Benchmarking best practices was the impetus for holding the first Simon Institute Symposium. Back then it was called the (OS1) Users Symposium and it was organized to further The Boeing Company’s effort to earn the Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award (they subsequently earned it in 2003).
Following an extensive survey of custodial operations at organizations considered “best of class” including General Electric, The Tennessee Valley Authority and ConocoPhillips, Boeing decided to benchmark best practices in cleaning operations with other organizations using the same standardized cleaning program – Operating System 1 or (OS1).
Boeing selected the original benchmarking group and invited them to Seattle to meet and share data with their Shared Services Group (SSG) which operated the cleaning services. The group named this event the (OS1) Users Symposium.
A special facility tour was also part of the symposium as well at Boeing the facilities in Everett, Washington. The symposium group was treated to a firsthand inspection of the ongoing implementation of the (OS1) cleaning process in the largest building in the world (according to the Guinness Book of World Records) the 98 acre Boeing Everett, Washington 747 manufacturing plant. The visit was hosted by Sr. Manager James Simmons, Project Planner Brian Hussey, and the Boeing (OS1) Transition Team.
The original group of symposium participants included; The University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Sandia National Labs div Lockheed Martin, The University of New Mexico, The University of Texas at Austin, The Delta Center, Sodexho Marriott, Professional Janitorial Services (PJS), GMI Building Services, Goodwill Industries-Miami, FL, the State of Washington, Yale University, ManageMen, and The Boeing Company. These organizations provided support, presentations of best practices and data they were willing to share with the group.
Over past 10 years the growing non-profit group has dedicated itself to further the professional cleaning industry by becoming the premiere organization to establish thorough cleaning industry science and benchmarking.