culture and seek out and embrace new technology and services that can add value to our clients,” McCloud said. “Our team at McCloud has really taken this on and it’s great to see fresh ideas coming from our next generation of company leadership. Hot new items entering the market include the use of drones and remote sensing devices that will send a text alert when pests are captured.”
While ready to move forward into whatever the future brings, Chris McCloud does allow himself a moment to embrace what his family’s company has accomplished in the pest management world.
“As a 4th generation family business owner I am very passionate about the impact family businesses have on our nation’s economy,” McCloud said. “The ability to deliver a truly important service to our clients while providing fulfilling careers for our team members is very inspiring”.
McCloud Services is a leader in integrated pest management solutions, serving the food supply chain of custody, health care, hospitality, property management, retail industries and residential markets. With a foundation of 113 years of industry and market experience, McCloud Services carries out its mission to protect health, food, property and the environment while ensuring the safety of its employees and the public. McCloud Services is a regional service provider with locations in 11 states. For more information, please visit: mccloudservices.com or call 800-332-7805.