HURRICANE SEASON 2005 - Preparations provide boost for businesses
BY ED DUGGAN
South Florida Business Journal
The June 1 start of hurricane season isn't quite the non-event it was before Charley, Ivan, Frances and Jeanne paid a visit last year.
The $40 billion in damage caused by the four hurricanes was a wake-up call that is still reverberating - creating a jump in business for companies that supply generators, install shutters, back up data and clean up damage.
"We've seen a heightened interest after the last hurricane season from businesses across the board," said Karen Unger, president of Fort Lauderdale-based American Standard Document Management, which offers an ongoing service to businesses that want to send and store electronic or hard-scanned documents for online storage and retrieval.
"That interest has translated into sales and new clients for mission-critical documents, litigation records, financial services and forms processing companies," she said.
The document Storage facility has its own secure IT backup, redundant power supply and remote facility for record duplication in Indiana.
"In the last hurricane season, our West Palm Beach data center never went down," she said.
"Business is becoming very pro-active when it comes to hurricane preparedness. They are calling us," said Bruce Gaster, VP at Fort Lauderdale-based Networth Solutions, a Microsoft reseller and network consultant firm. "All size businesses want to know what they should be doing to protect their data and operations during the current hurricane season."
Gaster asks two simple questions of concerned business executives:
- How are you backing up your data now?
- Is the backed up data taken offsite?
"I can't tell you how many times the tape backup is left on top of the server," he said with a laugh.
Gaster's 12-year-old firm also uses a relatively new process that automatically backs up daily to a remote location using encryption for security.
Decon Environmental Services is just getting caught up on the damage repair that stretched from St. Lucie to Broward counties, said Alon Levin, VP for operations. But it has also been solidifying relationships with major property owners and managers who are keeping a wary eye on the new hurricane season.
The 250-employee firm, which is a licensed general contractor, sprang into action for water and mold remediation, as well as major and minor building repairs after the storms.
"There is a critical 48 hours to remove storm water before the mold grows geometrically," Levin said. "And do-it-yourself methods just don't cut it."
Generators filled with gasoline also don't cut it anymore for some consumers.
Personalized Power Systems, a division of Boca Raton-based Personalized Air Conditioning, installs permanent generators that run on propane or natural gas and cost from $13,500 to $25,000 installed for the average-size estate home or small business.
"We've sold more than 200 units since last October," said H.J. Frank, co-owner of Personalized Power. "In April, we sold 51 and through two-thirds of May, we have already sold 44."
There is now a three- to four-month wait.
Frank's original business plan called for the sale of two generators a week to gross $2 million a year. Prior to last year's four hurricanes, sales were at the rate of 1.5 a week. They now surpass one a day and climbing, "Sales are 90 percent to homeowners, with businesses making up the balance," Frank said."We install a unit in a home and the owner - who also owns a business - gets an aha moment. He then decides this would be great for his law office, his physician or dental practice, or his aquarium shop."
The business outlook remains strong.
"I expect that by the end of 2006, any assisted living facility with six or more residents will have to have a back up generator," Frank said. "And the oncology lab that has $500.000 in cancer drugs on hand will surely need a backup for its refrigeration system."
Like all salesmen, Frank can dream blue-sky dreams, even when discussing hurricanes.
"There are about 15 million people in Florida, and if just 1 percent of them buy generators, that should keep me busy for a long time," he laughs.