FMJ.CO.UK CLEANING FOCUS
In the Pelsis Group data, of those who took part in the research, 75 per
cent said that being able to check the hygiene protocols of public and
commercial premises online and actively see stringent hygiene and cleaning
procedures taking place, would make them more likely to visit.”
SEPTEMBER 2021 35
Pelsis Group: “This goes to illustrate the
importance of robust cleaning measures
that instil confidence and trust in
occupants and members of the public.”
For that reason, argues Lorraine Davis,
Mitie’s Director of Cleaning Services
continuous improvement is crucial: “We
all have a responsibility to continuously
review and adapt our cleaning regimes to
ensure that as buildings’ occupancy rates
change, we can maintain high cleaning
standards and keep people safe.
“As no two businesses – or even two
buildings are the same – all cleaning
providers must start by carrying out a
risk assessment to get a clear picture of
the sites’ expected occupancy rates, as
well as activities or areas which may need
additional attention, such as touch point
areas, like door handles, stair rails and
li¥ call buttons, which will see increased
contact from having more people onsite.
Having a clear picture will enable
providers to identify the most eƒ ective
cleaning solutions such as reorganising
shi¥ s to ensure surfaces and critical areas
are regularly cleaned, using antiviral
mists every day or deep cleaning at
night.”
MEETING DEMANDS
In the Pelsis Group data, of those who
took part in the research, 75 per cent
said that being able to check the hygiene
protocols of public and commercial
premises online and actively see stringent
hygiene and cleaning procedures taking
place, would make them more likely to
visit.
Says Mills: “The survey highlights a very
clear message from the public, which
is the importance that they place on
the hygiene and safety of the premises
that they visit, and how they believe
businesses and organisations should be
doing more.”
According to Davis this will in all
likelihood result in customers continuing
to request the provision of daytime shi¥ s,
at least in the short to middle term to
ensure people know their health is being
protected and encourage employees back
to the workplace.
However, she adds: “This is not to say
cleaning during out of oƒ ice hours is a
thing of the past. On the contrary, there
are a number of tasks, such as vacuuming
or deep cleaning, that can distract
employees or cannot simply be done
thoroughly while members of the public
are onsite.
For these activities we will
continue to oƒ er a combined approach,
with tasks, such as deep cleaning, taking
place out of hours and ‘topup’
cleaning
services throughout the day.”
Changes to how cleaning is managed
could, explains the BCC have a knockon
eƒ ect on how contracts are agreed and
how staƒ are deployed.
Says Melvin:“It is highly likely that
contracts will be viewed in a diƒ erent
way and as an example, the daytime
regimes are likely to have two diƒ ering
functions. One will clearly be the cleaning
and hygiene of the building, but almost as
important will be the perceptive element in
creating a confidence for the client’s staƒ
to feel safe. Additionally, we are seeing
evidence of additional and continued
schedules on touchpoint areas, high
traƒ ic areas, catering units and of course
washrooms.
“The manner in which teams are
deployed may well also change and in
the main this will be wholly dependent
on building usage, volumes and footfall.
It is likely to mean that our staƒ will be
scheduled to be trained and be deployed in
diƒ erent areas with specific tasks based on
the listing above.”
DIGITAL SOLUTIONS
Davis reveals that over the last year there
has been a significant rise in the number
of technology solutions – from sensors
that track footfall to help prioritise cleaning,
to workplace management apps which
provide customers with information on the
work carried out across their sites. These
were already available before COVID, but the
pandemic has sped up their adoption. Davis
recommends organisations start by carrying
out an assessment of business priorities and
then choose the right solutions to meet their
needs.
“For instance, for many of our healthcare
customers, we’ve deployed digital
technologies, such as facilities management
apps to quickly locate the nearest Mitie
colleagues onsite
to help with an issue so,
as an example, a spillage can be mopped
up as swi¥ ly as possible. And we’re using
the latest in robotics, such as autonomous
scrubberdriers
to clean floors, too.
“These solutions have not only freedup
some of our colleagues’ time so that they
can focus on disinfecting touch points and
critical areas but, with the robots designed
to use less water and energy than traditional
machines, we’re also helping the NHS
achieve its net zero goal.”
RESOURCING ISSUES
Resourcing is going to be a huge challenge
for the cleaning sector. The BCC anticipates
that it will be harder to recruit personnel in