The 3 Things You Must do When Hiring a Commercial Painting Contractor

I have seen many facility managers make these costly mistakes many times over the years. Helping our clients… and potential clients avoid these has actually helped us perfect our own techniques over the years.

How to Hire a Commercial Painting Contractor

I am hoping that sharing this short list will save commercial facility managers time and money. This can also help bring up the standards for commercial painters that do not operate in a clear, transparent way.

1. Scope of Work – Make sure you have a clear scope of work in writing detailing what the job entails on the job site. The painting scope needs to explain in detail what areas get painted, the surface preparation needed (i.e. pressure washing, sand blasting, scraping, etc.). The scope also needs to contain what gets caulked, primed, what kind of paint, and how many coats of finish paint are to be applied. List any restrictions (i.e. no spraying, night work only etc.). Moving ahead on projects without a clear scope could mean miscommunications and extra charges that were not expected. This results in the cutting of corners to avoid the conflict which could cost you even more down the road.
2. Check References & online reviews – Some commercial painting contractors have reference list and the better ones have online reviews as well as reference list. If a contractor comes to you without either, that signals a huge red flag. If the contractor has experience they should have a list of happy clients willing to share the good experience.
3. Insurance Certificates & licensing documentation – While some states do not require a license to become a commercial painting contractor it would be a good idea to request at least a certificate of formation to insure they have a legal company as well as insurance and name you or your company on the insurance certificate as additional insured. This small step could save you from the attack of a multimillion dollar lawsuit.

Why Painting?

Many commercial painters have not planned to be painters. Most have fallen into painting. Along the way, they moved from small residential painting projects to larger commercial painting projects.  While the residential & commercial painting skills are similar there are many differences. The commercial & industrial coating systems are more complex. Good planning & communication is much more vital.

Some clients have asked us to review their commercial painting project, do a detailed survey, and write a detailed scope. The detailed scope would include every detail of the coating system from start to finish. This is done with the intention of using it as a platform to get competitive quotes. We do not mind this at all because at least we know everyone is playing on a level field. Most importantly, the client will see the project done right no matter who they pick.