Gerloff Company Inc.

When disaster strikes, homeowners and business owners just want a partner to help make the situation better. Gerloff Company Inc. (GCI) aims to do just that. The company provides the gamut of residential and commercial fire and water remediation and controlled demolition services, as well as mold remediation and air quality control services through subsidiary GCI Remediation Ltd. (GRL).

The company, which launched in 1984, takes a no-nonsense approach to catastrophe management and interior/exterior property/contents restoration, leveraging decades of experience and an ingrained teamwork ethic to make sure families and businesses get back to normal as quickly as possible. GCI can have a team mobilized to mitigate the situation within 24 hours, guaranteeing the final finished repairs will exceed the customer’s expectations with a one-year warranty and the Gerloff promise of 100-percent satisfaction.

GCI maintains headquarters in San Antonio, Texas, and a second location in Austin, Texas, allowing the company to clean, restore and rebuild for customers across the state, including over 300 schools with which GCI maintains emergency plans. GCI is also one of the most experienced insurance restoration companies in multifamily restoration projects, with a portfolio of completed condominium restorations. To offer its 24-hour, seven-day-a-week emergency relief services, GCI employs a staff of roughly 80 professionals, though that number has swelled to as many as 250 during times of increased activity.

“Our approach is very different, because we are very hands-on, boots-and-blue jeans type of people,” says Darren Gerloff, founder and CEO of GCI. “We are selling our knowledge, rather than selling the job, and people can see from our references that we can go up against the best of them and deliver a clear, clean game plan.”

The team’s no-nonsense approach is a welcome foil to the complexity of many of its services, ensuring customers feel their concerns are being heard and addressed directly. GCI provides every customer with a thorough debriefing before any work begins, so that customers feel informed, in control and equipped with the necessary information to make the right choices.

Eliminating Even Unseen Threats

The extra degree of transparency can be especially helpful when dealing with dangers that cannot necessarily be seen, such as air-borne contaminants that can accumulate in air conditioning filters and irritate those suffering from asthma and allergies. In such cases, GCI can enlist the expertise of subsidiary GRL, which utilizes the powerful Rotobrush cleaning system to remove contaminants from both commercial and residential air ducts. The Rotobrush system vacuums up contaminants in an air duct immediately after loosening particles from the sides of the ducts, gradually snaking through the entire duct system all the way to the plenum. This is just one aspect of the deodorization and structural cleaning services offered.

The underlying factor that sets both GCI and GRL apart from competitors is the breadth of experience its teams bring to the table. “I, myself, came from the construction industry, but we have the capabilities to self-perform work in virtually all of the trades,” adds Gerloff. GCI begins to mobilize resources the moment the phone call comes in; this allows the team to secure the property and identity the areas of greatest concern. Contents are secured and thoroughly catalogued to be brought back to GCI’s state-of-the-art content restoration and cleaning lab, while crews mobilize to begin the water extraction or air purification process.

If necessary, GCI can also bring contents back to a 1,400-square foot, climate-controlled fire investigation lab, which boasts 30,000 square feet of storage space for evidence storage and a fully loaded camera surveillance system for total security. The location is ideal for third-party examinations of contents and investigations into the cause and origin of the disaster, if foul play is suspected.

Building Relationships that Last

In fact, the mechanical components are the primary items for which GCI regularly calls in outside help, and subcontractors are only brought in to augment the GCI staff in times of heavy demand. When they are utilized, the chosen subcontractors are companies that have long, proven relationships with GCI, to ensure the level of quality expected of the company.

More importantly, though, GCI insists on working only with subcontractors it understands to be on the exact same page as its own professionals. Nearly all of GCI’s work is related to the insurance restoration industry and GCI is a proud member of the Restoration Industry Association (RIA), the oldest and largest nonprofit trade organization in the insurance restoration industry. RIA membership comes complete with a stringent code of ethics and RIA members are known for expecting subcontractors to deliver the same quality of work and display the same respect for the client’s property as its own employees do.

“You simply have to have strong relationships with your subcontractors and suppliers in this industry,” expands Gerloff. “Some have been in the business for 25 years, while others don’t even make it through one job, and we simply refuse to bet against our clients by using an unseasoned subcontractor.”

GCI does offer help to newer companies that display an earnest enthusiasm to succeed ethically in the insurance restoration industry, however. GCI organizes and runs a number of continuing education classes throughout the year; these are designed specifically for professionals in the industry, as well as for real estate and risk management professionals who wish to expand their understanding of the industry’s best practices. Classes address such topics as the importance of mold remediation and the best strategies for minimizing sewage losses.

As a result, GCI has forged some lasting relationships with clients, subcontractors and suppliers. “We’re a numbers-driven company and over 80 percent of our business comes through referrals,” adds Gerloff.

The next few years will hopefully bring more of the same for GCI as it turns the corner to celebrate its 30-year anniversary in 2014. No matter where the team winds up traveling for work, the company’s client-oriented approach and experience will ensure the Gerloff Company Inc. name continues to stand for quality and transparency in insurance restoration.