Pub. 4 2014-2015 Issue 2

26 In this article I will provide a brief overview of several important janitorial and maintenance tasks to be completed during the spring and summer to prepare for the upcoming school year, along with a few ideas to help school team members better prepare for and accomplish the larger and more difficult tasks. Floor care services During the winter months salt, mud, dirt, and grime from outside begin to breakdown and damage the floor’s finish on the school vinyl tile, wear out or destroy the woven fibers in the carpet, and will begin to scratch and/or destroy other hard surfaces floors with unfinished and/or improperly finished flooring. It is important to properly maintain each specific type of flooring using both interim and restorative cleaning procedures and practices. Some of these services are frequently referred to as stripping and refinishing, interim and restorative carpet extraction and carpet cleaning, and tile and grout steam cleaning/sealing. Deep cleaning services These services are important for the overall health and well-being of the individuals who attend the school. All surfaces that are touched on a frequent basis need to repeat- edly be cleaned and disinfected and an antimicrobial surface treatment may be added to prevent the frequent spread of germs and infection. Air vents need to be cleaned frequently to help in maintaining school health, and restrooms should be thoroughly disinfected and hygienically cleaned on a continual basis. When the kids are out of school on summer break, every nook and cranny of the school should be evaluated, properly cleaned, and thoroughly disinfected. Interior and Exterior maintenance services When considering the overall health and the cleanliness of schools, simply remembering to change the air filters for the HVAC equipment on a frequent basis may help to decrease sickness and increase school cleanliness. After working with and providing services for several health clinics here in Utah, I learned about the importance of utilizing high quality “pleated” filters whenever possible. This will help both protect and prolong the life of the school HVAC equipment as well as capture dust, germs, and bacteria that can blow through the ventilation system. Just thinking about completing the few service tasks discussed above can be overwhelming for many individuals. Then, if you consider the hundreds of other routine tasks that should be completed to properly maintain the school, provide a clean and healthy environment for everyone, and prolong the life of the school building, many improperly or non-trained staff members become very stressed and overwhelmed and forget to complete important yet simple routine tasks. Here are a few effective and important ideas which should help your school’s janitorial and maintenance team think in a more proactive way and help minimize the burden they feel when deciding how to accomplish so much work with limited time, budget constraints and minimizing school resources. Become knowledgeable in the industry Research and implement the use of cost effective and efficient chemicals and equipment. Look for and implement the use of the newest and most advanced technologies. This will increase production rates and cut product and labor costs. In today’s world, there are many different ways, products and pieces of equipment to accomplish individual janitorial and service tasks. By looking for and completing industry trainings, searching for industry related online forums, joining and participating in janitorial and maintenance social network groups, seeking to answer questions through online search engines such as Google, and even watching how to videos on YouTube, I am confident that every janitorial and maintenance team member can learn efficient and effective methods to accomplish the more difficult tasks at hand. By obtaining more knowledge, you definitely help your school become much cleaner, reduce labor costs and keep a healthier environment for students, staff members, and visitors. Spring and Summer Tips: How To Properly Prepare Your School A s the cold winter weather comes to an end and spring flowers begin to bloom, now is the time to start preparing for and completing the long and dreaded list of the spring and summer janitorial and maintenance service tasks. Although the long list of tasks that need to be completed as part of the spring and summer janitorial and maintenance services may appear to be overbearing at first glance, it is important to remember the many ways in which each member of the school staff can prepare for and simplify each cleaning, maintenance, and restorative building task that needs to be completed. BY SHEA SEALY, PRESIDENT - ADVANCED BUILDING CARE, LLC