Clean & Tidy – The importance of escalator cleaning within commercial buildings

Escalators are a common sight in modern commercial buildings these days. They are often the preferred way for people to move between storeys, especially where the alternative is a series of stairwells or a cramped lift. Of course, escalators need to be maintained frequently by trained personnel but they must also be cleaned properly in between services. If not, then there can be significant consequences for those responsible for them. Why is the cleaning regime of escalators in commercial buildings of such crucial importance? Read on to find out.

Grime Removal

It might sound obvious at first but one of the most important reasons to have your escalators cleaned regularly is to remove dirt and grime. Of course, this will mean that your escalators look more attractive which is essential if your commercial premises are to continue to look professional. No facilities manager who has responsibility for the overall cleanliness of a commercial building can afford to overlook how important this is. By their very design, escalators tend to accumulate dirt from footwear and deposit it in certain locations as it builds up. You can see this in public realm escalators everywhere so if you do not want your office block to look like it is nothing more than an underground station somewhere, then investing in high-quality escalator cleaning will be paramount.

Safe Running

There is another consideration that is at play when dirt is removed from the surfaces of escalators. Simply put, it is not all about appearances. When escalators are cleaned, they are more likely to run more reliably. In other words, commercial buildings which do not have a regime of regular escalator cleaning are more likely to suffer from breakdowns and faults. In the worst cases, unkempt escalators will not be safe to use and could even constitute a fire hazard depending on the nature of the build-up of dirt. Therefore, commercial escalator cleaning should be seen as an investment that will save on maintenance call-outs and potential payouts from any accidents that may occur.

Sanitisation Concerns

These days, office workers are even more focussed on how clean their workspace is than ever before. For understandable reasons, people who work out of large commercial buildings want to know that the surfaces they come into contact with – such as handrails and door handles, for example – have been sanitised recently. When it comes to escalators, the handrail belt needs to be held onto for safety so people also want to know that it has been properly cleaned to remove microbes, viruses and other germs. Especially throughout the Covid-19 pandemic that we are currently going through.

Only with a thorough clean will it be possible to assure office workers that they are safe to use the escalators in a building without worrying that they will catch anything. That’s why professionally delivered ultraviolet disinfection and manual sanitisation wipe downs are so important when cleaning escalators these days and why soap and water is often not enough, on its own, to reassure workers.

For more information on escalator cleaning within commercial buildings, contact Clean & Tidy today!

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