CLEANING
THE AIRPORT CLEANING CHALLENGE
Stuart Hands from Tork manufacturer Essity, looks at the types of cleaning issues that face our busiest transport hubs - and considers how airport cleaning could become more efficient.
Busy airports cater for hundreds of flights and thousands of visitors each day. Inevitably, it is a real challenge for cleaners to stay on top of all the litter and debris created by passengers while also keeping the washrooms clean around the clock.
Airport cleaning teams are usually given a designated round and are expected to revisit it several times during the course of their working day. Pacing out the same area eight to 10 times in one shift can be monotonous work, but the aim is to tackle all cleaning issues as and when they arise.
However, this system has multiple drawbacks. Some parts of the cleaner’s round may still be clean from the previous check, which means their subsequent visit will be pointless. Meanwhile, problems may have arisen between rounds in other areas which could require urgent attention. But dealing with such issues could well be delayed while the cleaner methodically repeats his or her designated rounds.
Cleaners will also be expected to respond swiftly whenever a mess occurs - but such incidents are difficult to predict. Some tasks will always fall through the cracks and this will lead to unsatisfactory results and possibly complaints from passengers.
50 | TOMORROW’S FM
Servicing the washrooms forms a large part of the airport cleaner’s job, so repeated visits to the toilets will be required to check on soap and paper supply levels and to carry out cleaning tasks. But an airport inevitably experiences peaks in washroom traffic –often just before a flight and immediately after a landing – and this heavy usage could lead to cleaning crises along with run-outs of soap and paper.
Refilling washroom dispensers is a time-consuming business, particularly during traffic peaks. In a ladies’ washroom with multiple cubicles the cleaner will have to wait for every cubicle to become empty before being able to check the toilet tissue supplies in each one, for example.
So airport operatives often feel they have to be everywhere at once as they clean up messes, refill dispensers and deal with complaints. And this stressful, repetitive work may make them feel demoralised which could lead to absenteeism and a high staff turnover – along with poor cleaning results.
However, there are much more efficient ways of tackling airport cleaning. And technology is a key component.
In today’s digital world there is no longer any need for cleaners to pointlessly repeat the same round whether or
twitter.com/TomorrowsFM
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64
