Summer break is coming and this is the time to finalize plans. It is the ideal time for deep cleaning of classrooms and restrooms, floor and carpet cleaning, refinishing sports floors, and completing repairs and other maintenance. To be most effective, it is also a time for planning, testing innovative products, considering new product procurement options, and training workers to employ new products and improved processes.
Planning: Before repeating even a successful program from past years, take some time to conduct an audit of where your cleaning program is compared to where it should be.
A key to good planning is broad engagement in the planning process. In addition to senior management and administration, be sure to include cleaning personnel, administrative staff, students, parents, and representatives from the sustainability office if the school or university has one. Don’t forget to include product vendors as they can be a terrific source of information on new green cleaning products and methods, along with technical guidance.
Regular audits can identify opportunities for improvement. Several tools are available to facilitate this process, including AS&U’s Green Cleaning Awards for Schools and Universities, and the Healthy Schools Campaign’s Quick & Easy Guide to Green Cleaning in Schools.
Testing Innovative Products: The cleaning industry introduces innovative green cleaning products and equipment at a rapid pace. As a result, it is recommended that a formal summer break process be implemented to review these innovations before making final procurement commitments.
Some of the innovations to consider include devices that turn water into an effective cleaning solution, vacuums that reduce energy consumption, carpet cleaning equipment that reduces water consumption, ergonomic microfiber mopping systems, sanitary paper made with agricultural waste or rapidly renewable fibers (trees that mature in under 10 years), no-strip floor coating and maintenance systems, and more.
As with planning, don’t forget to include vendors as well as cleaning personnel. Innovation is important, but getting buy-in from cleaning personnel is critical to acceptance and success.
Product Procurement: Purchasing by schools and universities can be quite challenging due to public procurement requirements. One of the best strategies is to simply add requirements from well-vetted thirdparty standard developers and certifying organizations such as Green Seal, EcoLogo/UL, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s “Design for the Environment” Program, the Forest Stewardship Council and more.
To make it easy to identify which standards and certifications are appropriate, it is important to begin by considering any state legislative requirements. If the state does not have such requirements or if it is desirable to exceed such requirements; it is recommended to follow the rating system from the U.S. Green Building Council’s “LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance” or the Healthy Schools Campaign’s “Quick & Easy Guide to Green Cleaning in Schools.” Additionally, the Green Cleaning Network provides an attachment based on LEED and the Quick & Easy Guide that makes it easy to “green” an existing contract eliminating the need to change legal requirements.
Training: Perhaps the single most important activity that should be planned for the summer is training for cleaning staff. In addition to training on new products and procedures, it is valuable to provide training for supervisors and others on issues such as conflict resolution, time management and more. After all, the success of any cleaning program is dependent upon the workers.
Make sure that the training is in the language of the staff and, for best results, use pre- and post-training testing to get feedback from the learners. Vendors can be a good resource, but it is recommended that their programs be reviewed by the planning team as a “free” program can do more harm than help if it is poorly designed and delivered.
Ashkin is executive director of the Green Cleaning Network, a 501(c)3 not-for-profit educational organization.