Rex Morrison started as a janitor in Washoe Public Schools — Nevada's second largest school district — more than 20 years ago, and during his tenure has transformed the speed and efficiency of cleaning.
Morrison created, advocated and carried out a cleaning system called process cleaning, essentially a team cleaning program adapted for a zone environment. He now is the custodial field supervisor and training coordinator for the district, overseeing maintenance programs in more than 100 schools that cover 6 million square feet.
“The national average in K-12 cleaning is 21,000 square feet per man, but we were able to bring that up to 27,000 square feet. Our first year alone, we saved $240,000 with process cleaning,” says Morrison. “We don't clean for appearance anymore, we clean for health. We can go to any school district and guarantee cleaner, more germ-free student and staff spaces in less time.”
For his achievements, Morrison has been featured in national media and has won numerous awards. School districts from across the United States and Canada regularly seek out his training and advice.
“The whole energy behind the expansion of process cleaning was our tools — ProTeam® backpack vacuums and micro-fiber. Basically, there's no way we could find any type of time management with an upright or dust mop. We realized a 50 percent increase in vacuuming times, with phenomenal versatility.”
ProTeam backpack vacuums utilize a high-powered motor and four levels of high-quality filtration media that collect and trap 99.9 percent of particles down to 1 micron in size, including dust mites, dander, mold and other particulates that can trigger health problems like asthma and allergies. Combined with the backpack's ability to reach difficult places, the benefits are literally in the air.
“When I first walk into a building, I can smell the difference — it's that noticeable,” says Morrison. “Dust has a certain odor. When we switched to the Super CoachVac®, we cut the time it took to dust by 50 percent.”
