CLEANING
CLEANSE AND REVITALISE: A GUIDE TO DISASTER RESTORATION
Some office kitchens can look like a disaster area, but if your workplace is struck by flash floods or flames, it will take more than a thorough washing- up and a cleaner to take care of the problem. Direct 365’s specialist cleaning services explain how to get your business back on its feet.
When disaster strikes in your office, the last thing you’ll be thinking of is the clean-up operation. Whilst the safety of your staff is your immediate concern, the state of your office will inevitably dawn upon you after a while. Office restoration is a delicate process, but you’ll be pleasantly surprised at the amount of items that can potentially be saved.
An office fire or flood will probably never cross your mind until it happens, but it’s not too late to salvage your property should the situation arise.
Almost 3,000 commercial properties were affected by flooding in the winter of 2013/2014, prompting the government to set up schemes for businesses trying to recover from the devastation. Business rate relief and support schemes have been founded to assist businesses in recovering from such disasters, so you can put the money back into re-establishing your livelihood.
Highlighting the awful struggle business owners face after such events, the floods have made us all aware that disaster can strike at the most unexpected of times. There’s only so much preparation that can be done for incidents like this and in some cases you’ll feel as if you’re going to have to start all over again, but there are plenty of things to aid you business’ recovery.
WHERE DO YOU START? Once your staff have been accounted
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for and the disaster has subsided, investigations as to how the damage occurred will take place, both by emergency services and by your insurance firm. In the case of a fire this may take longer, whilst flooding can be blamed on weather or burst pipes, fire can unfortunately have a more sinister beginning. Not only will they assess how the incident began, they will also calculate the structural damage to the building.
WAIT UNTIL
EMERGENCY SERVICES HAVE ENSURED IT IS SAFE FOR YOU TO RETURN TO YOUR PREMISES.
You will need to wait until emergency services have finished their evaluation to ensure it is safe for you to return to your premises. Of course, in the event of some disasters such as a fire, this isn’t always possible. The very structure of the building your office resides in could be damaged and need major repairs. This is completely unavoidable, so you may be offered temporary accommodation whilst the restoration takes place. Much depends on your level of insurance.
If you’re given the green light to enter your property and evaluate
the damage, you should be aware that there are certain risks that still remain. For example, you must ensure that you wear appropriate equipment such as plastic gloves, as flood water can carry thousands of germs and parasites that may still be lurking on the surface of your belongings.
This will be a sobering moment and you’ll finally see the effects of the devastation that has swept through your business. Although it will be difficult, the best way to recover is to hit the ground running and decide what aspects of your business can actually be salvaged.
RESTORING YOUR ITEMS Whilst you may struggle to imagine
this when you see the effects of the damage, some of your soft furnishing could be salvageable:
• Upholstery • Cushions • Clothes • Rugs • Leathers • Curtains
You’re going to need the assistance of a professional to calculate the true cost of recovery, but in many cases cleaning services can be a cheaper alternative than replacing damaged goods.
Of course, it all really depends on the nature of what has happened
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