with a mop soaking in dirty water? It’s more than likely not even microfibre, but a Kentucky mop (which should have gone out with the Wild West, if not the ark) that spreads rather than removes soils. I have seen and smelt dirty string mops in cleaning cupboards in hospitals, where hygiene and eliminating MRSA are supposed to be top priorities.
Another cause is the failure to measure what ‘cleanliness’ actually is. Too many in our business are happy to judge and be judged by what looks and smells clean. A massive industry has grown up around masking smells and disinfecting dirt rather than actually removing soils and the underlying causes of foul odours. By all means let’s add a fragrance – but to clinically clean surfaces.
Education and training are failing too. Some education bodies in our sector accredit courses that teach outdated sweeping and mopping cleaning methods. They still advocate the use of cloths and rags instead of professional practices that produce repeatable results – especially in toilets – and that are also more dignified for the operative.
PRO
CLEANING CHANGE
James White, Managing Director of Denis Rawlins Ltd, argues for a
commitment to changes in the industry that would professionalise cleaning.
In my job I visit all sorts of buildings around the country and speak with many of the cleaning industry’s leading figures. They all agree that we need to make cleaning a profession, but the evidence from my travels shows all too clearly how far we have to go.
There are organisations, both large and small, that have highly professional cleaning operations, but the standard of cleaning in many premises is shockingly inept and amateur. And that includes some big and well-known companies and institutions.
I see dirty railway stations and trains, and filthy toilets – not just public toilets that you can smell from 10 paces away, but also in restaurants and pubs, where food is being served only a matter of cross-contaminating feet away.
I sit at tables that are sticky, observe floors that haven’t been swept, and can’t help noticing dust on ledges, especially when you look above head height.
Why are such abysmal standards of cleanliness so widespread?
Outdated cleaning methods and equipment are a large part of the problem. How often do you see a bucket in the corner
34 | EXPERT ADVICE
What about costs, I hear you complain: “We don’t have the budget to clean properly!” It’s true that cleaning tends to be first in line for cuts when facilities management savings are required. But that should not distract from two other inconvenient facts.
Cut-throat competition has led us to the point where the industry is bidding against itself to drive down prices and reinforcing client preference for the lowest price. Also, it’s notable that even where budgets have been under the greatest and most sustained pressure, the commitment to the highest levels of service can be outstanding. I can attest to this, having recently presented the Cleaning Team of the Year Award – which we sponsor for the ABCD (Association of Building Cleaning Direct Service Providers). Working within restricted budgets, these teams go far beyond what’s expected of most cleaning operatives in the private sector.
If only such professionalism, passion and pride in the job was commonplace across the industry. Well, it could be. Here are four fundamental steps:
• Measure cleanliness before and after cleaning – scientifically. A hand-held ATP monitor makes this perfectly practicable. Cleaning teams, managers and clients, would know just how effective they are. And post the results so the building’s users appreciate it too.
• Innovate in methods of cleaning and equipment. Not for the sake of it, but based on this hard evidence of what works, and what’s cost-effective. A lot of spending on labour and cleaning materials is wasted.
• Modernise training in hygienic cleaning techniques and measurement, and so foster pride in the job, while educating clients too.
• Make cleaning a profession with a ‘cost of entry’ that could stop the constant under-bidding and change industry practice.
It’s past time for cleaning to turn pro.
www.rawlins.co.uk
twitter.com/TomoCleaning
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