We are in the middle of a hot summer right now, along with a Pandemic and quarantine. Before you know it, the temps are going to cool down, and flu season will be here, and now is the time to get the workspace prepared.
What starts as just a sniffle for one person will quickly spread to the entire office, hospitality, retail stores, schools, universities, and other high-traffic facilities. Before you realize, more of your staff are experiencing severe flu symptoms, spreading those germs to others – the domino effect.
Dedicated Employees Cost Money
Dedicated employees are rare to find, but it would be better if they were a little more selfish when it comes to flu season. The more dedicated employees show up to work, the more money the flu will cost your business. Businesses, especially commercial facilities with clientele and visitors, lost over $7 billion because of sick employees in 2014. Experts are expecting those numbers to climb by the end of 2020 flu season.
Fortunately, you can do things as a business owner or site manager to minimize the flu spreading. You can keep your employees, customer’s, and visitors healthy and your business running:
Six Commercial Building Cleaning Tips
Below are six commercial building cleaning tips you can implement to create a healthy facility work environment.
1. Hot Spots: Identify Them, Clean Them
Identify the main contact spots throughout your facility and schedule them for a thorough cleaning three times daily. Areas like breakrooms, conference rooms, lobby, restrooms, supply room, anywhere that has daily foot traffic and activity during working hours. All door handles, faucets, keyboards, refrigerators, microwaves, counters, phones, sinks, toilets, vending machines, water coolers or water fountains, etc. Break rooms and restrooms are a severe hotspot for bacteria and germs that spread viruses.
2. Use Proper Cleaning Agents
During flu season, have ample supplies of disinfecting products that are disposable. Disinfecting wipes, a multi-purpose / multi-surface disinfectant spray with paper towels, are ideal products instead of wet rags and sponges. Purchase products that are noted on the label to kill the influenza A virus. These products contain chlorine bleach, hydrogen peroxide, and ammonium-based cleaners and will have EPA-registered indicated on the label.
3. Promote Handwashing
This cleaning and sanitizing the office and common areas regularly aren’t enough. Promote handwashing with employees, students, and others that are present daily or frequently. Keep the soap dispensers, and sanitizing dispenser filled, have multiple sanitizer stations throughout the buildings and keep the kitchens and bathrooms well supplied with paper towels and soap.
4. Sanitize Common and Personal Desks
Desks and workstations that are used by multiple people are bacteria and germ breeding grounds. Keep sanitizing wipes in supply at each station and reminders for the last person to clean up after themselves and the next person to wipe the area down again.
5. Phones
Telephones are ground for bacteria and germs to spread. They are handled and then held to the face with the mouth resting on it. Keeps disinfectant by each general use phone and add to the three times a day cleaning routine. Encourage each employee to wipe down their desk phone three times a day.
6. Day Porter
A large commercial facility, public building, or any place with a high amount of foot traffic can benefit from a day porter. Educational environments, entertainment facilities, financial institutes, hospitality environments like hotels and restaurants, and medical environments like clinics, doctor offices, and hospitals, are hot spots for bacteria, germs, and viruses like the flu. These are places that have the exponential of spreading these things at a high rate.
A day porter has nothing but a focus on keeping a building clean during business hours. This person will be an addition to your janitorial staff or outside services that has the duty of keeping all common areas clean and sanitized. Areas like the lobby, waiting rooms, elevator, any space that the general public is present during regular business hours.
Closing Reminders and Thoughts
People touch surfaces that could have bacteria and germs on them and then touch their faces, spreading that bacterial and germs that spread the flu virus and other contagious diseases and illnesses. Fortunately, with consistent cleaning and disinfecting, as we’ve discussed here, the flu and other diseases, illnesses, or viruses can be eliminated or minimized.
Any surface that has been soiled or even possibly soiled during a regular workday should be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected. Remember, cleaning and disinfectants have the best results when used according to label instructions. The contact time and killing germ time varies between products. Some disinfecting products need to be applied and allowed to dry to be effective, and others need to be left to dry on the surface to be effective.
Educate every employee on flu prevention they can do on their own and as a community. Encourage flu vaccinations, and if your company or institute is large enough, arrange an on-site flu vaccination day. Remind employees that sick days should be taken when running a slight fever or when coughing and sneezing. Remind every employee handwashing is key to keeping the flu and other illnesses and viruses at bay. Remind everyone to wash their hands with soap and water, use paper towels to dry hands after using the restroom, use a tissue, and remove any wastebasket.
About Kohl Building Maintenance
From the very beginning, Kohl Building Maintenance has had the goal of consistently providing superior services to every client. We offer cost-effective solutions for any level of janitorial maintenance requirements. We implement only the highest standards of excellence and follow all recommendations of the CDC. Each team member has the determination to answer every expectation and unique set of needs while staying within each client’s financial considerations with our professional services.
If you are looking for commercial cleaning services near your area, Call Kholbm today at 818.882.2600
or request a FREE estimate! Our coronavirus disinfects and decontamination services will give you reassurance, knowing full well that your office or workplace has been thoroughly sanitized. This will help prevent your staff from contracting an infectious disease, such as COVID-19.