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Basic training in the use of hazardous products is required by law, but a well-developed green cleaning programme ensures that workers not only know how to use the products to give maximum results, but that they understand why cleaning and green cleaning is important. Relating major organisational changes with time, effort and cost, it is clear to see why the thought of changing what has worked well for years might outweigh the environmental benefits of a green cleaning practice. Similarly, when many associate ‘going green’ with purchasing less effective/weaker cleaning products that require more elbow-grease in the application, switching to chemical-free alternatives becomes less of an improvement and more of a gamble. Many don’t want to take the risk.


When you look at green cleaning from this view-point it is easy to see why some organisations are hesitating. How can chemical-free cleaning products clean as well and as deeply – can we take the chance? If these products require more effort in the application, how high will my labour costs rise to? Can we deliver our cleaning services on schedule with these labour-intensive products? Will our service still be compliant if we are using alternative products? The questions go on.


SO, WHY GO GREEN? There are many reasons why an organisation should seriously consider switching to green. As well as the obvious reason of offering a sustainable way to clean, green cleaning also provides a number of business benefits. With any organisation, cleaning, FM or otherwise, the goal is always to find the next step. The provision of a more eco-friendly way of cleaning offers just that. Providing a differentiator, adding certified environmentally friendly cleaning methods, products and equipment to your service offering can not only set a business apart from competitors, but with many high quality green cleaning products on the market it can also save an operative’s time – triggering a positive effect on profitability. The composition of many green cleaning


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products now available really does ensure a deep and reliable clean. Not necessarily meaning ‘chemical free’, green cleaning products that contain environmentally safe, non-toxic ingredients are both effective and efficient and should not be ruled out based on their biological origins.


A focus on cost and performance is something that has not changed for many years in the cleaning marketplace, and many organisations measure the effectiveness of a green cleaning programme against it. ‘Cradle-to-Grave’, or ‘Life-Cycle’ thinking is a concept that is often referred to as an ideal, when an organisation makes the move towards sustainable cleaning.


Considering the environmental impact of a product from its creation through to its disposal, currently defines a ‘green product’, as a result there has been an increase in the number of products that have reduced raw material use, and impacts from manufacturing and products that are concentrated to reduce transport, toxicity and waste introduced to the market place.


However, thanks to German Chemist Dr Michael Braungart, there is a new concept of sustainability that is rocking the cleaning sector and the perception of ‘green cleaning’ as it becomes more wide-spread. Pioneering the nature based Cradle- to-Cradle concept, Braungart’s notion goes one step further to the ‘green’ standards that we know now, and supports a practice where there is no such thing as waste.


A POSITIVE CONTRIBUTION Cradle-to-Cradle thinking designs products and systems in a way which results in taking back products at the end of their useful life and turning them into new products of equal if not greater value – the ultimate aim being to improve the quality of products for the consumer, and for these products to not pose any health risk to anyone coming into contact with them at any point.


Providing both economic and environmental benefits, the impact of Cradle-to-Cradle on the cleaning sector includes a much more detailed


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consideration of equipment being used. Only containing components that can be taken back and reused will enter this more holistic green cleaning practice. Similarly, products selected will only contain chemicals that are made from biological organisms, the waste of which would simply be water or carbon dioxide. Likewise, plastic components such as bags and other packaging materials, would be made from rapidly renewable material that can be recycled or composted at the end of their lives.


Working to leave a positive legacy, the cleaning sector is in fact key in the delivery of a Cradle-to-Cradle practice. Using products that do not contaminate surfaces – and so render them useless for environmentally friendly recycling, is vital to the continuous cycle of products and technology that Cradle-to-Cradle thinking champions. Providing a wealth of opportunities for cleaning service providers to introduce quality products and quality services that will set them apart from their competitors, Cradle-to-Cradle is about innovation and positive impacts on the world, setting much higher standards than current ‘green’ assessments provide.


A GRADUAL MOVE No matter which sustainability concept you identify with, providing or working to a green cleaning programme is something that can be adopted gradually if the thought of a monumental change doesn’t sit comfortably. Updating materials, processes and equipment one stage at a time provides achievable targets rather than placing an organisation under pressure to change things all at once. Introducing new methods and products at a pace that suits, no matter how long the process may take, the importance lies in the willingness of an organisation to start the transition.


For more information contact Arrow County Supplies here.


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