TODAY more than ever, 45 years is a long time in business, but perhaps even more so in a trade as rapidly evolving as the cleaning industry.

But this year, historic Colchester firm Monthind Clean is celebrating the milestone anniversary.

Founded in 1975 by Christine Beedle, who received an MBE in 1998 for her services to the industry, the firm was bought by Tony Clarke in 2000.

By this point the firm employed 850 members of staff, turning over around £3.5 million.

Roughly 20 years later and the business has continued to grow, employing more than 1,000 people and offering its service across Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk and Cambridgeshire.

Simon Biggs, the company's director, said: "As the cleaning industry continues to evolve, we have faced numerous changes over the years.

"The innovation we have seen within the industry, particularly in machinery and equipment, have changed the dynamics of cleaning, making it a more efficient and cost effective operation.

"Over the years we have continued to develop our employees and invest heavily in training to ensure our workforce continues to deliver consistent industry-leading standards.

"With new training initiatives within the industry, it is something we continue to reach for to ensure our workforce are continuously up to date with the latest cleaning technologies and methods."

Although the firm cleans primarily commercial premises, the business has somewhat diversified over its four and-a-half decade existence.

It now has a specialised team and even its own biohazard engineers to cover emergency cleaning jobs at business premises and the like.

Monthind has cleaned everything from police stations to power stations, from National Trust sites to nature reserves, from universities to schools and from military bases to American Air Force buildings.

Mr Biggs said: "We continue to service a wide scope of different environments and pride ourselves on being able to tackle any cleaning environment, whilst delivering a high standard of cleaning.

"Our most prized clean was being asked to provide a clean at a clients prior to a Royal visit."

Key to the firm's success is its dedicated and experienced team, some of whom have been with the business for more than 40 years.

Although businesses come and go and industries peak and fall, Mr Biggs is confident there'll always be demand for staff's expertise and knowledge.

Perhaps today more than ever, as the world is caught up by the devastating impacts of the coronavirus outbreak, it is obvious to see why cleaning is a safe bet in business terms.

"We are confident that the cleaning industry will continue to evolve. We only have to look back over the years to see how far it has come in terms of innovation," he said.

"Buildings will always need cleaning to protect the people within it from bacteria, viruses, and potential infections, and we feel the demand for cleaning contractors will continue to grow and should continue to be a priority within any premise."

To celebrate its anniversary, Monthind is hosting a series of fundraising events across the year in support of chosen charity, Little Havens Hospice.

The first event is set to be the Monthind 2020 Charity Golf Day, which takes place at Stoke by Nayland Hotel on May 28. A similar event three years ago raised £5,500 for the hospice.

The business is also set to move from being a limited liability partnership to a limited company.

Mr Biggs said: “It seemed fitting 2020 was the year for Monthind to take the next step on its journey.

"Ever since Christine started the company 45 years ago, it has grown continuously and today we are proud to be a major employer in the region with over 1,000 employed members of staff.

“Monthind has a name to be proud of and becoming a limited company will help us consolidate our reputation and carry it forward into the future, hopefully for many years to come.”