Summer Season Greets Heavy Maintenance Projects

LIMA, Ohio — With many school facilities empty during summer break, maintenance and repair teams are moving in to create a healthier, more productive environment for students come fall.

Lima, Ohio-headquartered Allied Environmental Services Inc is gearing up for the busy summer season to provide school facilities with services aimed at environmentally sensitive projects such as asbestos removal and repair, AHERA 3-year inspections, laboratory chemical management and disposal, neutralization tank cleaning and underground storage tank upgrades.

“It is much easier and safer for schools to complete certain projects when class is out of session and there are fewer building occupants,” said Chad Reynolds, Allied sales manager, in a statement. “When dealing with hazardous materials such as asbestos, mercury or lab chemicals, it is sometimes necessary to temporarily isolate a section of the building, which is not easy to do during the school year.”

With over 5,000 asbestos abatement projects completed, Allied is a certified asbestos abatement contractor in both Ohio and Indiana. The company is supported with a permanent and full-time staff of certified asbestos abatement workers and supervisors.

The company also offers hazardous waste management services, which are specifically helpful in situations of science lab maintenance. Services available include waste characterization, classification and sampling, lab packing of laboratory chemicals, as well as the transport, recycling, and disposal of wastes under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, photographic and x-ray developing solutions, mercury-containing devices, shock-sensitive materials and pressurized cylinders.

“We collect a lot of mercury and mercury devices from schools during the summer break when storage areas are cleaned and inventoried”, Reynolds stated. “At this time, schools also replace equipment including mercury thermometers, thermostats and light bulbs/fixtures.”

For schools that utilize neutralization tanks in chemical laboratories, Allied offers routine servicing, cleaning and complete restoration of the tanks, which the company recommends should undergo limestone replacement every two to three years.

The company also provides installation, operation, closure or removal for underground storage tanks, which, if maintained improperly, can be at high-rick of releasing contaminants into the subsurface of a school site.

While some projects may include routine maintenance, other immediate projects may arise from unforeseen complications or issues that are identified during routine maintenance.

“Allied completes many projects for numerous school districts each summer and we always ask the schools to contact us early on to schedule work,” Reynolds said. “Fortunately, Allied is a 24-hour emergency response provider, so we can respond to any situation at a moment’s notice.”