Guardian Service Industries, Inc.

Customer Experience in The Facility Management Industry The last decade has revolutionized the way a customer evaluates any business’ products or services. It’s not just about treating the customer right anymore; it’s about making them feel good . A study conducted by NewVoiceMedia in 2016 had found that, “U.S. brands lose approximately $62 billion each year due to poor customer service.” The results aren’t surprising considering the many competitive options available putting the consumer squarely in the driver’s seat. Another key finding of a U.S. based survey revealed that 65% of customers stop using a brand’s service based on one poor customer service experience. It concludes by adding, “By 2020, Customer Experience Will Overtake Price and Product as the Key Brand Differentiator.” At Guardian we take this seriously and have developed strong customer centric training programs designed specifically with our customer’s needs in mind. Our marketing team recently had a ...

MARCH 10, 2018  BY  DAVID EDWARDS Environmentally-friendly buildings provide $6 billion in benefits to health and climate, says a new Harvard study supported by  United Technologies . These previously undocumented benefits are in addition to $7.5 billion in energy savings, for a combined $13 billion in total benefits. The public health benefits include fewer hospitalizations and reduced climate impacts. The study says this is possible – if they’re energy-efficient buildings.Experts at Harvard University examined a subset of green-certified buildings over a 16-year period in six countries: the US, China, India, Brazil, Germany and Turkey. Known as HEALTHfx, the study found nearly $6 billion in combined health and climate benefits. In some countries, health and climate benefits far exceeded – in dollar amounts – energy savings. Globally, the studied green-certified projects saved billions of dollars in energy costs. Globally, 33,000 kilotons of CO2 were avoided...

by   JOE WARD A growing and dynamic city like Boston needs ample housing construction to keep up with the constant stream of new residents. And while the demand for housing in the Boston area has been sky high, developers have to get creative and aggressive to meet the city’s needs due to its size and infrastructure. In July, Boston had the ninth-most  cranes  of any city in the country, and housing permits were up 12 percent in 2017 compared to the previous year, according to the Greater Boston Housing Report Card. The construction boom is not only adding much-needed housing stock to the area, but it’s transforming neighborhoods as well as the city’s skyline. “Boston is in a growth cycle right now,” says David Goldman, principal with New Boston Ventures. “It’s a combination of the city really promoting development and housing and just Boston being a city where people want to live.” New job opportunities and business growth have helped expand Boston’s populatio...

During the next two years alone, 187 skyscrapers are expected to pop up across the globe — each of which will rise 820 feet in the air. As developers look to build taller and taller, some elevator companies are exploring ways to revolutionize vertical travel. A recent report by  Bloomberg  examined new technologies addressing speed, capacity and, in some cases, direction in skyscrapers of the future. In this video,  The Real Deal  looks at the   go-to technology  that’s being engineered by some of the world’s leading elevator firms. For the full article click here . 

Hudson Yards is on track to open next March By  Amy Plitt @plitter     Feb 27, 2018, 10:02am EST More than five years after  Hudson Yards  got its groundbreaking, the megaproject has reached another milestone: According to developers Related Companies and Oxford Properties Group, 15 Hudson Yards, the complex’s first residential building, has topped out. The building, designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro in collaboration with Rockwell Group, stands 917 feet tall—not quite hitting supertall status, but large enough to create an imposing presence. It has 285 apartments, four of which are  pricey penthouses  located at its crown, along with a bevy of  over-the-top amenities  that include a 75-foot swimming pool, a screening room, and  a co-working space  that’s essentially a WeWork for the building’s residents. The building also abuts The Shed, the megaproject’s forthcoming cultural space that’s also designed by DS+R and...

How immigrants shaped the city’s buildings and streetscape By  Rebecca Fishbein     Feb 26, 2018, 12:32pm EST The common wisdom is that New York is a city built by immigrants, its spirit and populace formed by the hordes of overseas residents who have called it home since the Dutch settled here in the 17th century. And in fact, New York was  literally  built by immigrants—some of the city’s most iconic residential and commercial buildings were designed by immigrant architects, who drew influence from their home countries to turn NYC into an architectural as well as cultural melting pot. Many of the city’s earliest architects, starting in the 17th century, emigrated from overseas, but the ones tasked with the most high-profile projects typically hailed from countries like Scotland and England, and were often highly trained. Those men, including Richard Upjohn and Griffith Thomas, earned their legacies by building some of the city’s most beautiful ...

Renovation is always a better use of resources than demolition and replacement. By  Alexandra Lange     Feb 22, 2018, 9:00am EST Does it feel like I am always yelling at you that  this plaza from 1968 , or  that building from 1983 , must be saved? It feels like that to me, because I am, because the architecture that makes New York great, giving it variety, texture, and some generosity amid the towers, is constantly under threat. I was genuinely shocked to wake up yesterday and read that the Union Carbide Building (1960), designed by Gordon Bunshaft and  Natalie de Blois  of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, and occupying prime real estate on Park Avenue just north of the Pan Am Building (1963),  was going to be torn down to build an even bigger skyscraper . Principally, I was surprised that the  Union Carbide Building  wasn’t a designated landmark. The bureaucracy and strategy required to get buildings landmarked in New Yor...