CALL THE JANITOR

BEST PRACTICES FOR CLEANING AND SANITIZING BUILDINGS AMID COVID-19

BY NICK FORTUNA

For building owners and managers, janitorial services in the age of COVID-19 may bring to mind a famous quote from New York Yankees legend Yogi Berra: “Baseball is 90% mental. The other half is physical.”

Sure, there’s the physical component of curbing viral transmission in occupied buildings by stepping up cleaning practices and using scientifically proven equipment and products. But you can’t disregard the mental part. Regardless of the type of building, occupants should have confidence that they’re in a safe environment, and that means informing them about the cleaning and disinfecting practices that have been put in place.

Dr. Stephanie Martin, research technical leader for products at Kimberly-Clark Professional, said that educational component is key to her company’s marketing strategy for its Scott 24-Hour Sanitizing Wipes. Those wipes are the first on the market proven to maintain surface sanitization for a full 24 hours when used as directed, killing 99.9% of bacteria, even after multiple touches.

Scott 24-Hour Sanitizing Wipes clean, sanitize and disinfect without requiring rinsing or the use of gloves. The bleach-free wipes use patented technology to create an antimicrobial defense barrier that kills bacteria while also providing traditional disinfectant benefits, such as killing the virus that causes COVID-19.

Martin said building owners and managers are adding the pre-saturated wipes to their existing sanitization efforts for a finishing touch with daylong benefits. They’re ideal for frequently touched surfaces such as work stations, elevator buttons, doorknobs, tables, countertops, cabinet handles, bannisters, handrails, vending machines, coffee stations and payment kiosks.

But since the wipes need to be applied only once daily, building occupants may be unaware that this product is being used. That’s why Kimberly-Clark Professional provides clients with educational materials describing the product’s benefits and attributes.

Signage that can be affixed to windows, mirrors and walls, along with tent cards that can be placed atop flat surfaces, inform occupants about the wipes’ long-lasting protection. There’s even a QR code printed on the materials that sends smartphone users to a one-minute online video explaining the technology behind the wipes.

“It’s important to educate occupants about what you’re doing differently in order to get credit from them for that effort,” Martin said. “We want building owners and managers to use this product, but we also want them to get credit for using it.”

One area where the physical and mental components of sanitization intersect is the concept of cleaning for an audience. Prior to the pandemic, many owners and managers had their buildings cleaned primarily at night to prevent any workday interruptions.

But due to COVID-19, occupants now want to know—and see—that their buildings are being cleaned throughout the day as part of an enhanced cleaning regimen, according to Michele Forman, director of national sales enterprise solutions for ABM, a leading provider of building maintenance and facility services.

While sometimes referred to as “performative cleaning” or even “hygiene theater,” daytime cleaning and sanitization efforts using traditional cleaning products and electrostatic sprayers can instill building occupants with peace of mind and a sense of confidence in their safety. ABM is even outfitting some of its cleaning professionals with special uniforms to convey the message that these are sanitization specialists trained to give facilities an extra-thorough clean, Forman said.

“When people can see us spraying, wiping, disinfecting and dusting, then that helps them feel better about the buildings they’re occupying,” Forman said.

“Due to COVID-19, there’s a hyper-focus on infection control, and we think that’s here to stay,” she added. “More clients are requiring—and we’re recommending to them—some form of enhanced cleaning, and that may mean having an extra person working as a disinfection specialist to make sure those buildings are healthy environments for occupants.”

As part of that strategy, ABM has expanded its use of powerful cleaning agents traditionally used only in hospitals and other health-care settings. Using these products in high-traffic buildings can help curb viral transmission, Forman said. In addition, clients are using signage to display the time of day when a common area, such as a conference room, was most recently cleaned, making occupants more comfortable entering those spaces.

Amid a national labor shortage, many building owners and managers may not have enough manpower to assign one worker to wiping door handles and elevator buttons all day. To Martin and Forman, that challenge illustrates the potential advantages of using new cleaning products that provide long-lasting benefits or outsourcing janitorial services to a vendor.

“Products such as our wipes can bridge the gap between deep cleanings and give building owners and managers more confidence between cleanings,” Martin said. “From a resource management perspective, it’s almost like having another person on your cleaning team.”