February/March 2016

The pan-European magazine for the professional cleaning sector

FEBRUARY/ MARCH 2016

BUSINESS

SPECIAL REPORT

UPDATE

Green cleaning special focus Starts page 25

EU future under threat?

Management of waste

Washroom hygiene

Page 57

Page 35

Page 39

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CONTENTS

February/March 2016 | Vol.24, No.1

BUSINESS

SPECIAL REPORTS

45 Many looming challenges....

25 The jolly green client

Hartley Milner looks ahead to the challenges facing the EU this year, asking if it has a future.

Truly sustainable companies do what they can to improve the community.

35 Keep hazards out of the bin Many businesses are disposing of hazardous waste with general rubbish.

39 Raising the bar in washrooms A look at the rise of more upmarket public washrooms and their impact.

47 The invisible scrubber dryer As daytime cleaning increases, scrubber dryers need to be more unobtrusive.

54 More than an exhibition...

03 News

The industry is preparing for ISSA/INTERCLEAN Amsterdam in May.

14 European reports

59 The new hero in hospitals The latest disinfectant ticking all the boxes in healthcare is peracetic acid.

Criterion Publishing Ltd PO Box 299, Chesham, Buckinghamshire HP5 1FP UK T +44 (0)1494 791222 F +44 (0)1494 792223 info@europeancleaningjournal.com www. europeancleaningjournal.com Subscriptions UK - £60 / Continental Europe - £70 / International - £80

Editor Michelle Marshall Features Writer Ann Laffeaty Advertisement Director Chris Godman Advertisement Sales Carole Dawson Circulation Marie Payne

Italy, Spain & Switzerland Fabio Potesta Mediapoint & Communications Corte Lambruschini, Corso Buenos Aires, 8 V0 Piano, Interno 7 16129 Genova, Italy T +39 010 570 4948 F +39 010 553 0088 info@mediapointsrl.it www. mediapointsrl.it

European Cleaning Journal is published six times a year by Criterion Publishing Ltd. Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy and reliability of material published in European Cleaning, Criterion Publishing Ltd and its agents can accept no responsibility for the varacity of claims made by contributors, manufacturers or advertisers. Copyright for all material published in European Cleaning remains with Criterion Publishing Ltd and its agents.

ISSN 0968-901X ©Criterion Publishing 2016

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NEWS & EVENTS

Latest News & Events from ECJ

ECJ launches first pan-European awards for cleaning sector

ECJ is launching the first panEuropean awards programme for the professional cleaning sector. The European Cleaning & Hygiene Awards 2016 will celebrate excellence across all parts of the sector, with the inaugural awards ceremony taking place in Barcelona on September 29 of this year.

The professional cleaning sector employs millions of people across Europe and plays a vital role in health, wellbeing, image and perception. However until now there has not been a panEuropean awards programme recognising and rewarding standards of excellence in all its areas, and at all its levels.

As the only pan-European publication serving the cleaning sector, European Cleaning Journal (ECJ) has as its main objective the promotion of the highest in professional standards and the recognition of our industry’s expertise.

Editor Michelle Marshall explains: “ECJ is privileged to have a real insight into all areas of the sector across Europe, therefore for us it is a natural progression to lead an awards programme which encourages all stakeholders to share their achievements – and to host an awards dinner celebrating all that is so positive about the industry.”

An independent judging panel made up of industry experts will be appointed by ECJ to judge each of the 10 categories, which are:

• Best use of technology by contractors in their cleaning programmes • Commitment to and investment in training • Excellence in client/ contractor partnerships • Distributors - excellence in added value initiatives • Sustainability - best practice in implementing principles throughout the business • Workforce - excellence in employee relationships, diversity & inclusion, rewards programmes, etc • Best initiative raising the profile and perception of the professional cleaning sector locally or on a wider level • Groundbreaking technological innovation of the year • Inspirational leader of the year • Greatest individual contribution to driving up standards of excellence within a cleaning operation • Lifetime achievement award – to be selected by the judging panel. Sponsored by Ceris Burns International Alongside the awards dinner will be a series of round-table discussions and conference programme – worldwide cleaning association ISSA is the education partner.

The European Cleaning & Hygiene Awards 2016 are sponsored by Diversey Care For details on how to enter, plus information on the sponsorship opportunities available visit the website: www. ecj-awards.com

ECJ va lancer le premier programme de prix paneuropéens pour le secteur de la propreté. Les Prix européens de la propreté et de l’hygiène 2016, qui seront décernés à Barcelone en septembre, célèbreront l’excellence dans tous les domaines du secteur.

Register now for your free monthly email newsletter from ECJ. Remember to bookmark the ECJ website and don’t miss our regular blogs - including Dr Ilham Kadri from Diversey Care, Rob den Hertog of Amsterdam RAI, Peter Ankerstjerne of ISS, EUnited’s Markus Asch and Vectair’s Paul Wonnacott www.europeancleaningjournal.com

EVENTS March 9-12

September 29

Cleaning Show Romania

European Cleaning & Hygiene Awards

Bucharest, Romania www.cleaningshow.ro

Barcelona, Spain www.ecj-awards.com

March 29-31

October 25-28

China Clean Expo

ISSA/Interclean North America

Shanghai, China www.chinacleanexpo.com

Chicago, USA www.issainterclean.com

April 7-8

November 9-11

Clean & Green India

CleanExpo Moscow

New Delhi, India www.cleangreen-india.com

Moscow, Russia www.cleanexpo-moscow.ru

April 4-7

November 13-15

WFBSC World Congress

MECTW

Tokyo, Japan www.wfbsc.org/world-congress

Dubai, UAE www.mectw.com

May 10-13

March 14-16 2017

ISSA/Interclean Amsterdam

The Cleaning Show

Amsterdam, Netherlands www.issainterclean.com

London, UK www.cleaningshow.co.uk

May 19-20

May 23-25 2017

Clean NZ

Pulire

Auckland, New Zealand www.cleannzexpo.co.nz

Verona, Italy www.pulire-it.com

June 15-17

September 11-14 2017

ESCLEAN

ISSA/Interclean North America

Madrid, Spain www.fsms.ifema.es

Las Vegas, USA www.issainterclean.com

September 7-9

September 19-22 2017

ISSA/Interclean Istanbul

CMS

Istanbul, Turkey www.issainterclean.com

Berlin, Germany www.cms-berlin.com

To have your event included in Events, contact ECJ via email at: michelle@europeancleaningjournal.com

Das ECJ stellt das erste europaweite Preisverleihungsprogramm für die professionelle Reinigungsbranche vor. Mit den European Cleaning & Hygiene Awards 2016, die im September in Barcelona stattfinden, werden Spitzenleistungen in allen Sparten der Branche gefeiert.

ECJ sta lanciando il primo programma di riconoscimenti pan-europeo per il settore del cleaning professionale. L’ European Cleaning & Hygiene Awards 2016 celebrerà il merito in tutte le aree del settore e si terrà a Barcellona a settembre di quest’anno.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 3

NEWS European Cleaning Days 2016

Cradle to Cradle prize

EUnited Cleaning, the association of European cleaning machines manufacturers, has announced the return of European Cleaning Days (ECD) for 2016. The initiative aims to highlight the importance and the benefits of professional cleaning in areas like offices, hospitals, airports, train stations, etc.

Cleaning solutions specialist Werner & Mertz has become the first German provider of sustainable cleaning products to receive the international Cradle to Cradle Products Innovator Award - for its brands green care Professional and Frosch.

The coveted prize from the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, a nonprofit organisation with its headquarters in San Francisco, is awarded to industrial companies that manage their production according to the Cradle to Cradle principle in closed loops for maximum sustainability.

“The international recognition

Curiosity about cleaning Since the campaign was first launched eight months ago there have been 37 events, ranging from the cleaning of public places in action, to educational events and exhibitions. More than

2,000 people have visited the website since the beginning of the campaign and the corresponding Facebook pages has received more than 1,200 ‘likes’.

EUnited says this proves people are curious to find out more about the cleaning industry, hygiene and the prevention of diseases by means of professional cleaning. But there is still much to do.

Participation is free as is promotion through ECD social media campaigns.

Visit www.cleaningdays.eu for more information about events taking place this year.

•EUnited Cleaning, l’association des fabricants européens de machines de nettoyage, a annoncé le retour des Journées européennes de la propreté en 2016.

• Werner & Mertz, spécialiste des solutions de nettoyage, est devenu le premier fournisseur allemand de produits de nettoyage durable à recevoir la Prix international de l’innovation de produits éco-effectifs.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 4

•EUnited Cleaning, der europaweite Verband der Reinigungsmaschinenhersteller, hat für 2016 die Rückkehr der European Cleaning Days (ECD) angekündigt.

• Der Spezialist für Reinigungslösungen Werner & Mertz wurde als erster deutscher Anbieter von nachhaltigen Reinigungsprodukten mit dem internationalen Cradle to Cradle Products Innovator Award ausgezeichnet.

that comes with the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovator Award confirms in a very special way our high quality standards and our engagement for greater sustainability in professional cleaning,” said Frank Vancraeyveld, managing director of Werner & Mertz Professional/ tana-Chemie, at the awards ceremony in New York.

Since 2013 Werner & Mertz has had its products from the professional cleaning line green care Professional certified by the Cradle to Cradle process. In that time 18 products in the range have received the Cradle to Cradle Certified Gold label.

• EUnited Cleaning, l’associazione di produttori europei di macchine per le pulizie ha annunciato per il 2016 il ritorno di European Cleaning Days (ECD).

• La Werner & Mertz, specializzata in soluzioni di pulizia, è diventata la prima impresa tedesca fornitrice di prodotti ecologici di pulizia a ricevere il premio internazionale Cradle to Cradle Products Innovator Award.

29 September 2016, The 5* Majestic Hotel, Barcelona

www.ECJ-Awards.com FOUNDED BY

THE INDUSTRY’S FIRST PAN-EUROPEAN AWARDS SCHEME EVENT SPONSOR

CATEGORY SPONSOR

EDUCATION PARTNER

ORGANISED BY

NEWS EXTRA ISS UK revamps UK training with BIFM-approved programme

In the UK, global facilities service provider ISS has revolutionised its training with the introduction of ‘I can at ISS’, an integrated programme that can be used by all its employees at every stage of their career with the company.

The programme is endorsed by the British Institute of Facilities Management (BIFM).

The five stage training and development framework is suitable for all staff, from firstday entrants to those wanting to have a long-term career path with ISS. Jane Leeming, director of learning and development for ISS UK and Ireland explains: “We looked across the business and while there was a great deal of good practice in our training policy, we decided we wanted to change from the ‘pick & mix’ courses that people could elect to do or not, to a different approach whereby we would take our staff on a journey.”

Leeming continues to explain how traditional training has been task-focused. “However a cleaner does not only need to know how to clean. We must also look at the impact they have on the customer experience and address the behavioural aspects that may empower them to go beyond their basic job description.”

So the ‘I can at ISS’ programme was first rolled out with private sector clients across the UK, and that roll-out continues. The basis is a consistent induction, which all front-of-house staff undertake. “It contains both practical and customer-focused elements,” explains Leeming.

“We also cover the safety culture of the company, customer service, understanding their role within the overall operation, etc.

“One of our key objectives has been to introduce different methods of training too, which are more engaging. For example we cover many aspects in a very visual way.”

The new learning methods adopted are also designed to prompt conversations, which is already happening reports Leeming. “This leads to higher employee engagement, better customer service and the opportunity for more staff to hone their skills. Many get promoted from the front line, improve their capabilities, become more proactive in problem-solving and enhance customer relationships.”

After undergoing the initial phase, training is refreshed regularly. “We also hold performance reviews, taking account of how our staff would like to advance within the company,” Leeming adds.

What makes ‘I can at ISS’ so unique she believes, is that it absolutely focuses on the individual and how they like to learn. “This programme goes beyond the task of that person and explores how they can make a difference to the client. We ask: could we be multi-skilling our staff to enable them to serve the client better?”

“Learning must be engaging, interactive and enjoyable – designed well in order to motivate and engage,” she continues. “We also involve our clients wherever possible, as their feedback is so valuable.”

Dans ses établissements britanniques, ISS a introduit un nouveau programme de formation entièrement intégré désigné I Can at ISS et approuvé par l’Institut britannique du facility management.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 6

How did the clients respond when asked about their requirements of a training programme? “We discovered they want quality of front-line managers - managers who can understand how ISS can really support them in their growth and development. For many the service ethos really stood out, along with skills and confidence of course.”

One of the key challenges in implementing the ‘I can at ISS’ programme is the size and scale of the organisation. “In addition, we have so many cleaners in so many different types of role,” adds Leeming. “To make them all feel individually considered, with tailor-made training, has been challenging.

“Technology is also an issue for us in that we don’t own the buildings our staff work in, so we cannot simply install broadband for online learning for example.

Hearts and minds “And of course, winning the hearts and minds of staff and managers has been crucial because it’s such a huge culture change for the company. The trials we carried out certainly helped, because the focus groups could have input. And the entire programme has been designed around simplicity.”

Such a dramatic change in training philosophy has involved significant investment for ISS UK. What will be the returns?

“In a word, engagement,” replies Leeming. “Our scores in that respect have been improving significantly. And when our staff are engaged, we have loyal customers too. There are also important benefits relating to safety, accident rates, time lost to injury, etc. Absenteeism has fallen too, because fully engaged staff take less time off.

“In the longer term we also gauge retention levels, staff turnover, how many people are being promoted, etc.”

ISS was keen to have its new training concept accredited by

Unter der Bezeichung „I Can at ISS“ hat ISS in seiner britischen Niederlassung ein neues vollständig integriertes Schulungsprogramm vorgestellt, das vom British Institute of Facilities Management unterstützt wird.

BIFM, says Leeming. “BIFM had recently published a new Facilities Management Professional Standards Framework so it worked well to align with that.

“And aligning us with BIFM means staff can progress through a professional body and to have such a qualification means more to our people and to our clients.”

Linda Hausmanis, director of education at BIFM explains what particular aspects of ‘I can at ISS’ impressed her. “Its strength was the desired goal of putting in place a programme which provides the mechanism for assisting staff to know the standard expected of them but also letting them know how to get there. The programme was developed and rolled out across the various sectors within the ISS footprint, gaining buy-in from the relevant regional management teams which ensured a smooth transition and successful implementation.”

She continues: “Since we announced the BIFM endorsement of the ISS programme against the FM Professional Standards, we have seen increased interest from other organisations now keen to go through the process. This, alongside the growing number of employers who are now delivering the BIFM professional FM qualifications in-house, reaffirms the appetite within the industry to professionalise and raise standards.

“This has been made possible by the creation of the FM Professional Standards and the BIFM Professional Qualifications - both of which were created alongside major stakeholders, including employers, ensuring both were fit for purpose.”

Hausmanis concludes: “And very importantly, the content has been mapped against proven international standards so the skills are transferable.” www.uk.issworld.com

La ISS ha introdotto nel suo settore operativo del Regno Unito un programma di training totalmente integrato e sostenuto da British Institute of Facilities Management, il programma “I Can at ISS”.

NEWS Diverse leadership leads to higher profits, says new study Companies with the most diverse management teams have an operating profit margin of 12.6 percentage points more than the companies with the least diverse management teams. That’s according to new research conducted by global facilities services provider ISS and consultancy firm proacteur based on data from PwC. The study is based on data from more than 300 large and medium-sized Danish companies and the conclusion applies both when comparing within specific industries and across all types of businesses.

“Diversity is first and foremost about respecting each other

and seeing human diversity as a strength, but now we can also conclude that diversity management presents a significant benefit to the bottom line,” says Lotte Hjortlund Andersen, Head of CSR at ISS Denmark.

Difference in earnings The research report shows that there is a significant difference in earnings between the most and the least diverse businesses, but also that the most diverse companies on average earn 5.7 per cent more than the average of competitors in the same industry.

In 2011 another study was conducted by ISS together with

Les entreprises aux équipes de direction les plus diversifiées affichent un bénéfice d’exploitation dépassant de 12,6 pour cent celui des entreprises aux équipes de direction les moins diversifiées. C’est ce qui ressort d’une étude par ISS et Proacteur au Danemark.

PwC, and it concluded that diverse teams earn 3.7 per cent more on average than nondiverse teams.

“Now we have taken the next step and we are able to substantiate that the difference is even greater when we talk about diversity in management.

There are millions to be earned in linking diversity to business,” adds Hjortlund Andersen.

The new report also points out that there is still a huge untapped commercial potential

in Danish management in relation to the diverse composition, which, among other things, include gender and ethnicity.

“For our own part, we now have good and tangible arguments for working more actively on diversity management. And I hope the report’s evidence-based conclusions will inspire other companies to work strategically with business-driven diversity,” she concludes.

Register now for your free monthly email newsletter from ECJ. Simply send your email address to michelle@europeancleaningjournal.com

Unternehmen, mit den vielfältigsten Managementteams erzielen eine 12,6 Prozent höhere Betriebsgewinnspanne als diejenigen mit weniger vielfältigen Teams. Dies geht aus einer Studie von ISS und Proacteur in Dänemark hervor.

Le imprese con i team di gestione più vari hanno il 12,6 per cento di margine di profitto operativo più alto delle imprese con team meno vari. Questo è quanto emerge dalla ricerca di ISS e Proacteur in Danimarca.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 7

NEWS CE mark for Diversey Care robot Sealed Air’s Diversey Care division has achieved CE Marking for its TASKI Intellibot SWINGOBOT 1650 machine.

This robotic scrubber dryer is already working with customers in the UK, Benelux, Scandinavia, France, Spain and Germany where global facilities provider ISS has purchased three units for evaluation ahead of a possible worldwide adoption.

Customer service focus Anders Dedenroth Høj, cleaning category manager of ISS global procurement and supply chain organisation commented: “At ISS we are focused on servicing our customers, helping them

reach their purpose by thinking creatively and taking advantage of the latest innovations.

Economic cleaning “This is exactly what we intend with these machines. We believe that effective, handsfree machines offer us a chance to rewrite the playbook when it comes to effective and economic cleaning of our clients’ buildings.”

Jean-Marc Lille-Pallette, vp Europe, Diversey Care added: “Attaining CE Marking is another critical milestone for Diversey Care on our journey to bring the cost and productivity benefits of hands-free robotic cleaning to all parts of the world.”

Watchful eye can boost hygiene A picture of a man’s staring eyes and a clean, citrusy smell have been found to significantly boost hand hygiene in hospitals, according to a new study.

The discovery was made by a US-UK team who used insights from behavioural science in an attempt to improve hospital hand hygiene compliance.

The study was launched to address poor hand hygiene in clinical environments.

Researchers carried out a trial using psychological priming, a process where exposure to certain cues can alter behaviour without the person being aware.

The trial involved 404 healthcare workers and

visitors who were observed to see whether they used hand sanitiser before entering a patient’s room. A third of the subjects were given access to an alcohol hand gel dispenser with a photograph of a pair of eyes above it; a third were exposed to a citrusy smell and the final third were the control group.

Only 15 per cent of the control group used the hand sanitiser before entering the patient’s room. Hand hygiene compliance increased by a third among the group exposed to a photograph of male eyes.

And 46.9 per cent of the group exposed to the lemon aroma using the alcohol hand gel.

Spain’s cleaning companies demand minimum rate in contracts The Professional Association of Cleaning Companies (ASPEL) in Spain has demanded current legislation in the awarding of public contracts be modified to establish a minimum price for tenders. This, it says, will prevent illegal practices on the part of companies that are insufficiently prepared for service provision.

ASPEL commissioned a report

by Deloitte entitled ‘The Tyranny of Price’, which was presented at the Confederation of Spanish Businesses CEOE) by its president Juan Díez de los Ríos and Deloitte’s Ignacio Ramírez Vera recently.

CEOE president Juan Rossell pointed out that price is not everything when awarding contracts for this type of service and he cautioned that, if it were, “quality may deteriorate, particularly in a sector such as this in which the greater part of the expense is labour costs”.

Díez de los Ríos stressed that

consideration of price as sole evaluation criterion in awarding contracts leads to “inefficiency of the service and the use of resources in an improper manner”.

He continued: “No one considers the cost of not doing enough cleaning, or of cleaning to an insufficient standard. The purchase of cleaning services is a profitable investment in terms of the maintenance of assets, creating value and making the spaces which we clean sustainable.”

Legislation failings Ramírez Vera reviewed some of the failings of the current legislation in matters of contracting, such as permissiveness when determining tender prices or abnormally low tenders “which, in recent years, have given rise to awarding by reverse auction”.

‘The Tyranny of Price’ was

• Diversey Care a obtenu la Marque CE pour son robot de nettoyage TASKI Intellibot SWINGOBOT 1650.

• L’image d’un homme fixant le visiteur du regard et la diffusion d’un parfum d’agrume ont nettement favorisé l’hygiène des mains en milieu hospitalier, indique une nouvelle étude.

• L’association espagnole des entreprises de propreté ASPEL réclame des changements à la législation courante sur la passation de marchés publics.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 8

drawn up to highlight the effects on cleaning companies of considering price as the sole or dominant criterion for awarding contracts, both by public administrations and by the private sector. It points out in practice, the formal procedures of tender competitions become covert auctions, employing the lowest-priced tender as sole criterion for selection.

For that reason the cleaning companies are requesting a

• Diversey Care hat die CE-Kennzeichnung für den TASKI Intellibot SWINGOBOT 1650, eine Roboterausführung, erhalten.

• Aus eine neuen Studie geht hervor, dass das Bild eines Mannes mit starrenden Augen und ein sauberer Zitronenduft die Handhygiene in Krankenhäusern erheblich steigern.

•Der spanische Fachverband der Reinigungsunternehmen ASPEL hat Änderungen an der gegenwärtigen Gesetzgebung zur Vergabe von öffentlichen Aufträgen gefordert.

minimum starting price be determined that covers labour costs. They are also demanding that regulations be strengthened to exclude from public tender competition those companies whose prices do not cover labour costs together with the other costs required for the provision of the service, such as consumables.

Spain’s professional cleaning sector comprises over 16,500 companies and employs 330,000 people.

• La Diversey Care ha ottenuto il CE Marking per la sua macchina TASKI Intellibot SWINGOBOT 1650 che è un modello robotico.

• Da un nuovo studio emerge che l’immagine di un uomo con lo sguardo fisso e un profumo fresco di agrumi incoraggia l’igiene delle mani negli ospedali.

• L’associazione spagnola di imprese di pulizia ASPEL ha richiesto delle modifiche alla legislazione vigente sull’assegnazione degli appalti pubblici.

NEWS Online registration opens for ISSA/INTERCLEAN Amsterdam Registration for Europe’s largest cleaning industry event ISSA/ INTERCLEAN Amsterdam 2016, which takes place from May 10-13, is open. The show brings together 30,000 visitors from 130 countries, and 700 exhibitors from across the globe.

This year’s event will feature the InnovationLAB for the first time - which will showcases infrastructure products and software tools nominated for the Amsterdam Innovation Award 2016, host seminars, workshops, debates and presentations at InnovationLAB ON STAGE. The InnovationLAB NEWSROOM will have live and recorded interviews from around the event.

Other new features include

free Wi-Fi access and an ISSA/INTERCLEAN app. This networking tool is free to all visitors and enables them to instantly acquire and exchange contact information and exclusive content. The app offers a pocket-sized guide to the show with full exhibitor list, complete exhibitor profiles, a new product list, exhibition information and social media links.

Debate and knowledge “The new ISSA/INTERCLEAN app offers another opportunity for exhibitors and visitors to connect at the show,” says Rob den Hertog, manager ISSA/ INTERCLEAN. “In the app, exhibitors showcase their new products and provide company

Le secteur de la propreté se prépare à la manifestation la plus importantte de son calendrier, le salon ISSA/ INTERCLEAN Amsterdam, qui aura lieu du 10 au 13 mai.

information. It makes it easier than ever match to visitors and exhibitors.”

The ISSA Educational Seminar programme will be a forum for debate and knowledge exchange, bringing together a mix of visionary keynotes, panel discussions and speed sessions.

Focusing on some of the biggest issues facing the sector today, the programme running on May 10 and 11 includes topics as diverse as: opportunities created by the circular economy, how to make

the most of advances in data gathering, adapting to changes in the industry supply chain and growing profitability against a background of downward cost pressures. Further sessions will also look at the benefits of leasing rather than purchasing new equipment and how quality cleaning improves safety while lowering risk and cost. www.issainterclean.com • ECJ is the official media partner for ISSA/INTERCLEAN. Read our preview to the show on page 54.

ECJ has launched The European Cleaning & Hygiene Awards, which are now open for entry. Visit the website at www.ecj-awards.com for details of how to enter and sponsorship opportunities

Die Reinigungsbranche freut sich auf ihr wichtigstes Ereignis – ISSA/INTERCLEAN Amsterdam – die vom 10.-13. Mai stattfinden wird.

Il settore del cleaning aspetta con impazienza il suo evento più importante, la ISSA/INTERCLEAN Amsterdam che si terrà dal 10 al 13 maggio.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 9

NEWS Ecover sells Professional business to Greenspeed CSSA relaunch Ecover has sold its B2B cleaning solutions business - Ecover Professional - to Netherlandsbased Greenspeed, a company specialising in the development of cleaning systems for the professional market.

Following this agreement the activities of Ecover Professional were transferred to Greenspeed on January 1. Included in the deal are Ecover Professional’s existing customer relationships and the product formula.

The product range and the look of the packaging will remain the same, with the Ecover Professional logo replaced by the Greenspeed logo and the baseline ‘Engineered by Ecover’.

The Ecover Professional team has transferred to Greenspeed.

Johan Tops, previously Ecover International B2B manager, becomes the international sales and marketing manager at Greenspeed and remains the contact for B2B distributors. “We have built a successful B2B business but our long term growth opportunity lies in focusing exclusively on the B2C market, where our brands are generating strong traction with both consumers and customers� explains Tim Smith, EU general manager at Ecover. “We believe transitioning our B2B business to Greenspeed, B2B experts with our shared

• Ecover a vendu sa division de produits pour entreprises, Ecover Professional, à Greenspeed, un spÊcialiste nÊerlandais des systèmes de propretÊ. • Au Royaume-Uni, la Cleaning & Support Services Association (CSSA) s’est relancÊe après un hiatus de deux ans.

commitment to sustainability, offers the best solution to our B2B customers who have used the Ecover Professional range.� “We are very happy that we have reached this deal with Ecover,� says Michel de Bruin, ceo at Greenspeed. “Both of our companies are driven by a similar philosophy, based on innovation and sustainability. “Greenspeed will be able to accelerate its international growth ambitions and integrate a range of ecological products to offer a more complete sustainable cleaning concept to its customers.� www.greenspeed.eu www.ecover-professional.com

•Ecover hat sein B2B-Geschäft fĂźr ReinigungslĂśsungen – Ecover Professional – an den in den Niederlanden ansässigen Spezialisten fĂźr Reinigungssysteme Greenspeed verkauft. • In GroĂ&#x;britannien nimmt die Cleaning & Support Services Association (CSSA) nach einer zweijährigen Pause wieder die Arbeit auf.

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UK contract cleaning organisation the Cleaning & Support Services Association (CSSA) has officially relaunched after a two-year hiatus.

Former members and directors met in London at the end of last year and decided to make the CSSA fully operational again.

At its official launch in London last month chairman Doug Cooke of Principle Cleaning Services outlined CSSA’s plans to re-establish a strong and vibrant association, to maintain the growth of the cleaning sector and to develop programmes that meet members’ expectations.

For details email: findlaters@ btinternet.com

• La Ecover ha venduto la sua attività di soluzioni di pulizia B2B (azienda-verso-azienda), la Ecover Professional, all’azienda specializzata in sistemi di pulizia Greenspeed con sede in Olanda. • Nel Regno Unito, l’associazione dei servizi di pulizia (Cleaning & Support Services Association -CSSA) è stata rilanciata dopo due anni di inattività .

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NEWS EXTRA Vocational training brings skilled workers to Indian sector In 2013 a formal programme for the training of cleaners was established in Delhi, India.

The scheme, called Cleaning Sector Skills for Indian Facility Management (CSSIFM), was launched with the support of two Indian vocational training providers - Don Bosco Tech and GMR Varalakshami Foundation (GMRVF).

The programme is a publicprivate partnership between the German engineering federation VDMA (which has a branch devoted to professional cleaning machines) and GIZ, the German Federal Enterprise for International Cooperation – together they bear much of the cost. The training facilities are equipped with machines provided by VDMA’s members, including Kärcher, Hako, Roots Multiclean, Columbus, Vileda and Vermop. Other costs are covered by the partner VTPsGMRVF and Don Bosco Tech.

Heading up the project in India is Preyansi Mani, manager and master trainer. She explains the objectives of the scheme.

“The aim is to create a pool of skilled workers in professional and mechanised cleaning, and to create career pathways for workers in the FM industry.

“The framework of the curriculum is taken from the three-year apprenticeship programme in Germany, with adaptations made for the Indian culture and to match the prior qualifications and competencies of Indian workers entering the cleaning sector.” It has also been approved by 25 Indian FM companies to meet socioeconomic conditions of workers and industry norms.

Mani’s role has been in developing the training package for frontline workers, training the trainers and implementing standardised training centres across the country.

So how are candidates selected for training and how do

they find out about the scheme?

“We have mobilisation teams with a wide presence in slums in cities as well as villages to attract school drop-outs and the unemployed to the job opportunities post vocational training,” she explains.

“Their job is to spread awareness about the training courses on offer and the potential candidates are mentored and advised on the basis of their qualifications, schooling and interest in the course.

“Because cleaning suffers from bias in Indian’s caste system – as a job it is looked down upon - it was very difficult to convince candidates to join CSSIFM in the first six months, even when we could provide evidence of career prospects and good salary opportunities,” Mani adds.

“However as more and more candidates have progressed and done well we are now experiencing more interest through word of mouth.”

Cheap labour Because the concepts of mechanisation and professionalism are still relatively new in the Indian cleaning sector – even in the FM space – manual cleaning practices are still prevalent because labour is so cheap. So the CISSFM project experienced some challenges in pushing its message about mechanical cleaning and the importance of skilled employees to FM clients.

“However we have been able to place candidates with FM companies that are in dire need of professional staff who can operate cleaning machines and have the necessary expertise,” points out Mani.

“The challenges do not end at finding potential employees,” she continues. “After placement we have found many FM companies’ supervisors are not equipped to supervise semiskilled candidates from CSSIFM

Le programme Cleaning Sector Skills for Indian Facility Management (programme de formation aux multiservices en Inde) se poursuit à Delhi depuis 2013 dans le but de constituer une réserve de travailleurs qualifiés.

or they are made to do manual tasks without any proper cleaning equipment.

“The result of that is students leave the companies feeling disillusioned. Therefore the programme has a post-training mentoring component in which candidates are provided handholding to face the challenges and demands of professional world in first three months. This has brought higher retention.”

Qualified candidates are absorbed as front-line workers and after six months some of them are promoted to supervisory roles. They are employed in sectors as diverse as hotels, airports, shopping malls and some have gained employment as sales representatives at cleaning machine distribution businesses.

Mani explains: “CSSIFM has certified 350 trainees for frontline cleaning positions and 25 trainers to date. Placement rate is 90 per cent and we now have presence in four cities - Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.”

Having seen first-hand how the CSSIFM programme is impacting on the life of people who would otherwise have limited opportunities, Mani has no doubts about its success.

“This scheme is empowering individuals with employability in the cleaning sector that also provides them with respect and an identity of their own.

We have trained individuals with minimal competencies in the basic skills of reading and writing, victims of drug abuse, street youngsters and of course people who have finished eight years of schooling.”

Devendra singh Negi is testament to the programme’s success, as one of the first trainees recruited. He then became a trainer at the centre in Delhi, before moving on to pursue a career in training at an FM company. “From the beginning I learned that cleaning

Seit 2013 wird in Delhi das Programm „Cleaning Sector Skills for Indian Facility Management“ mit dem Ziel ausgeführt, einen Pool mit qualifizierten Arbeitskräften zu erstellen.

is a science,” he explains, “and as I was a science student I found that very exciting. There were many cleaning machines available to us to help during our training, while industry support from the manufacturers was really encouraging.”

Important opportunity Singh Negi knew nothing about the cleaning sector before joining the CSSIFM programme, having worked previously as an office assistant. “But as soon as I started training I knew this would be a very important opportunity for me,” he adds.

“After I completed my own training I was confident enough to become a trainer myself and in two years I trained around 150 candidates. It was then I decided to gain experience out in the industry so took a job as a housekeeping trainer for a contract cleaning company.”

The plan now is for the CSSIFM project to gain national recognition, which Mani explains would mean government certification and an industry sector skills council to take care of assessments, incentives, etc.

“Our prime minister Narendra Modi recently spearheaded the Clean India campaign and we believe having more skilled workers through professionalisation and mechanisation of the cleaning sector is certainly the way forward.”

Il programma The Cleaning Sector Skills for Indian Facility Management è in funzione a Delhi dal 2013 ed ha l’obiettivo di creare un gruppo di lavoratori qualificati.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 13

UPDATE: RUSSIA Private services overview Russian correspondent Oleg Popov of Cristanval looks at the situation in the private services sector.

The Yandex.Master project started up in September 2014.

The service by the national search system set an ambitious goal for itself – removing unscrupulous household services providers. Yandex is the brand people trust most, but even it could not change the emerging practice of ordering services directly from craftsmen, rather than from companies. The logic is simple: ordering services directly is cheaper and cleaners are invited to people’s homes based on the recommendations of their acquaintances.

The household cleaning market must undergo major changes before people start using such services on a massive scale. The interests of the client must be put first in order for that trust to come. Meanwhile companies are being compelled to learn to structure their business processes in such a way that they are servicing many clients at once in a cost-effective manner. This is how the perfect service is supposed to be: you have the opportunity to try the service at a reduced price, gain confidence that its quality is high and at the appropriate time reap the benefits of discounts and a loyalty program. Currently not a single company has combined all of those services.

Major investments in marketing must be made. It’s not enough just to emphasise your standing in internet search results. Many Muscovites just don’t notice Yandex.Master is there, same as they didn’t notice its withdrawal from the market. More than 70 per cent of Yandex’s income comes from targeted ad sales, but it is constantly testing new services.

La crise financière en Russie a commené à faire des victimes, à commencer par des start-ups dans le secteur de la propreté.

Oleg Popov, de la société Cristanval, explique cette situation à ECJ.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 14

Some of them, Yandex.Taxi for example, are gaining ground while others fail to meet the level of success that was originally hoped for.

We see small-time startups closing up all over the country.

Despite this investors continue to say intermediaries for cleaning services that take on the job of attracting clients have a lot of potential and they invest in them. This not only refers to cleaning services, but also services providing home personnel and all housework services.

Meanwhile the factors are being exposed that influence this segment, such as threats to the services’ reputation. One bad review on the internet is like a stone thrown into the water and it reaches a large audience.

We often mistakenly think of start-ups as if they are mature businesses. In reality this is just a test for the particular business model. If it is running top quality services it may survive, grow, and be fruitful, but in 97 per cent of cases it will just die out.

Exiting the market is the most natural road for young projects and there are a many reasons for that.

Russians and Muscovites alike have not yet become accustomed to handing off their household responsibilities to other people. We can all do everything ourselves and save on our home budgets. What’s more important for the market is for new start-ups to appear and new business models to be tested. Whatever happens, young businessmen will give it everything they’ve got and someone or other will definitely manage to get a successful business going.

In Russland hat die Finanzkrise ihre ersten Opfer gefordert: Startup-Reinigungsunternehmen. Der bei Cristanval tätige Oleg Popov schreibt für das ECJ.

Nel suo articolo per ECJ, Oleg Popov della Cristanval ci informa che in Russia, la crisi finanziaria ha mietuto le sue prime vittime, le imprese di pulizia costituite di recente.

UPDATE: DENMARK Some bright spots...

As we start a new year, ECJ Scandinavian correspondent Lotte Printz reports from Denmark on the challenges facing the cleaning sector.

“It will be too expensive.” “We need to make money!” “I know for sure it can’t be done.” “We don’t have time for it.” “We are too small.” “This is how we’ve always done it – why change that?”

The road to hell is paved with bad excuses… or efficient idea killers as they are called in a mini booklet with 25 tear-off pages, each containing one idea killer speech bubble. It’s meant by The Danish Technological Institute, which is behind the booklet, as a fun reminder for companies but according to Erik W. Hallgren from the Institute’s Ideas & Growth unit, several of these real-life statements are alarmingly true for the Danish cleaning industry.

Speaking in broad terms – there are of course exceptions to the rule – Danish facility service firms develop far too slowly in Erik W. Hallgren’s point of view. And thus, fall behind on an international scale. According to Hallgren, communication is another area in which cleaning businesses fail.

Consultants close to the industry seem to agree.

“This industry is really conservative and quite reluctant to take on new technology. It also astonishes me why more of them do not provide training for their cleaners in customer care and communication. To pinpoint, for instance, that the cleaner switched off the coffee machine on ‘his watch’ is what adds value to the service,” says Erik Nørskov, partner and managing director of BizDoc, a cloud service provider for cleaning companies, adding: “Besides, if employees are well trained, the higher the likelihood is that they stay on.”

The fact that the industry consists of a considerable number Dans son rapport du Danemark, Lotte Printz, notre correspondante en Scandinavie, contemple les problèmes que le secteur de la propreté devra y affronter cette année.

of small or even one-man firms, the influx of cheap labour from Eastern Europe that holds down prices and a general lack of harmonisation of expectations are other challenges, Bjarne Overgaard of BO Consult offering cleaning based consultancy services believes.

“It’s important that the cleaning business allocate the right amount of time for a job, instructs its cleaners properly so they can save steps, but perhaps most importantly communicates to the customer how things are done and what the customer can expect for his money.”

Every cloud has a silver lining, and luckily the future for the Danish cleaning industry also has its bright spots.

Last year saw the first Danish trade fair for the cleaning industry in more than a decade – a fair focusing on how to tackle some the challenges of the trade, among other things. Earlier the same year, a new pioneer bachelor programme in hygiene and cleaning techniques for facility service administrators, people starting their own business in the cleaning sector and cleaners eager to advance was introduced – hoping to boost qualifications and the quality of cleaning.

And that’s not all.

“Foreign workers are beginning to join the trade unions and customers are beginning to make demands, not just asking for the cheapest service. So I am optimistic on behalf of the industry after all,” says Bjarne Overgaard.

Green cleaning report - page 25

In Ihrem Bericht aus Dänemark wirft die ECJ-Korrespondentin für Skandinavien Lotte Printz einen Blick voraus auf die Herausforderungen, mit denen sich die Reinigungsbranche dieses Jahr konfrontiert sehen wird.

Dalla Danimarca, la corrispondente scandinava di ECJ Lotte Printz ci illustra le sfide che il settore del cleaning dovrà affrontare quest’anno.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 15

UPDATE: NETHERLANDS The quality of relationships Reporting from the Netherlands, Nico Lemmens examines the concept of relationship marketing.

One of the most outstanding writers on the subject of service management, service quality and marketing is the Finnish academic Christian Grönroos. His book Service Management and Marketing – Customer Management in Service Competition is a must-read for anyone working in service industry in general and in cleaning industry in particular.

Some aspects of his thinking will be reviewed in this and future columns, as they are so relevant to cleaning services.

Since the 1970s the exchange of value (for example physical products) for money, has been considered the core phenomenon in marketing. According to this view marketing is planned and implemented to facilitate the exchange of products for money. This has often been labelled transaction marketing.

The traditional marketing mix management and its wellknown 4P’s are based on this.

Since the 1970s a new marketing approach has emerged based on the notion interactions between service providers and their customers – buyer-seller interactions – are important elements in marketing. The focus on interactions between supplier and customer, which in addition are often ongoing, makes it possible to view the customer not only as someone who from time to time buys from the firm, but as a relationship partner.

Relationships between parties and the interaction between them are considered the core phenomenon in marketing.

Continuous purchases, and cross-sales opportunities, exchanges or transactions, follow from well-managed relationships. This is the relationship perspective as opposed to the exchange perspective.

Notre corresponsant aux Pays-Bas Nico Lemmens examine les concepts qui entourent la gestion des services et le marketing relationnel.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 16

All service processes lead to some form of cooperation between customer and service provider. In some cases the interactions take a short time (ordering theatre tickets over the internet), in other cases they will take a long time (restaurants, air transportation), or even a very long time (management consulting, coaching). If the emerging relationship is not satisfactory to the customer, the customer will turn to another provider.

Although there are sometimes situations where the customer does not want the relationship to be emphasised, the important thing to keep in mind is that services are inherently relationship-oriented.

The traditional transactional mass marketing approach was successful for a long time after World War II. This approach to marketing may function well in situations where a firm needs new customers. However it loses its power when more markets are mature and oversupplied, and when new customers are more difficult to find, as certainly is the case in the Dutch market for cleaning services. It is increasingly important for a firm to keep its existing customers, even more so because in many businesses customers become profitable only after they have remained a customer for some time.

In future issues of ECJ we will go into some other aspects of service management inspired by Grönroos, such as the differences between the exchange and relationship perspectives, the management of customer relations, the nature of services and service consumption, quality management in services, service management principles, managing internal marketing, and managing service culture.

Nico Lemmens, der NiederlandeKorrespondent des ECJ, untersucht die Konzepte im Umfeld von Dienstleistungsmanagement und Kundenmarketing.

Il corrispondente olandese Nico Lemmens esamina i concetti che circondano la gestione dei servizi e il marketing delle relazioni professionali.

UPDATE: FRANCE Visible or invisible?

In France daytime cleaning has been a point of discussion in recent years, reports Christian Bouzols.

Daytime working in the cleaning sector has attracted increasing attention in France since about 2010. This issue is of considerable social importance given its impact on the quality of life of cleaners.

Nevertheless, cleaning activities continue to take place out of office hours, particularly at night, in the vast majority of cases in France.

In 2009 the federation of cleaning contractors (FEP) included day working/continuous working among the 51 demands of its sustainable development programme. Since then a great many experiments and assessments have been carried out in partnership with the state, local authorities and private companies. They all lead to the conclusion that setting up changes and innovations within organisations is no easy matter, but that the results are often conclusive and advantageous, to both employers and employees.

While most cleaning companies now say they’ve taken steps to introduce day working, or that they intend to do so, this doesn’t seem to indicate that the sector is committed to that path.

One can’t predict that day working is inevitable in the cleaning sector. In any case, it will take time to be established because habits are well entrenched.

Nevertheless it is under consideration, as demonstrated by a survey carried out in 2015 by the consulting firm Atemis at the request of FEP before and after daytime cleaning had been instituted at two sites.

In the first of these cases, 26 per cent of employees initially stated having cleaning work carried out during office hours would cause them a problem. However at the end of the survey period, only three per cent still felt they had a En France, le nettoyage en journée se pratique de plus en plus depuis quelques années, mais le gros du travail se poursuit toujours en dehors des heures de bureau. Christian Bouzols fait le point.

problem having cleaners around.

The switch to daytime cleaning didn’t involve any serious changes, as perceived by 86 per cent of the employees surveyed.

On the second site, where the survey was carried out after the end of the day cleaning work period, 85 per cent of the employees said they hadn’t been disturbed by the presence of cleaners in their offices.

A much larger survey was carried out by SCA-Tork, the Swedish manufacturer of hygiene products, among 3,056 office workers across Europe. It took place among establishments that had switched to day cleaning work in Sweden, the UK, France, Germany, Russia and the Netherlands. It produced generally positive assessments, although they were sometimes mixed. Regarding the cleanliness of their working environment, 84 per cent of the people interviewed considered that cleaning as such had a positive impact on their professional lives, and 71 per cent considered this activity impacted positively on company profits.

Regarding day time working, 49 per cent of people interviewed said they were willing to interact socially with cleaners and to co-exist with them in a spirit of co-working, whereas 14 per cent of them were more in favour of cleaners remaining invisible.

Additionally, 77 per cent of the people interviewed said that they greeted the cleaners daily at their work place (0.6 per cent said that they never did so), but 41 per cent admitted they’d never had the least conversation with them. And 57 per cent of the office workers interviewed indicated they were uncomfortable when cleaners came to their office to do their work in their presence.

In den letzten Jahren verzeichnet die Tagesreinigung in Frankreich eine stetige Zunahme, der Großteil der Reinigung erfolgt jedoch nach wie vor außerhalb der Bürozeit. Christian Bouzols berichtet.

In Francia, le pulizie effettuate di giorno sono aumentate negli ultimi anni anche se la maggior parte dei servizi di pulizia viene ancora effettuata fuori dagli orari d’ufficio. Christian Bouzols ci informa.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 17

UPDATE: ITALY New association president As Anna Garbagna reports from Italy the AfidampFab industry association has a new president.

Changes at the top for AfidampFab, the association of Italian producers of machines, products and equipment for professional cleaning and hygiene of environments. After the presidency of Matteo Marino, who could not be re-elected after two consecutive mandates, the association assembly has elected the new board of directors. He is Bruno Ferrarese, co-owner of Idrobase, the producer of industrial pressure cleaners and member of AfidampFab since 1998.

The mandate of the newly elected president will focus on three main objectives: strengthening of communication activities, the creation of a multilingual portal in order to enhance the member’s products at global level and the internationalisation of the exhibition Pulire, which takes place in Verona every alternate year and is promoted by the association through its services company. “Three initiatives”, Ferrarese highlighted, “identified with the aim of providing concrete support to the member companies to find new customers and distributors, especially in emerging countries, and therefore increasing total sales and profit”.

Vice-presidents have also been appointed: Gianfranco Bonotto from the Tre Colli and Davide Lago from Eureka.

The other members of the board of directors are: Matteo Marino from Kemika, Riccardo Raimondi from RCM, Michele Redi from IPC Ready System, Giampaolo Ruffo from Comac and; and the newly elected: Francesco Pasquini from Lucart and Giuseppe Riello from Ghibli & Wirbel.

It must be mentioned that the assembly, gathered as an AfidampFab, l’association italienne de fabricants de produits de nettoyage, a un nouveau président : Bruno Ferrarese. Lire le compte rendu d’Anna Garbagna.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 18

extraordinary meeting before elections, has approved an important alteration to the association’s statutes to increase the number of directors on the board from seven to nine. The assembly was also an opportunity to evaluate the current situation and to highlight the great progress made by the organisation and to evaluate growth in terms of constitutional representation, interassociative relations, research and innovation, training, analysis and communication. This is a series of important goals which were possible largely thanks to the great contribution of the associates who invested time and knowledge in the projects started by the association.

According to the associates, the project of digitalisation is of fundamental importance and it is certainly an innovative aspect which must be shared by a team of companies. In this respect, the association’s contribution must be to create synergies among the number of associates via a high level project. Digitalisation is in fact an opportunity which must be seized immediately in terms of logistics, distribution and instrumentation in order to stay ahead in the market. Once again the role of associations is essential to create systems in the various markets to sustain the so-called digital revolution.

E-commerce, logistics, distribution and culture in professional products and machines, are just some of the topics which digitalisation will be able to develop and the trade association can determine what will be useful for the members. The beginning of the new year was filled with optimism.

AfidampFab, der italienische Verband der Reinigungsproduktehersteller, hat einen neuen Vorsitzenden: Bruno Ferrarese. Ein Bericht von Anna Garbagna.

AfidampFab, l’associazione italiana dei produttori di prodotti per il settore del cleaning, ha un nuovo presidente, Bruno Ferrarese, come ci riferisce la corrispondente Anna Garbagna.

UPDATE: UK Pathways to the future UK correspondent Lynn Webster examines just how vital apprenticeships are to the sector’s success.

Cleaning is our industry that proudly celebrates the means by which it passes on its best practice approaches: through networking, collaboration with parallel industries, information sharing, and of course training. My own pathway to has been cushioned by support and guidance from the very best people working at the core of the industry. While I may not always have followed a definitive map, I can easily identify those people and those essential learning points along the way. While we may not consider these pathways as formal apprenticeships, apprenticeships are certainly what we have all undertaken; all those in influential roles within the industry are time-served.

As someone who’s been involved in the industry for several decades it still delights me to hear the words, “I never knew there was so much to cleaning!” Over those decades I have heard these words often. No-one who has ever developed, or even glanced at, a comprehensive cleaning specification can fail to appreciate the complexity and depth of knowledge required to cover all requirements. The operative skill and knowledge needed to comply with such a specification cannot be termed ‘low’.

Declaring cleaning as a ‘lowskilled’ occupation might say more about attitudes to those who actually do the cleaning.

But let’s offer the benefit of the doubt to detractors and assume it is a lack of understanding that lies at the heart of these remarks.

The industry should continue to emphasise the reality of the situation; reminding detractors it is an army of often-invisible, highly skilled cleaning operatives that enables them to go about their daily lives, letting them travel, Notre correspondante au Royaume-Uni Lynn Webster se penche sur le thème de l’apprentissage et de toute son importance pour la croissance future et le professionnalisme du secteur.

work and play safely, productively and healthily. Such remarks can do little to attract young people to an industry so many of us know has so much to offer career-wise.

The economy in general will always need more of us - therefore there is a growing need for highly skilled cleaning operatives.

Apprenticeships are the foundations needed for every industry to function effectively and competitively. Apprenticeships are the means of passing on the baton, ensuring an industry flourishes and grows. The structure and framework of an apprenticeship will need scrutinising in order that it remains fit for purpose and relevant. The quality of the training, the validity and reliability of the assessment mechanisms, the guidance and mentorship supplied by the industry and partnership providers must be continuously reviewed and revised. The industry itself needs to send out positive messages, reminding the public at large the key role cleaning plays in daily life.

The chancellor’s latest autumn statement outlined some notable changes to the way apprenticeships in England are funded.

Asking employers from both the private and public sectors to pay into a levy is the Government’s logical solution to funding these increases.

As our Government has announced the Apprenticeship Levy is likely to be 0.5 per cent of PAYE for all companies with a PAYE bill of over €3.8m per annum effect from April 2017, putting control of funding in the hands of employers, trailblazers are beginning to create the standards for the new apprenticeships.

Scrutiny and constructive criticism are welcomed; but let’s help make it from an informed position. Are you ready?

Die britische ECJ-Korrespondentin Lynn Webster betrachtet das Thema Lehrverhältnisse und wie wichtig diese für das zukünftige Wachstum und die fachliche Qualifikation der Branche sind.

La corrispondente britannica Lynn Webster prende in esame l’argomento dei programmi di apprendistato e la loro importanza per il futuro e la professionalità del settore.

UPDATE: GERMANY Art misunderstood There have been mishaps involving cleaners and art, reports Thomas Schulte-Marxloh in Germany.

Contemporary statues or installations are not only exposed on columns; they can cover walls or floors. Modern artists use perishable materials like meat, vegetables or fruits, some artists even use rubbish. The German common phrase ”Ist das Kunst oder kann das weg?” – “Is this art or can it go (in the trash)?” expresses both, the sometimes unusual materials or positioning of artwork and the sometimes reserved reception by the audience. In any case the cleaning of an exhibition room today can mean a real challenge for cleaning personnel.

As published by a broad range of media, in January a cleaning

woman cleaned up an installation by the artist Romana MenzeKuhn; the piece of art was exhibited in the Philippus church in the town of Mannheim and made of carton boxes and rescue thermal blankets. The artist was shocked to find the installation discarded in a rubbish bin.

Both artist and parish priest emphasised that the piece of art could clearly be identified as an ensemble of individual sculptures, some of them shaped like human bodies. Indignant artist Menze-Kuhn said: “I was seriously annoyed, this is disrespect. You can think about art what you want; but taking a hand in art,

Notre correspondant en Allemagne, Thomas SchulteMarxloh, rapporte des situations où des nettoyeurs de galeries d’art et de musées ont confondu des objets d’art avec des détritus à enlever.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 20

taking something away that has shocked me.” The priest, embarrassed by the incident, explained the respective cleaning woman was deeply ashamed however no further steps were taken against her. Menze-Kuhn explained that the artwork could not be repaired due to the delicate material of the rescue foil, however she integrated the bin and the destroyed foil into another piece of art.

Apart from natural forces, also careless handling or improper cleaning can ruin artwork. In order to clean oil paintings for example, various cleansing materials were used over the centuries, such as apples, beer, pumice stone, bread dough, butter, bleaching powder, egg yolk, vinegar, bile, sodium sulphate, potatoes, leek water, flour paste, milk, whey, turnip, nitric acid, aqua fortis, salt, hydrochloric acid, sand, soap, turpen-

Unser Deutschland-Korrespondent Thomas Schulte-Marxloh berichtet über Fehler, die vom Reinigungspersonal in Gallerien und Museen gemacht werden: wenn sie fälschlicherweise Kunstwerke für zu entsorgenden Müll halten.

tine, hydrogen peroxide, citric oil, or onions. These traditional agents were replaced by a wide range of modern detergents during the last century which however, were still far too aggressive for delicate paintings. Today experts recommend artwork to be cleaned by a professional restorer.

Experts however, also recommend following certain rules of safety and conservation when exhibiting a piece of art; not only temperature or humidity of the exhibition room but also physical protection of the artwork reigns supreme. Museums, for instance, are making great efforts in this respect and usually work with a highly trained cleaning staff in order to prevent any damage. Fortunately, thousands of museums and exhibitions worldwide are kept tidy without problems; an art in itself.

Il corrispondente tedesco Thomas Schulte-Marxloh ci informa sugli errori che fanno gli addetti alle pulizie nei musei e nelle gallerie d’arte, quando confondono le opere d’arte con i rifiuti da raccogliere.

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Diversey Care introduces TASKI® Intellibot®!

Traditional cleaning and robotic solutions moving forward together Robots have been around for a long time already but they have never previously been as revalent or visible as today.

We all know that robots are used already for some specific activities – for example in the space, automotive, healthcare and defense sectors. Yet the world is changing fast, and we only have to look now in our homes and in specialized electronic supplies shops to see that robotic vacs are becoming an everyday, essential part of our lives.

Robotic solutions are accepted to offer new type of benefits compared to traditional machines. Diversey Care anticipated that demand with the acquisition in April 2015 of Intellibot Robotics LLC. Intellibot’s value proposition is based on “handsfree cleaning” robots which improve the economics of cleaning by reducing labour costs and increasing productivity. Since the acquisition was finalized, Diversey Care and Intellibot have worked together to provide autonomous machines that meet various regulations around the world including European CE-Marking.

As part of this strategic development, Diversey Care’s TASKI floor cleaning machine range is being expanded with its first autonomous scrubber-dryer the TASKI SWINGOBOT 1650™. In the near future, the TASKI AEROBOT 1850™ (True-Vacuum) and TASKI DUOBOT 1850™ (Cylindrical scrubber driers) will also become available in Europe.

activities. Additionally, experience to date has shown that cleaning robots do their tasks in a consistent way day after day while also answering the problem of labour shortages or rapid workforce turnover.

The TASKI SWINGOBOT 1650™ offers a choice four cleaning modes based upon your needs and the specifics of the site to be cleaned. These consist of three robotic modes -on spot cleaning, pre-loaded cleaning pattern and tailor made mapping which puts a map of a facility into the memory of the cleaning robot. The fourth is the option of using the machine in a traditional way.

The new Diversey Care scrubber dryer is very agile and easy to maneouvre in robotic mode. In order to allow sustainable operation of the TASKI Intellibot, the scrubber dryers is equipped with the Eco-Save® system which recycles water and also boasts an innovative way of changing batteries so that the robotics running uptime is kept to a maximum.

Finally the TASKI SWINGOBOT 1650™ will work as part on an onsite cleaning team by communicating its performance to the Intelli-Trak™ remote monitoring and machine management system.

For more information please visit our websites.

Of course using a robotic floor cleaning machine is still a relatively new concept and adopting such state-of-the-art technology is bound to throw up a lot of questions but the TASKI team of Diversey Care is on hand to guide you and ensure optimal use of hands-free cleaning machines in your facility.

The introduction of the TASKI Intellibot range will also provide you with another way of seeing on-site productivity, cleaning efficiency and managing site resources. By definition a cleaning robot will clean autonomously which will allow the operators to do real multi-tasking on site and concentrate on other valuable

www.sealedair.com www.intellibotrobotics.com Search : TASKI – Intelligent solutions © 2016 Sealed Air Corporation. All Rights Reserved. 44801 en 01/16

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GREEN CLEANING

The jolly green client The wellbeing of customers and end-users is an important part of any green cleaning policy. But truly sustainable companies will do what they can to enhance the lives of their employees and the wider community as well. Ann Laffeaty asks companies in the sector how they go about this.

The terms ‘green cleaning’ and ‘sustainability’ have generally become used to denote concern for the planet, nature and ecosystems. But the people who inhabit the planet are another vitally important consideration - and no business can be sustained if its clients or end-users are unhappy. Similarly if employees are dissatisfied with their lot they are unlikely to perform to the best of their abilities and this could have a negative impact on productivity.

And if a company is at odds with the local community, too, this will potentially lead to costly and time-consuming disputes. So it is important that companies keep all their stakeholders happy where possible. In fact personal wellbeing is possibly the most crucial aspect of any sustainability policy according to Kärcher’s head of sustainability management Andreas Mayer.

“Health is man’s most valuable asset

which means that any products, services or working conditions that can help to preserve health are all very important,” he said. “Companies should do what they can to improve the safety and the working lives of their stakeholders since if personal wellbeing cannot be ensured, one of the most important drivers for sustainability will be missing.”

He says customers and end-users should expect companies to do everything possible to develop products and services that cause no harm to health. “This covers essential EU health and safety requirements as well as bans on specific substances such as those required in the RoHS directive, for example,” he said. “In terms of employees’ occupational health and safety, ergonomic workplace design also needs to be considered.”

Kärcher has set global targets to improve the safety and daily lives of its employees, customers and end-users, he said. For example the company intends to reduce the number of occupational accidents to fewer than five per million working hours by 2020. “This goes far above and beyond the legal requirements and forms part of our commitment to corporate responsibility,” said Mayer.

Community-minded Besides cooperation with organisations such as SOS Kinderdorf and the Global Nature Fund, Kärcher also supports many clubs, schools and other organisations with donations of money, products, giveaways and other services.

“For example we had 1,400 requests for donations and sponsorship in 2014 and we granted more than 50 per cent of them,” he said. “This shows our strong social commitment outside the company and towards the wider community.”

Marketing and CSR manager of cleaning service provider Nviro Carl Robinson believes the social dimension of sustainability to be equally as important as its environmental and economic aspects. “As an employer a company has a responsibility not just to promote the health and

safety of its people, but also to care for their wellbeing,” he said. “This makes sound business sense as well as being good ethics.

“The same applies to a company’s duty of care towards its clients and customers whether they are office workers, students, staff or visiting members of the public.”

Sustainability is about providing ‘future-proof’ products and services, says Robinson. “Since it is people who provide the services and create the products - and also, people who employ those services and who buy those products – it is fundamental to any effective sustainability policy to take people’s needs and interests into consideration at each stage of the business process,” he said.

He considers health and safety to be key to a company’s duty of care and to its corporate responsibility. “Recognition of the importance of occupational health and employee wellbeing is growing and employers increasingly see these as moral responsibilities with business benefits,” says Robinson.

For example, he believes the use of hazardous cleaning materials should be minimised in the workplace and that employees should be provided with appropriate equipment plus the training to use it safely.

“As an employer, too, any flexibility that allows employees to balance work with their domestic commitments can improve their working lives,” he said. “Regular communication with lone workers at remote sites is also essential if they are to feel involved and engaged as a part of the wider team. And open channels that allow employees to give their views and to influence personnel policy and ways of working can be mutually beneficial both to the employee and the employer.

“People also appreciate feedback on how they are doing which means that systems need to be in place to recognise effort and talent and to develop staff through training and by rewarding excepContinued page 26

February/March 2016 | ECJ |25

GREEN CLEANING The jolly green client (continued) tional performance.”

Nviro has a ‘coaching culture’ that provides tailored support for employees’ personal development plans. The company also recruits workers from the local community and uses non-toxic chemicals in all its operations. “It’s better for the cleaning staff if they are not working constantly with noxious substances and we don’t want to expose our customers to anything that could adversely affect their health,” says Robinson.

Metsä Tissue’s UK and Ireland sales director Mark Dewick agrees that the wellbeing of people is paramount in any organisation. “If you look after your staff they will look after your business,” he said.

“Creating wellbeing is one of our four core sustainable themes and it is important to us that our employees come to work healthy and leave work healthy every day.

Fewer accidents “Safety at work is an integral part of our day-to-day management and everyone is responsible for following instructions, identifying defects and eliminating the causes of hazards. As a result our accident frequency continues to decline and our goal is to reduce the number of accidents by 10 per cent every year.”

He says customer wellbeing can only be ensured when all products in the company’s supply chain are safe. “Delivering safe and sustainable products requires fulfilling high safety standards, and this is particularly important in products that are used in human or food contact such as packaging boards, cooking and baking papers as well as tissue papers.”

He says the company’s new Katrin Handy Pack is an example of a product that has been designed to improve staff safety. “The plastic casing is lighter than traditional cartons and the packs have softer edges which eliminates the danger of cuts from sharp cardboard,” he said.

“They also have handles to make them easy to carry, and these allow them to be easily hooked on to the cleaning trolley as well.”

According to Dewick, Metsä generates significant employment opportunities in

Le bien-être de l’employé constitue un élément important de tout système de nettoyage vert, de sorte que les produits de nettoyage conviviaux, aisément transportables et non dangereux contribueront à l’indice de bonheur de l’utilisateur.

Nous interrogeons les fabricants à propos des produits et systèmes qui sont censés faciliter la vie des gens qui les utilisent, c’est-à-dire les nettoyeurs.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 26

rural areas. “In 2014 we offered 900 young people the chance to gain work experience while a further 50 were enrolled in an apprenticeship programme,” he said.

Corporate communications director at Sealed Air Diversey Care Rafael Echevarria describes personal wellbeing as the real power behind sustainability. “Companies need to work with customers to create healthy and clean environments, expand food security and promote resource conservation to improve the lives of people all over the world,” he said.

As an example he refers to Sealed Air’s Soap for Hope programme. “We partner with our customers to gather soap from hotel rooms that would otherwise be discarded and we teach local communities how to reprocess them into new, sanitary bars,” he said.

“These new bars are then distributed to people who might not otherwise have had access to soap. These communities then benefit not just from increased access to basic hygiene but also from the new job opportunities created to train local people in the soap-making process.”

The health and wellbeing of people is core to SCA’s sustainability policy according to sustainability communications director Marita Sander. “As a result we have set up health and safety targets and we reduced our accident frequency rate by 26 per cent between 2010 and 2014,” she said. “We also try to facilitate customers’ everyday lives with our hygiene solutions.”

She cites Tork Easy Handling packaging and Tork Easy Cube as examples of sustainable solutions that have been designed with people in mind. “Cleaners – our endusers - have a tough working environment with a higher rate of sick leave than other professions,” she said. “Therefore we continuously work with cleaners to develop solutions that can improve the cleaner’s working environment.”

Easy on the cleaners Tork Easy Handling packaging has been designed to make product boxes and plastic packs easier to carry, store and discard than conventional packaging systems while Tork Easy Cube provides cleaners

Das Wohlbefinden der Mitarbeiter ist ein wichtiger Aspekt eines jeden umweltbewussten Reinigungssystems – und Reinigungsprodukte, die benutzerfreundlich, leicht zu transportieren und ungefährlich sind, können einen Beitrag zur Verbesserung der Zufriedenheit der Endbenutzer leisten. Wir befragen Hersteller über ihre Produkte und Systeme, die mit dem Ziel konzipiert wurden, das Leben der Personen, die sie tatsächlich benutzen, also das Reinigungspersonal, zu vereinfachen.

with real-time data relating to refill levels and visitor numbers.

“Another product designed to make life easier is our new foam soap dispenser that requires a low push force for dispensing while also being easy for cleaning staff to open and refill,” she said.

People as assets The company also strives to help the local community. “We run about 300 community relations projects annually - mostly in the health and hygiene area,” said Sander. “This is about building trust and reputation while also acting as a responsible corporate citizen.”

Facility services provider Facilicom views people as its prime assets according to UK managing director Jan-Hein Hemke.

“By treating our staff well and by paying them fairly we improve not only their lives, but those of their families and their wider communities,” he said.

Customer satisfaction can be secured with the aid of loyal, contented staff, he adds. “Long-term relationships are an important aspect of sustainability both from the customer and personnel perspective,” he said. “We want people to have lengthy careers with us so that they have a strong understanding of our work practices and ethos as well as of our customers’ requirements.

“Having a core of people with that understanding means that knowledge can be built up over years and passed on to new recruits when they join us. This means we can offer a better quality and a more consistent level of service to our customers.”

Facilicom rewards its loyal staff with long-service awards in recognition of their contribution. “We want our employees to feel valued and appreciated which means that their personal wellbeing is central to the way we operate,” said Hemke.

“Treating people with dignity and respect – including paying a fair wage – means that they will be more loyal, more motivated, better trained and have greater experience. And this in turn leads to them being better placed to understand, influence and implement our sustainability policies.”

Il benessere dei dipendenti è una parte importante di ogni sistema di pulizia “verde” e i prodotti di pulizia che sono facili da usare, facili da trasportare e non sono pericolosi possono aiutare a migliorare il fattore “felicità” degli utenti finali. Chiediamo ai produttori delle informazioni sui loro prodotti e i loro sistemi che sono stati progettati per rendere la vita più facile per le persone che li devono usare, ovvero gli addetti alle pulizie.

PRODUCTS: GREEN CLEANING

• Aztec a introduit une machine de restoration de béton et de granito fonctionnant au propane et certifiée comme produit vert.

• Greenspeed, un spécialiste des microfibres, a récemment repris Ecover Professional, fabricant de produits de nettoyage écologiques.

• Mosmatic affirme que sa machine de nettoyage de planchers FL-AHK-KAU 520 à récupération d’air est capable d’extraire du chewing-gum sans recourir à des produits chimiques.

• Neu von Aztec ist Refresher, eine mit einem Umweltzertifikat ausgezeichnete und mit Propan betriebene Restaurierungsmaschine für Beton und Terrazzo.

• Mikrofaserspezialist Greenspeed hat vor Kurzem Ecover Professional, Produzent umweltfreundlicher Reinigungsprodukte, erworben.

• Laut Mosmatic ist die Bodenreinigungsmaschine FL-AHK-KAU 520 mit Luftrückgewinnungssystem in der Lage, Kaugummi ohne Chemikalien zu entfernen.

• La novità della Aztec è Refresher, una macchina che usa il propano a certificazione ecologica per il restauro di superfici in cemento e terrazzo.

• La specialista in prodotti in microfibra Greenspeed ha di recente acquisito la Ecover Professional, produttrice di prodotti di pulizia ecologici.

• La Mosmatic afferma che la sua macchina lavapavimenti FL-AHKKAU 520 con sistema per il recupero dell’aria è in grado di rimuovere la gomma da masticare senza l’utilizzo di prodotti chimici.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 28

Certified green New from Aztec, manufacturer of green-certified propane floor machinery, is the Refresher four-in-one concrete and terrazzo restoration model.

The Aztec Refresher’s multiple quick-change head assemblies allow it to do the stripping/deep scrubbing, honing, polishing, and burnishing of concrete floors.

The machine, with its dust control capability and sealed planetary drive, comes with three sets of driver heads/brushes: one set of three strip brushes for removing old floor finish; one set of three Velcro drivers for resin bond, hybrid and ceramic diamonds; and one of three

Mighty-Lok drivers for 10 ins burnishing or diamond pads. www.aztecproducts.com

Acquisition

been certified with the Nordic Swan Ecolabel.

New innovations coming up soon include the Caddy range, which Greenspeed says captures the concept of microfibre and ecological detergents. www.greenspeed.eu

No chemical Microfibre specialist Greenspeed recently boosted its environmentally-conscious offering by taking over Ecover Professional - developer of ecological cleaning chemicals.

It says the two companies are driven by a similar philosophy based on innovation and sustainability. And now Greenspeed can offer microfibre technology, ergonomically designed tools and responsible detergents.

Ecover Professional achieved Cradle to Cradle Gold certification while several of Greenspeed’s products have

For specialty high pressure cleaning Mosmatic offers a range of machines that can tackle tasks from surface cleaning and duct cleaning to belt cleaning. All are based on a high RPM swivel combined with a stainless steel rotor arm.

The Floor Cleaner FL-AHK-KAU 520 with Air Recovery System boasts an integrated chewing gum remover that can be used without chemicals. The gum remover nozzle on the back of the machine lifts and breaks up the gum for easy removal. www.mosmatic.com

PRODUCTS: GREEN CLEANING

Vegetal-based SURE is the new range of vegetalbased cleaning solutions for kitchen, building and personal care from Diversey Care. These formulas are said to be 100 per cent biodegradable by natural processes as they contain plantbased ingredients and are free from artificial perfumes and dyes, quat, chlorine, phosphate and oxide compounds.

Ingredients are derived from renewable sources – by-products of the agro-food industry and originating from sugar beet, maize, straw bran, wheat bran and coconut.

Almost all cleaning concentrates are non-classified and most solutions can be used without wearing gloves or goggles during cleaning.

The SURE range has been developed by Diversey Care in partner-

ship with specialist in organic cleaning products Salveco. www.diversey.com

Optimum dose Following on from the development of the ECO-System for its scrubber dryer line Eureka has now introduced the DoseMatic kit.

The ECO-System’s patented technology maximises the detergent solution, re-using it more than once. At the touch of a button the waste solution from the recovery tank is filtered and returned to the brush, with no need to stop operation.

Now, with the new DoseMatic kit a universal detergent

compartment and an electronic mixer give absolute control of detergent consumption. In fact it’s possible to adjust in realtime the proportion of water and chemicals delivered to the brush, according to the surface. www.eurekasweepers.com

Medical grade Fragrance Delivery Technologies’ Air Freshness systems use emission-free, patented, medical grade Oxy-Gen Powered fuel cell technology to deliver precise doses of fragrance oil without the need for aerosols.

Oxy-Gen Powered VIVA!e Air Freshness system is a Carbon Footprint approved system. It works on two AA Alkaline batteries that last for up to two years.

The refills are 100 per cent recyclable and safe to dispose of in regular plastic recycling waste. www.oxygenpowered.com

• Diversey Care a lancé la gamme SURE de solutions de nettoyage et d’hygiène d’origine végétale.

• Eureka a apporté des améliorations à l’ECO-System de ses autolaveuses en y introduisant le kit Dose-Matic.

• L’appareil Shield proposé par Fragrance Delivery Technologies diffuse des parfums purs sans faire appel à des composés organiques volatiles ou à des solvants.

• Diversey Care hat SURE vorgestellt, eine Produktreihe mit Reinigungs- und Hygienelösungen auf pflanzlicher Basis.

• Eureka hat das ECO-System bei seinen Scheuersaugmaschine mit der Einführung des Dose-MaticKits verbessert.

• Shield von Fragrance Delivery Technologies bietet reinen Duft ohne VOCs oder Lösungsmittel.

• La Diversey Care ha lanciato SURE, una gamma di soluzioni di pulizia e igiene a base vegetale.

• La Eureka ha perfezionato il sistema ECO-System sulle sue lavasciuga pavimenti con l’introduzione del kit Dose-Matic.

• Shield della Fragrance Delivery Technologies eroga fragranze pure senza utilizzo di VOC o solventi.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 29

PRODUCTS: GREEN CLEANING

• Le prestataire de multi-services Grosvenor Services a obtenu la certification de gestion énergétique ISO 50001.

• Twister est le tampon diamanté pour le nettoyage des sols le plus récent de la gamme HTC. • Filmop a mis au point l’Alpha Split pour ses chariots de nettoyage afin de permettre la collecte séparée de déchets.

• La dernière autolaveuse RCM est la Tera, dont la largeur de nettoyage est variable entre 1100 et 1300 mm.

• La raclette serilorCLEAN se présente comme une alternative durable et écologique aux raclettes en caoutchouc naturel, affirme la société Fimor.

• La B 60/10 C Mopvac de Kärcher comble le vide entre un balai-éponge, un seau et une autolaveuse, et se dispense de source d’énergie.

• Le Dosely est un distributeur de solution de nettoyage qui se monte sur un chariot et trempe des têtes de balayage humide une à la fois.

• Das Gebäudetechnikunternehmen Grosvenor Services hat die Energiemanagementnorm ISO 50001 erzielt.

• Bei Twister pads handelt es sich um die neuesten Diamant-Bodenpads von HTC. • Filmop hat zum Einsatz auf seinen Moppreinigungswagen das System Alpha Split entwickelt, das die getrennte Abfallsammlung ermöglicht.

• Tera ist die neueste Scheuersaugmaschine von RCM, die eine Reinigungsbreite zwischen 1100 und 1300 mm bietet.

• serilorCLEAN ist eine dauerhafte und umweltbewusste Alternative zu Abziehern aus Naturgummi, sagt Fimor.

• Die B 60/10 C Mopvac von Kärcher füllt die Lücke zwischen einen Mopp und Eimer und einer Scheuersaugmaschine – und benötigt keine Stromquelle.

• Bei Dosely handelt es sich um einen mechanischen Spender für Reinigungslösungen, der an einem Reinigungswagen befestigt ist, um jeweils einen Mopp einzuweichen.

• Il fornitore di servizi Grosvenor Services ha ottenuto lo standard per la gestione energetica ISO 50001.

• Twister pad è il disco per pavimenti diamantato più nuovo della HTC. • La Filmop ha progettato il sistema Alpha Split che permette la raccolta differenziata dei rifiuti e che può essere usato sui suoi trolley per mop.

• La più nuova lavasciuga pavimenti della RCM è il modello Tera che ha una larghezza di pulizia fra 1100 e 1300 mm.

• SerilorCLEAN è un’alternativa duratura e rispettosa dell’ambiente ai tergivetro di gomma naturale, come afferma la Fimor.

• Il B 60/10 C Mopvac della Kärcher è la soluzione di mezzo fra usare il mop con il secchio e la lavasciuga pavimenti e non necessita di fonti di energia.

• Dosely è un dispenser meccanico di soluzione detergente montato su un carrello che impregna un mop alla volta.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 30

Manage energy Facilities services provider Grosvenor Services has achieved the energy management standard ISO 50001. This outlines energy management practices that help organisations reduce energy consumption, cut costs and meet environmental rules.

The company says it’s using the standard as a framework to support clients’ environmental goals. Staff on client sites are

rewarded for ideas that reduce their carbon footprint, and ‘building champions’ have been appointed in each Grosvenor Services office to encourage green thinking.

A number of measures have been implemented recently which are audited electronically, to manage contracts more sustainably. These include moving to a new range of EU Ecolabel accredited cleaning products, and introducing low CO2 and fuel efficient cars to the fleet. www.grosvenorservices.com

drawer positioned underneath the bag holder and the dividers of the upper section, the operator can have up to six different compartments for waste collection. By adding other small dividers the number can be increased to eight sections.

All Alpha trolleys are made with at least 30 per cent recycled plastic material. www.filmop.com

Autonomy With the introduction of its Tera large ride-on scrubber dryer RCM incorporated the durability and reliability of the previous Metro model with new features.

These include working autonomy, more versions available, stability and traction, better drying, ease of maintenance and ergonomics.

Only water Daily cleaning with HTC’s Twister floor pads and tap water is said to reduce the ecological footprint of a cleaning operation - because of the long lifespan of the pads and the fact cleaning is carried out without chemicals.

And the floor is polished at the same time.

Twister can also be used to prolong the lifespan of any protective layer such as wax, acrylic floor finish or polyurethane, etc.

The range now also includes pads both for top scrubbing and complete stripping, again without chemicals. www.htc-twister.com

Separate waste Alpha Split is the separate waste collection system introduced by Filmop for use on its Alpha trolleys to encourage recycling.

Thanks to the removable

In addition, RCM says, Tera can be customised to suit different applications. It is available with disk or roller brushes, in cleaning widths between 1,100 and 1,300 mm.

And with the addition of the MY option operators can choose the best way of cleaning the floor while using the least time and energy. www.rcm.it

New material Fimor has developed a squeegee material which it says is a durable alternative to natural rubber - serilorCLEAN. Features include green colour, three times less plasticiser then before, no banned phalates, no mercury and improved pick-up.

And Fimor says this squeegee material lasts several times longer than natural rubber, being largely unaffected by oils, chemicals, bleach and other common floor-cleaning agents.

SerilorCLEAN is available as sheets in various hardness and thickness for converters, in flat mono or triple layer (or with grooves), or as custommoulded parts for suction blades or side skirts. www.fimor.fr

Mop/scrubber

The MopVac B 60/10 C combines the best features of a mop and bucket system with the best features of a scrubber dryer, says manufacturer Kärcher.

With its working width of 60 cm the B 60/10 C can clean five times faster in open areas compared to a regular mop says Kärcher - and it leaves the floor dry. The mop features a mechanical pump for vacuuming waste water which allows it to operate independently from mains electricity and battery running times.

The operator only needs to push the machine forward in order for solution from the fresh water tank to be applied to the mop with cleaning pad. And there is no need for manual wiping or wringing. www.karcher.com

One at a time Dosely is a mechanical cleaning solution dispenser designed to soak one mop at a time while it is on the trolley. Designed by TTS, the system is secure in that detergent goes into a removable hermetic tank which can be locked into the trolley. The operative has the flexibility to adjust the amount of cleaning solution applied to the mop.

This means no more carrying of heavy buckets filled with presoaked mops and no manual pre-soaking. www.ttsystem.com

A range of fragrances to inspire New 60 day battery-free dispensing solution for smaller washroom cubicles from Kennedy. %ZEMPEFPI [MXL E WIX SJ JVEKVERGIW VERKMRK JVSQ JVIWL GSSPMRK XSRIW XS JVYMX] SV 他SVEP RSXIW A choice for everyone.

INTEGRATED HYGIENE SOLUTIONS

PRODUCTS: GREEN CLEANING

• La Fimop, nouvelle laveuse compacte lancée par Fimap, est conçue pour remplacer les systèmes manuels de balayage humide.

• Unger a introduit le Stringray, nouvel outil de nettoyage de verre en intérieur, qui pulvérise et nettoie en une seule étape.

• Alpheios fait appel à des tensioactifs à base de sucre pour ses gammes écologiques, couvrant notamment les produits Viva et Triple-T. • Die neue kompakte Scheuermaschine Fimop von Fimap wurde entwickelt, um manuelle Moppsysteme zu ersetzen.

• Bei Stingray handelt es sich um das neue Innenreinigungssystem von Unger, das das Sprühen und Reinigen in einem Schritt ermöglicht.

• Alpheios verwendet in seinen umweltfreundlichen Produktreihen, wie etwa Viva und Triple-T, Tenside auf Zuckerbasis.

• La nuova lavasciuga pavimenti compatta Fimop della Fimap è stata progettata per rimpiazzare i sistemi di mop manuali.

• Stingray è il nuovo attrezzo per la pulizia dei vetri interni prodotto dalla Unger, che spruzza e pulisce contemporaneamente.

• La Alpheios utilizza surfatanti a base di zucchero per le sue gamme ecologiche per esempio Viva e Triple-T.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 32

No more manual FIMOP is a new compact scrubbing machine with cylindrical brush which has been designed

by Fimap to replace manual mopping systems in small and narrow rooms.

Because FIMOP is lightweight and comfortable to carry around, says Fimap, it eliminates the need for cleaners to carry heavy buckets. And the fact it regulates water flow also means a reduction in water consumption. There are two tanks - one for clean water and one for dirty water - so only clean water is ever used for cleaning.

The lithium-ion battery makes for easy and quick recharging, at any time. www.fimap.com

Fast ergonomics

the microfibre pads are machine washable up to 200 times. www.ungerglobal.com

Special focus report on washroom hygiene - starts on page 39 Unger is a member of the US Green Building Council and it claims its cleaning tools enable window cleaners to work safely, neatly and efficiently.

For faster, more flexible and more ergonomic of indoor glass surfaces the company developed the Stingray tool.

Stingray is powered by battery and enables spraying and cleaning in one step. The spraying nozzle, which is embedded in the pad, wets the window pane, always in optimal doses, eliminates drips and protects the user from inhaling the cleaning liquid. The result is up to 25 per cent faster cleaning says Unger, with up to 39 per cent less cleaning agents used. And

Sugar-based Alpheios uses sugar-based surfactants in its ecological Vive and Triple-T cleaning solutions made from glucose.

Glucose acts as the hydrophilic (water-attracting) part of the surfactant. The hydrophobic (oilattracting) part of the surfactant is made from aldehydes. In the non-ionic surfactants used in our products the aldehydes could be obtained from renewable raw materials such as vegetable oils and starch.

The next step for Alpheios is to investigate algae as a possible precursor to produce surfactants. www.alpheios.nl

Modern Day Mopping Go anywhere and always ready‌ The Midmop is always on hand and easily stored, the compact design provides a go anywhere twin bucket mopping system.

Internal water diverter Suitable for Kentucky or Flat mops Large 16 Litre capacity Optional extra storage Allmops press Range of accessories

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Efficient and energy saving cleaning performance - with a magnetic attraction!

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Nilfisk VP600 is the efficient and advanced choice ensuring cost-effective cleaning of applications such as hotels, contract cleaning, restaurants, offices and institutions. VP600 offers a wide range of features to choose from and you can find exactly the variant that fits your specific cleaning job. Choose the cord solution that suits you and helps you reduce cleaning time and improve the cleaning process. www.nilfisk.com

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WASTE MANAGEMENT

Keep hazards out of the bin Many small businesses are unintentionally operating outside of the law by disposing of their hazardous wastes with general rubbish, but it’s easy to do the right thing explains Barry Dennis, chairman of European waste management event RWM.

When most of us think about hazardous waste, we tend to think of industrial effluents. But in fact, hazardous wastes are most frequently generated in the workplace. From offices to mechanics’ garages, schools to dental surgeries, a plethora of materials are being thrown in the dustbin that can – and should – be separated for safe recycling and disposal.

Commonplace items including batteries, out-of-date electrical equipment, and paints can contain hazardous materials which, by law, need to be treated with care. The risks to the environment and human health mean hazardous wastes require strict controls. The Waste Framework Directive 2008/98/EC provides the European legislative framework for the collection, transport, recovery and disposal of wastes. The directive requires all member states to take the necessary measures to ensure waste is recovered or disposed of without endangering human health or causing harm to the environment and includes permit, registration and inspection requirements.

Society’s perception of waste is changing. Used materials are no longer viewed as an unwanted substance, but rather as an unused resource. Waste minimisation, reuse and recycling now have a high profile and a recognised role to play in wastes management; which is increasingly backed with mandatory provisions. Some of the materials contained in hazardous wastes can be recycled, so disposing of them with general waste is not only dangerous but represents a loss of resources.

The EU waste directive requires member states to take appropriate measures to encourage firstly, the prevention or reduction of waste production and its harmfulness and secondly the recovery of waste by means of recycling, re-use or reclamation or any other process with a view to extracting secondary raw materials, or the use of waste as a source of energy. The directive’s requirements are supplemented by other directives for specific waste streams.

Unaware of laws A recent survey carried out by the waste management industry found that the majority of small businesses in the UK were not aware of the Hazardous Waste (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2009, let alone compliant with them. That means that many businesses are disposing of hazardous wastes illegally and without due care. Hazardous waste items must be separated from the general waste stream in order to protect the environment and human health.

Partnering to protect the planet The cleaning and waste management sectors are intrinsically linked, and as legislation and customer expectations increase, it’s important that the two industries share their knowledge and approaches. An appreciation of the needs of both cleaning and waste management contractors is also vital for facilities managers or indeed anyone dealing with a customer’s wastes.

Separating hazardous wastes at source is certainly something that cleaning

operatives can support. Spray cans, oily rags and other similar small, but hazardous waste items should all be collected separately. There are a growing number of waste management companies that collect and treat hazardous waste streams in line with the regulations, so there is no excuse for businesses not to.

Thankfully, hiring a professional contractor to collect and treat hazardous waste can be done at the click of a button.

ISYS, for example, produces a specialist application called SWOPS. Designed specifically for the management of hazardous waste, SWOPS provides clients with the ability to track and trace each consignment through to job completion, handling the paperwork transactions, invoicing and management reporting.

Waste and recycling company Biffa offers customers a HazDirect service, supplying a little red box for all hazardous materials. This ‘Waste Safe Mini’ can be collected when required on a daily, weekly, monthly or even an annual basis by trained hazardous waste specialists. The service also provides all of the necessary paperwork to ensure regulatory compliance.

Circular economy Much of the talk these days in the waste management sector focuses on achieving a ‘circular economy’ which recirculates materials with minimal loss (waste and emissions). A revised EU Circular Economy Package was announced at the end of 2015, encouraging the importance of designing products to last.

The waste management sector is ideally positioned to facilitate a circular economy because of its familiarity with managing different material streams to recycle and/ or extract the most value from them.

Trying to eliminate waste may seem counterproductive for an industry that has grown by transporting and disposing of rubbish for hundreds of years – and yet this new outlook is an engine of growth for the sector. To keep materials Continued page 36

February/March 2016| ECJ | 35

WASTE MANAGEMENT Keeping hazards out of the bin (continued) out of landfill, people are inventing new recycling technologies and are stretching the boundaries of how we think about resources.

The key with any ‘green’ approach to managing waste, is always to separate materials at source. That is, at the point where a person chooses to discard an item, they ought to put it in a bin that preferably only contains the same material.

For cleaning specialists, this can bring up a fair few challenges, as waste managers require an increasing number of materials to be separated at source, often meaning a sudden abundance of bins!

them. If the waste stream has value, then the customer might even be entitled to a rebate rather than a waste disposal cost.

Engaging staff in new waste management regimes needn’t be time consuming,

but is well worth investing in. It’s important to be clear about what separation is required and then to pass those instructions on to cleaning operatives in a simple way. Most waste management companies will supply posters and stickers specifying what can and can’t go into each bin.

Images tend to work better than words as they are instantly recognisable, even if English isn’t your first language.

Scientific researchers and waste technicians are constantly coming up with novel ways to recover and recycle different materials. It’s worth speaking with a few waste management businesses to find out what materials they collect locally. If a site is generating specific and/or uncommon waste materials then find a waste management company that will collect

Comment se définissent les déchets cliniques et dangereux ? ECJ en offre un aperçu général est considère que les déchets dits dangereux ne sont pas nécessairement toxiques. Nous examinons également la réglementation des déchets toxiques et sa signification pour le secteur de la propreté.

Par ailleurs, quelles sont les méthodes disponibles aux agents de propreté pour éliminer des déchets cliniques et dangereux de façon responsable ?

Wie lautet die genaue Definition von Klinikabfall und Sondermüll? Das ECJ bietet einen Überblick darüber, und erläutert, dass Sondermüll nicht unbedingt mit „giftig“ gleichzusetzen ist. Wir betrachten auch die Richtlinien zu Sondermüll und was sie für die Reinigungsbranche bedeuten. Welche Optionen stehen der Reinigungsbranche zur Verfügung, um mit Klinikabfall und Sondermüll verantwortungsbewusst umzugehen?

Cosa significa esattamente la definizione “ rifiuti sanitari a rischio infettivo” ? ECJ fa una panoramica di quello che rappresenta e spiega che “rifiuti sanitari a rischio” non significa necessariamente rifiuti tossici.

Prendiamo inoltre in esame la normativa per i rifiuti sanitari a rischio infettivo e quello che significa per il settore del cleaning. Quali sono le opzioni disponibili per il settore del cleaning per gestire in modo responsabile questi rifiuti pericolosi?

New regimes

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 36

What is hazardous waste?

• Bulbs and UV lamps • Alkaline batteries • Adhesives e.g. superglue • Aerosols • Waste electrical and electronic items (WEEE), such as printed circuit boards, kettles and toasters, and old mobile phones • Full or part full paint tins • Mineral oil (packaged) • Rags/granules contaminated with oil or solvent • Oil filters • Empty containers contaminated with oil. www.rwmexhibition.com

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WASHROOM HYGIENE

Raising the bar in washrooms A new chain of smart, upmarket toilets have recently appeared in Europe’s city centres while upgraded facilities are cropping up in stadiums and many other locations. What effect have these had on standards in public washrooms across the board? ECJ finds out.

Over the past four years, a chain of more than 200 premium toilet shops have opened throughout Europe. The 2theloo concept was created to fill a perceived gap in the market for public toilets than can be relied on to be clean, hygienic and well stocked. Late last year also saw the opening of a cutting-edge toilet facility in Beijing, China. Situated near the government offices, the Fifth Space features vending machines, ATMs, wifi and charging stations for the country’s ever-popular electric scooters. There are now plans to open other Fifth Space washrooms both in Beijing and in other Chinese cities.

Meanwhile national toilet awards schemes have been flourishing and are potentially raising washroom expectations the world over. The UK’s Loo of the Year Awards is now in its 30th year and similar schemes operate in the US, Canada and Japan to name but a few.

And at some public venues – such as at festivals and sports stadiums – systems are being put into place to address the issue of notoriously poor washrooms.

The most fastidious of festival-goers can now opt out of the traditionally unpleasant toilet experience linked with open-air concerts and can buy a wristband allowing them access to exclusive washrooms.

Companies with names such as The Seat of Luxury, When Nature Calls and VIPee’s are vying with each other for the lucrative festival toilet-user trade. In a similar way to 2theloo, these services provide people with a guarantee of a clean, hygienic toilet complete with hand

washing facilities, mirrors and sometimes even luxury extras such as blow-dryers and hair-straighteners.

The fact there is a growing market for these types of premium washroom concepts means an increasing number of people are no longer willing to tolerate those grim public toilets of the past. And this growing intolerance of yesterday’s washroom standards has inevitably had an impact on the types of facilities today’s washroom hygiene companies provide.

Tork manufacturer SCA is the strategic partner of the European 2theloo chain of upmarket washrooms. Visitors to 2theloo pay a small fee that can be redeemed against purchases of items such as hand sanitisers, bottled water and energy drinks in the integral ‘toilet shop’.

High quality experience “Ventures such as 2theloo and washroom award schemes have the benefit of raising standards in away-from-home washrooms,” said the company’s European washroom product director Gilles Bétourné. “They result in washrooms that offer hygiene, comfort and a high quality experience in public facilities where hygiene was not commonly quoted as the main descriptor.”

The UK’s first 2theloo opened in London last summer and others can be found in the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Germany and several other countries. According to Betourne, standards in the AFH washroom market are rising in general – not only because of concepts such as 2theloo, but also due to new technology and increasingly advanced systems.

“The presence of sensor-operated systems and automatic cleaning processes in washrooms can help to provide superior hygiene and a better user experience,” he said. “Some suppliers are also going more digital and are offering interactive devices in the toilets themselves.”

Bétourné adds he has observed a consistent demand for higher standards of hygiene and comfort in the washroom.

He feels manufacturers are having to work

harder to provide more upmarket, attractive and ultra-hygienic systems.

“However, there is still a demand for basic and functional hand towel, soap and toilet solutions and this is particularly the case in in public sector and less demanding environments as schools and petrol stations. But even in these environments the quality requirements are increasing and standards are rising.”

Head of export at Hagleitner Oliver Stärz believes that washroom awards schemes – along with ventures such as 2theloo – can help to strengthen awareness of the need for clean, upmarket washrooms. “However I also think that imposing ‘critical control points’ such as in HACCP can have more influence,” he said.

Despite the new wave of upmarket washrooms, he disagrees with the theory that standards in away-from-home washrooms are rising in general. “There is a big market for new business cases such as Sanifair, 2theloo, etc but if public washrooms were clean and well organised in the first place, people would not be willing to pay for using a toilet,” he points out.

“The demand for upmarket washroom systems is steadily increasing in line with the various possibilities on offer for new business solutions,” he said.

“There is still a market for basic toilet paper and functional hand towel and soap systems. However it would be particularly important to create an awareness of the fact that systems such as refillable bulk soap dispensers are no longer an adequate solution for a healthy washroom environment.”

Award programmes are a particularly good way to raise awareness of the need for hygiene in the away-from-home washroom according to vice-president of marketing at Excel Dryer William Gagnon.

“Whether or not these are raising washroom standards in general, they are certainly raising awareness of the need to improve the user experience in public washrooms,” he said. “People care about Continued page 40

February/March 2016| ECJ | 39

WASHROOM HYGIENE Raising the bar in washrooms (continued) cleaner and more sustainable toilets and they care about hand hygiene in order to prevent the spread of disease and illness.”

He agrees with SCA’s Betourne that sensor-operated taps, soap dispensers and other fixtures are improving the user experience while increasing hygiene by reducing the number of touch points.

“There is also work in progress to provide the next generation of upmarket, attractive and ultra-hygienic systems,” he said. “For example there are new technologies and products designed to be used on washroom door handles that prevent people from feeling the need to use a paper towel when they open the door. These include copper door handles that have self-sanitising properties.”

He says that with the current demand for smarter, more attractive and more efficient buildings, it is only logical that people will also expect their washrooms to offer Des programmes d’octroi de distinctions en matière de toilettes publiques sont en place dans plusieurs pays, tandis que des magasins de produits sanitaires de luxe s’ouvrent pas dizaines sous l’enseigne 2theloo dans des grandes villes européennes. Ces évolutions ont-elles élevé la barre dans le domaine des salles d’eau et toilettes publiques ?

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 40

similarly high standards.

“For the foreseeable future we think there will be a market for toilet paper and that soap will remain a key product for hand hygiene,” he said. “But when it comes to more sustainable improvements, products such as no-touch foam soap dispensers and energy-efficient hand dryers are gaining a lot of traction compared with regular soaps and paper towels.”

According to Metsä Tissue’s UK and Ireland sales director Mark Dewick, anything that is designed to make using a washroom a more pleasant experience can only be positive. “The use of washrooms is such a fundamental element in our lives but there is a general unwillingness to discuss this basic human need,” he said. “The publicity around 2theloo and national award schemes helps to break down this taboo.”

He says Metsä’s research programme highlights a distinct preference among the In mehreren Ländern gibt es Auszeichnungsprogramme für Waschräume, und das gehobene Toilettengeschäft 2theloo eröffnet Filialen in vielen europäischen Hauptstraßen. Wird dadurch die latte in Markt für Waschräume angehoben ?

public for a pleasant toilet experience. But he feels that whether away-from-home washroom standards are rising in general is open to interpretation and opinion.

He adds there should be minimum standards one can expect in every washroom. “All washrooms should be equipped with functional toilet paper, hand towels and soap,” he said. “Whatever the design, colour and concept, all the basics hygiene needs still need to be met.”

He says the key to better washrooms is to have a full understanding of what is required. “A great design, beautiful colours and electronics are all good things, but none of them guarantees hygiene,” he said.

“The only way to achieve good hygiene standards is to reduce everything down to its simplest level - and this comes down to the provision of water and soap and advocating proper washing techniques and effective drying.”

La strategia dei premi per le sale da toilette pubbliche è ora in funzione in numerose nazioni mentre i negozi di toilette ad alto livello 2theloo stanno aprendo in molte principali strade europee. Questi fenomeni stanno alzando il livello degli standard nello scenario dei bagni pubblici?

PRODUCTS: WASHROOM HYGIENE

• Le nouveau sèche-mains XLERATOReco présenté par Ecel Dryer recourt à une technologie “sans chaleur” pour sécher les mains en 15 secondes.

• SanTRAL est une gamme de distributeurs en acier inox pour la distribution de savon liquide, savon mousse, désinfectant, serviettes en papier et papier hygiénique propose par Ophardt.

• La mousse Refresh Clear Foam de Deb Stoko est un produit parfumé et sans colorant pour le lavage des mains.

• Der neue Handtrockner XLERATOReco von Excel Dryer setzt „hitzelose“ Technologie ein, um Hände in 15 Sekunden zu trocknen.

• Bei SanTRAL handelt es sich um eine Produktreihe mit Edelstahlspendern für Flüssigseife, Schaumseife, Desinfektionsmittel, Papierhandtücher und Toilettenpapier von Ophardt.

• Deb Stoko Refresh Clear Foam ist eine unparfümierte und farbstofffreie milde Schaumseife.

• Il nuovo asciugamani XLERATOReco prodotto dalla Excel Dryer utilizza la tecnologia ‘senza calore’ per asciugare le mani in 15 secondi.

• SanTRAL è una gamma di dispenser in acciaio inossidabile prodotti dalla Ophardt per saponi liquidi, saponi in schiuma, disinfettanti, asciugamani in carta e carta igienica.

• Deb Stoko Refresh Clear Foam è un lavamani delicato in schiuma senza profumazioni e colorazioni.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 42

Fast drying

Other optional extras include custom digital image covers, ADA-compliant recess kit, antimicrobial wall guards and XChanger paper towel dispenser retrofit kit. www.exceldryer.com

Steel line

The XLERATOReco warm air hand dryer from Excel Dryer uses No Heat technology to dry hands in 12 seconds. It does this while using 500 watts, making it energy efficient and environmentally responsible says the company. Multiple units can also be installed on one circuit.

For areas where hygiene is of paramount importance the XLERATOReco can be fitted with a HEPA filtration system which removes 99.97 per cent of bacteria. The metal mesh pre-filter is removable and washable.

The SanTRAL line of stainless steel washroom dispensers from Ophardt Hygiene comprises units for liquid soap, foam soap and disinfectants, paper towels and toilet tissue. The range, which is celebrating its 25th year, is also available as a white powder coated version and there is the option to choose one of 213 classic RAL colours.

All stainless steel SanTRAL units come with Anti-Fingerprint-Coating (AFP) as standard.

Ophardt says the upcoming launch of its Smart Washroom line will enable washroom managers to measure the use of soap and paper in real time. www.ophardt.com

No allergies Deb Stoko Refresh Clear FOAM is a perfume- and dye-free foam hand wash said to reduce the risk of allergic reactions and skin irritation. It’s part of the new Deb Stoko range and contains skin conditioners to improve hydration and prevent the drying of skin.

Deb says each one- or twolitre cartridge can provide up to 1,400 and 2,800 hand washes - up to 36 per cent less product compared to liquid or foam soaps it claims.

And water consumption is said to be reduced by up to 45 per cent using a foam solution.

Refresh Clear FOAM works in conjunction with Deb’s own range of washroom dispensers. www.debgroup.com

PRODUCTS: WASHROOM HYGIENE

Minimal waste The Nexa soap dispenser from Ecolab contains an anti-drip pump which pulls any excess product back in, helping to avoid slips and trips the company says. Stateof-the-art pump technology is designed to minimise product waste as it evacuates up to 99 per cent of the soap in the airtight recyclable bottles.

The multi-use units are said to be easy to refill and are suitable for all types of Nexa products whether gels, liquids or foams.

And Ecolab claims the energysaving touch-free unit washes 44 per cent more hands than other systems before needing a change of battery.

The company’s territory managers work alongside customers to provide training and ongoing sup-

port in order to encourage hand hygiene compliance. www.ecolab.com

Smart Image New from SCA is the Tork Image Design Line of dispensers aimed at upmarket washrooms. Besides being aesthetically pleasing with their stainless steel fascias and black trim the units are designed to be practical and easy to use and refill says Tork.

For example all stainless steel surfaces have been treated with a fingermark-resistant coating.

Each dispenser has a clear panel on the side to indicate refill levels. And the jumbo roll unit has a stub roll facility plus brake

to prevent over-consumption.

The Image Design Line comprises a Tork Xpress Interfold Hand Towel Dispenser; a Tork Jumbo Toilet Roll unit, and both manual and sensor-operated versions of the Tork Foam Soap dispenser. There is also a stainless steel Tork Facial Tissue box and a matching bin as well as a co-ordinated coat hook to complete the range. www.tork.co.uk

Cuts paper The Autocut paper towel dispenser from Jofel is made of ABS plastic and comes in three finishes - white, smoke and black.

It uses a serrated steel blade to offer sheet-by-sheet dispensing and houses rolls of 19 or 21 cm.

This system uses no levers, batteries or electricity and features a safety lock with key. The user only comes into contact with the paper to be used to avoid cross-contamination. www.jofel.com

• Le distributeur de savon Nexa, proposé par Ecolab, comprend une pompe anti-égouttement qui aspire tout produit excédentaire.

• SCA a introduit la gamme Tork Image Design de distributeurs pour toilettes publiques haut de gamme.

• Le nouveau distributeur de papier Autocut de Jofel livre des feuilles individuelles.

• Der Seifenspender Nexa von Ecolab bietet eine Anti-TropfPumpe, die überflüssiges Produkt zurück in den Spender zieht.

• Neu von SCA ist die Tork Image Design Line mit Spendern, die für gehobene Waschräume konzipiert wurde.

• Der neue Papierspender Autocut von Jofel bietet eine Einzelblattausgabe.

• Il dispenser di sapone Nexa della Ecolab ha inserita una pompa anti sgocciolio che trattiene qualsiasi eccesso di prodotto.

• La novità della SCA è la linea di dispenser Tork Image Design Line progettati per le sale da toilette di lusso.

• Il nuovo dispenser di carta Autocut prodotto dalla Jofel propone l’erogazione di carta pretagliata.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 43

PRODUCTS: WASHROOM HYGIENE

• Vikan a développé une nouvelle poignée pour son kit EasyShine de nettoyage de surfaces d’intérieur brillantes.

• Identity est le nom de la nouvelle gamme de distributeurs de papier et de savon Lucart Professional.

• Hagleitner aligne une gamme complète de produits pour toilettes publiques, parmi lesquels figurent des distributeurs intelligents et des solutions pour l’hygiène des mains.

• La poignée hygiénique Pure Hold se monte à la place d’une poignée de porte à tirer normale afin de libérer du gel désinfectant sur les mains de l’utilisateur.

• CWS-boco a lancé le ComfortLine, un distributeur de savon pour hôtels et centres de remise en forme.

• San Jamar a lancé la gamme de distributeurs Summit, disponibles en trois coloris.

• US Pomice Company propose des solutions de propreté recourant à la pierre ponce, un ingrédient naturel qui peut servir pour le nettoyage à fond et le récurage.

• Vikan hat einen neuen Griff für das EasyShine Kit zur Reinigung von Hochglanzflächen in Innenräumen entwickelt.

• Bei Identity handelt es sich um die neue Produktreihe mit Papier- und Seifenspendern von Lucart Professional.

• Hagleitner bietet ein umfassendes Waschraumangebot, einschließlich intelligente Spender neben Handhygienelösungen.

• Der Pure Hold Hygiene Handle wird statt der üblichen Griffe an herkömmlichen Ziehtüren montiert und gibt bei Benutzung der Tür automatisch ein Desinfektionsgel direkt auf die Hand des Benutzers ab.

• Neu von CWS-boco ist der Seifenspender ComfortLine für die Hotel- und Fitnessbranchen.

• San Jamar hat die Produktfamilie Summit mit Spendern, die in drei Farben erhältlich sind, vorgestellt.

• US Pomice Company bietet Reinigungslösungen unter Verwendung von Bimsstein, einem Naturprodukt, das sich zum Scheuern und Reinigen eignet.

• La Vikan ha sviluppato un nuovo manico per il suo kit di pulizia brillante delle superfici degli interni EasyShine Kit. • Identity è la nuova gamma di dispenser di carta e di sapone prodotti dalla Lucart Professional.

• La Hagleitner offre una gamma completa di soluzioni per le sale da toilette che include dei dispenser intelligenti e inoltre soluzioni per l’igiene delle mani.

• La maniglia igienica Pure Hold, montata sulle porte ad apertura standard al posto della maniglia tradizionale, rilascia un gel sanitizzante sulle mani dell’utente.

• La novità della CWS-boco è il dispenser di sapone ComfortLine per il settore alberghiero e quello delle palestre.

• La San Jamar ha lanciato la linea di dispenser Summit, disponibile in tre colori.

• La US Pomice Company propone soluzioni per le pulizie utilizzando la pomice, un ingrediente naturale che può essere usato per pulire e anche come abrasivo.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 44

Better handle Vikan has developed an improved handle for its EasyShine kit for interior high gloss surface cleaning, which is used for windows, doors and mirrors.

The kit uses Vikan’s ultra microfibre technology for cleaning down to a microscopic level using only tap water. The redesigned handle gives it a telescopic shaft extending the tool’s reach by 140 cm, compared to 105 cm previously.

There is also an improved open/close system and better overall usability says Vikan. www.vikan.com

New Identity Lucart Professional has launched the Identity range of tissue paper and hand soap dispensers. Designed for mediumto high-use applications, its mechanical system is said to cut down on costs and waste reducing maintenance times and guaranteeing efficiency.

Identity Toilet is a toilet tissue dispenser with automatic cutting. Used with Lucart’s environmentally-friendly paper it has been designed to cut down on consumption - encouraging users to use open paper dispensers ready for use one sheet at a time. www.lucartprofessional.com

filling level, battery status and the number of disposals is sent to a web-based central site. At the same time a sensor counts the number of entrances into the washroom and sends the information to a smart phone, tablet or PC. This, says Hagleitner, offers the service personnel precise data as to which dispenser in which room needs to be filled or maintained - enabling an optimum workflow with all dispensers functioning perfectly. www.hagleitner.com

Summit family The latest range of washroom dispensers from San Jamar is Summit, available in three colours - black/stainless, stainless and white/clear. Custom options are also available in 12 preapproved colours for back, cover and shield.

Door hygiene Hygiene Handles from Pure Hold are mounted onto standard pull-doors in place of normal handles, release sanitising gel onto the hand of users as they open the door.

The company says independent testing and field trials have shown the handles to be 98.5 per cent cleaner than a standard door handle and users are likely to achieve 87 per cent cleaner hands in using the system.

It also claims the installation of Hygiene Handles helps to emphasise to users the importance of good hand hygiene at all times. www.purehold.co.uk

Intelligence Hagleitner’s senseMANAGEMENT dispensers for foam soap, paper towels or disinfection foam are equipped with an integrated radio frequency board which counts every soap, disinfection and towel release.

Information about dispenser

to be squeezed gently. A valve seal prevents it from dripping, while a window on the side enables fill level to be checked.

For rapid replacement there is a click-in bottle system.

The units are designed for use with Ecosense Soap, Ecosense Body & Hair and Softsense All in One. These are made from organic, sustainable raw materials and all bear the EU Ecolabel. www.cws-boco.com

Comfortable New from CWS-boco is the ComfortLine soap dispenser range, designed for the hotel industry, spas and gym facilities.

Each can be operated with one hand - the bottle simply needs

Products being launched this spring are Smart System towel dispenser, Tear-N-Dry towel dispenser, Twin 9 ins JBT tissue dispenser, Rely Hybrid Soap Dispenser and Arriba Twist Passive odour control. www.sanjamar.com

Natural scouring US Pumice Company specialises in abrasive cleaning products made from natural and manmade pumice. Its Pumie Scouring Sticks and Flexi-Scour are used in washrooms and toilets.

Pumie is claimed to clean faster than scrubbing with brushes and pads to remove stains, hard water deposits and scale - revitalising porcelain and ceramic finishes.

Flexi-Scour is designed for hard-to-reach places, while Pumie Toilet Bowel Ring Remover has a handle to reduce contact with cleaning operatives. www.uspumice.com

Scrubber dryer with more ease-of-use - and cost-efficiency

The Nilfisk SC500 walk-behind scrubber dryer is carefully designed to improve productivity and drive down your total cleaning costs. These significant benefits are achieved through more ease-of-use and a series of technical features enabling daytime cleaning and the most effective use of water and detergent. A reliable choice for cleaning companies, hospitals, schools, offices, supermarkets, sports centers, restaurants, hotels and production floors. www.nilfisk.com

SCRUBBER DRYERS

The invisible scrubber dryer As daytime cleaning becomes more prevalent there is an increasing need for quieter, more unobtrusive cleaning equipment. Ann Laffeaty looks at the latest scrubber dryers that offer the capacity to fade into the background – while also remaining safe to use around the public.

Scrubber dryers are not necessarily the most compact or elegant of cleaning machines. They tend to be built for efficiency and practicality, with the emphasis largely on how they perform rather than on their more aesthetic qualities.

But in some parts of the world, daytime cleaning is becoming increasingly common which means that manufacturers are having to come up with ‘invisible’ models that blend into the background and avoid disturbing the daytime workforce. So how do they achieve this?

Head of floorcare product management at Kärcher Marco Cardinale says there are a variety of reasons behind the increasing prevalence of daytime cleaning. “Due to the long opening hours of today’s retail businesses it is simply insufficient to clean only in the early morning or in the evening after the store has closed,” he said. “Hotels also need to be cleaned several times during the day in order to meet strict cleanliness and quality requirements.

“Meanwhile, demographic changes and staff shortages mean building service contractors need to look at new ways of attracting employees such as offering fulltime employment contracts that can be carried out during the day. And this leads to an increase in daytime cleaning.”

He says low noise levels are important in order to minimise any disturbance to people in offices, shops and public buildings. “In a worst case scenario, high levels of noise may even have a negative impact

on customer satisfaction or lead to them staying away from the building altogether,” he said. “For this reason, cleaning machines should be as inconspicuous, small and as compact as possible to allow them to blend in with the surroundings. The dilemma here is that people want cleanliness but nobody wants to be adversely affected by the cleaning operations involved.”

He says large machines are often perceived to be obstacles by the public. “Users also find it more convenient to operate smaller machines in busy areas,” he said.

“A large machine is always more conspicuous and generally louder than a small one.

But there is a risk of collision with building users regardless of whether the machine is large or small - particularly if the layout is full of awkward angles, corners or areas of restricted visibility.”

He says compact machines with a step-on design can be helpful. “These give the operator an elevated position offering them an excellent view of the surrounding area and the scope of the cleaning task, reducing the risk of collision.”

Cardinale believes that today’s scrubber dryers need to be increasingly ‘invisible’ to the extent that even their colour can have an impact on the public. “At the start of 2013, Kärcher changed its range of machines for professional use from yellow to anthracite,” he said. “One of the reasons for doing so - besides simply giving the machines a makeover – was that greycoloured machines blended more seamlessly into their surroundings.”

In order to reduce noise levels and increase safety around members of the public, Kärcher fits its larger machines with lights or flashing beacons.

Coming up with scrubber dryers that are both unobtrusive and safe to use can be a tough balancing act according to Diversey’s global marketing machine leader Laurent Ryssen. “A quiet operation is crucial in daytime cleaning situations but the sound of a motor or a beeping noise will alert the public that a machine is

coming,” he said.

He says another way of improving public safety is by reducing the machine speed. “However once again it is all a question of balance,” he said. “A machine that operates more slowly will be safer for use around people, but it will also impact on productivity which means staff might have to work longer hours – and is this ultimately safe? There could be more accidents as a result.”

He says one possible way forward for future daytime cleaning models could involve the use of tracking technology.

This would allow machine operators to pinpoint the whereabouts of a building’s occupants via a dashboard screen. “This type of technology is already used in the military, but whether or not the cleaning market is ready for it is another question,” says Ryssen. “There would have to be a privacy discussion – and there are laws to protect privacy.”

Safety first Safety and professionalism are both more important than unobtrusiveness in daytime cleaning situations according to Numatic’s floorcare channel manager Kevin Andrews. “Our customers want smart, bright machines that give them a professional front-of-house image,” he said. “This is particularly true in airports and large concourses where a colourful, easily-seen machine is beneficial for health and safety reasons.”

Hako’s application technology trainer and consultant Klaus Serfezi feels the need for quiet, unobtrusive machines for daytime cleaning very much depends on the environment. “In large warehouses and logistic centres for example, noise only plays a minor role,” he said. “In these areas, machines should be anything but unobtrusive in order to stand out and for people to notice that a scrubber dryer is crossing internal traffic. This is why the machines are equipped with beacons.

“In areas where large ride-on scrubber dryers are employed, it does not really Continued page 48

February/March 2016| ECJ | 47

SCRUBBER DRYERS The invisible scrubber dryer (continued) matter what the machines look like: the use of efficient technology is much more important. However in hospitals, nursing homes and similar facilities it is important to employ quiet machines.”

In a world where corporate colours are an important brand differentiator it is difficult to produce machines that blend in with the background according to Serfezi.

He adds that safety is a crucial feature for any machine used in daytime cleaning. “However a machine is only as safe as its operator,” he said. “That’s why it is important to make operating the machine as simple as possible.”

In any situation where cleaning may be observed it is important to leave a good and professional impression on customers according to Fimap product manager Antonio Incrocci. “For this reason it is crucial machines should be quiet, easy to manage and of a compact size.”

Fimap offers a range of machines that have been designed to blend into the environment. “We use soft lines that make our models aesthetically pleasing and we’ve developed devices such as our eco mode that reduce noise levels,” says Incrocci. Features designed to make Fimap machines safe to use around the public include blinking lights and reversing alarms.

Group floorcare product manager for Nilfisk Anders Sandstrom agrees with other manufacturers that low noise levels are among the most crucial factors for any machine being operated during the day.

“The look of the machine is also important and for this reason Nilfisk machines are a discreet grey colour,” he said. “It is however still important that cleaning machines should be visible to people when in operation since safety comes first.” He adds that it can be a challenge to come up

with machines that blend in with their surroundings while also remaining visible for safety reasons.

In today’s market, flashing warning beacons are available - if not standard - on scrubber dryers in order to increase public safety according to Sandstrom. “A small laser, too, can create a visible spot on the floor in front of the machine,” he said. “This signals that a machine is approaching around the corner and thereby helps to prevent any accidents.”

Diversey’s Laurent Ryssen sums up the issue of balancing unobtrusiveness with safety and uses the electric car as an example. “There are cars out there that run very well on batteries: but are you always able hear them in the street? Manufacturers are waking up to this issue and are bringing out noisier models that are safer around pedestrians. We have a similar situation in the scrubber dryer market.”

Face à la nouvelle culture du travail en journée, que font les fabricants d’autolaveuses pour relever l’aspect de leurs machines ? Que font-ils pour les rendre discrètes et faciliter leur insertion dans le milieu de travail pour qu’elles n’irritent pas le public par leur bruit et leur présence ?

Wie stellen die Hersteller von Scheuersaugmaschinen sicher, dass ihre Maschinen bei der gegenwärtigen Kultur der Tagesreinigung nicht das Auge beleidigen?

Wie sorgen sie dafür, dass sie sich unauffällig in die Umgebung einfügen, statt die Öffentlichkeit mit Ihrem Lärm und ihrem Äußeren zu reizen ?

Nella cultura attuale delle pulizie effettuate di giorno, in che modo i produttori di lavasciuga pavimenti si accertano che le loro macchine non siano esteticamente delle brutture? Come possono farle apparire discrete in modo che si incorporino nell’ambiente piuttosto che irritare il pubblico con il rumore emesso e il loro aspetto?

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 48

PRODUCTS: SCRUBBER DRYERS

50 cm width

Configurations

Developed for the 50 cm walkbehind market is the Antea from Comac. This machine is available in a number of different versions: disk brush models with or without traction (Antea BT and B), a brushing-sweeping version (BTS) and an orbital option.

The latest addition to the Tennant scrubber dryer line is the T300 walk-behind which it says combines innovative technology and versatility.

T300 features the company’s next generation ec-H2O NanoClean water-based cleaning technology along with multiple machine configurations for almost any hard surface.

Options include single disk, orbital, dual disk and dual

cylindrical. There is also an integrated Pro-Panel LCD touchscreen offering simplified operation including programmable Zone settings, Operator ID with supervisor lock-out capabilities, language settings and on-board/ on-demand videos to take the guesswork out of cleaning. www.tennantco.com

Oscillating The most compact scrubber in the Tomcat range is the Nano

Edge oscillating model, which allows operators to clean grout lines, access the floor behind a toilet or remove multiple layers of finish without using chemicals.

This model can also be used to clean stairwells and other small areas that walk-behind scrubbers cannot access because of their size. The Nano Edge can also get flat against walls, while larger areas can be tackled by ‘swinging’ it like a mop. www.tomcatequip.com

Ease of use and maintenance have been top priorities in the development of this model, says Comac. For example the filler hose connects to any tap and the clean water tank level can be checked from outside.

The instrument panel, meanwhile, is designed to be simple to use - the panel on traction versions (BT-BTS-BTO) also includes controls for activating the Eco and CDS functions.

Pressing the Eco button activates a work mode that reduces energy consumption and noise levels, while the CDS function (Comac Dosing System) manages water and detergent delivery independently. www.comac.it • Comac présente son autolaveuse à conducteur accompagnant la plus récente, l’Antea, de largeur de travail de 50 cm.

• Les nouvelles autolaveuses à conducteur accompagnant T300 de Tennant sont proposées en différentes configurations pour sols de différentes surfaces.

• La Nano Edge est l’autolaveuse Tomcat la plus compacte pour le traiement de zones d’accès difficile.

• Bei der neuesten handgeführten Scheuersaugmaschine von Comac handelt es sich um die Antea, die eine Arbeitsbreite von 50 cm bietet.

• Die neue handgeführte Scheuersaugmaschine T300 von Tennant bietet mehrere Konfigurationen für unterschiedliche Bodenoberflächen.

• Nano Edge ist der kompakteste Schrubber zur Reinigung in schwer erreichbaren Bereichen von Tomcat.

• La più nuova lavasciuga pavimenti con operatore al seguito della Comac è il modello Antea con larghezza di lavoro di 50 cm.

• La nuova lavasciuga pavimenti con operatore al seguito T300 prodotta dalla Tennant offre configurazioni multiple per diversi tipi di pavimenti.

• Il modello Nano Edge è la più compatta spazzatrice della Tomcat per la pulizia delle aree difficili da raggiungere.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 49

PRODUCTS: SCRUBBER DRYERS

• L’autolaveuse Kärcher B 95 RS à conducteur debout comporte un mode d’économie d’énergie et un système de dosage de produit de nettoyage.

• Ajoutée à la gamme Hako, l’autolaveuse compact à conducteur porté B75 R travaille sur des surfaces auxquelles seules accédaient des modèles à conducteur accompagnant.

• Wetrok a lancé deux nouvelles autolaveuses sous les dénominations Duomatic Esprit et Drivematic Delight.

• Zu den Merkmalen der AufstehScheuersaugmaschine B 95 RS von Kärcher gehören ein Energiesparmodus und ein Dosiersystem für Reinigungsmittel.

• Neu von Hako ist die kompakte AufsitzScheuersaugmaschine Scrubmaster B75 R, die für Bereiche konzipiert wurde, die bisher nur mit handgeführten Modellen zugänglich waren.

• Bei den beiden Scheuersaugmaschinen von Wetrok handelt es sich um die Duomatic Esprit und die Drivematic Delight.

• Le caratteristiche della lavasciuga pavimenti con operatore su pedana B 95 RS della Kärcher includono un’impostazione per risparmiare energia e un sistema di dosaggio dei prodotti detergenti.

• La novità della Hako è la macchina lavapavimenti compatta con operatore a bordo Scrubmaster B75 R, progettata per aree precedentemente servite da modelli con operatore al seguito.

• La Wetrok ha due nuove lavasciuga pavimenti , la Duomatic Esprit e la Drivematic Delight.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 50

Step on

ligent Key (KIK) system with colour-coded keys ensures operating parameters are predefined so that operating errors are virtually impossible. www.karcher.com

Access all areas

Features of the B 95 RS step-on scrubber dryer from Kärcher include the energy-saving eco!efficiency mode, DOSE cleaning agent dosing system, KIK colour-coded key system and Auto-Fill tank filling system.

Suitable for maintenance cleaning of most floor types this model offers the operator a clear view of the working area and is claimed to be energy-efficient and eco-friendly. It cleans with a lower turbine power, reduced cleaning agent consumption and lower brush speed.

Meanwhile the Kärcher Intel-

The compact design of its new ride-on scrubber dryer Scrubmaster B75 R, says Hako, makes it suitable for cleaning areas that could previously only be accessed by walkbehind machines.

Track width is 76 cm and the short squeegee means the machine can drive through passages narrower than 80 cm - for example in checkout areas. It can do a U-turn in aisles smaller than 180 cm.

The handheld suction tool enables the removal of fluids in areas that cannot be accessed by the scrubber. www.hako.com

Small circle For cleaning medium to large areas Wetrok developed the Drivematic Delight ride-on scrubber which boasts compact dimensions and small turning circle. This makes it suitable for checkout areas, lifts and narrow hallways. Features include brush change at the touch of a button; Quick-Refill function; chemical and water dosing system and user-friendly display.

Meanwhile, the Duomatic Esprit features the patentpending Wetrok Power-Whirl which is based on advanced suction nozzle technology that generates optimally-controlled suction to leave the floor completely dry with lower energy consumption, says Wetrok. www.wetrok.com

PRODUCTS: SCRUBBER DRYERS

Small in size Turbolava 35 Plus scrubber dryers from Cimel are designed for use in small and mediumsized areas where there are many obstacles to negotiate - an alternative to mop and bucket cleaning the company says. They can be used for both daily and deep cleaning on many different surfaces.

Both electric and batterypowered versions are available.

The lithium-ion battery model can work for up to 55 minutes continuously and eliminates cord hazard.

Two removable, easy-to-clean tanks four-litre tanks for clean water and wastewater help to reduce bacterial growth.

A full line of accessories comes as standard - brushes, pad holder, colour-coded pads and microfibre pads to enable stripping, cleaning and polishing. www.cimel.com

Transformer

• Les autolaveuses Turbolava 35 Plus de la société Cimel sont destinées à travailler sur des surfaces de dimensions petites à moyennes.

• L’autolaveuse CT15 proposée par IPC peut se transformer en nettoyeur de moquettes grâce au kit pour moquettes d’IPC. • La nouvelle autolaveuse GO de RCM assure le nettoyage rapide de surfaces de tout type.

• Die Scheuersaugmaschinen Turbolava 35 Plus von Cimel wurden für kleine und mittelgroße Bereiche konzipiert.

• Die Scheuersaugmaschine CT15 Roller von IPC kann dank des IPC Teppich-Kits in einen Teppichreiniger umgewandelt werden.

• GO ist die neue Scheuersaugmaschine von RCM, die zur schnellen Reinigung in allen Umgebungen entwickelt wurde.

• Le lavasciuga pavimenti Turbolava 35 Plus della Cimel sono progettate per aree di piccole e medie dimensioni.

• La lavasciuga pavimenti modello CT15 Roller prodotta dalla IPC può essere trasformata in una macchina lavamoquette grazie al kit per moquette IPC. • GO è una nuova lavasciuga pavimenti prodotta dalla RCM per la pulizia veloce di tutti gli ambienti.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 52

The CT15 Roller walk-behind scrubber dryer from IPC - which can work in reverse - can be turned into a carpet cleaner thanks to the company’s new carpet kit.

This is possible because the simple injection and extraction system, located near the small pump underneath the body of the machine, puts the water under pressure and sprinkles a detergent solution onto the carpet to be washed. The cylindrical brush removes spots and stains, then the powerful vacuum does the drying. www.ipcleaning.com

Quick cleaner

For rapid cleaning of floors that need to be available for use immediately, RCM has developed the GO scrubber dryer for medium-sized areas. The company boasts it moves easily in the tightest of spaces and leaves behind no water on the floor at all.

Available in three versions: cable or battery with semi-automatic or electronic forward traction.

Features include on-board battery charger, silenced suction motor. www.rcm.it

ISSA/INTERCLEAN AMSTERDAM

More than an exhibition...

Europe’s largest event for the professional cleaning sector ISSA/INTERCLEAN Amsterdam - takes place from May 10-13 in the Netherlands. And this year the organisers are promising the biggest show yet.

Ahead of the special show guide edition in April/May, ECJ looks at what new features visitors can look forward to at this year’s exhibition.

ECJ is official media partner of the ISSA/INTERCLEAN Amsterdam exhibition.

Europe’s largest event for the professional cleaning sector - ISSA/INTERCLEAN - takes place from May 10-13 in Amsterdam. And this year the organisers are promising the biggest show yet.

The 2016 event will feature the InnovationLAB for the first time - this will showcase infrastructure products and software tools nominated for the Amsterdam Innovation Award 2016, host seminars, workshops, debates and presentations at InnovationLAB ON STAGE. The InnovationLAB NEWSROOM will have live and recorded interviews from across the event.

Other new features include free Wi-Fi access and a new ISSA/INTERCLEAN app. This networking tool is free to all visitors and enables them to instantly acquire and exchange contact information and exclusive content. The app offers a pocket-sized guide to the show with full exhibitor list, complete exhibitor profiles, a new product list, exhibition information and social media links.

“The new ISSA/INTERCLEAN app offers another opportunity for exhibitors and visitors to connect at the show,” says Rob den Hertog, manager ISSA/INTERCLEAN. “In the app, exhibitors showcase their new products and provide company information. It makes it easier than ever match visitors and exhibitors.”

Amsterdam Innovation Award One of the biggest highlights of the exhibition is always the presentation of the Amsterdam Innovation Award, and this year’s winner will be announced during a special ceremony on the opening day. The list of finalists will be announced shortly. Visit the ECJ website at www. europeancleaningjournal.com and read it there first.

En prévision du guide complet que nous publierons dans notre édition d’avril/mai, ECJ entrevoit le prochain salon ISSA/INTERCLEAN Amsterdam, la plus grande manifestation européenne de la propreté, qui aura lieu du 10 au 13 mai. Comme nouveautés pour cette année, ce salon comportera un Labo de l’innovation et un nouveau type de programme de conférences.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 54

Im Vorfeld des umfangreichen Messeleitfadens in der April/Mai-Ausgabe wirft das ECJ einen vorausschauenden Blick auf die ISSA/INTERCLEAN Amsterdam – Europas größtes Ereignis der professionellen Reinigungsbranche, das vom 10.–13. Mai stattfinden wird. Zu den Besonderheiten gehören in diesem Jahr das Innovation Lab und eine neue Art von Konferenzprogramm.

Seminar programme Worldwide industry association ISSA is organising a comprehensive educational seminar programme. Running on May 10 and 11 it includes topics as diverse as opportunities created by the circular economy, how to make the most of advances in data gathering, adapting to changes in the industry supply chain and growing profitability against a background of downward cost pressures.

Other sessions will look at the benefits of leasing rather than purchasing equipment and how quality cleaning improves safety while lowering risk and cost.

The seminar programme also includes a series of industry trend updates taking place in the InnovationLAB. These are 15-minute rapid-fire presentations designed to bring visitors quickly up to date with a range of industry trends and will run from 12 pm to 2.30 pm each day.

Attendees to Cleaning Opportunities in the Circular economy seminar will learn what part their organisation can play in increased sustainability and how to differentiate from competitors and add value to customers.

The potential productivity revolution offered by the Internet of Things and Big Data will only happen in the cleaning and hygiene industry if organisation can successfully identify the high-value, target-rich data that will have the largest impact. The Internet of Things: How do we Leverage so Much Data? will reveal to delegates how to harness available information for maximum impact. www. issainterclean.com •The April/May edition of ECJ will feature a complete show guide to ISSA/ INTERCLEAN. Make sure you request your copy at europeancleaningjournal.com Anticipando la sua guida comprensiva dell’evento che verrà pubblicata nel numero di aprile/maggio, ECJ fa un’anteprima della ISSA/INTERCLEAN Amsterdam, l’evento maggiore in Europa per il settore del cleaning professionale che si terrà dal 10 al 13 maggio. Le attrazioni speciali di quest’anno includeranno il laboratorio Innovation Lab e un nuovo tipo di programma di conferenze.

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World’s Leading Trade Fair for Cleaning and Hygiene Professionals

At the heart of the industry

Complete - the worldwide cleaning industry in one location International - meet 700 leading global brands and 29.000 peers from 130 countries Innovative - be inspired by innovations and knowledgeable expert sessions Professional - Your dedicated cleaning industry trade show since 1967

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BUSINESS: FUTURE OF EU

Many looming challenges....

Will the European Union survive 2016?

It’s a fair question considering the battering the region has taken from a perfect storm of crises in recent years and with fresh challenges looming over an increasingly darkening horizon. Hartley Milner goes in search of some answers.

Whether the EU collapses this year or not will be of no consequence in the broad scheme of things, according to one prediction that foretells of an even more catastrophic fate in store for the continent.

Baba Vanga, a Bulgarian psychic who is said to have foreseen the Chernobyl disaster, the 2004 tsunami and 9/11, is now being credited with having predicted the rise of ISIS. And her supporters say that before she died in 1996, the sightless seer warned of ‘a 2016 invasion by Muslim extremists’ and that by the end of the year Europe would ‘cease to exist’, becoming a ‘wasteland almost entirely devoid of any form of life’.

Though a shade less dramatic in their outlook for the region, critics of the EU nevertheless warn that its ‘arrogant’ leaders are sleepwalking towards catastrophe with dire economic results, and that their inaction over the migrant crisis is sparking widespread antiBrussels resentment as well as seeing the rise of nationalistic parties across France and Germany.

On the face of it then, you would have thought campaigners for a united Europe would have had little to raise their glasses to as the final seconds of 2015 ticked away. After all, there could be no ushering out of the trials and tribulations of the old year, just the prospect of having to deal with unfinished business in the new, such as the credit market liquidity crisis that has been holding back business investment since the recession and the growing threat of a Greek loan repayment default and its exit from the eurozone.

Sluggish growth Despite ever greater fiscal control by member states, growth in the eurozone remained sluggish throughout 2015, just 0.3 per cent in the third quarter, while dole queues reduced only slightly.

Unemployment in Spain, sometimes held up as a eurozone ‘miracle’, stood at 22 per cent. In Greece, the figure was above 24

per cent.

So at the end of the year even the staunchest advocates of a single Europe would have pinched themselves to check that their dream was intact and had not been torn asunder by the myriad internal and external forces ranged against it. Then they may have taken heart that the EU had shown its roots are strong and reach deep, anchoring it against the tempests that have threatened its demise in the past.

Sternest test “Without doubt, these past few years since the recession have provided the European Union with its sternest test since its creation in Maastricht in 1992,” said European business consultant Paul Petherick. “And last year it came through a series of unprecedented challenges that many said would sow the seeds of its destruction.

“In fact the year saw the EU tested by twin crises – firstly, the six-month standoff between a newly elected far-left Greek government and its international creditors that almost ended in Greece’s ejection from the eurozone and then the arrival of more than one million migrants that threatened to trigger the collapse of the Schengen agreement for free movement of citizens between borders.

“Yet the EU has survived both tests. The Greek government dropped its demand for immediate debt relief and accepted an onerous third bailout, which was then approved by an overwhelming majority of the Greek parliament and endorsed by voters in a general election.

“Meanwhile, EU leaders committed themselves at a December summit to the creation of a border-security force that could be deployed anywhere in the bloc at the behest of the European Commission, a remarkable transfer of national sovereignty designed to shore up trust in the EU’s common migration rules.”

However Petherick cautioned that the lessons of the 2015 experience would need to be taken on board this year as the EU’s cohesion is certain to be severely tested again.

The battle lines are already being drawn ahead of the first review of the Greek bailout programme, which is due to start imminently with eurozone governments promising that it will pave the way for a restructuring of Greece’s debt. A possible flashpoint is the participation of the

International Monetary Fund, which the eurozone insists is a legal and political necessity but which Athens is resisting because it knows that the IMF will drive a hard bargain.

Similarly, sophisticated peoplesmuggling operations are unlikely to face a shortage of new customers among the millions of refugees from the Syrian crisis currently living in camps in Turkey and Lebanon or the many millions in Africa and Asia who dream of a better life in Europe. That is bound to put the EU’s new border security measures to the test, while once again challenging the limits of political cohesion.

“The EU will also face many new hurdles in 2016,” Petherick continued. “Just as a Greek exit or ‘Grexit’ from the eurozone in 2015 would have raised doubts about the survival of the single currency, a ‘Brexit’ this year would deal a devastating blow to the European integration project, weakening the continent’s ability to work together to address common challenges.”

Political risks Meanwhile, political risks are rising across the EU. A fragile minority Socialist government backed by two far-left parties took office in Portugal at the end of last year on a promise to reverse austerity.

Spain may be forced back to the polls later this year following an inconclusive election in December that offered little prospect of a stable government. In the spring it will be the Irish government’s turn to face the verdict of voters and while France’s mainstream parties saw off the National Front threat in December’s regional elections, the far right remains a potent electoral force in northern Europe.

Even so, the best bet must be that the EU will hang together again in 2016, if only due to the trepidation among member states about the implications of going it alone. European citizens may rail against what they regard as an increasingly over-mighty EU, but their governments will continue to look to Brussels for solutions to crises that they are too weak to manage alone. Even the reluctant British are ultimately likely to opt for the security of continued membership of a club that allows them to shape the continent’s responses to common challenges.

“Overall the EU has been a massive Continued page 58

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 57

BUSINESS: FUTURE OF EU Many looming challenges.... (continued) success economically for its member countries, even if it has not enjoyed the harmonious political unity that its founders had hoped for,” continued Petherick. “Some countries may indeed feel that they might be better off if they were independent from the EU, but trade in Europe is imperative in order to survive.

Europe is now one of the largest markets in the world and is likely to get even bigger.

“So one of the biggest challenges for the EU is to decide to what extent it wishes to control its members. Having a single free market and a single currency might be the extent of it. Some of its wealthier members are reluctant about poorer nations joining. They fear they will only end up supporting these countries financially, which is a prophecy that has come home to roost for Germany. Being the region’s strongest economy, it is considered to be the paymaster of Europe, shouldering the

burden of helping to bail out more troubled eurozone nations. But it can only do this for so long.

“The other fear is the free movement of labour within the EU. While having resulted in a huge influx of migrants into wealthier countries, it has also provided a huge boost to the economies of member states, refreshing markets blighted by labour shortages due to falling fertility rates and ageing populations.

L’Union européenne survivra-t-elle à 2016 ? Il n’est pas insensé de se poser cette question si l’on pense à la série de crises que la régions a subies dans un passé récent et aux défis qu’elle aura à relever sous un horizon de plus en plus sombre. Hartley Milner se met à la recherche de certaines réponses possibles.

Wird die Europäische Union das Jahr 2016 überleben?

Diese Frage ist angemessen, angesichts der Erschütterungen, die die Region in den letzten Jahren durch einen perfekten Sturm von Krisen erlitten hat, und aufgrund der neuen Herausforderungen, die an einem sich verdunkelnden Horizont aufragen.

Hartley Milner begibt sich auf die Suche nach einigen Antworten.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 58

Refugee crisis “Now, on top of this, we have had the refugee crisis, which represents the largest population movement in Europe since the Second World War. Its size and complexity make it difficult to draw simple economic conclusions. The affected countries in Europe – from Germany to Greece – have different capacities to respond and are receiving refugees with vastly

different skills and backgrounds. Still, studies on previous waves of refugees are encouraging. Contrary to popular perception, they show that asylumseekers do not necessarily depress the wage of natives.

“But ultimately it is popular perceptions that will decide the future of the European project. While the heads of member states are politically committed to the EU, how will their citizens respond to seeing refugees pouring over their borders in ever increasing numbers? When will they say enough is enough? We will get an indication of this when Britain puts its continued EU membership to the vote.

“There has been growing disillusionment with the European Union among its citizens for a number of years now, and what is certain is that at the end of the day it will be they who will decide whether the EU survives and in what form.”

Sopravviverà il 2016 l’Unione Europea? E’ una domanda lecita, considerando le sconfitte che la regione ha subito in seguito alla forte bufera di crisi degli ultimi anni e con le nuove sfide che incombono in un orizzonte che si oscura sempre di più. Hartley Milner va alla ricerca di riposte.

HYGIENE IN HEALTHCARE

The new hero in hospitals There have been many products tried and tested in the realm of hospital and healthcare in the quest to discover the most effective cleaner in an industry where hygiene is paramount.

Adam Duxbury, new product development chemist at specialist chemical company, Airedale Chemical, explains why there is a new hero product emerging that is ticking all the boxes for hospital buyers: peracetic acid (PAA).

The healthcare profession’s search to find the most effective cleaning products and methods is an ongoing pursuit with no clear ‘winner’ as yet, with several chemicals and solutions each with their own strengths and weaknesses. However, in recent years, peracetic acid (PAA) has emerged as the disinfectant of choice over other traditional methods of disinfection in healthcare environments.

Unlike bleach (sodium hypochlorite), it does not linger on surfaces. PAA components are completely biodegradable to its base elements of hydrogen peroxide and acetic acid. In comparison to bleach, which requires rinsing after use, PAA does not need to be rinsed off surfaces.

When used correctly, it can be used to sanitise surfaces, vessels, closed systems and equipment safely, ensuring surfaces remain sanitised until required.

This effective bactericide disinfectant, which also acts as a fungicide and sporicide is a broad spectrum product, generally considered a more powerful alternative to hydrogen peroxide. It breaks down the permeability of cell walls and oxidises enzymes, metabolites and proteins.

PAA rinses away completely, leaving no residue but is still able to kill many microorganisms. It is often used as a destainer in laundry applications and is highly effective at low temperatures.

The low corrosion risk, which is in contrast to some disinfectants that can affect metal surfaces, means it can be safely used for the cleaning of many medical and dental instruments without having to worry about damage occurring.

It is now one of the most frequently used disinfectants for the sterilisation of medical devices such as endoscopy equipment as it has such potent disinfecting qualities but doesn’t leave behind any toxic deposits which could jeopardise patients’ health.

With efficiency being so high on the agendas of health authorities, the fact that PAA has such a long shelf life, coupled with its environmental credentials mean it is increasingly becoming the product which gives buyers value for money.

Only very low concentrations are required to achieve effective disinfection, particularly in comparison to bleach and hydrogen peroxide, where overdosing is a common mistake - making PAA not only a cost effective, efficient disinfecting choice but also a safer alternative for hospitals and end users.

Despite the many advantages of using PAA, there are still other products which have proven popular in the past and still hold a place in certain areas of healthcare hygiene.

Back to basics: bleach Sodium hypochlorite is still used extensively in hospitals as a disinfection agent because the CRAs (chlorine release agents) it contains are highly effective for disinfection purposes although it is generally classed as an intermediate level disinfectant.

Its stain removal properties make it an ideal choice for cotton fabrics such as towels and bed linen which are prone to staining and tend to mark most easily, but can be recovered with bleach.

Unfortunately over-bleaching of this type of fabric item can compromise the fibre structure, diminishing the lifespan of sheets and other textiles. Neither are coloured fabrics suitable for sodium hypochlorite bleaching because of the effect it can have on the dye.

Bleach is still commonly used to disinfect blood spillages on hard surfaces and has been proven to remove the HIV and Hepatitis B virus when in the form of CRAs. These CRAs are so effective because they destroy the cellular activity of proteins and are highly active oxidising agents.

Sodium hypochlorite displays significant levels of sporicidal and virucidal eradication and has generally been accepted as the most effective defence against the digestive system infection clostridium difficile (C.Diff).

It is easy to see why it has played such a large part in the cleaning routines of hospitals and healthcare institutions. Its price point and low toxicity value mean it is still an essential part of the process today and is likely to be around for many years to come.

However it is not without disadvantages. It must be rinsed well from all surfaces due to its corrosive nature and while it is effective at killing microorganisms, the breakdown products from chlorine bleach can be harmful by-products and can be detrimental to aquatic animals and other creatures found in our waterways.

Bleach also contains products that are not compatible with certain types of materials and can have adverse reactions.

Anyone handling sodium hypochlorite needs to wear appropriate PPE to avoid harm caused by exposure to the liquid or its vapours, which can be an additional cost and risk to health authorities and healthcare businesses.

The best of the rest Hydrogen peroxide makes a great alternative to some other sterilisers which can be toxic which is why it is still used to Continued page 61

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 59

HYGIENE IN HEALTHCARE disinfect some equipment such as endoscopy tools.

It is an effective bactericidal, virucidal, fungicidal and sporicidal making it a longstanding and popular option for highlevel disinfection and sterilisation in the healthcare industry. It can also be used in a vapour form to clean rooms (HPV).

Ultra-violet light (UV) uses no chemicals so has been a popular alternative to traditional cleaning products in hospital cleaning and has been found to be effective against pathogens which are resistant to drugs and in particular to antibiotics.

It is used in sealed cabinets in which high energy UV light is emitted and disturbs the DNA of microorganisms, bacteria and other viruses by breaking bonds and inhibiting cellular functions.

UV is mutagenic to bacteria, viruses and other microorganisms. It kills or disables microorganisms which have little or no Le secteur de la santé présente des exigence d’hygiène toutes particulières, et de nombreux produits y ont été essayés et testés. ECJ jette un regard sur un produit émergeant qui impressionne les services d’approvisionnement des hôpitaux, l’acide péracétique (PAA).

UV protection.

UV can be highly effective, however the capital investment of equipment associated with this type of disinfection is high and users would need specialist training to operate it safely. This is potentially prohibitive and means the safety of the user of UV disinfection equipment remains a continual concern. Therefore its use and practicality in hospital cleaning remains limited.

At the other end of the technology spectrum, the easy-to-use disinfectant trigger spray cleaning products are still used widely in the healthcare sector. Often found in the forms of chlorine releasing agents such as chlorides, isothiaolinones, alkonium and dimethylammonium, trigger sprays are at risk of leaving behind residue as they need to be in contact with surfaces for at least five minutes to be fully effective. This residue could have serious Das Gesundheitswesen ist einer der Bereiche, in denen Hygiene ausschlaggebend sind, und es gibt viele bewährte Reinigungsprodukte. Das ECJ betrachtet ein neues Produkt genauer, das viele Krankenhaus-Einkäufer beeindruckt: Peressigsäure (PES).

implications in hospitals and healthcare establishments as it could affect food preparation and medication handling areas.

So despite their simplicity it is easy for these products to be used incorrectly - which would be dangerous to human health in a healthcare environment.

What next for hospital cleaning?

There is still a place for many of these products in the healthcare sector and likely to be so for many years to come. Healthcare authorities are under increasing pressure to cut costs and stay safe, whilst still being mindful of the wider environment. Therefore we predict peracetic acid is destined to be the staple disinfectant for at least the near future in hospital cleaning and we are certainly expecting strong growth in the sector. www.airedalechemical.com L’igiene nel settore sanitario è di massima importanza e sono molti i prodotti di pulizia provati e testati.

ECJ prende in esame un nuovo prodotto che sta suscitando molto interesse in numerosi addetti agli acquisti negli ospedali, l’acido Peracetico (PAA).

February/March 2016 2015 | ECJ | 61

PRODUCTS: HYGIENE IN HEALTHCARE

• Montés sur un plan de travail, les distributeurs de savon SureFlo de Bobrick utilisent la technologie des fibres optiques.

• L’aspirateur à vapeur Kärcher SGV 8/5 satisfait aux strictes exigences d’hygiène des applications alimentaires.

• L’équipement moussant de Birchmeier peut servir pour le nettoyage et la désinfection en milieu hospitalier.

• Der SureFlo Seifenspender für Waschtischmontage von Bobrick bietet berührungslose Glasfasertechnologie.

• Der Kärcher Dampfsauger SGV 8/5 erfüllt strenge Anforderungen von lebensmittelverarbeitenden Anwendungen.

• Die Schaumgeräte von Birchmeier werden im Gesundheitswesen zur Reinigung und Desinfektion eingesetzt.

• I dispenser automatici di sapone montati sul piano di lavoro SureFlo della Bobrick sono dotati della tecnologia a fibre ottiche no-touch.

• L’aspirapolvere a vapore Kärcher SGV 8/5 è conforme ai rigorosi requisiti di igiene necessari nelle applicazioni di preparazione di alimenti.

• Le attrezzature per schiuma della Birchmeier sono utilizzate per la pulizia e la disinfezione degli ambienti sanitari.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 62

Fibre-optic

Steel line

SureFlo automatic countermounted soap dispensers from Bobrick Washroom Equipment feature no-touch fibre-optic technology for optimum precision and hygiene. There is also a top-filling port for use with bulk soap, liquid or foam.

Bobrick also offers no-touch surface-mounted soap dispensers that accommodate soap, hand sanitisers and surgical soaps.

Also suitable for healthcare applications is the company’s automatic roll paper towel dispenser range which is designed to reduce cross-contamination, use economical roll paper towels and conserve paper.

The latest additions to the healthcare line are vinyl-coated accessories offering antimicrobial protection - a toilet tissue holder, robe hook, swing-up grab bar, straight grab bar, straight bariatric grab bar and bath seat. www.bobrick.co.uk

The Kärcher SGV 8/5 steam vacuum cleaner has been specifically designed to meet strict hygiene requirements. One of its key features is an automatic self-cleaning action that prevents the formation of germs inside the machine on completion of work.

This model uses hot steam to remove fats and oils, limescale or soap residues and eliminate the breeding ground for germs and bacteria. Steam is discharged from the floor nozzle under a continuous high pressure of eight bar.

For particularly stubborn dirt, a dose of 0.5 to three per cent

detergent is added to cold water.

After each use – immediately after using detergent or removing sticky dirt deposits – hoses, pumps and pipes can be automatically flushed to remove deposits and prevent germ formation.

The vacuum function can be switched on and off as required and the steam volume regulated via the control on the handle. www.karcher.com

Hand-held foam In the healthcare sector foam products are often used for cleaning and disinfection.

Birchmeier produces 0.5 litre hand-held foaming equipment, and air compressed foamers in 1.25 and five litre sizes for a very dry foam.

The air compressed models guarantee a long contact and reaction time and work without connection to a compressed air line. www.birchmeier.com

PRODUCTS: HYGIENE IN HEALTHCARE

Lower costs Tork manufacturer SCA offers a range of healthcare systems designed to maximise hygiene and improve safety while keeping down costs.

Tork Extra Mild Foam Soap, for example, is gentle on the hands and comes in a dispenser that has been purpose-designed to be easy to use, even for people with

low hand strength. It contains 2,500 shots of soap per refill.

For optimum hand drying compliance Tork Soft Singlefold Hand Towels are said to be particularly soft and absorbent. They also come in a tightly-sealed dispenser and only one can be removed at a time.

Finally the Tork SmartOne toilet tissue system comes in a fullyenclosed dispenser that prevents the roll inside from becoming wet or soiled before use. www.tork.co.uk

Four from one The new ECOMULTI dilution system from Brightwell Dispensers offers a cost-effective way of diluting up to four chemicals from one unit, says the company.

The new patented design of all Brightwell proportioners eliminates the need for metering tips, enabling installers to calibrate up to 12 independent dilution ratios per chemical outlet.

ECOMULTI is a flexible system

allowing chemical cabinets to be installed on either side of the dispenser, with an alternative option of drawing chemical from hanging brackets to avoid contact with hazardous chemicals. www.brightwell.co.uk

One pass

For use in hospitals, clinics and care homes IPC developed the microfibre floor mop Path, for dusting and washing in one pass. The shorter thread of this mop captures dirt and dust and retains them in the centre while the sides of the mop wash any type of smooth floor.

This eliminates the need for different frames and separate mops for dusting and washing says IPC. And the mops can be used with any frame. www.ipcleaning.com

• SCA, le fabricant des produits Tork, propose des systèmes pour l’hygiène des mains maximisant l’hygiène au moindre prix.

• Le nouveau dispositif Ecomulti de Brightwell Dispenser permet de gérer la dilution de jusqu’à quatre produits chimiques débités par un seul distributeur.

• La tête de balayage humide Path réalisée par IPC dépoussière et lave en une seule passe.

• Tork-Hersteller SCA produziert Handhygienesysteme, die konzipiert wurden, um bei minimalen Kosten maximale Hygiene zu bieten.

• Der neue Ecomulti von Brightwell Dispensers ermöglicht die Verdünnung von bis zu vier Reinigungschemikalien aus einem Spender.

• Der Mikrofasermopp Path von IPC kann in einem Arbeitsgang Staub wischen und abwaschen.

• La SCA, produttrice dei prodotti Tork, produce sistemi per l’igiene delle mani progettati per massimizzare l’igiene tenendo bassi i costi.

• Il nuovo prodotto Ecomulti della Brightwell Dispensers offre il modo di diluire fino a quattro prodotti chimici con un unico dispenser.

• Il mop in microfibra Path prodotto dalla IPC è in grado di spolverare e lavare in una sola passata.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 63

PRODUCTS: HYGIENE IN HEALTHCARE

• Les lingettes sèches Diversey permettent à l’utilisateur d’ajouter le désinfectant ou le de son choix pour la réalisation instantanée de lingettes humides.

• Brosserie Thomas fabrique des brosses et outils de nettoyage convenant pour les applications du secteur de la santé.

• Le distributeur sans contact Autosoap réalisé par Hyprom peut être chargé en gel hydroalcoolique ou en savon antispetique.

• La raclette hygiénique Moerman à lame caoutchouc remplaçable s’utilise dans les zones codées à couleur tout en minimisant le risque d’infection croisée.

• La DampDry 31 est une nouvelle tête de balayage humide à microfibre proposée par Vikan pour le nettoyage d’aires hospitalières à hygiène critique.

• L’appareil Giselle proposé par De Nora Next produit une solution désinfectante à partir d’eau et de sel.

• Diversey Dry Wipes ermöglicht es Benutzern, ein Desinfektionsmittel oder Reinigungsmittel nach eigener Wahl hinzuzufügen, um im Nu Feuchttücher zu erhalten.

• Brosserie Thomas fertigt Bürsten und Reinigungswerkzeuge, die zur Nutzung im Gesundheitswesen geeignet sind.

• Der berührungslose Spender Autosoap von Hyprom kann mit Wasser-Alkohol-Gel oder antiseptischer Seife befüllt werden.

• Der Moerman Hygienic Squeegee mit austauschbarem Blatt wurde für den Einsatz in Arbeitsbereichen mit farblicher Kennzeichnung und gleichzeitiger Minimierung des Risikos der Kreuzkontamination konzipiert.

• Bei DampDry 31 handelt es sich um einen neuen Mikrofasermopp von Vikan für Krankenhausbereiche, in denen Hygiene besonders wichtig ist.

• Bei Giselle von De Nora Next handelt es sich um ein System, das unter Verwendung von Wasser und Salz eine Desinfektionslösung erzeugt.

• La Diversey Dry Wipes permette agli operatori di aggiungere disinfettante o detergente a loro scelta per ottenere istantaneamente panni imbevuti.

• La Brosserie Thomas produce spazzole e attrezzi per le pulizie adatti per l’uso nel settore sanitario.

• Il dispenser no-touch Autosoap della Hyprom può essere riempito sia con gel idroalcolico che con sapone antisettico.

• Il tergipavimento Moerman Hygienic Squeegee con lamella in gomma sostituibile è adatto per l’uso in aree di lavoro codificate in base al colore e minimizza i rischi di contaminazione crociata.

• DampDry 31 è il nuovo mop in microfibra prodotto dalla Vikan per le pulizie negli ambienti ospedalieri dove l’igiene è di massima importanza.

• Giselle della De Nora Next è un sistema che produce una soluzione sanitizzante utilizzando sale e acqua di rubinetto.

February/March 2016 | ECJ | 64

Dry wipes

For hands

Diversey Dry Wipes allow the user to add the disinfectant or cleaner of their choice to instantly make wet wipes onsite - and the wipe material is compatible with most disinfectant technologies.

By adding Diversey Care Oxivir Plus to the tub of Dry Wipes, for example, the operative can create a wipe on demand, effective against a broad range of pathogens. Its for-

mulation is based on patented Accelerated Hydrogen Peroxide (AHP) technology.

The system reduces chemical use and the incidence of splashes and spills, says Diversey Care, and wipes can be safely disposed of after use. And thanks to the enclosed system with a snap-fit closure they can be used across shifts and carried out by cleaning staff. www.diversey.com

Two for one

For optimum hand hygiene in healthcare applications Hyprom’s no-touch dispenser Autosoap can be refilled with the company’s hydroalcoholic gel Sanigel or with antiseptic soap.

Both refills are bactericide, fungicide and virucide according to the EU standards. The user simply holds a hand under the sensor on the dispenser and a measure is automatically delivered.

The airtight refills have a disposable pump incorporated and the Autosoap can be fixed with screws or taped to a flat surface. A portable stand option is also available. www.hyprom.com

HACCP squeegee

Hygiene brushes Specialising in the production of hygiene brushes and tools is Brosserie Thomas. Its products comply with HACCP requirements and can be autoclaved - they are also claimed to be lightweight, easy to handle, durable, rust- and rot-proof.

Brushes and squeegees are supplied individually wrapped and feature polypropylene backs for durability and suitability for sensitive environments. And products come colour-coded to avoid cross-contamination. www.brosseriethomas.com

and the easy locking/unlocking system makes it simple to replace the rubber which comes in a replaceable cartridge.

The colour-coded profi+ squeegee is a heavy duty hard plastic floor squeegee with smooth surface frame. www.moermangroup.com

Vikan says its new DampDry 31 microfibre-based mop is a two-in-one product that enables customers to save on overall mop costs, storage space and procurement and stock management costs.

The key to the DampDry 31’s ability to handle both damp and dry mopping is its cleaning surface, claims the company. The microfibre edges generate static electricity that picks up dust and dirt particles when mopping dry.

The mop’s centre is enhanced

with polyester to reduce friction when damp-mopping.

Ergonomic features include a lightweight design and lowfriction surface for easier, faster cleaning and no need for wringing or changing water or detergent. www.vikan.com

On demand

Colour-coded squeegees from Moerman have been developed in line with HACCP requirements, to minimise the risk of cross-contamination.

The company’s hygienic squeegee is a heavy one that stays solid on the ground, requiring less force for effective cleaning. The body and the green natural rubber are made of FDA-approved components

The Giselle system from De Nora Next produces a sodium hypochlorite sanitising solution called Soleva on site and on demand using only salt, tap water and electricity.

The company claims the system enables a wide range of locations and objects to be hygienically cleaned.

Giselle has also undergone operational testing to demonstrate the effectiveness of Soleva in removing blood and urine from ceramic and steel. www.denoranext.com

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