Concerns About Hitchhikers Floor contaminants can hitch rides and travel far and wide. By: Robert Kravitz N Robert Kravitz is a former building service contractor, author of two books on the professional cleaning industry and a writer for the building and cleaning industries. He may be reached at [email protected]. Normally, when we discuss cross contamination issues in the professional cleaning industry, the concern is that building occupants will touch potentially contaminated surfaces, such as coun-tertops, doorknobs, ledges, railings and other areas, and then spread those contaminants to other surfaces or people, including themselves. And, with public health concerns greater today than ever before, many facilities are paying far more attention to these high-touch areas, making sure that they are not only clean and sanitized, but disinfected as well. However, with all this emphasis on protecting occupant health and stopping the spread of dis-ease, itʼs surprising that an area often overlooked is the largest surface area in most facilities: The floor. Mark Warner, a Cleaning Industry Management Standard (CIMS) ISSA Certified Expert (ICE) and director of training and product manager for Enviro-Solutions Ltd., says that contaminants “hitchhike” on shoe bottoms, eventually ending up on floor surfaces. Even so, is this really causing a health-related problem for building occupants? After all, how often do building users actually touch the floor? The answer may be much more often than we realize. Contaminated floors are unsafe floors so regular autoscrubber attention is needed. for more info Visit www.cmmonline.com and type in search keyword: Floor . For more information on related products, visit www.cmmonline.com , select SUPPLIER SEARCH from the main navigation bar, and enter keyword: Floor Care . 28 CM/Cleaning & Maintenance Management ® • September 2009 Photo courtesy of Tornado Industries
CMM – Archives Sept 2009: 28
