Northeast Sanitation Blog

by Ken Wysocky

Prompt service, sharp-dressed technicians and keeping promises to customers is the success formula for upstart Massachusetts company Northeast Sanitation Corp.

Back in February 2006, a semi-retired Brian McNamara heard opportunity knocking and wasted no time answering the door — and stepping smack dab into another full-time career. Within five months, Northeast Sanitation Corp. in Sudbury, Mass., morphed from nothing more than an idea into a full-service portable restroom outfit.

Since then, NSC has enjoyed considerable growth, aided by the acquisition of two more portable sanitation businesses. And the decisive McNamara says he expects further expansion and revenue growth.

The key to the company’s quick success? Great employees and a simple but effective business philosophy: Do what you say you’re going to do.

“We don’t mess around,” McNamara says when asked how he took a company from concept to corporation in just five months. “I thought I saw a good opportunity in the marketplace, and so far, it’s proven to be just that.

“Our motto is, ‘The difference is in the details,’ ” he continues. “Whether it’s delivery, service or professionalism, it’s all about how you treat people … that’s what forges relationships. If you say you’re going to do something, do it. If you can’t, don’t be in business.”

MAN WITH A PLAN

McNamara spent most of his career in heavy civil construction and residential development. Working in New England, where the construction season is short and lousy weather is a fact of life, taught him how to make things happen fast. He eventually went into semi-retirement as a real estate developer. But while building a home in early 2006, a brush with unresponsive portable restroom service spurred his second career.

“They never came when they said they would,” McNamara recalls. “I’d have to call them three or four times to get service. So I started thinking that if they have this much market share and provide this level of service, there’s definitely a niche to be exploited.”

McNamara started by doing research on the Internet to determine the level of competition. Then he learned about the Pumper & Cleaner Environmental Expo International —which by chance was being held the following weekend.

“I went to the show, which was a great experience,” he says. “I found out about all the players in the industry, and ended up ordering 120 restrooms.”

By March, NSC was incorporated. And by July, the company was up and running. Growth occurred quickly, thanks to McNamara’s widespread network of construction industry contacts.

Revenues quickly grew. “We’re probably four times bigger now than the year we started,” he says. McNamara says a fundamentally sound business plan was critical to the company’s fast growth. That included forecasting sales revenue and net-profit goals, and asking friends and business associates to “shoot holes” in his business premises.

“I’d recommend that anyone start with a sound business plan,” he notes. “You can’t run blind. You’ve got to have forecasts, then be sure you hit the numbers. It’s not easy, but if you stay focused on your plan — which is your road map to success — you’ll succeed.”

Currently, construction-related rentals generate about 75 percent of the company’s sales revenue; the remaining 25 percent comes from special events. McNamara says his business plan calls for a 70/30 split after five years, so the business is on track. “We have to rely mostly on construction because in this area, there are only so many special events,” he says.

Hopefully, the recent news report of the collapse of the stadium dome where the Minnesota Vikings play will not be a sign of more disastrous things to come this winter. With the official start of winter a week away the collapse of the stadium roof reminds us how important being prepared for major storms can be. NSC Restrooms is located in beautiful Massachusetts and our neighbors in the Midwest know all too well just how quickly a small storm can escalate to hazardous conditions. The best we can do is take steps ahead of time to be ready at home, at work, and on the road. By now most of us should know the check list by heart. Did we change the batteries in the fire/smoke alarms? Do we have flash lights and candles and are the batteries for the house or car flashlights good? These are the things we can control. What about those we cannot?

Hopefully the snow that is surely on its way this winter will not bring down our roofs or freeze our pipes. However, in the event that we are met with our own natural disaster, keep in mind that NSC Restrooms can respond quickly to provide toilets to your family or facility. There is nothing worse than frozen pipes in your home or work, but if you are faced with this scenario this winter, keep NSC Restrooms in mind. With hundreds of portable toilets and restroom trailers available, and a speedy response time, NSC can make even natural disasters less disastrous.

Once again, the foliage throughout New England offers us a brilliant display of color. Our mornings are becoming crisp as the days get shorter and soon the daily temperatures will drop and the holiday season will arrive. This means freezing temperatures and winter weather are not far off. NSC wants you, our customers, to know that we will be adding a brine solution to our office trailer equipment and portable restroom units this November to prevent freeze-ups of our units. We will keep this solution in our units throughout the winter season.

Freezing temperatures during the winter can present unique conditions on your construction site where employee safety needs to be at the forefront of project management. Also, at Christmas tree u-pick farms where employee and customer safety and comfort are essential, the winter can pose challenges. As always anything you can do to ensure that your employees and customers have safe access to portable restrooms while reducing slip and fall conditions are greatly appreciated all the way around. At NSC your safety and comfort are always on our minds.

Long term construction sites have more options now for portable restrooms. When you have a temporary office on a job site for several months, you do not always want to be using the traditional portable toilet, nor do you want the expense of digging sewage and water lines. Say goodbye to the days of wasted materials, more manpower, and the associated costs, as well as the knowledge that all that extra equipment will all be left behind when the job is finished.

While you need several options for the job site, especially if your workers are 100 feet up building a high rise, you also want comfort and convenience for you and your office staff as well.  Now, there are mobile office restroom systems available. Your construction site can have a freshwater flushing restroom conveniently installed inside your mobile office trailer along with a pure water sink system.

The office restroom system is self-contained with its own water source inside the trailer, which drains to an outside above-ground waste holding tank. Once the system is installed, it should also be serviced regularly. Not only are these systems efficient and cost effective, they are also a green alternative to the old sanitary solutions. The pure water sink system is a great compliment to this mobile office restroom as well.