More. Better. Faster. “Examine everything before you buy any-thing” should be your motto. The best way to obtain reliable informa-tion is to read industry trade publications and attend industry trade shows. Both forums provide huge amounts of information on new products and systems. When you find something that interests you, ask for a free sample or the opportuni-ty to test a piece of equipment for yourself. Most BSCs or in-house operations do not have research and development depart-ments so you have to do the research and testing work yourself. Take the product or system out and test it in the real world. Compare it with the systems or tools you are currently using and do it for a long enough period that you can collect enough data to make an informed decision on whether or not it provides the benefits it claims. Have your employees use the product as well. Discover what their feedback is; see if it is something they will take to readily or would require extensive changes in man-agement to implement. to the microbial level. They also require less chemical to cap-ture and hold dirt and other material. However, like any tool it is only as good as the person using it. Microfiber, though it is much more effec-tive and efficient, does have limited capac-ity, which means those split channels only hold so much dirt and matter. When they are full, the removal capabili-ty is greatly reduced. So, in order to be effective, cleaning work-ers must turn and change cloths often to ensure that they are getting the microfiber performance capability at its fullest. Backpack vacuums are another example of innovation. The placing of a canister vacuum onto a harness and onto the back of a cleaning worker has increased their productivity by nearly 70 percent. According to ISSA, a backpack vacuum is listed at 70 percent faster than the same size upright vacuum. Combined with Team Cleaning methods, the vacuum specialist can operate at effi-ciencies as high as 10,000 square feet per hour. High-flow fluid extraction and its applica-tion through the use of spray and vac sys-tems is another innovation breakthrough. A 2003 study cited in Health Facilities Management demonstrated that medical facilities have realized savings of 10 to 20 percent due to productivity gains and reduced equipment and supply costs after implementing a Team Cleaning approach. Encapsulation and low-moisture carpet cleaning have also gained traction in help-ing to advance our industry. These cleaning systems result in high productivity and low cost with excellent appearance results. By combining cleaning agents and poly-mer technology, soils are emulsified and captured into a brittle, invisible crystal that is recovered with the next vacuuming. Moreover, quaternary ammonium salt compounds, which provide a field of micro-scopic spikes to pierce and kill bacterial cells on surfaces in between cleanings, can provide tremendous advantages in risk reduction cleaning strategies. All of this innovation is occurring and we now, for the very first time in history, have a definitive and instant measuring capability. While not perfect, nor organism-specific, the presence of ATP (adenosine triphos-phate) on surfaces is a clear indicator of cleaning performance and hygiene. While standards continue to be devel-oped, the increased need for objective measurability is truly the catalyst that is changing our industry. If you are a BSC or in-house manager and you have never heard of any of these breakthroughs, you had better start study-ing up and testing for yourself. Those who are already embracing these technologies are enjoying a temporary advantage. The connection between hygienic clean-ing and disease reduction has been well established. Growing microbial threats like methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Clostridium difficile ( C. Diff ) and various strains of influenza are causing the con-sumer of our services to become much more aware of the key link cleaning plays in protecting themselves, their families and coworkers. Contractors and in-house cleaners will eventually either adapt to much of this new technology or risk obsolescence. CM Cleaning In The 21 st Century What a savvy BSC or in-house manager knows today is that there are tools and sys-tems available that really do amazing things in shorter times than the antiquated systems our industry has been using for the past 100 years. Things are changing for the better. For example, microfiber use is common. The use of textiles and disposable paper products to clean and wipe surfaces has been a foundational element in our industry. Unfortunately, it took us a long time to realize that many of our cloths and rags were not removing soil, but simply spread-ing it around. In the late 20 th century, a new textile fab-ric emerged onto the cleaning scene in the form of microfiber cloths and mop pads. Microfiber is actually a very fine, round synthetic fiber that is chemically treated to split the individual round strands into open star shaped channels. These split channels have been proven to remove more soil and matter even down Other Advancements The technology for floor mopping has been an extremely antiquated and ineffective system. Change does not come easy to the com-mercial cleaning industry, but in the early 2000s, the University of California Davis Medical Center undertook a comprehen-sive study to show the tremendous effec-tiveness and efficiency gained by switching from a contaminated string mop to the use of flat mop pads. ISSA currently lists flat mopping at 54 percent faster than traditional string mop-ping applications. Cleaning crews have also made Team Cleaning popular. Creating segmented cleaning specialists who focus on one single task throughout an entire facility allows gains in quality and productivity that those who have never trained in this cleaning method probably would not believe. 18 CM/Cleaning & Maintenance Management ® • September 2009
CMM – Archives Sept 2009: 18
