Special Services assist with MU’s high-profile events

hen MU officials last October decided to hold a memorial service for deceased Governor Mel Carnahan, the event was put together in a mere two days. Staging, ramps, platforms and hundreds of chairs were transported and set up for the ceremony on Francis Quadrangle. Working with Maintenance and Landscape Services, a team of six movers quickly created a dignified setting suitable for the event.

Few commercial vendors have that kind of flexibility, which is all in a day’s work for Custodial & Special Services Labor Shop movers James Betz, Danny Johnson, Johnny Johnson, George Paquin, Howard Patrick, lead mover Floyd Murray, and lead window/wall washer Laurence Logan.

When tragedy struck, the Labor Shop was called into action to prepare for Mel Carnahan's memorial service on Francis Quadrangle.

“They have to be on their toes because their assignments can change at a moment’s notice,” said Pat Burneson, interim supervisor for the team whose members each have more than 10 years of service with MU; two have 30-plus years with the university.

Experience Counts

Julia Curry, director of CSS, credits the team’s experience and scheduling flexibility for its cost-effective operations.

“That experience really helps when setting up regularly scheduled events, such as Commencement, the Honors Convocation and Show-Me State Games,” said Curry. “And we set up quickly and get the job done the way it should be.”

In addition to setting up special events and rental equipment, the team also specializes in moving and relocating offices. During major department or building renovations, or for individual moves, CSS movers relocate office furnishings within buildings or across campus, or take discarded items to Surplus Property. The team has an excellent track record for safely moving anything, from delicate research equipment and antique furniture to the sturdiest of desks and bookcases. Some 1,200 such moves are made annually.

Window and wall washing are other services provided on request by the Special Services unit. Lead window washer Logan has worked in the department for 20 years and is experienced in cleaning hard-to-reach areas the average acrophobic wouldn’t even begin to think about.

Clean acres

It takes more than brooms and brushes to keep campus buildings looking good. Without high-quality machinery such as sophisticated vacuum cleaners, burnishers, scrubbers and carpet shampooers, custodians would have a difficult time maintaining MU’s acres of carpet and tile.

Custodial Equipment Mechanic Willie Watkins checks in a fleet of vacuum cleaners for repairs.

But even commercial-quality equipment needs repairs. CSS custodians across campus depend on the Custodial Equipment Repair Shop’s full-time mechanics Stan Noland and Willie Watkins, and part-time tradeshelper Jerry Samuels, for needed maintenance. Noland, Watkins and Samuels are experts on equipment ranging from 1970s-era floor buffers to state-of-the-art battery-operated scrubbers.

“Equipment is in constant use, when you consider custodians clean about 35,000 square feet of building area a day,” said Dale Muckerman, quality assurance coordinator for Custodial & Special Services. “Vacuum cleaners are the most common piece of equipment to come in for repair and preventive maintenance. They see a lot of hard use. Objects such as coins, batteries, hard plastic and metal inadvertently pulled into the equipment wreak havoc with the machinery.”

The shop not only maintains equipment used by Campus Facilities’ custodians, but also contracts with Residential Life, Hearnes Center, Missouri Unions and Columbia Regional Hospital to repair and maintain their equipment, Curry said. The shop also coordinates maintenance of CSS vehicles and performs monthly inspections of the vehicles’ fire extinguishers.

When moving an office, planning a special event, or seeking special cleaning, call the CSS supervisor at 882-5573. The department will provide an estimate of the hourly labor charges and rental fees.