Archive for May, 2009

HARD FLOOR CARE

 The condition of your floors is the first thing noticed by anyone entering a building.  If the floors are clean and have a high gloss the perception of the building is enhanced. The key to floor maintenance is applying a consistent system of care to maintain excellent appearance and minimize maintenance costs.  Every maintenance procedure should be planned and scheduled before the floor finish is noticeably damaged.

 PROCESS

1        Install Proper walk off mats
2        Select the proper finish and system
3        Train maintenance staff
4        Plan and schedule floor maintenance procedures by area
5        Monitor the floor care system performance – walk the building
6        Schedule corrective action

PRODUCTIVITY                       Min/1000sq ft

1        Dust Mop 48″                                              2.40
2        Wet Mop 24oz                                         12.00
3        Scrub Floor Machine 20″                    27.00
4        Scrub Automatic 24″                              6.00
5        Burnish Battery Machine  20″             3.50
6        Burnish Electric 20″                                6.00
7        Burnish Propane 27″                             2.70
8        Apply Finish Mop                                 36.00
9        Apply Finish Flat Mop                        28.00
10      Detail Baseboards                                   6.60

PRODUCT RECOMENDATIONS

Floor Finish                              Platinum Coat – Low Maintenance
                                                       Gold Coat – Frequent Burnish

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MATTING PROGRAM

The most vital part of a comprehensive floor care program begins with stopping the dirt and crud at the door.  Some facts to consider:

• 1. 70-80% of soil is tracked from outside shoe traffic
• 2. The cost to remove 1lb of dirt from your facility is $600
• 3. One square yard of carpet can accumulate 1lb of dirt per week
• 4. Without matting 1500 people will track in enough dirt to remove 42% of the floor coating on a 2 coat program.
• 5. 20 feet of a high quality mat will will stop 86% of the dirt  

A matting system must:

1. Trap Dirt               = Scrapper Mat
2. Hold Dirt               = Scraper Mat
3. Hide Dirt               = Combination Wiper/Scraper Mat
4. Absorb Moisture   = Wiper Mat

The relatively small cost of purchasing and maintain a matting system will more than provide an adequate payback on your investment.  If you can eliminate a modest 1lb of dirt per week, that would provide a $600 per week savings in cleaning cost.

Outside Entrances

Scrapper Mat          Astro-Turf H-D       $10.00/sq ft 
                                      Mat-a-Dor 3′x6′       $175

Heavy Duty Polyethylene blades
Guaranteed 3 years
Traps two times the dirt of any other mat, almost 2lb per square foot
Easy clean up – pressure wash

Vestibules      

Wiper/Scrapper       Crown-Turf             $10.00/sq ft
                                        Bristle Mat              $ 2.90/sq ft

Heavy Crush resistant nylon fiber, same as athletic fields
Guaranteed 3 years
Hold 1lb of dirt per square foot
Quick dry time less between 3 and 4 hours
Superior abrasion resistance
Easy clean up – pressure wash
Bristle mat – Monofilament bristles mixed with olefin 

Inside Entrances  

Wiper                      Imperial Twist         $3.70/sq ft
                                   Wonder Pro            $2.70/sq ft

Nylon twisted pile gives superior crush resistance
Dries 15% faster than standard olefin mats
Excellent Soil resistance
Easy to clean vacuum/extract
Olefins better soil resistance/Nylon better crush resistance

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Supplier Reduction Cost Savings Analysis

-Amerisource Industrial Supply’s mission is to help its customers reduce their maintenance cost by reducing supplier and product complexity.  We also have experience in house staff to assist our customers in solving their maintenance and facility supply challenges.  Finding solutions is our strength and if we don’t know we will find an answer.  Supplier reduction is not a passing fad.  It is a reality and can help your business reduce and control cost in addition to the benefits of adding a supplier partner to your business.  We are subject matter experts in Janitorial, Packaging, Safety, Office and other consumable supply lines.  Our 4 step process will help reduce your MRO supply spend.

1. Analyze current situation and Implement Best Practices
2. Install practical consumption controls and inventory management to reduce usage, storage space etc…
3. Simplify the purchasing, receiving, billing process to the least amount of effort
4. Look for resource and waste recovery

We provide consumable supplies at the lowest total cost.  There is a key statistic most companies over look and that is the soft costs associated with purchasing Industrial Supplies.  Purchasing management statistics indicate that these cost make up 60% of the cost of supplies.  Only 40% of the cost of industrial supplies is the price of the product.  Most of purchasing time is spent on bidding and price reduction.  With commodity prices on the rise this will lead to dimishing returns.  There is a limit to savings based on price reduction alone.  Companies need to look at the entire process and change the model to realize bigger savings.   It is a simple concept. The more that one supplier can do the better the leverage.  Further eliminating internal effort on non value added tasks will reap big rewards.  The old model of requisitions, PO’s to a number of different vendors is out dated.  The most cost effective supply arrangement is;

1. Allow the vendor determine what you need
2. Have the fewest vendors possible
   1. Fewer shipments
   2. Fewer invoices
   3. less Management
3. No requisitions or purchase orders
4. One monthly bill divided by cost center
5. Financial controls and incentives to manage costs

Supplier Reduction Cost Savings Estimate

 Number of Maintenance & Facility Suppliers                             _____________

Annual or Monthly Maintenance Purchases                                 _____________

Cost of Purchasing 20-30% of Purchases

 (PO, Ordering, Receiving, Admin)                X 20-30%              _____________

Inbound Freight UPS, RPS, Common Carrier         +                   _____________

Total Cost of Purchasing from Current Suppliers                        _____________

 Estimated Supplier Reduction Percentage               X                 _____________

Estimated Savings from Consolidating                                            __ ___________

Product & Complexity Reduction Cost Savings Estimate

 Number of Maintenance & Facility Products                              _____________

Annual of Monthly Maintenance Purchases                                _____________

Cost of Product Complexity 5-10%

          (pilferage, spoilage, misuse, overuse)            X 5-10%      _____________

 Inventory of Maintenance Items                                                     _____________

Inventory Holding Costs 5%                                  X 5%                   _____________

 Estimated Product Reduction Percentage                                   _____________

Estimated Savings From Reduction                                                _____________

Estimated Savings Holding Costs                                                      _____________

Total Savings Product Simplification                                              _____________

 Grand Total Savings Potential                                                             __________

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What are “Green Products?”

A common misconception about “Green”, also known as Environmentally Preferred Products is that they are made to protect the environment.   And while that is true, more importantly Green Products are designed to protect the people who use chemicals for cleaning on a regular basis.   Many cleaning products we use everyday contain ingredients that are known or suspected to have possible long-term health implications.  Green Products are formulated to remove all of the potentially harmful ingredients.

Why should I use “Green Products?”

Now, more than ever, people are using “Green” products. The most common reasons are:

• To protect the health of employees and guests. There are concerns about workers long-term exposure to certain ingredients in cleaning chemicals via skin contact and inhalation. 
• Short-term costs:
  • Rising healthcare costs, loss of productivity and workers compensation premiums associated with occupational illness.
• Long-term costs:
  • Potential future liability associated with exposure to currently unknown harmful chemical ingredients.  We live in a very litigious society. This has already happened with items such as asbestos, tobacco and lead-based paint.
• The Federal government is actively promoting the use of green chemistry. Many federal, State and city government facilities are already using green products.  By 2010, all U.S. Federal contracts are required to use green products.

How can I identify a “Green Product”?

This can be difficult to do. The old adage “Let the Buyer Beware” definitely applies. Some manufacturers have taken advantage of the “Green Revolution” by misleading customers into thinking their products are green by simply changing the name of the product to a “green sounding” name or by removing only a few ingredients and not actually completely reformulating their products.

There are two primary standards for green products in our industry: Green Seal and the EPA.

1. Green Seal, a Washington, DC-based private business has developed 29 standards ranging from alternate fuel vehicles, newsprint and limited cleaning products. They charge manufacturers a fee to register their products.  Green Seal does not have a testing protocol for Floor Finishes, Sealers, Strippers or Maintainers.
2. The EPA, who has developed the Design for the Environment Program (DfE) for institutional cleaners and maintenance products.

We at Pioneer Eclipse believe that the EPA is the ultimate authority for Environmentally Preferred Products because:

• They are part of the U.S. Federal government and not a privately-owned business.
• EPA testing standards include All Products used in our industry, not just a select few.  Additionally, the EPA testing standards are much more restrictive (safer) than Green Seal.

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This is a very common problem in all men’s restrooms no matter the age of the bathroom.  Even the best and most frequent cleaning will not rid the bathroom of the reappearing urine smell.  Hilton Hotels had this problem in a 3 month old facility and had cleaning staff detailing grout lines with a toothbrush.  Well no need for such medieval methods.

There is more than one answer to this difficult problem.  The real cause of the problem is urine loving bacteria that grow in the grout.  Urine penetrates the grout even if it is sealed with silicone or floor finish.  Surface cleaning does not penetrate deep enough to kill the bacteria so once the cleaner’s odor has dissipated the urine smell returns. 

Solution 1: Immediately after mopping spray the urinal or bowl areas with Nilodor’s Bacteria/Enzyme.  The bacteria/enzyme must be applied when the floor is wet. The product will destroy the urine loving bacteria and the odor will be eliminated.  It may take a week of application to get the bathroom back in control.  After the initial period regular treatments will keep the problem in check.

Solution 2: Clean the floor as above and then Amreps CRYSTAL GUARD IMPREGNATOR AMRB00848.  This clear impregnator is impervious to urine. As a result, the urine will not penetrate the grout and can be cleaned away in daily mopping.  It does not change the slip characteristics of the floor nor can you notice that it has been applied.

Solution 3: Clean the floor as in solution 1 and then put down a Urinal Floor Guard.  The Floor Guard fits under the urinal and catches the urine over spray thus eliminated the problem by preventing the urine from reaching the floor.  It is applied with velcro so the area under the Floor Guard can be cleaned.  It works very simply by catching urine in an absorbent treated with enzymes.  After a certain period 3 days to one week just pick it up and throw the top replaceable unit away and install a new one.

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Facts to consider regarding Rental Mat Programs 

1. Most people using rental mat programs think it is more convenient to let the laundry wash their mats. If you analyze this you see that the laundry only cleans the mat one time a week or once every two weeks depending on the service interval. Washing mats once a week or once every two weeks is not often enough to properly maintain them. Between deliveries these mats are usually cleaned daily by the cleaning staff so they won’t look so dirty. So, one day a week the laundry service cleans the mat while the remainder of the week the mats are cleaned internally. With an effective entrance mat, that is designed with a permanent Bi-Level cleaning surface you can own your own mats and conveniently clean them internally eliminating the laundries costly one cleaning per week. 
2. Rental mat programs generally offer the same type of mat for all applications.  These mats are constructed of a non-reinforced nylon carpet on a rubber backing. While this construction holds up well in the industrial laundry process it does not provide the best soil management system to effectively remove dirt and moisture at entrances.  The non-reinforced nylon surface crushes down soon after the mat is placed at the entrance causing the dirt and moisture to sit on top. Dirt and moisture will then reattach to pedestrian traffic and track into the facility.  A more effective program would include a range of mats designed for the specific application including entrance mats with a permanently reinforced bi-level surface, finishing mats, interior mats, slip resistant mats and anti fatigue mats. When you own your mats you can choose the best mats for your specific placement needs.  
3. Users of rental mat programs have little control over the age and quality of the mats being delivered. Rental mats will vary in age from brand new to as much as 5 or more years of age. Because of this age variation it is not unusual for the rental mat service to deliver mats that may be unsafe due to torn edges and rippling. A trip and fall accident caused by a faulty mat could cost as much as $20,000.00. Due to these age differences many mats within the same color group do not match. This is unsightly when placed close together and will reflect negatively to customers. It is not unusual for older mats to go through a re-dyeing process to hide defects allowing these older mats to remain in service even longer. When you own your mats you decide when the mats are too old. You control the quality of the mats in use, guarding against negative safety issues and protecting your well-earned image. 
4.  Rental mat programs usually offer very few size options, as it is more efficient to limit the number of SKU’s they wash and deliver to their customers. The limited sizes they do offer are designed for ease of handling and delivery. Not optimum soil and moisture management. A Carpet and Rug Institute study found that it takes a minimum of 12 feet to remove up to 80% of the dirt carried in on the soles of shoes. Most rental mats do not exceed 10 feet in length and many are only 5 feet long. By owning your own mats you choose the length that will give the coverage you need.   
5. When using a rental mat program you will rarely see the same mats from week to week unless you are renting Custom Logo mats. There is no telling where the mats you have this week were last week. They could have been in a professional office or a meat packing plant. The point is you have no control over where the mats have been before you got them. That’s why it is not unusual for the mats they deliver to have stains, odors, bald spots and soil unless you happen to receive a brand new one. It is not unusual for the laundry route man to skip the cleaning service on mats that do not look dirty as this reduces their workload. To reduce processing costs, many laundries do not dry their mats after washing. This leaves excessive grit; sand and possible mildew odors in the mats. Owning your own mats gives you the reassurance that your mats are clean and ready to do the job they were designed for. 
6.  Usually outdoor scraper mats and anti-fatigue mats are on a no-service lease program and are not cleaned on the once per week interval. It is left up to you to clean these yourself while still paying a high weekly charge. By owning these mats you pay once up front and not weekly year after year. These mats could last several years before you need to replace them.  
7. Buy Verses Rent. Which program is the most cost effective? Rental mat programs will cost approximately $.20 per square foot every week. That’s $3.00 for every 3×5 mat rented every week for an annual cost of $156.00 each! Every year as long as the mat is rented. A high performance WaterHog mat with Bi-Level cleaning surface will cost less than half of that the first year and nothing after that. The three year cost of a 3×5 rented mat is approximately $468.00 verses approximately $75.00 for a purchased WaterHog mat. That’s a savings of $393.00 over three years for just one 3×5 mat.  

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BUSINESS PANDEMIC INFLUENZA PLANNING

 Overview

In the event of pandemic influenza, businesses will play a key role in protecting employees’ health and safety as well as limiting the negative impact to the economy and society. Planning for pandemic influenza is critical. To assist you in your efforts, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have developed the following checklist for large businesses. It identifies important, specific activities large businesses can do now to prepare, many of which will also help you in other emergencies. Further information can be found at www.pandemicflu.gov and www.cdc.gov/business.

QUICK ACTION GUIDE

• 1. Liberal leave policy to anyone exhibiting fever, cough and flu symptoms
• 2. Promote frequent hand washing or sanitizing after personal contact
• a. Carry personal hand sanitizer
• 3. Avoid touching nose, eyes and face with hands
• 4. Cough into arm vs hands
• 5. Consider applying protective residual disinfectant coating to all hard surfaces

CHECKLIST

1.1 Plan for the impact of a pandemic on your business:

• 1. Identify a pandemic coordinator and/or team with defined roles and responsibilities for preparedness and response planning. The planning process should include input from labor representatives.
• 2. Identify essential employees and other critical inputs (e.g. raw materials, suppliers, sub-contractor services/products, and logistics) required to maintain business operations by location and function during a pandemic.
• 3. Train and prepare ancillary workforce (e.g. contractors, employees in other job titles/descriptions, retirees).
• 4. Develop and plan for scenarios likely to result in an increase or decrease in demand for your products and/or services during a pandemic (e.g. effect of restriction on mass gatherings, need for hygiene supplies).
• 5. Determine potential impact of a pandemic on company business financials using multiple possible scenarios that affect different product lines and/or production sites.
• 6. Determine potential impact of a pandemic on business-related domestic and international travel (e.g. quarantines, border closures).
• 1. Find up-to-date, reliable pandemic information from community public health, emergency management, and other sources and make sustainable links.
• 2. Establish an emergency communications plan and revise periodically. This plan includes identification of key contacts (with back-ups), chain of communications (including suppliers and customers), and processes for tracking and communicating business and employee status.
• 3. Implement an exercise/drill to test your plan, and revise periodically.

1.2 Plan for the impact of a pandemic on your employees and customers:

• 1. Forecast and allow for employee absences during a pandemic due to factors such as personal illness, family member illness, community containment measures and quarantines, school and/or business closures, and public transportation closures.
• 2. Implement guidelines to modify the frequency and type of face-to-face contact (e.g. hand-shaking, seating in meetings, office layout, shared workstations) among employees and between employees and customers (refer to CDC recommendations).
• 3. Encourage and track annual influenza vaccination for employees.
• 4. Evaluate employee access to and availability of healthcare services during a pandemic, and improve services as needed.
• 5. Evaluate employee access to and availability of mental health and social services during a pandemic, including corporate, community, and faith-based resources, and improve services as needed.
• 6. Identify employees and key customers with special needs, and incorporate the requirements of such persons into your preparedness plan.

1.3 Establish policies to be implemented during a pandemic:

• 1. Establish policies for employee compensation and sick-leave absences unique to a pandemic (e.g. non-punitive, liberal leave), including policies on when a previously ill person is no longer infectious and can return to work after illness.
• 2. Establish policies for flexible worksite (e.g. telecommuting) and flexible work hours (e.g. staggered shifts).
• 3. Establish policies for preventing influenza spread at the worksite (e.g. promoting respiratory hygiene/cough etiquette, and prompt exclusion of people with influenza symptoms).
• 4. Establish policies for employees who have been exposed to pandemic influenza, are suspected to be ill, or become ill at the worksite (e.g. infection control response, immediate mandatory sick leave).
• 5. Establish policies for restricting travel to affected geographic areas (consider both domestic and international sites), evacuating employees working in or near an affected area when an outbreak begins, and guidance for employees returning from affected areas (refer to CDC travel recommendations).
• 6. Set up authorities, triggers, and procedures for activating and terminating the company’s response plan, altering business operations (e.g. shutting down operations in affected areas), and transferring business knowledge to key employees.

1.4 Allocate resources to protect your employees and customers during a pandemic:

• 1. Provide sufficient and accessible infection control supplies (e.g.hand-hygiene products, tissues and receptacles for their disposal) in all business locations.
• 2. Enhance communications and information technology infrastructures as needed to support employee telecommuting and remote customer access.
• 3. Ensure availability of medical consultation and advice for emergency response.

1.5 Communicate to and educate your employees:

• 1. Develop and disseminate programs and materials covering pandemic fundamentals (e.g. signs and symptoms of influenza, modes of transmission), personal and family protection and response strategies (e.g. hand hygiene, coughing/sneezing etiquette, contingency plans).
• 2. Anticipate employee fear and anxiety, rumors and misinformation and plan communications accordingly.
• 3. Ensure that communications are culturally and linguistically appropriate.
• 4. Disseminate information to employees about your pandemic preparedness and response plan.
• 5. Provide information for the at-home care of ill employees and family members.
• 6. Develop platforms (e.g. hotlines, dedicated websites) for communicating pandemic status and actions to employees, vendors, suppliers, and customers inside and outside the worksite in a consistent and timely way, including redundancies in the emergency contact system.
• 7. Identify community sources for timely and accurate pandemic information (domestic and international) and resources for obtaining counter-measures (e.g. vaccines and antivirals).

1.6 Coordinate with external organizations and help your community:

• 1. Collaborate with insurers, health plans, and major local healthcare facilities to share your pandemic plans and understand their capabilities and plans.
• 2. Collaborate with federal, state, and local public health agencies and/or emergency responders to participate in their planning processes, share your pandemic plans, and understand their capabilities and plans.
• 3. Communicate with local and/or state public health agencies and/or emergency responders about the assets and/or services your business could contribute to the community.
• 4. Share best practices with other businesses in your communities, chambers of commerce, and associations to improve community response efforts.

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Rental shop towels are typically manufactured overseas and shipped  to a commercial laundry facility in the US.  The first use of a laundered shop towel may be as a white towel (virgin use).  Upon return from its first use, the towel may be dyed red or blue and laundered before being shipped to the next industrial customer.  After each round of use, the launderer picks up the dirty  towels from the industrial customer and returns them via truck to the laundry for cleaning.  The dirty towels frequently contain hazardous industrial solvents and chemicals from the processes in which they were used. Each time the dirty  towel is laundered, the waste comes off in the laundering process and can end up in several places: •Volatile Organic Compounds (from solvents) evaporate into the air where they can be inhaled by the laundry workers who load the washers and driers •The solvents and chemicals that were on the towels are washed out into the Publicly Owned Treatment Works •Sludge from the oil, grease, grime and chemicals is collected from the laundering process and usually is disposed of in the landfill. •After laundering, the towels are then sent out again-typically to a different industrial customer – they are returned to generate more VOCs, sludge and water pollution.  A laundered towel may be used many times; but, ultimately, it will become too dirty and ratty for more use and will be discarded in the landfill.

 

Disposable wipers are typically manufactured in the USA.  These product ship direct to a distributor who takes these direct to the customer for use.  After the wipers have been used, they are either sent to a landfill if they are non-hazardous or are picked up by a hazardous waste hauler who properly disposes of the wiper often using methods that result in a waste to energy conversion.

Benefits:

1. Comfort of knowing that hazardous waste has been handled correctly and liability has been minimized.
2. Waste from process is disposed of properly.  Minimizes risk of exposure to public and environment. (alternate statement to first point)
3. No left over contaminants or residue on wiper from previous user.
4. Hazardous waste is hauled only one time to a destination that is prepared to handle it versus a continuous movement of contamination through many cycles of use.

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Hand Washing Comparison                                               

 Proper hand washing is the single largest activity that can prevent illness and improve health.

 Tank Type Dispensers  50oz   

Offers the lowest cost per gallon of soap

      @ 0.1oz per push &  $8.00/gal                                                       $.006/hand wash

• Each Dispenser fill last only 500 hand washes – 4 times more filling
• Soap is less concentrated and cheaper pink soaps can be thickened using salt – salt destroys the dispenser
• Soap is open to the air which can promote bacterial growth in the soap itself
• Refilling can be a messy operation
• Soap can be taken, misused or wasted by employees adding to cost

Duraview  – Dispensers

Cost effective per hand wash

      @1.0ml per push & $10.00 per 2000ml                             $.005/hand wash

• Each Cartridge will last up to 2000 hand washes
• Can restrict amount dispensed per push to increase cost effectiveness
• Great looking dispenser system
• High quality soap, people will be more apt to use it and improve their health
• Soap is super concentrated – a little will go a long way
• Cartridge is air tight, soap cannot be contaminated
• Easy to refill cartridges
• Cartridges can only be used effectively in dispenser – eliminates theft

What would you rather Use?

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