Our professional cleaning blog

Accidents happen. No matter how many precautions we take, eventually, all carpets will be spilt on. So when this happens, you need to be able to deal with it. This guide will show you how to get oil out of a carpet, absorb paint or ink, and manage the onslaught of muddy feet! Whether your carpet is commercial or domestic, large or small, the management of dirt and stains will extend the life of the carpet. Not only this, but a clean carpet provides the foundation for a positive spacial environment.

We’ve divided stains into three areas - oil, dye and mud. These encompass very different types of stain: oil and grease-based products, dying products such as paint or ink, and natural staining like mud and grime.

Speed of Response

One thing that all stains have in common is that the speed of your response to the stain is vital. Prompt treatment of any stain will decrease both the effort that it takes to remove it, and the likeliness of it leaving a trace. Don’t forget, blotting a stain rather than scrubbing it will always yield superior results for carpets. The friction of rubbing a stain will embed it further into the carpet fibres. Which is why the pressure of blotting enables the culprit of your stain to be lifted and removed.

How to get oil out of carpet

When it comes to oil and how to get oil out of carpet flooring, the key is in absorption. As oil and oily substances are so viscous, it takes additional substances to help to lift the spill from carpet fibres. There are both home and chemical solutions to treat a spill.

Cornflour

Once the excess spill is initially absorbed with a dry cloth, liberally sprinkle cornflour onto the area affected by the stain. This will further absorb oil from the carpet. Vacuum the cornflour from the carpet and repeat if necessary. Following this process, you can wash the area with washing up liquid or carpet shampoo to complete the clean.

Cleaning Solvent

This specialist type of cleaning solution helps to dissolve the grease and remove the stain. As it's a chemical product it is wise to test it on a hidden area of carpet first. Press the solvent into the stained area with a cloth and leave standing for around 5 minutes. Then blot the solution and allow to dry. You can repeat this process if the oil is proving to be stubborn!

How to get dye out of carpet

The challenge with spills that contain dying agents such as ink or paint, is that traces of the stain are more likely to remain and discolour the carpet. Before applying solutions, remove as much of the spill as you can from the surface of the carpet.

Everyday Solution

Household surgical spirit can be applied to a spill of ink or paint. Blot with a cloth and repeat. You may need to do this several times, and the solution itself can sit on the spot for around 30 minutes to get to the heart of the stain. Rinse with a mix of white vinegar and warm water. Once dried, vacuum the area.

Commercial Solution

When the excess spill is absorbed from the carpet you can apply a chemical carpet stain remover. Be more sparing with these products than you would be with household solutions to avoid unnecessary damage. When dealing with paint, don’t attempt to use paint thinner on the carpet as this will damage the fibres. Rinse the surface and allow to dry.

How to Get Mud Out of Carpet

As a natural substance, you may assume that mud and dirt is more straightforward to remove. However, this is a stain which spreads easily so treat the stains with caution.

Mud is easier to manage when dry, so pick up any clumps of excess and allow the carpet surface to dry. Now, a lot of the stain will come away with a vacuum cleaner. For best results use a hose attachment and vacuum in all directions. Now, blot the remaining stain with a mix of water and washing up liquid. If the stain proves more stubborn, move on to a commercial carpet stain remover or shampoo. Using downward pressure, these solutions can absorb and lift the stain. Just make sure that you rinse the carpet clean of the solution and allow to dry before allowing footfall on the carpet.

Home or Commercial Products?

Which products should you use for the best results? For domestic spills, you can often get as good a result using items found in an ordinary kitchen cupboard as many commercial products. However, depending on what has been spilt and the extent of the stain, a heavy-duty commercial product may be more effective. For example, you may find how to get oil out of carpet yourself a challenge. Professional cleaners have access to more complex cleaning solutions which is why they are able to achieve such great results.

When to Call in the Professionals

So, when should you look to professional assistance for your carpet? You may have experienced failed cleaning, or simply want peace of mind that the stain will be removed without a trace. Alternatively, your carpet may be too delicate for you to dare to touch it for fear of permanent damage! For office spaces which either require regular carpet maintenance or have extremely large areas of carpet, professional cleaning contractors offer great value for money. Just give us a call at CJH Cleaning to find out how we can rejuvenate your carpet.

For businesses large and small, budgets have become increasingly tricky to balance. And office cleaning is no different. You wouldn’t be alone in thinking that you can trim some of your budget from your workplace hygiene contracts. However, sometimes the most economically prudent course of action is to choose a professional cleaning job. So in this ever competitive commercial environment, what are the tasks that really need a professional hand? And what should you understand about how to price a cleaning job? 

Who Should Clean?

For small businesses, it is tempting to spread the burden of office cleaning amongst the workforce. However, this is often a breeding ground for discontent. Not to mention for germs when individuals fail to pull their weight! So for any size of business, there is value in removing the responsibility of cleaning from your office workers. Don’t forget that cleaning in commercial premises is actually quite complex. It’s one thing to expect your staff to wash up their cups at the end of the day. It's quite another to expect them to take on more detailed cleaning than is required in an office. 

Heavy-Duty Cleaning Jobs

So which specific aspects of a cleaning job are always best left to the professionals?

Carpets

 Office floors can be easily neglected. After all, who looks at a floor? Well, lots of people actually - especially clients! Almost imperceptibly, office carpets can deteriorate to such an extent that they affect first impressions. Your professional cleaning contractor will have access to and experience with intensive carpet cleaning equipment. This kit can give your floor a new lease of life. The job will be achieved more quickly and effectively in the hands of office cleaners who are focussed on the task.

At Height

 Some aspects of commercial or office cleaning require working at height. This may mean windows, ceilings, solar panels or signage. This type of cleaning is subject to stringent health and safety requirements. This cleaning job may require a water fed pole system and powered access platforms. A professional contractor will have access to this equipment to make the job quicker and more thorough. 

Specialist 

 Industries and areas which require specialist cleaning include industrial zones, medical premises and even schools. These require specific equipment, training standards and processes. When your experienced cleaning contractor carries these as standard, these reassurances are included when they price a cleaning job of this type.

Detailed Cleaning Jobs

It’s not just heavy duty cleaning that benefits from the hands of professionals. In addition, detailed jobs are achieved to a superior standard by an experienced contractor. 

Technology

With so many tiny nooks and crannies, your office desk computer and phone setups are a breeding ground for bacteria. This is mainly down to food particles and contact with hands and faces. As a one-off or occasional deep cleanse, this detailed cleaning job can prevent the spread of workplace illness and increase the lifespan of your technology. 

Waste Management 

 As businesses become increasingly aware of the importance of recycling materials, this aspect of waste management is incredibly important. Experience and knowledge of the waste process is vital here. Professional waste management service providers have access to the correct recycling and waste processes. This can help your business confidently meet its environmental commitments in terms of recycling and waste responsibility. 

Everyday Cleaning Jobs

Many of the cleaning jobs that we have mentioned need to be undertaken with some degree of regularity. Add to this the requirement for everyday office cleaning. From desks to the kitchen, is this something that your business has struggled to keep under control? One of the most frequent sources of workplace dissatisfaction is office hygiene. So actually, outsourcing the everyday cleaning of your office can benefit staff satisfaction. 

How to Price and Budget

Every cleaning contract is different. This is down to variety of specialism, detail and frequency, along with differences in size and scale of building. So how can you know what to expect when you seek to fulfil a cleaning job? There are a few things to consider.

 Size of Space

 You will need to work out your office floor area, number of desks, bathrooms and communal spaces. All of these things affect how to price a cleaning job. One thing remains true though, the frequency of contracts will always bring the overall price down when compared to one-off cleans. 

 Be Specific About Your Needs

 Talk to your commercial cleaner about your expectations and requirements. Explain to them how the space is used. When and where things get busy, and which areas come under the most scrutiny from visitors. An experienced professional cleaner can advise how best to utilise their services within your price budget. 

 Draft a Plan

 Cleaning is a cyclical affair. This is one thing that domestic and commercial cleaning has in common. So alongside your regular daily or weekly clean, take the time to plan for seasonal cleans to windows, signage and flooring. This will help you to balance your budget across the year.

 Consolidate Your Suppliers

Once you have your plan of cleaning and waste management requirements, you can consolidate your contract with one supplier. This tends to bring price benefits. So rather than working out how to price a cleaning job individually, your overall contract covers these individual things over the year. From regular to occasional cleaning, internal to external, maintenance to waste removal, CJH cleaning have the experience and knowledge to structure a plan and a price that works for your business. So just contact us for a quote.

The modern office can be a wonderful place. Clean lines, modern decor and cutting edge technology. These spaces can foster creativity and productivity. It all comes down to nothing, though, if you’re surrounded by all things unhygienic! In fact, filthy workplace habits can ruin the workplace environment entirely and even spoil specific design features. 

The Rise of Productive Office Design

Thoughtful office design has been on the rise for many years now. Some businesses use vibrant colour to encourage positivity. Others choose modern materials with a clean, reflective quality such as glass to project clarity. And many businesses have turned their attention to the individual workspace with flexible desk space and breakout zones. So what’s the point in putting all this thought into an office design or layout if it’s going to be undermined? 

What are the Results of an Unhygienic Workplace?

Low standards of workplace hygiene can result in the spread of sickness and corresponding sick days for staff. In addition, an ongoing lack of clean etiquette can result in a general feeling of dissatisfaction within a workforce. So the organisation’s levels of productivity are low even when people are not taking days off sick! It can even be the reason for leaving a job, causing increased turnover of staff.

Which Habits are the most Reviled? 

According to office staff, in no particular order, the winners are:

Uncovered Sneezes

“Coughs and sneezes spread diseases” the adage goes. It’s true, of course. Perhaps we’re sounding like an elderly aunt! But the fact that nearly half of office workers cite this as their worst colleague habit surely shows we’re not alone! So grab a tissue or hankie and make sure you’re prepared.

Bathroom Behaviour

The office loo is the scene for multiple crimes! From not flushing the loo to failing to dispose of sanitary items properly, an unhygienic bathroom can cause huge stress. We all need to use the loo and if it’s repeatedly left in a disgusting state this can significantly effect a working day. So leave the place as you’d like to find it and you can’t go wrong.

Hand Washing

This gets a section all of its own! Yes, it’s certainly an unhygienic bathroom behaviour. But over a third of workers have noticed this habit amongst their colleagues. Which may come as a shock! The importance of hand washing is drummed into us at home and at school all through childhood so it’s a wonder that so many people don’t do it!

Desk Dining

This is a tricky one as it’s intrinsically linked with the pressures placed on colleagues by workload. However, eating lunch at your desk carries a cumulative effect on the hygiene of the space. Bacteria can build up in the tiny nooks, crannies and gaps in a keyboard and around your phone if left unchecked. 

Crockery Clutter

This is another big one. Over a third of workers complain about uncleaned crockery left in the office kitchen. This builds up very quickly to make what should be a helpful and social communal space unhygienic and unpleasant. Not only this, but the room can no longer fulfil its function.

Overflowing Bins

A bin is only a hygiene solution when it is regularly emptied. If left unchecked, a bin may smell or spill over, affecting the whole area around it. Businesses are becoming more conscious of waste management, and this complaint should really not be as prevalent as it is. 

What can we Do about all This?

It’s one thing to inspect all the gruesome habits of our colleagues, but quite another to take proactive steps to change it. But change things we must, to ensure a healthy, happy office workplace. So let’s look at what approaches to take in order to enact change.

Training

Education and information is always key in changing habits. Surprisingly, under 20% of employers provide training regarding workplace hygiene. When an unhygienic workspace impacts the productivity of staff, it is surely worth including hygiene in training programmes. 

Policy

Similarly, to uphold a clean and functional space for staff, employers should ensure they have policies in place. Promoting a simple principle like leaving an area as you would expect to find it can help to galvanise staff into acting more considerately.

Equipment

To uphold hygiene policies within the workplace, it’s vital to provide staff with the right tools to comply. So, make sure your bathroom never runs out of soap. Include within your budget things like anti-bac gel, tissues and washing up liquid. All this makes it harder to be unhygienic. 

Signage

Visual reminders are incredibly helpful in preventing unhygienic work habits re-emerging. So add affirming signage to communal areas like kitchens, bathrooms and breakout areas. Then there’s no reason for staff to ‘forget’!

Professional Cleaning

For reliable maintenance of standards within the workplace, employ a professional cleaner. In this way, your space can be managed and the pressure taken off colleagues. A good cleaner will manage your waste, conduct thorough IT cleaning and even ensure the cleanliness of your communal kitchen. 

Incentives

It’s always more productive to offer staff incentives than threaten consequences. So consider how a competitive angle may help. Perhaps you could have a ‘cleanest team’ reward. Cake or booze tends to be popular! The importance of professional office cleaning is highlighted when seen through the lens of unhygienic workplace habits. By laying this foundation for a clean environment, business productivity is improved and staff health and morale is lifted. For thorough, reliable office cleaning and guidance, just contact us at CJH Cleaning.

Who dares tackle the subject of the office kitchen?! It’s the space that causes the most unnecessary tension amongst colleagues. This all comes down to whether communal area rules are followed. Unless everybody pulls their weight, this and other communal spaces can turn into a battleground. Not only this, but they can become hives of unpleasantness, breeding both bacteria and discontent.

The Rise of the Communal Space

In modern offices, the kitchen is no longer the only communal space. With break out zones and games rooms on the up, there are plenty of open areas in which people are free to make mess. The challenges come along when it is time to clear the mess and leave the space as you found it. The increase in open, multifunctional spaces has proven to be great for business. Informal brainstorms and meetings in these spaces often incubate increased creativity and heightened focus. So the problem is not in the space itself.

A Matter of Etiquette

So, what are the rules which we assume that others should abide by? This is a set of unwritten rules, manners or etiquette. It may not be explicit, but these communal area rules are ingrained in most of us. More importantly, if we see them flouted we can be deeply offended and even angered.

The Most Common Complaints

So, what are the worst offending actions that colleagues commit? Those things that set most of our teeth on edge and raise our hackles. These horrific floutings of the communal area rules may be familiar…

Teabags in the Sink

Why not simply throw them in the bin? When you want to wash up a mug (because we know that you are a kind and courteous colleague!) and the sink is littered with others’ detritus, it’s no surprise that you feel cross!

Microwave Spillages

Not only is this a nuisance when you come to heat up your own soup, but unwiped spillages can breed bacteria.

Mouldy Food in the Fridge

That sinister looking salad which no one will claim… Who should display the bravery to delve in and remove the item?

Communal Supplies Left Empty

After an epic meeting, you go to make the cup of tea that you’ve been fantasising about… only to find that the tea bags are out. If you use the last one, get some more!

Filthy Teaspoons

The teaspoon graveyard. Sad looking spoons displaying layers of ground on staining is a sight that really shouldn’t exist any more… but it does! Get them washed up or in the dishwasher!

Piling Up the Dishes

At home with your family, or in a flatshare, the piling up of cups and plates by the dishwasher would put you in a rage. It’s no different in your office!

Impact on Productivity

For those colleagues who constantly find themselves picking up the slack when others ignore communal area rules, work life can become pretty demotivating. A sense of dissatisfaction in the workplace can grow and affect productivity. In the long term, this can increase staff turnover as dissatisfied staff seek pastures new. The people who have shown kitchen etiquette clearly show incentive and proactivity; so are they really the staff that you want to risk losing?

Provide Sufficient Facilities

So how does a business owner or office manager change how people behave regarding communal area rules? One of the first things is to ensure that the right facilities are available to allow staff to keep a space clean and clear. We mean recycling bins, a dishwasher and a plentiful supply of cleaning equipment. How about having a stock of permanent markers in the kitchen so that people can easily name their foodstuffs? This certainly prevents arguments about whose yoghurt is attempting to walk out of the building! 

Clarify Communal Area Rules

So, without being overbearing, what guidelines should you have in a communal area? Rules that should be explicitly detailed in staff newsletters and on the wall. This leaves all staff with no excuse. Ensure that these rules apply to everyone - and that includes the CEO!

Kitchen

• • • • Dirties should be dealt with by the person who used them - be this washed up or placed in a dishwasher.
      • Supplies should be replenished by those who finish them
      • Take responsibility for the fridge!

Break Spaces

• • • • Leave the space as you would wish to find it.  Because what goes around comes around.
      • Report any maintenance issues. Things can only be repaired when the powers that be know it’s broken!
      • Use the space respectively. Noise pollution is damaging too! 

Incentives

Carrot, not stick! If your kitchen or break out rooms remain in good repair and in a clean and clear condition, reward staff with improved facilities or an afternoon of cake! Staff are more likely to respond to these incentives rather than threats.

Get Professional

It’s all very well and good to say to colleagues that they must clean up after themselves. However, there’s always a deadline looming or an urgent meeting to leave for. It is these ‘one off’ circumstances that lead to a breakdown in communal area rules. So the only way to solve this bone of contention once and for all is to get a professional cleaning contractor to manage communal areas. From kitchens to games rooms and even crockery left on desks, you can instruct your office cleaning contractor to manage these spaces.

Your communal areas are important. And so communal area rules are vital to allow these spaces to fulfil their potential in encouraging creativity and focus. At CJH Cleaning, we manage regular cleaning throughout the office to relieve pressure on your workers. Our aim is to allow your staff to focus on the business and work more productively within their clean environment.

Whether you’re looking in or looking out, clean windows are important. In the commercial environment even more so. And what more vital part of a window that its transparency? For a dirty office window, compromising transparency through smearing and grime can have a huge effect on business, productivity and brand image. Why is this, though? And how do you ensure you’re getting the best from your windows?

Clean Window Benefits

Well maintained and regularly cleaned windows can offer tangible advantages to businesses of all sizes. From reputation to health, your window cleanliness could be leaving ripples of which you were previously unaware.

Corporate Image

This is all about first impressions. They count and we all know it. So if your office is littered with grimy, unappealing windows, what message is this sending to visitors? When these visitors may be investors, potential clients or associates, can you afford to leave them uncleaned? Ensure your corporate image is highlighting your attention to detail by maintaining a sterling first impression!

Natural Light

The function of a window is, of course, to illuminate a space with natural light. This is important to employees. The people who spend most of the day in a professional building can benefit from improved health by experiencing higher levels of natural light. Vision, wellbeing and mental clarity are improved. This can only be a good thing for your business!

Maintenance

The cleanliness of your windows is more than just aesthetic. The build up of grime and bacteria can damage seals, hinges and frames. These maintenance issues, if left unattended, can run up a huge cost to your business. There is also the matter of the health of those coming into contact with the windows. A surface breeding bacteria will become unhealthy to those in the surrounding space. So to ensure your staff enjoy optimal health, see to it that windows are not left to breed bacteria.

Productivity

A result of both the light-diffusing properties and maintenance of your windows, the productivity of your staff can rely on windows. Clean windows promote the enhanced focus and clarity that an environment rich in natural light produces. Not only this, but by ensuring hygienic surfaces throughout your office (not just on desks!) the workforce will benefit from better health and fewer sick days.

Cleaning Timeline

How often should commercial windows be cleaned? The more frequently the better. Especially if you want to make the most of the conditions that clean and clear windows have on a business. The recommended clearing frequency often depends on several aspects, though.

Location

Is your office located in a city, or on a major traffic thoroughfare? The surrounding daily pollution will have an impact on how regularly you external windows need to be cleaned. In contrast, more rural locations generally experience less of this type of pollution. However, don’t forget about other aspects to your business location. The position could be susceptible to the spread of mud and dirt, or of strong winds, for example.

Time of year

Window cleaning frequency may need to vary through the year. With windy and wet conditions over the late Autumn through Winter, your building’s windows can become filthy in a fraction of the time that you find in the Spring. Similarly, an excessively hot Summer can result in sticky, dusty windows that require frequent cleaning. When you establish a long term contract with a commercial cleaning company, they can offer the flexibility to have all the seasons covered!

Business

Your area of business can play a part in when and how often you should have your office windows cleaned. High levels of coming and going, or deliveries, can mean that dirt is transferred to windows more frequently. For businesses involved in health, food or service, spotlessness is a vital part of brand image.

Window Tips

It’s all about making your windows work for your business. This part of your building is full of opportunity. So for both internal and external windows, why not make the most of your regularly cleaned commercial windows?

Convey a message

From advertising to branding, windows are great to elevate an office design concept. Enhance exterior facing windows with vinyl graphics or even etching. These techniques are eye-catching and informative. To maximise the message, the key is to keep these windows looking shiny and bright!

Offer privacy

Glass technology offers a huge number of possibilities to businesses. Windows can change from clear to opaque at the touch of a button. Soundproofing is second to none and glass is a desirable contemporary finish for the office. By maximising natural light while maintaining privacy, internal windows, when cared for, are an ideal office solution.

Support inclusivity

Does your office feature internal windows between office spaces? Glass office partitions? Don’t block them off with blinds all day. Although it’s true there are some demands in business that require complete privacy, this doesn’t go all day every day! You’ll find that by embracing the transparency of windows, you can build a culture of transparency within an organisation. Barriers between departments and management can be softened by simply being visible.

Windows really are important in creating a positive working environment. They have the power to lift your workforce and win over clients. So the next time you prioritise cleaning across the workplace, make sure the windows are up there. It’s where they deserve to be!  To discover what your perfect commercial window cleaning programme would be, or simply to get a quote, just call us here at CJH Cleaning!

How important is the appearance of your office? We’re talking about the cleanliness of the windows and the condition of the paintwork. The level of clutter around desk areas and functionality of waste containers. The internal and external state of repair and condition of the space has far reaching consequences to the business itself that may come as a surprise!

1. First Impressions

   Exterior

   This is something that really counts for businesses. The exterior of a building makes an impression upon potential clients visiting your premises. A clean and well maintained exterior is memorable for both visitors and users of a building. So regular jet washing of walls, cleaning of windows and upkeep of signage can have a real impact on won business.

   Reception

   Consider the appearance of your reception area. After the exterior of the building, this is the next zone that projects an impression of an organisation. So take care to make sure that your lobby and desk are constructed and laid out in a way that supports your brand. In addition they must appear fresh and clean. Perhaps add some fresh flowers to a reception desk and ensure that floors are regularly cleaned.

2. Productivity

   Desks

   Your office upkeep, maintenance and cleanliness not only affects visitors to your building, but also those who work there. Employees working in a clean and clear environment will likely be more productive than those working in unsatisfactory conditions. When clarity of surroundings equals clarity of mind, regular cleaning of desk space is vital.

   Meeting Rooms

   What’s the function of meeting rooms for your organisation? You may be meeting clients, or holding internal brainstorming meetings. Either way, performance and inspiration are key to a successful meeting. And creativity is more likely to be fostered within vibrant and clean surroundings.

3. Workflow

   Recycling

   How does recycling aid the workflow of an office based organisation? Well, in a world that is still a long way from the ‘paperless office’, office paper recycling systems are key. Ensure that your organisation offers convenient and regularly emptied paper recycling bins. In this way you can help your employees avoid the build up of unnecessary paperwork on their desks. Similarly, offer dedicated plastics, tins and glass recycling opportunities in the office kitchen. When people spend so much time in their office, a considerate approach to recycling is key for businesses.

   Washrooms

   One place that must not be neglected is the office w/c or washroom. Optimise facilities that are offered in these spaces and ensure they are regularly cleaned and restocked. People care about the state of their washrooms, whether they are workers or visitors. This is why these spaces can have a major impact on satisfaction levels. So by outsourcing management to a contractor, you can be confident that your organisation will not fall down in this area.

4. Natural Light

   Windows

   Staff are more healthy and productive when they are exposed to natural light. Taking breaks is key here, but in addition this is why glass fronted office buildings are so popular. However, investing in an office building that benefits from large windows may come to nothing if those windows are grimy. When we are enjoying a lovely bright day on the outside, why should the inside feel dark and grey? Especially for offices in urban areas that experience levels of pollution, it’s important to schedule regular window cleaning.

   Partitions

   Use of glass is extremely popular within office spaces too. And its popularity is increasing! This is because partitioning areas using glass enables natural light to be diffused around the building. Smart glass technology is allowing this material to be used for meeting rooms and private spaces too. However, it can quickly look grubby and smeared which counteracts the contemporary look that you may be going for! So if glass is great for your business brand, make sure you get it cleaned!

5. IT Hygiene

   Personal IT

   From keyboards to mice and phone handsets, we know how many germs and bacteria inhabit office technology. This can cause the spread of illness across an organisation. So you can lose days of productivity by allowing dirty IT systems within your organisation.

   Communal IT

   It’s not just desk based IT, though. Photocopiers and printers are used by multiple people across an organisation. This means that the germs on hands can easily be transmitted around a whole department. So it’s worth keeping these things clean unless you want the salesforce dropping like flies with the dreaded Summer cold!

6. Energy Supply

   Solar Panels

   Perhaps your office building is fortunate enough to benefit from energy supply via solar panels. This is a great innovation and a very prudent investment. However, it is an investment that only returns as much as it is allowed to. Yes, the variable sunshine of the UK is one consideration, but the cleanliness of the panels is another. When dirty solar panels can lose around 20% of their energy output, the performance of this investment can be optimised through cleaning.

7. ‘A Stitch in Time’

   Regular Maintenance

   So it is that the old adage is true - regular office building and equipment maintenance can help to avoid large repair bills. Cleaning is part of this regular maintenance. The build up of dirt and grime can actually contribute to the material decline of aspects of your building. More importantly, it could mask it from your view, making faults undetected until a later date. 

So the impact that the appearance of your office building has are multiple. From productivity to wellbeing to impressions and even physical repair, it pays to keep things clean! For solutions across your office building just contact us at CJH cleaning for advice or a quotation. 

The average desktop harbours 20,961 germs per square inch. And that’s before you get into the IT on the desk: a phone, keyboard, mouse and printer. From coffee cups to office biscuits to tissues, a desk is a breeding ground for bacteria. As staff spend more time at their desk each day, working longer hours and choosing to eat at their workstation, it is ever more vital to maintain hygiene in these areas.

Your office desk profile

So where are the main offenders in harbouring bacteria? Items of technology are real magnets for germs. Of course, users touch these items most often so they come into contact with hands, ears, and mouths. Not only this, but the buttons, hinges and tiny crevices of these pieces of technology are particularly difficult to clean. 

Phone

Unsurprisingly, this is the most unhygienic item in an average office. It comes into direct contact with your hands, mouth, ears, and hair. So it follows that on average 25,000 bacteria are found here. Not only this, but since phones are used by numerous people (when did you last answer a colleague’s phone when they were in a meeting?) germs are easily passed between people.

Keyboard

Although it is just your fingertips that contact your keyboard, all those buttons are perfect hiding places for germs to take refuge! Add to dust and skin particles all those custard cream crumbs and drips of coffee and there’s quite a collection of muck under your QWERTY. An average keyboard plays host to around 3,500 bacteria. Despite this, these pieces of equipment are tricky to clean and often neglected. 

Mouse

All that endless scrolling and clicking results in around 1,500 bacteria existing happily on an average mouse. This is another item of an office desk which is frequently touched my multiple people, so it only takes one unwashed hand to transmit all manner of germs around the office.

Personal Responsibility?

In a recent survey, sales and marketing departments were declared the worst for desk hygiene. Over a fifth of workers in this field admitted to only cleaning their desk once a month. However, to what extent should office desk cleanliness be a personal responsibility? For sales driven employees, pressure is high to win business so it’s not surprising that desk cleaning drops off to-do lists! For business owners who wish to allow their staff to focus on their roles, a professional cleaning contract is key. This removes the need for personal responsibility and increases office hygiene.

What can the individual do?

This is not to say that all staff should take the cleanliness of their desk for granted. Daily habits are key in maintaining basic hygiene levels. Regular hand washing will prevent the transmission of germs around a space. We mean before and after eating and after coming in from outside, not just on using the loo! If you do need to eat at your desk, lay a cloth napkin under your food to prevent direct contact and collect crumbs.

Professional cleaning

Office Cleaning

General office cleaning will ensure that the desk surfaces in your office maintain a high level of hygiene. From daily to weekly cleaning, the build up of bacteria on both the desk and the equipment on that desk will be managed. Your contract will ensure that standards remain constant across the whole office so the passing of germs from person to person is decreased.

IT Specific Focus

Required less regularly, consistent IT focused cleaning is a detail that marks the difference in overall office desk hygiene. With specialist equipment to disinfect even the tiniest crevices in your IT kit, a good cleaning contractor like CJH Cleaning will not just aid the health of your desk workers, but also the equipment itself!

Staff ‘Perks’

By removing the ‘personal responsibility’ of desk cleaning, a business manager or owner essentially gives their staff an added ‘perk’ to their employment. Office workers enjoy the comfort of working in a clean and maintained environment, while enjoying the space to focus on their roles and business. 

Staff Well-being

Health

Every year, staff absence through sickness costs the British economy nearly £12 billion in lost revenues. Added to this, a survey reported that one in ten workers believes that they have experienced bad health due to poor workplace hygiene. In this way, regular and structured professional cleaning contracts can play a vital role in reducing this waste.

Productivity

A dirty office environment can also affect the psychological well-being of employees. We’ve all heard of the concept of a clear desk enabling a clear mind. Indeed, some research shows a direct connection between a clean working environment and increased productivity. So in this way, your professional desk cleaning commitment allows your staff to work more efficiently and achieve more.

Happiness

When health and productivity are combined, happiness lies. This is a bold statement, but put in real terms; if business owners and leaders commit to improving the direct working environment of their staff, those staff are less likely to become disaffected. It then follows that an organisation is less likely to experience a high staff turnover.  Employing a structured and regular professional cleaning contract for your office is an action that can radically improve your business. Office workers are under increasing pressure to achieve quantifiable results in this fluctuating economic environment. Conversely, businesses are under pressure to offer a balanced working environment which considers staff well-being. Professional office, and specifically desk and IT cleaning, is a great way to reconcile these two pressures. You will ensure your staff are productive at their desk, while being allowed to feel more focused.    As for the office kitchen, though… well that’s a whole other blog!

Do you want to be more eco-friendly? Yes? Pretty much everyone will do what they can to make a small difference in their surrounding environment or the wider world. Sustainability is a massive buzzword in commercial business. Organisations large and small are paying more focus to their environmental responsibilities. Indeed, changing regulations are demanding more and more that corporations are explicit in their environmental policies. Your commercial cleaning contracts are no different and are actually a very significant way that your business can demonstrate your green policies.

Eco Products

The products that a commercial cleaning contractor uses are central in whether they support your green policies. So ensure that you appoint a cleaning organisation who uses eco-friendly products. It may seem small but it’s a huge step towards supporting green policies that exist elsewhere in your organisation. Your office may be large or small but with regular daily or weekly cleaning, this one act reduces the amount of chemical residue hitting the sewage system. At CJH Cleaning, we only ever use eco-friendly cleaning products. This is great for our cleaners, great for your building and great for the environment!

Building Health

Of course, an environment means more than the global impact of products and processes. Your workers’ immediate environment can directly impact their health and productivity. Dust and bacteria ingrained on office desks and office IT equipment can spread infections and inflame allergies. So don’t let these parts of your space become neglected. With regular office cleaning and IT deep cleansing, you will see the benefits in your staff health. 

Equipment Maintenance

Scheduling a deep cleanse of communication and IT equipment can even mean that these items last longer. Months and years of grime are often the root cause of ‘gremlins’ in the system. So you can play your part in reducing large items hitting landfill by consciously maintaining them with regular cleaning. 

Washrooms

Manage your washrooms and kitchens in a sustainable way. With sanitary disposal, air freshening, vending machines and cleansing systems to consider, these spaces are key in operating sustainably. Have you invested in energy efficient hand dryers? How about your waste disposal? The most simple solution is to outsource the management of your washrooms to an eco-friendly contractor. In this way, you can easily and quickly ensure that products are promptly refreshed, sustainable options sourced, and waste disposed of responsibly. 

The Three R’s

A popular mantra for sustainable living is to Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. You can apply these principles to any aspect of daily life and the commercial building or office is no different. These are the ways that your commercial cleaning contract should support your green responsibilities. 

Reduce

It’s so important to reduce the number of products and chemicals used in commercial cleaning. Eco-friendly products will not increase your bill. They are less abrasive on your fixtures and fittings and great for your working environment. For external building cleaning, harness the power of water.  Jet wash technology is hugely effective and even removes graffiti and gum. So your external signage, walls, car parks and flooring will look like new without any artificial products.

Reuse

Through regular and managed commercial cleaning programmes, your business can prevent the need for refits of the space. And this stops all the old furnishings ending up in landfill. Breathe a new lease of life to your office carpets and floors through specialist carpet and intensive steam cleaning. Invest in stain prevention coatings so that any incidents are not catastrophic! You can even upcycle your space through the restoration of original wood or stone flooring.

Recycle

How easy is it for your staff to recycle? Invest in multiple clearly labelled recycling bins that separate paper, plastics and metals. As well as placing paper recycling by printers and photocopiers, how about adding a space for incorrectly printed sheets to be placed so they can be reused as scrap paper before finally reaching the recycling? But it’s not just about where staff place their waste. What happens next? Can you trust your waste disposal contracts to check recycling waste and responsibly dispose of both recycled and general waste? At CJH cleaning we check waste to ensure that it is separated correctly, and then efficiently move the waste on to the correct disposal processes.

Sustainable Energy

Part of your commercial sustainability policies will no doubt cover energy. You may have replaced your lighting with LED bulbs to reduce the energy consumed and increase the lifespan of each product. Many organisations have gone still further to install solar panels to generate energy from the building itself. However, the efficiency of your solar panels is directly related to how clean the panels are. With dust, pollen, sand and bird droppings to contend with, sunlight can struggle to permeate the glass. The Solar Energy Power Association claims that dirty solar panels can lose around 20% of their energy output. So ensuring that your solar panels are regularly cleaned by a specialist contractor, like us here at CJH Cleaning, will optimise your panels.

Individuality

The source of much waste and excess often comes from organisations taking a ‘one size fits all’ approach. What works for one building may not be appropriate for another. Businesses all have different scales of workforce, and different corporate needs. At CJH Cleaning we take the time to put together tailored cleaning packages that are individual to a business. In this way we are able to eradicate wasted products and time, which keeps our services both sustainable and affordable.  To find out how your business can benefit from a more sustainable approach to cleaning, just get in touch and find out how we can help.

From new buildings to old, industrial spaces to open plan offices, the health of a commercial building has very real implications on the health of a business. The key to optimising this lies in the repair of the building. A building owner or business manager will dread learning that a major structural refurbishment is required. The only way to avoid this huge cost outlay is by looking after your building day-to-day.

Planning

To achieve real cost savings through commercial cleaning and maintenance, it is vital that work is planned. Even seemingly minor areas of regular cleaning can help to prevent serious disrepair from occurring.

Seasonal Tasks

Draw up a detailed plan of seasonal maintenance to be undertaken. This may include the cleaning of fascias and cladding or the jet washing of exterior walls. Through planning, you will benefit from work being undertaken efficiently during periods of dryer weather.

Regular Cleaning

From waste management to office cleaning, regular activity ensures that there is no build up of detritus and decay that can contribute to major building issues. Again, regularity is key. Maintain constant levels of care within your cleaning plan and you will avoid the huge cost outlays that occur with a major overhaul.

Preventative Maintenance

From high impact floor cleaning to the high level window and solar panel cleaning, a commercial building can delay the need for building maintenance. While some structural problems cannot be avoided, the health of a building can be prolonged through regular upkeep. This is especially true for the exterior of a building which endures the elements!

Work Environment

A clean environment enables those working within a building to operate more productively. Although the cost savings achieved in this way are often not quantifiable, they are nonetheless very real. 

Enabling Best Practice

How can office workers be expected to work productively in a space that is cluttered and grimy? A clean space allows for clear thinking, so your regular cleaning contracts can actually be paramount in building the kind of innovative space that moves your business forward. 

Health Considerations

The physical and mental health of staff is considered more and more by employers. Access to natural light is key when it comes to this. There’s no point in an office space benefiting from huge glass frontages if light can’t effectively permeate the grime. So regularly cleaned windows can have an impact on the health of those staff within.  

Staff Appreciation

Cost savings are not just about the daily productivity of your staff, though. Forward-thinking business owners consider headcount and staff turnover too. The costs of replacing and training new staff are considerable for any business. So it pays to ensure your staff feel appreciated as they’re more likely to stick around! What more fundamental way to appreciate staff than to ensure their immediate working environment is clean and hygienic? Achieve this through IT cleaning, and your staff will know that you are doing your best to maintain their workspace. 

Keeping Up Appearances

Of course, in business so much comes down to appearance. A bad impression can impact whether you win or lose a contract, or even damage your entire brand. A building has a role to play in the appearance that your business projects. So taking care of it plays a part in enabling your business to thrive.

First Impressions

Potential clients may visit your office building to discuss a pitch for new work. Or a potential buyer may visit your industrial space prior to placing a major order. So in these cases, first impressions have very real power. But it’s not just about contracts. How about the impression that your building has on its wider environment? For larger commercial buildings, a jet washed exterior has the power to make a whole area appear not just clean, but prosperous. 

Winning Business

So, it is clear that the impression that your building makes and the productivity of workers within it both have an impact. In this way, the health of your commercial building has the power to win or lose new business. In this way, the true value of your comparatively small cleaning budget is revealed!

Policies and Legal Requirements

Keeping the health of your commercial building within legal requirements is vital for building owners. Allowing a building to fall into disrepair can mean that you could be breaching legislative guidelines. You could not only face fines but also shoulder the cost of a large scale repair on top.

Lease Legislation

A lease document will set out which aspect of a building should be the responsibility of the landlord and which fall to the tenant. For buildings leased to multiple tenants, external repair is likely to fall to the landlord and internal to the tenant. Ensuring compliance with legislative requirements is a key aspect of cost control as it avoids the large bills that come with reparative work. 

Sustainability

The ecological obligations of a business fall both to legal duties and to the voluntary commitments that may be set out in a mission statement or policy. Your recycling and waste management contracts are key ways in which your business can fulfil a green policy. So, ensure that your service supplier follows stringent processes that reflect your business values.  The cleaning and maintenance contracts that your business employs have the power to send ripples of effect throughout the business. From directly impacting the appearance and hygiene of a space to influencing the health and power of the business that occurs within, your financial outlay stands to benefit from the ongoing investment. And where better to look than an experienced firm like CJH Cleaning, who manage all aspects of commercial cleaning under one roof.