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Text Box: Exceeding Expectations Special recognition goes to Cindy Livengood, a Pontiac, IL, employee, for her efforts as part of the Caterpillar Pontiac 315 “C” crew which recently broke an assembly record that had stood since July 2004. Thank you, Cindy, for your part in exceeding our customer’s expectations! An Honest Effort Thanks to Billy Lynn, a cleaner at the Caterpillar East Peoria facility, for his assistance in locating and returning the lost wallet of one of our customers. The customer was extremely appreciative and had this to say: “Most of all I would like to thank Billy Lynn who found and returned my wallet, even refusing my offer of a reward. It is reassuring to see such an act of kindness and honesty when so much of today’s news would lead us to believe this is not the world we live in today. You should be very proud to have someone of Billy’s honesty and integrity represent Vonachen Services and I am grateful for his positive response to a trying situation.” Billy, we are proud of you and thankful you are a member of the VSI family! A Perfect Record Congratulations to Tresa Patterson for working for VSI for two years with perfect attendance! Tresa works in the Commercial District in the Peoria area. “She has been a very valuable employee since the day she started with the company,” says her supervisor, Rob Mounts. What an impressive record, Tresa, and an example for all to follow! Great Work! Our customer at John Deere in Moline, IL, expressed delight at the work Lupe Castro, Ernesto Garcia, and Francisco Lopez performed on cleaning the women’s restrooms and locker rooms. In the words of the customer, “It looks fabulous.” Thanks to each of you for your part in “wowing” our customer! Customer Satisfaction Johnny Draper, Facility Manager for VSI’s Caterpillar Aurora operations, recently received tremendous praise from our customer. Here is what the customer had to say about Johnny’s work: “After several years of outstanding service, I thought it was time to let you know my total satisfaction with Johnny Draper and his organization. I would like you to know how much I appreciate Johnny Draper’s prompt and courteous service.” Thank you, Johnny, for representing VSI in such a professional and customer-oriented manner!

Let’s Get to Know...

Keith Petran is a Customer Service Representative for VSI ~ a position he has held for over a year. Keith grew up in Chillicothe, IL. He is married to Lori and they have a 3-year-old daughter, Abby, and a second child on the way. His favorite memory is camping at Condit’s as a kid. In his free time, Keith likes to golf, bowl, horseback ride, and fish. He most admires his grandpa Byerline who could fix or build anything. Keith’s future goal is to retire at age 60.

The VSI Voice

Text Box: Employee of the Quarter Find out who was chosen for the 4th quarter of 2004.

Text Box: Floor Stripping Tip An important step to remember when stripping floors.

Text Box: New Toll Free Number Find out the new VSI toll free telephone number.

Text Box: Samuel Flagg has been selected as Employee of the Quarter for the fourth quarter of 2004. Candidates for this award were evaluated on criteria such as Customer Service, Quantity & Quality of Work, Safety, Teamwork, and Attendance. As winner of the Employee of the Quarter award, Samuel will receive a $200 bonus and a framed certificate. Samuel has been with VSI at the Caterpillar facility in Decatur, IL, since April 2004. Samuel takes initiative in his work; is safety-oriented; and receives many compliments from our customer. Samuel has perfect attendance and has worked accident-free during his time with VSI! Samuel’s supervisor compliments him for his caring attitude towards others and his customer-focused work ethics. Samuel is a good citizen away from work as well as he helps out his elderly neighbors and participates on a Special Olympics Basketball Team. We are honored to have Samuel as a part of the VSI family! The next Employee of the Quarter award will be decided next month (for the 1st quarter of 2005). Hourly, non-supervisory employees shall be nominated by their supervisors. Nominations will be based on their performance in January, February, and March 2005.

Text Box: One Year of Service Anthony Adkins, Michael Baird, Juana Cisneros, Jacob Davidson, Daniel Dickerson, Samuel Flagg, Melissa Fletcher, Louis Francis,

Text Box: The tried and true way of stripping is still the best. Paying attention to the details and the “steps” gets the best results. The stripper (properly diluted) must soak at least 10 minutes wet. It is best then to agitate with the mop only and add another layer of stripper. If after laying the 1st application of stripper, any areas “paste” out, keep adding stripper. After the 10 minutes and the mop agitation and extra layer of stripper, put the floor machine on it. Flipping the pad (usually black) about ½ way through the job will keep sharp edges on the pad and help. After GOOD agitation and before the slurry starts to dry, then pick up with the wet vac. Once the floor is picked up, the 1st rinse and only the 1st rinse can have neutralizer in it. Any rinses thereafter are just clear cold water. What the neutralizer does is neutralize the floor on any stripper residue. In the old days of the ammoniated strippers, it was common practice to use neutralizer. Today’s strippers neutralize out with just the water rinse pretty well. Certain situations, problem terrazzo floors, or entrances that have had a lot of ice melt tracked on them over the winter; still use the neutralizer in the 1st rinse. Otherwise, it is a waste of money. There will be instances where you will still have to scrape the old finish off with a blade if it is thick enough, but that is usually minimal. The milky color is the “wax” being emulsified by the stripper. Some products “milk” out more than others do. Usually where there are heavy build-ups you see more milking. Be sure to pay attention to the corners and edges. Carefully rinse and clean baseboards. Check doors and walls thoroughly. The results will make you and our customers proud.

Text Box: 2401 W. Park 74 Drive Peoria, IL 61615 888.798.6202 · Fax 309.691.0628 www.vonachenservices.com Copyright © 2005 Vonachen Services Inc.

Text Box: Congratulations to Deb Lindstrom, Facility Manager in our Peoria Commercial Division. Deb is the proud grandmother of Kierstyn Alyse Beard, born on March 22, 2005.

Text Box: Step Ladder Safety. The top of a stepladder and the cross bracing shall NOT be used as a step.

Text Box: Don’t Use Customer Property. Although it may be tempting, remember that you must not use customer telephones, computers, copiers, or other equipment. If you have any questions about this, talk to your supervisor.

Text Box: Robert Killeen, Eric Lambert, Billy Lynn, Joshua Miller, Charles Smith, Barbara Stimage, Lucina Valencia

Text Box: Five Years of Service Gloria Smith

Text Box: Anniversaries Evangelina Aguilera (2), Paul Anderson (3), Brian Cross (9), Louis Francis (8), Scott Hulett (4), Margurie Johnson (3), Joseph Kelly (11), Cynthia Masterson (12),

Text Box: Garry Merry (8), Katherine Morgan (9), Shaska Pate (3), Marti Patterson (9), Sanel Pilipovic (2), Vancie Pyles (7), Georgia Ruble (4), Theresa Sanders (2),

Text Box: John Sandmeyer (7), Glendora Sazone (8), Roslyn Stephens (3), Diana Stone (7), Sandra Sturgis (8), Arthur Taylor (4), Jamie Travis (4), Mary Utley (9), Dennis West (2), Corine Williams (4), Peter Young (4)

Text Box: For some medications- and we emphasize the word “some”- it’s cheaper to buy a higher dose and chop the pill in half. (That’s easy with a pill-splitter that can be bought at the drugstore for a couple of bucks.) A Stanford University study, reported in 2002, indicated that patients potentially could shave 23% to 50% off the cost of 11 prescription drugs. Some companies are encouraging employees to ask their doctors if that’s an option. Please note: Some medications (i.e., time-release drugs and capsules) aren’t supposed to be split. This article was taken from “Benefit Cost, Control Advisor”

Text Box: VSI had obtained a new toll free telephone number. Effective immediately, to call our Peoria office toll free use the following number: 888-798-6202 Our Customer Service Number (800-798-6202) remains the same.