This Budd’s for you

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - A company that bills itself as a building service contractor, offering the likes of janitorial, landscaping and security services, has bought a small guard company to bolster its client base.   The Budd Group acquired the 35-person guard business from Loss Prevention Services of Triad for an undisclosed amount in August. According to Joe Budd, president and chief executive officer of The Budd Group, the acquisition is strategic in that it brings a good employee base and access to additional Class A office, education and hospitality clients. “We try to cross sell all of our services and try to be a full-service provider,” said Budd, who expects to leverage the company’s expertise with these new clients. For Larry McClellan, the sale of the guard business enables him to focus the company’s resources on his remaining security business. McClellan operates a third-party central station that not only monitors burglar alarms, but also provides asset tracking for laptops and other equipment. McClellan now plans to shift his company’s focus from the guard business to electronic security. He said Loss Prevention Services recently began offering remote video monitoring, a market he expects to pick up. “The economy is forcing a lot of businesses that have traditionally used guard services to depend on electronic technology, which is where I feel the future of the business is,” he said. Within the next six months, McClellan plans to initiate several upgrades at the company’s central station. He said he’ll upgrade software to enable its more than 40 dealers to monitor their accounts to access information via the Internet. The company is also seeking UL-certification. Budd plans to look at other acquisitions to grow his building service business, which employs 3,000. Prior to buying the guard business from Loss Prevention Services, The Budd Group bought Workforce Solutions, an executive search and staffing company that will be used as a resource for hiring new employees in the future.