Schools out for floorcare In this Case Study, Nilfisk take on a test case in a British school with an FM company.


The school sector is renowned for being more traditional than most, cleaning staff are often long-standing members of the team who are used to working with traditional methods. These teams can understandably see automation as a threat to their jobs, they are comfortable with daily mopping, buffing and excessive amounts of cleaning products. If it smells clean, it surely must be clean right?


Above all else there remains a perception that the floor must shine to be clean. Cleaning teams will in many instances spray buff, shine and buff on top of the dirt.


Additionally, school cleaning personnel are prone to repetitive strain injury, including the painful carpal tunnel syndrome. Often using ‘old favourites’, their equipment is less than ergonomic, resulting in significant physical stress to the individuals over time.


The Nilfisk team recently undertook a test case with a national facilities management company that is very experienced in this sector. Here are their findings across multiple schools:


Challenges


The challenges we encountered when bringing in change were considerable. Staff must be trained to understand the reasoning behind the equipment selection – importantly how to use the equipment to replace the mop, make their lives easier and provide a better result.


Cleaning team members were unaware of the cost and safety issues relating to excessive product use. Flat and dolly mopping with chemical was their go-to; the challenge was to teach them that the old methods don't result in perfectly clean floors, that new equipment used correctly will produce results that are nothing short of spectacular.


Removing years of grime


The first hurdle we encountered when changing perceptions was to remove years of grime which had built up on floor


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surfaces. Staff simply could not remember the floors in their former glory, so they had become used to colour differences and dull surfaces.


A good scrubber dryer with a decent brush pressure will simply transform an old floor cleaned using traditional methods. The Nilfisk SC351 walk-behind scrubber dryer has achieved excellent results in this environment. With a cleaning width of 370mm and a brush pressure of 27kg, it is very nifty and perfect for the classroom, as it is able to scrub in both forward and reverse mode.


It took one month on average for the SC351 to stop delivering black water after use, as a mixture of buffed in dirt and chemical just kept coming up. Floors that previously looked dull and very tired were transformed into sparkling examples. In some cases, 13-year-old hard tiled floors became spotless and looked like new.


Larger floor areas were tested with the SC530 BD, a bigger machine altogether with a scrubbing width of 530mm and a 61L recovery tank that significantly increases productivity in bigger areas.


The advent of new non-slip safety floors has also impacted favourably in this sector: with no requirement for buffing, we were able to save on a tier of equipment that was just no longer necessary. Together with a big reduction in chemical cost, the budgets are now much improved.


Ride on scrubber dryers


Large educational facilities also trialled the Nilfisk SC2000 mini ride on scrubber dryers that are largely used without any chemical. The weight of the machine, and the down pressure it delivers, has lifted years of grime and restored multiple floors back to their former glory.


The unit is small enough to fit through a single door and manoeuvre into a lift. Again, it took a significant period to bring up years of residue, but the results are undeniable, and the life of the floors has been increased.


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