Soda wash business is booming
Jeff Perreault and his team at Media Industrial Cleaning and Restoration are the people who take on the dirtiest jobs in the mining industry and still keep smiling.
Being in the harshest environments underground and dealing with machines and equipment covered in gunk, muck, shotcrete, oil, grease and grime is the passion of Perreault and his crew.
When equipment and conditions are at the worst, Perreault and company are at their best. It has become the company’s trademark and a source of pride.
“We’ve been called the maids of the mines by miners,” Perreault said. “We have a lot of pride. This is our job and this is what we deliver. We just want to wash equipment. That’s it.”
Just over three years ago, Perreault was working his own driveway sealing and cleaning company while developing a bigger, and potentially better, foundation for a new line of work. Perreault had grown tired of using chemicals to clean driveway stones.
He wanted a more effective and environmentally friendly process. His research introduced him to baking soda blasting and he began using it for his jobs.
It worked beyond Perreault’s expectations and it got his mind racing in a new direction. He invested in a $20,000 soda blasting machine and thought he could take his business to a whole new level by trying to earn work from mines in the Greater Sudbury region.
Perrault “knocked on doors” and earned the first contract with Clarabelle Mill. The new venture took off. Perreault hasn’t sealed a driveway in three years.
The company is now doing underground work across Canada, including potash mines in Saskatchewan.
In Sudbury, Media works five days a week, two shifts per day. Every piece of equipment they have under contract is cycled through and cleaned every three months.
The company uses baking soda, compressed air and a small component of water to clean equipment of any debris. It is safe for the environment and doesn’t harm the surface of the equipment or remove paint or damage any wires, glass or rubber.
Clean machines mean happier workers and more efficient repairs.
Muck to shotcrete
“There’s nothing like it in the industry,” Perreault said. “Equipment goes through challenges and gets covered in everything from muck to shotcrete and resin. We come in to clean equipment so mechanics can work on them and operators have clean machines to use. We get positive feedback. We’re seeing equipment last longer and breaking less. The miners tell us they’re spoiled now. When the equipment gets dirty, they get their bosses to call us right away and clean them.”
The work is nasty. Media has six employees. They earn every buck they make. For out-of-town jobs, the team packs up the cleaning gear in two crates and ships it by transport. The crew then flies in to the destination. The shifts can be brutal and it keeps competition light.
Dirty and draining
“Our guys are beat up after every shift,” Perreault said. “It’s not easy. No part of it. It is dirty and draining. Our guys go like monkeys climbing all over equipment cleaning it. There’s people doing soda blasting, but we are mine specific. All our workers are trained to be underground and they are experienced. After six years, we’ve done our work with no loss time.”
Media’s main business comes from the mining industry. Perreault says it accounts for 90 per cent of the work he does.
It also does line removals on highways for cities, and fire restoration, mould remediation and log home restoration.
Perreault would like to take the business to another level. He wants to branch out internationally and has his sights set on countries such as Australia.
“We’ve been fortunate as we’ve been busy for six years and it keeps expanding for us,” he said. “We have had steady growth, but we keep our focus on our top clients. We enjoy it, too. We enjoy cleaning up the worst shit.”
