In Northern Nevada, Sani-Hut is nearly synonymous with portable restroom, like Kleenex is to tissue. And the name recognition the Sani-Hut Company Inc. enjoys is sometimes an issue for competitors, who get calls from potential clients asking about renting a Sani-Hut.
The company’s reputation has grown with this burgeoning area. In 1956, when Fred Cutler Sr. bought a two-year-old portable sanitation company, the industry was in its infancy and so was the sparsely populated desert region. But today, Sani-Hut serves the vibrant Reno-Sparks area with a population base of more than 400,000.
And while Sani-Hut has expanded the scope of its offerings, portable sanitation — and the company’s distinctive pink and blue units — has always dominated the business. They also provide a variety of temporary site services and manufacture related equipment. In 1972, leadership was turned over to Fred Cutler Jr. The elder Cutler died in 2007.
There have been challenges along the way, most recently the economic recession that dropped construction-related accounts from 70 percent of the business to almost zero. Not unlike many businesses, Sani-Hut has had to cut its workforce, from 50 employees two years ago to 25 today. The company has put other cost-saving measures in place to preserve the business for brighter days ahead.
Pumper visited with Cutler Jr. in 1988 for a contractor profile story and decided to return 22 years later to learn how the company has changed and adapted to new technologies and ways of doing business.
DIVERSIFICATION & COST CONTROL
In this period of economic upheaval, Cutler reports that diversification has been helpful. “We can keep our heads above water and keep people working,’’ he says.
Over the years, Sani-Hut has expanded to offer a variety of products and services, including manufacturing guard shacks, storage buildings, portable office buildings, safety barriers and shower trailers. Enhanced services include providing holding tanks, temporary power and trash management. Another service is site cleanup, sorting plastics for recycling.
Early on, the company installed a legally permitted dump station at its yard, which connects to the city sewer. Here they have their truck-wash rack so vehicles can be cleaned while dumping waste.
Along with building revenues through diversified services and products, Cutler is implementing thorough cost-control measures in response to the flagging construction trade.
“We’re cutting costs,” Cutler says. “Everybody who works here has appreciated what we are trying to do. The (workers) in the office have cut back on their hours to help keep us going. Same with the drivers.’’
Other measures include parking 12 vehicles on the back of the yard, saving on insurance and licenses, cutting power usage in the building, monitoring cell phone bills and watching for waste in consumables used in restroom service.
QUALITY SERVICE RULES
But Cutler won’t sacrifice service quality in the name of saving money. He conducts spot checks on a job to be sure things are going well. He holds a drivers’ meeting every three weeks, always pushing customer service and assuring his employees that if there is a problem, he wants to know about it.
“In this business, it is consistency,’’ Cutler says. “We always have to be there to take care of the restroom.”
He wishes competitors would always set the same goal of providing consistent service and better understand the true cost of providing quality service. Cutler says customers become unhappy when they don’t receive the service they are paying for, and this reflects on everyone in the industry. He uses weekly service provided for a base price as an example. If a contractor’s promised Monday service stretches to Tuesday or beyond as a way to control costs, the customer is not getting what was initially promised.
“We service once a week as a base price,” Cutler says, adding that Sani-Hut sticks to its schedule and bills on a 28-day cycle. “Everybody has competition. I don’t mind competition. I just wish others had a better sense about what they are doing. You can’t give this service away. There is an old saying: ‘I would rather have 50 restrooms out at $100 a month, than 100 restrooms at $50 a month.’ ”
In response to consistent service over the years, the community has been loyal to Sani-Hut, particularly on the special event side of the business. The company serves many major events in Reno, such as the National Championship Air Races and Air Show, which draws more than 200,000 spectators, the Reno Rodeo, with 140,000 fans and Hot August Nights, with 800,000 visitors.
Cutler says his customers know what they want. “While some people are looking for price, others appreciate the service and the quality, and we always keep in touch. We let them know we appreciate the business. We send thank-you cards, and give gratitude packages (pencils, business card holders and the like). We have always put so much of ourselves back into the community with food drives and other activities.”
INVENTORY AND FLEET
While Cutler won’t share specific restroom inventory numbers, he says they have a few thousand at one site, and many more at the storage yard. Their units currently come from PolyJohn Enterprises Corp., although in the early stages of the business Sani-Hut did some manufacturing of its own.
Cutler prefers to use PolyJohn’s Fleet model as a standard restroom. For handicap units, he likes both the larger ADA-compliant We’ll Care III and the wheelchair-accessible Comfort Inn models. PolyJohn provides the hand-wash stations, too, including the Bravo and Applause models. PolyJohn hand sanitizers are included in every unit. They also offer the stand-alone SaniStand model. Special event trailers come from Advanced Containment Systems Inc.
As for managing restroom inventory, new units are set aside for special events, and those in service for a while are moved to construction sites. Cutler says he gets up to 15 years of use out of a restroom. The company processes and recycles plastic materials, which it sells to a company in Arizona.
For service vehicles, Cutler prefers International DT466 powerplants. The company builds all its own trucks.
“I’m a big believer in oil changes to get the life out of the equipment,” he says. “I’ve got a 1990 International and a 2001 International. If that 2001 starts costing me money, I will get rid of it and keep using the 1990. We know exactly what a piece of equipment is costing.’’
Cutler has about 18 service and delivery trucks in the fleet. The smaller trucks are GMC W4500 models, some with 550-gallon waste/300-gallon freshwater steel tanks. Larger trucks utilize 1,000- to 1,200-gallon waste and 500-gallon freshwater tanks with International chassis. The company also has a 5,000-gallon tank trailer for large loads. All have Masport pumps. For his service rigs, Cutler prefers an automatic transmission.
“You don’t have to worry about clutches and how the truck is driven,” he says. “You get more life out of a vehicle with an automatic transmission.’’
FORWARD THINKING
Cutler noted some of the changes in the industry that make it easier to quickly respond to customer needs and have speeded up workflow in a more demanding business climate. Sani-Hut previously utilized printed promotional materials, particularly brochures and catalogs to illustrate its products. The money once spent on printing has been redirected to the company Web site. In a conversation with a client, Cutler can refer to Web pages with photos of items the customer is looking for.
“You still need a telephone book ad, but we have cut those back,” he says. “Our clients are using the Internet, and we are putting a lot of focus on photos and information that is easy to find.”
As for recordkeeping, Sani-Hut was using an Adler Disc Textwriter for some delivery tickets, invoicing and other tasks when Pumper first profiled the company. Today, Sani-Hut uses MAS 90 ERP software from global software provider Sage North America. Linda Martinez, Sani-Hut office manager, says the program is designed specifically for the rental industry and handles many of the company’s office tasks.
A LEGACY OF INDUSTRY INVOLVEMENT
Cutler Sr. was a charter member of the Portable Sanitation Association International, and in 1995 he received the M.Z. Andy Gump Distinguished Service Award. Cutler Jr. follows in the path of his father as a PSAI member. He is currently helping to rewrite a booklet of guidelines for PSAI members, which he describes as a powerful tool to promote working with local health departments, special event organizers and the construction industry to provide enhanced services.
Over many years in the industry, Cutler credits contractors with a “thirst for knowledge” for the tremendous advancements in service, cleanliness and technology. He says hardworking people in the industry have always shown an interest in seeking better service techniques and equipment, and that networking has stretched across the nation, to Europe and beyond.
“Sometimes we look at things and have blinders on, then you brainstorm with someone and you get better ideas,’’ he says. “It’s all about people talking with others in the industry.”
