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by fitting panels, which is something most reputable firms do. A recent case brought in Nottinghamshire
illustrated the importance of this aspect of the process. In that case, the insurers of a cleaning contractor were forced to make a payment of close to £1m to a hotel, following a fire damage claim. The nub of the issue was that the contractor had relied on reporting that ‘all accessible areas were cleaned’, rather than actively pointing out those that were not accessible. This reflects the problem that the booming
grease extract market has attracted some of the ‘wrong’ kind of cleaners, who really do not understand ductwork, their responsibilities or the importance of delivering clean systems, good advice and proper post clean reporting. We hear of many quotations being given for full system cleans which are priced so low that they simply cannot be carried out properly – in fact, the chances are that they are not carried out at all, and that the end user is simply given a superficial clean of a kitchen canopy and any other visible parts of the system. While they might have been presented
with a certificate that suggests their system has been cleaned, in reality they are being lulled into a false sense of security, as grease continues to build up inside their ductwork. The need to keep food preparation areas free of contamination is another increasingly
44 OCTOBER 2018
www.frmjournal.com
important area of potential reputational risk, and this depends on air systems being kept clear of airborne contaminants. Ensuring that you have a robust process in place which is designed to verify the quality of cleaning – particularly of grease extract systems that are utilised by commercial kitchens – has become a priority aspect of maintenance strategies in thousands of buildings up and down the country. BESA has responded with its launch of
a registration scheme to help building managers select appropriately qualified companies that are able to provide a full professional service. The Ventilation Hygiene Elite (VHE)
scheme is approved and administered by the association’s independent certification arm (BESCA), and is based on the best practice outlined in TR/19. It is designed to give clients the peace of mind that results from employing a verifiably competent specialist ventilation hygiene contractor, so that they are able to keep their building occupants safe, satisfy the increasing demands of insurers and protect their corporate reputation. BESA also runs a training scheme that
supports TR/19, and seeks to ensure high standards throughout the sector by promoting the high level of technical competence needed to ensure that ventilation cleaning meets legal requirements.
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