In the previous blog post, we gave you an update on the accreditations that Newlife Cleaning Systems currently hold, and the ways in which these accreditations will benefit our clients and our staff.  Previous posts have already informed you of the ISO 14001:2004, the ISO 9001:2008 and the SAFEContractor award.

The final certificate we hold, is the Construction Line certificate.  We conduct a lot of work within the construction industry, and it is these clients- and potential new customers searching for a contractor- who will benefit from us holding this.

In a simple summary, obtaining the Construction Line certificate allows us to be part of a database, with other contractors, who are pre-qualified to work in the building and construction industry.  It affirms that our staff, supervisors and area managers who are assigned to this department, are fully trained, informed and qualified to conduct their work.

This benefits those in the construction and building industries who are looking for a competent contractor to work on their site.  By accessing this database, which holds over 2000 contractors (a figure which is growing all the time) they can see an immediate overview of contractors in their area, who meet the  legal  requirements in terms of safety.  This enables them to select an organisation that they know will prioritise safety and best practice from the outset.

As a result of being part of the Construction Line database, we have been encouraged to be even more diligent with potential developments in laws and legislations, which may be subject to change in these types of workplace.  To retain our certificate, we are assessed regularly, to make sure that all of our knowledge and training is up-to-date.  An additional benefit of this is for our staff, as we can guarantee that they are safe, and that we are acting in their best interests, at all times.

If you would like to know more about how our Construction Line certificate can benefit your business, please don’t hesitate to contact us.  You can telephone Newlife directly on 0800 018 9099.

There was an article in the C&M (Cleaning and Maintenance) this month, which drew attention to an issue that is undoubtedly affecting most businesses this winter.  Emma Murray who wrote the article commented on the issue of sickness in the workplace, and the amount of money lost by the businesses when members of staff call in sick.

The article discussed many ways in which the health and well-being of employees can be improved, by the addition of more hygienic measures and practises within the office itself.  This is due, in short, to the number of instances during the working day, especially within an office, when employees can be exposed to germs and bacteria which will make them unwell.

There are a number of items in the office where germs, bacteria and other nasty micro-organisms  can hide, which is especially concerning, with the knowledge that they can survive outside the body for up to two days.  Then, all that’s needed is for the hands to come into contact with them,  then to touch the face and eyes, and the germs easily reach the individual’s system.

Tea cups (for that much sought-after cup of coffee in the morning), pens, and mobile phones are all touched a number of times during the day, often by more than one person at a time.  Pens in particular can be a hotbed for bacteria, as staff can often put them in their mouths as they work, without giving thought to where they had been previously, or who else would use them after.

Another hidden harbourer of nasties is the office keyboard- an essential item in every office in the country.  A study by ‘Which?’ states that there are more germs in an office keyboard, than the average toilet.  This is an eye-opening revelation, especially when a number of members of staff eat their lunch at their desk.

On top of all of that, at this cold time of year, you’re likely to have the heating on high, to make sure staff are warm and toasty while they work.  Unfortunately, the warm office where a lot of people are crammed into one space is the perfect breeding ground for germs.

Finally (and potentially the most worryingly), it has been reported by the Federation of Food and Drink, that one third of grown adults do not wash their hands after going to the toilet.  So using that statistic, up to one third of the workforce could be spreading germs and bacteria that their hands have picked up in the toilet.

So how do we prevent this from happening?

Firstly, as most germs are passed from person to person through the hands, and enter the body through the nose and eyes, so it could be worth drawing employees’ attention to this fact.  Making them aware that touching their eyes and noses  in the workplace could lead to making them ill, could help to prevent them from doing so going forward.

At the same time, it could also be worth identifying the importance of regular hand washing during the working day.  Pointing out the common items which could carry germs may make them more aware that they need to wash their hands more often.  It may also be beneficial to aid them by supplying hand sanitising solutions on their desk, so they can freshen their hands and kill any bacteria on them.

To prevent bacteria from being picked up in the office, stopping staff from eating their lunch at their desks may be something worth considering.  Finding another room in your premises where staff can go to eat will prevent the germs from the office keyboard from touching their fingers, and their food.  Additionally, it will give your staff somewhere to chat and interact in a different environment to the office, helping to build and develop employee relationships too.

To encourage cleanliness and correct hand washing after staff have used to toilet, installing automatic soap dispensers into the office toilets, will be one way to show your employees that you are taking hygiene in the workplace seriously.  Operated by infra-red technology, the user does not need to touch the device, so their hands can be cleaned without spreading bacteria onto the dispenser.  Similarly, investing in a hygienic hand drying system may be worthwhile.  There are a number of hand towel dispensers and automatic hand dryers on the market, that will help your employees to dry their hands and remain germ-free.

Finally, as the winter dies away, keep the central heating on at a minimum and open the windows.  This will help to keep fresh air circulating, so unhealthy microorganisms aren’t spread in the atmosphere.

So if you’re a business owner reading this, investing in office cleanliness is an investment that will pay for itself.  You don’t have to lose any of the business’s valuable funds by handing out sick pay, or suffer a drop in productivity; instead hygienic products and an increased awareness will help to keep staff fit, healthy and in work during winter.

If you would like an office deep clean, we can advise you and provide you with office cleaning services.

First published 5 years ago Crisis in Cleaning by Scott Young is an invaluable tool for any cleaning contractor or manager with responsibility for premises cleaning especially where hard floors are involved.

In it he willingly shares 56 years experience in the industry with a career spanning window cleaning to building cleaning contractor then on into manufacturing of cleaning equipment based and designed on his many years of practice in the field.

What this book is about is one mans quest to explain the importance of professional cleaning.

It is mandatory reading for all Newlife Cleaning Systems Area Managers which is the highest endorsement we can give.

It doesn’t matter whether you have just started your first commercial contract or you’re a facility manager with a ‘slip and trip’ problem in your client’s kitchens. The answer is in this personal journey to excellence.

A limited number of copies are available, P+P free, to the first 50 readers who register their interest.

please email sales.national@newlifecleaning.com with your postage and contact details

Columbus Dixon Aug 2010

An Australian company has recently won the window cleaning contract for the 24,000 windows of the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, formerly known as the Burj Dubai. The building extends 206 storeys into the sky and will be cleaned by both man power and machines. A squad of 36 window cleaners have been employed to operate the 12 machines which are anchored to fixed tracks on the exterior of the ‘superscraper’. These 13 ton machines will attempt to purge the building’s facade of dirt despite the inhospitable working conditions of Dubai’s desert climate. They will be up against the scorching sun, raging dust storms and high winds of the desert, alongside the force of gravity acting upon them from their perch half a mile above the ground. It should also be noted that the window cleaners operating the machines themselves will be harnessed to the machine for the duration of the cleaning process.

Alongside these machines ladderless window cleaners equipped with electrolyte packs and specially developed suits to combat the desert’s fierce heat will clean the lower levels by hand. Even with both man and machine working in harmony the process of cleaning the Burj Khalifa’s 120,000 sq metres of glass is expected to take around three months. Due to this the window cleaners and their £4.6 million washing system will be operating for the majority of the year. However, when the state of the art cleaning system is not in use the machines are to be concealed at various heights behind specially constructed glass panels in order to keep the building’s facade looking pristine. Despite the multimillion pound equipment being employed to keep the pearl of Dubai’s windows clean it is important to remember that the window cleaners will be armed with nothing more than the conventional squeegee, soapy water and elbow grease.

Recent developments in the field of nanotechnology have led to major breakthroughs which are to revolutionize the way window cleaning is performed in future. The technical named for this new nanotechnology is “Si02 ultra thin layering” but most people know it as liquid glass. The diversity of possible applications for this Liquid Glass is simply astonishing. It can be used to coat floors, doors, windows, settees, trains, the list goes on, in fact it is nearly impossible to conceive of a surface that it cannot be used upon.

The benefits of the Liquid Glass are numerous. Alongside being food safe and environmentally friendly it is also scratch resistant and corrosion resistant. The coatings are around 500 times thinner than a human hair and so are not visible to the naked eye. One benefit of this is that they can be used to coat domestic products such as settees in order to protect the surface and also make cleaning an easier process. The stain resistant coating even allows protected surfaces to be cleaned with water alone, this reduces the need for cleaning chemicals and so benefits the environment. The green credentials of Liquid Glass contributed to it winning the Green Apple Award and its anti-bacterial properties also earned it the NHS Smart Solutions Award.

It is the versatility of Liquid Glass that is truly remarkable. It can be used in almost any environment to reduce cleaning costs by both reducing the frequency of cleans and the duration of the cleaning process. These properties make it an invaluable tool when tackling jobs such as large scale window cleaning where one coating on the outer layer of glass would drastically reduce the costs involved in such a large scale operation. Perhaps the owners of the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa, should bare in mind the benefits of nanotechnology and especially liquid glass as it could well be the most versatile coating in the world.

The high street retailer WH Smith has recently been condemned for their abandonment of professional contract cleaners. The company has disregarded these professional contract cleaners in favour of their own retail staff despite the swine flu pandemic. Smiths have delegated cleaning to every day staff as part of their general duties, a move that has been condemned by the British Cleaning Council (BCC) as well as the Cleaning and Support Services Association (CSSA).

In an attempt to cut costs the high street chain has slashed the use of professional contract cleaners to once a week in some of its stores. This has left staff in the lurch as they are now required to sweep floors and carry out general cleaning in store.

Regardless of opposition from staff and cleaning firms currently under contract with WH Smith, the retailer’s chief executive Kate Swann pressed ahead with the policy. This decision was criticised by Andrew Large when he spoke on behalf of the BCC and CSSA. He described the measures as potentially unlawful before going on to criticise them as damaging to good hygiene at a time when this was increasingly important. Large also promised to investigate if professional contract cleaners were made redundant when they should have remained under the employment of WH Smith.

Mr Large criticised the high street giant’s actions claiming that “WH Smith is depriving itself of skills and expertise of cleaning professionals.” He went on to say that there is “no guarantee that the shop workers will have the necessary skills or training to be able to maintain the stores to a satisfactory standard.”

It is clear that if an organisation wishes to maintain proper infection control practices then the best option is to employ professional contract cleaners with all of the necessary expertise. It is only by doing this that a company can be sure that all the necessary measures are being taken to combat the transmission of the swine flu virus, ideally through the use of  swine flu sanitizer, wipes and hard surface cleaners. With thousands of customers browsing through the retailer’s magazines on a daily basis, it is both irresponsible and potentially dangerous for WH Smith to cut back on professional contract cleaners at this time.

In last weeks post we discussed the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and asked the question whether it actually provided a “living wage” for a cleaning operative, especially doing daily cleaning work, given the difficulty of stringing enough part time jobs together to be the equivalent of a normal full time position.

The situation for our lower paid staff is even more dire than I realised at that time. Consider the following facts as reported in The Daily Telegraph.

• A family with two children is just £30 per week better off working for the NMW than not working.
• A single person on the NMW would be £3 per week better off than someone on the higher level of incapacity benefit.
• A single person on the NMW of £193 per week who is aged under 25 would only be £10 per day better off than a non-working person.
• If you have a family and only one of you is the breadwinner on the NMW you would be slightly worse off than the same family if they were receiving the maximum Incapacity Benefit.
• Did you realise a family with one working member and two kids gets £79.50 per week Working Tax Credit. However after means testing they might keep only £6.77?

As part of a company that employs many hundreds of people performing necessary, difficult and often downright unpleasant cleaning duties this situation makes me weep.

I weep for the loss of human potential, weep with anger that this is where 10 years of New Labour has actually taken us to and weep for the frustration that anyone needing an entry level job must feel at trying to better themselves through their own efforts.

I have no answers or suggestions other than you should carefully question everyone who applies for work with your company. A brief look under the surface may show you the true price someone is willing to pay just to get a chance to get a foot on the first rung of the ladder and out of this Groundhog Day of a benefits system.

Would you be willing to do the same? Are you the person to give them that chance?

Columbus Dixon

Astute individuals, businesses and government agencies know that clean plus green equals good. More than just a trend, implementing a green cleaning programme is now recognised as a wise business move. The much touted benefits of creating a healthier workplace include increased productivity and reduced costs. Green cleaning has also become a key component in obtaining certification against the environmental standard ISO14001.

If you understand the advantages of green cleaning and have decided to implement a programme, how do you go about choosing the right one? What elements separate superior green cleaning plans from the rest? Below are some features to carefully consider when evaluating a programme prior to implementation.

1. A Holistic Approach

When it comes to maintaining a healthy facility, all areas – from entranceways to toilet areas to HVAC systems – affect the indoor environment. In choosing a green cleaning programme, make sure that the provider looks at your building holistically, considering the building’s purpose and uses.

Because entranceways serve as gateways for pollutants entering the building, a good programme will begin there. While traditional cleaning methods attempt to control this dirt after it enters and spreads throughout the building, effective green cleaning focuses on trapping and removing contaminants at this point of entry. Cleaning chemicals, processes and equipment, ventilation systems, waste removal, and even occupant habits are other areas that a holistic green cleaning programme will address.

2. A Beyond-the-Surface Focus

The primary intent of most cleaning programs is to leave surfaces looking spotless and dirt free. Green cleaning programs should go far beyond this, however. Dirt, bacteria, mould and other pollutants may not be seen, but they can certainly affect the indoor air quality. Green cleaning programmes aim to remove harmful particles from the air, not add to the problem by using harsh chemicals.

Although it may be difficult to judge how well a green cleaning programme has removed unseen particles, you can ask about equipment used to make sure that it is efficient and well maintained. Steps that facility maintenance providers can take to demonstrate a beyond-the-surface focus include emptying vacuum bags when half full and the use of Hepa filters to reduce particulate emissions into the work atmosphere. Even something as simple as a dusting cloth can make a difference: A microfibre cloth captures dust, rather than just moving it around. These small measures ensure that the equipment and processes contribute to, rather than counteract, the effectiveness of your programme.

3. Products and Services Offered

The products used in green cleaning play a vital role in the programme’s success. Products should qualify for third-party certification by organisations such as Green Seal. Unlike traditional cleaning products, these certified chemicals and equipment are designed to work effectively, while minimising environmental impact and decreasing risks to health and safety.  Here at Newlife HQ we both minimise water usage and avoid the use of harsh acidic products when cleaning urinals by the use of microbiological toilet blocks. (Refer to earlier Blogs to determine the water and financial savings possible which are most attract to heavy users such as hotels, schools and colleges)

4. Knowledgeable Employees

Employees who will be designing and implementing your green cleaning programme must understand the objectives of green cleaning, as well as their own role in the process. Cleaning staff should know each product’s designated use, green cleaning processes and equipment maintenance procedures. Regular inspections and quality control programs ensure that employees’ work meets high standards. The best facilities maintenance providers also continually train their employees on the best practices in green cleaning.

5. Educational and Communication Programmes

A truly professional green cleaning provider goes beyond the tactical implementation of cleaning strategies to become your partner in creating a healthier environment. Most successful programmes include regular communications so that building occupants and facility stakeholders understand the importance of green cleaning and what they can do to make a difference. For example, improper care of live plants can increase contamination levels and require strong pesticides that counteract the green cleaning programme. When occupants know of such risks, they can become a true part of the green cleaning process.

Small actions, including minimising clutter and eating only in designated areas, can go a long way in ensuring a healthy environment. Facility users and tenants should also know whom to contact and how to react to a spill or contamination. The faster such situations are dealt with, the less harm they do to your facility.

Communicating your green programme to the community and building occupants helps you reap the benefits of being a socially conscience facility or business. You will attract the growing numbers of people who care about protecting the earth’s resources and improving indoor air quality.

These five features of effective green cleaning programs may apply to your facility in different ways. Each facility has unique goals, and each maintenance provider will bring its own set of expertise to a project. The provider you choose should recognise your goals and offer customised services and products that ensure your programme’s success.

In earlier blogs we discussed the methodology your facility cleaning service provider has probably used to make up their charge for providing your cleaning services.

One of the reasons for doing this was to enable users to realise the competitive pressures the marketplace has put so many contractors under which in turn is reflected in net profit margins of less than 4% on average within the cleaning industry.

‘So what?’ you may think, at least I know someone isn’t making a fortune out of only cleaning my offices for me. But low margins such as this are not conducive to good service.

When margins are so low, profit has to be generated from other areas – reducing area management levels, cutting either the quality or the quantity of materials delivered to site or in the worst cases both, chiselling staff by not paying accrued holidays when they leave, charging you when there are ‘no-shows’ of staff and myriad other ways.

The common denominator of these is reduction of service standards, your service standards.

In our Vision Statement we make specific reference to ‘morals and ethics’ so behaviour such as this is anathema to us, indeed in a recent reverse online auction for the cleaning of retail premises with a national store chain, we pulled the plug on our bids when we realised certain sales consultants were willing to earn their commission by buying market share for their employer at zero profit. (I would love to know what their Operations manager who actually has to try and run the contracts thinks!)

Yes, the purchasing department probably celebrated what they assumed was a massive saving on their cleaning budget. But one night’s celebration for them has so far turned into 4 months of headaches for their store managers, their service and supplies department and the actual cleaning staff doing the work on the shop floor, because that winning bid didn’t have enough direct costs* built in to allow them to meet the work specification in the first place.

What is the moral of the story? Just like anything in life, you only get what you pay for. If you are asking for cleaning bids, make sure everyone is quoting against the same specification. If you want a high level of daily supervision, write it into the spec. If you want to be able to talk to a manager 24/7, write it into the spec. Whatever you want, you must write it into the specification.

When you have all your quotes in, you should then break the costs down into the various headings suggested in my earlier post. If you can’t do this easily yourself from their documentation, get a representative in from the company and ask him to do it in front of you. It is only by drilling down like this that you can discover whether the deal being offered is what it appears to be and whether it actually really does meet your specification.

* Direct Costs – direct costs are the costs incurred only in doing the job. So it covers labour, equipment, materials, consumables, Nic, supervision, training, holiday pay etc

Take A Good Look To See What They Are Hiding Under The Carpet…
In today’s economy, property owners and managers alike are constantly scanning the horizon, searching for opportunities to outsource their building cleaning and maintenance services to specialist companies in order to improve operational efficiencies. When it comes to finding a cleaning services company that will provide best practices at the right price, successfully managing the vendor selection process is mission critical to obtaining a good fit.

Size Matters
Long before drafting a specification, a tender request or short-listing companies, spend plenty of time clearly identifying your requirements. The more you detail your expectations – eventually within your tender document — the more precisely your needs can be met. If this is your first experience in dealing with cleaning contracts, talk to vendors informally to help you uncover the range of services available.

Once you’ve nailed down performance measures, it’s time to tackle the tender request. A finely tuned tender document gives cleaning companies the necessary information that ensures an accurate response — and makes side-by-side bid comparisons much easier.

Later, when the quotes come in for your cleaning services, don’t get caught comparing apples with oranges. Be specific — up front — about your requirements (see the chart below).

RFP Requirements for Building Cleaning Services

* Cleaning Specifications*
* Employee training
* Indemnifications
* Quality Assurance
* Supplies:
o Quality? Quantity? Who pays?
* Cleanable Square Footage
* Equipment:
o New vs. Used
* Insurance Requirements:
o Rates and coverage limits
* Recycling
* Supply Storage Areas
* Communications
* Hours, Days of Service
* Payroll Taxes: NMW.
* Holiday pay
* Environmental ISO14001
* COSHH
* Safety
* Workers’ Compensation
* Contract Duration
* Identification:
o Badges, Uniforms
* Personnel Screening
* Staffing Levels
* Pay rates

*Each addition task or frequency of clean in your cleaning specification will equate to additional labour costs as time = money. This will affect the cost of the bid.

Narrowing the Field of Cleaning Companies
When deciding which companies to consider, use these criteria as a guide:

Commitment to Quality
Does the company really have a quality assurance program to “Inspect what you Expect?” Do they have a formal accredited Quality Management System such as ISO 9001?

Environmental
Many companies talk about their “green” credentials but do they actually operate to recognised standards, which are externally assessed such as ISO14001?

Reputation/References
History repeats, so references should be a major factor in your decision. Talk to referees, visit their buildings and inspect the quality of the vendor’s custodial services. It is often useful to visit sites they manage which are not similar to your own so you can determine their range of capabilities.

Scope of Resources
Is the vendor able to expand with you? Do they offer the operations manuals, training programs, management or back office support you need?

Existing Relationships
Relationships are a key factor in the bidding process. Not all cleaning companies are created equal. Large contracts require a large trust level.

Cultural Match
Is the vendor large or small? Local or national? Do they mirror your requirements in terms of scope, locations, and objectives? Do they participate in reputable industry organisations? Do you feel comfortable with their level of professionalism?

Added-Value Capacity
Do they offer additional services that can be easily ‘bolted-on’ to their current contract with you thus removing a third party suppliers overhead contribution thus making a financial saving for you with no visible degradation of service levels

Price
The bottom line is critical, but beware of the “penny-wise, pound-foolish” syndrome. Cheap cleaning companies could end up costing you more in the long run. Make sure you identify the labour, equipment and supplies needed to do the job thoroughly by comparing every quote closely.

The Dreaded Walkaround aka The Site Survey
Hosting a cleaning walkaround is probably not high on your list of fun, but it is the second major ingredient in receiving an accurate bid package. Whatever you do, do NOT delegate it to a junior member of staff. To get a true feel for the scope of your work, companies must see the facility’s level of cleanliness, types of supplies, square footage, flooring surfaces, building density and the like to ensure they can provide the service levels you need. If a junior staff member who neither knows nor understands the ramifications of the cleaning programme guides them, you run a high chance of giving out a very negative message of your expectations.

Pulling Back the Curtain: Understanding Pricing Models
Once you’ve reviewed the proposals from the cleaning companies, you can prepare your pricing model. Most include:

* Labour, including payroll taxes, insurances and benefits
* Direct Operating Costs, including supplies, uniforms, transport, equipment, PAT tests, employee screening, training etc.
* Overhead and Profit

Vendors should be willing to fully explain their pricing model and answer any questions about their services and pricing methods.

Apples to Apples:
Selecting the Vendor to Provide Your Building Cleaning Services
Selection often distills down to two simple (yet complex!) factors:

* Can the vendor do the job?
* Can we work well together?

How well does the cleaning company stack up? Which one offers the right mix of service, staff, equipment and price to get the job done right, on time, on budget everytime?

To find the answers and ensure fair comparison, revisit your tender requirements and examine these details from their quotation in particular:

Labour – Verify the number of cleaning hours (not head count) received per day. While the National Minimum Wage was supposed to level the playing field we strongly advise you also check that wage rates are realistic. This is simple to do by researching cleaning recruitment adverts in your locale. There is no point employing a contractor who gives you a cheap price by paying their staff below the local going rate. All that does is lead to a revolving door syndrome where you get constant staff changes. If there is to be a transfer of incumbent staff to another contractor, be aware that TUPE applies. This EU legislation governs the Transfer of Undertakings and Protects Employment rights and is a legislative nightmare that is beyond the scope of this blog. Please contact us for additional, site-specific advice.
Employment Costs. Ask for National Insurance contributions and holiday pay including Bank holiday payments to be broken down by category and compare. Ask for explanations of any large discrepancies
Insurances. Accredited service companies should have documented proof of required public liability and employers insurances. Ensure that there is cover available to at least £10m for any one accident. Remember especially dangerous services where operatives work at height, use specialist machinery or handle dangerous substances all require additional cover which will be detailed in the main policy but not on the certificate that most companies use to prove they have cover.
Equipment. Does the bid have enough budgeted to do the job? Compare among the different janitorial companies. What is their repair policy – how long will it take to repair? PAT testing – how often?
Supplies. Be sure to agree on quality. Tissue, soap and towels are a major expense in cleaning services and can be a major complaint area if quality is not agreed upon. Determine whether stock is delivered ‘just in time’ or on a planned schedule basis. It can make a big difference to you if you are the one everyone calls when the loo rolls run out!

Armed with this well-planned selection process, your hiring decision is bound to be a success!

Columbus-Dixon