CLEANING & HYGIENE
UNCOMPROMISING HYGIENE FOR LIFE-CHANGING RESEARCH
Principle Cleaning Services is the cleaning partner for a number of bio-pharmaceutical companies and research centres. Hugo Brito, the company’s Portfolio Director for Life Sciences, discusses the critical importance of maintaining controlled environments in laboratories and research facilities.
Having a team trained in best practice with a focus on safe operations is key, and this needs to be supported by stringent HSE-certified training programmes. It’s vital that cleaning and service standards are continually monitored by on-site management and supervisory teams.
When managing diverse biomedical facility needs, considerations include:
• Laboratory waste management for both hazardous and non-hazardous waste;
• Specialist clothing and PPE management, for example - lab coats, gloves, uniforms and other required protective equipment;
• Occupational health requirements such as safeguarding people working in environments with animal allergens, which may also prevent some staff from working in certain areas;
• The employment and management of operatives working as laboratory assistants as an optional service. A typical role would include carrying out tasks such as Autoclave runs, lab coat logistics, glassware washing, lab delivery and stock taking, cleaning of chemical/lab sinks, CL2 waste removal, and other lab related tasks.
• Following specific guidelines relating to containment protocols and enhanced RAMS requirements; and
• The use of cleaning equipment fitted with HEPA filters for removing airborne particles and bacteria.
There are a number of differences between office and laboratory cleaning. In office environments, this can be broken down into three key areas:
The first is office cleaning, in which operatives are generally trained to BICSc standard to handle daily tasks and wear uniforms and standard PPE.
The second is waste management, which includes recycling, WEE, food waste, and general waste disposal.
And finally, surface cleaning, which involves the removal of visible dirt, debris and contaminants from surfaces using cleaning agents, water and mechanical action.
In both wet and dry laboratories there are multiple considerations. These are:
Lab cleaning - Operatives need to undertake enhanced training in laboratory protocols. This enables them to recognise hazards, safe areas, containment level procedures, awareness of animal allergens and the use of enhanced PPE including lab coats, double gloves and eye protection, along with specialist cleaning methods.
Waste management - In addition to general waste management, the safe disposal of waste in these areas is vital and operatives should be trained in several areas
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including awareness of hazardous waste, disposal of sharps, clinical waste disposal, pipette tip boxes, gas canisters, chemical bottles, cold packs, PPE, and the swan neck bag seal technique for clinical waste.
Surface disinfection and fumigation - Only approved disinfectants are authorised for use in containment laboratories to disinfect materials, surfaces or solid and liquid waste following work with biological agents. The colour coding of cleaning materials is also different to office environments, which helps to reduce the risk of cross-contamination and improve hygiene and safety.
Enhanced RAMS -For the workplace, RAMS include guidance on minimising the risks associated with various tasks and activities along with compliance with relevant regulations. In a laboratory environment, considerations include mitigating processes for possible animal allergens, hazardous substances or micro-organisms, and working within ‘restricted’ areas and ‘permit to work’ areas only.
Pest control - Regular visits should be carried out by a dedicated technician. The use of enhanced/smart bait traps is also advised along with a six-monthly site inspection by a field biologist.
Lab coats - It's important to have a strategy for both the laundry of lab coats and the logistics of collecting worn items without risk of contamination, whilst ensuring there is always an adequate supply of PPE.
Cleaning in any environment is important but for the life-sciences sector it’s vital that the highest standards of hygiene are achieved so that client teams can focus entirely on groundbreaking research without distraction; ensuring their facility can consistently meet the industry’s rigorous demands.
www.principleclean.com
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