Trying to maintain a clean and healthy office can be difficult but it can be made a lot easier with the right cleaning schedule. An office is a pretty complex environment with several different components that need to be cleaned at different intervals to be kept just perfect. So how do you organize your cleaning. The best way to do this is in terms of the different time frames you need to consider. By having a well organized office, the amount of time and effort required between cleaning visits can be dramatically reduced. Once that is done, you need to consider the following.
Twice-daily or more
Bathrooms are probably the most time intensive of all cleaning tasks in the office. They need to be regularly checked throughout the day. How often is dependent on the headcount, the amount of bathrooms available and if customers etc., use those bathrooms. A set number of checks is impossible to predict so the best way to determine how many are required is to monitor over a week. You will get a firm idea of what is required from that alone. Regardless of the amount of checks needed, soap, toilet tissue and similar consumables will need to be replaced at least once a day.
Daily
The office kitchen or canteen needs to be cleaned every day, possibly more if it gets heavy use. Cups, mugs and utensils need to cleaned as soon as possible after use to prevent the spread of germs. Worktops and canteen tables must be cleaned with a proper antibacterial agent. Emptying bins, particularly anything that contains food waste is imperative to maintain a clean and healthy environment.
Touch points anywhere in the office should be cleaned on a daily basis. The vast majority of touch points are in the kitchens and bathrooms. However, it is important to also remember door handles etc. This is essential in preventing the spread of germs. This is often overlooked but should be part of any daily cleaning schedule.
Weekly
Most surfaces outside of the kitchen or canteen should be cleaned on a weekly basis. This includes desktops in the office, floors, window sills etc. This may vary depending on the type of site the office is based in. An office in an engineering plant or building site may find it more dirt is brought into the office and the floors need to be attended to every couple of days. However, a week is the maximum interval that should be used.
Office desks in particular should be cleaned with a strong antibacterial product. Desks can often be thought of as inherently clean, even if employees eat at their desks. They don’t have the same association with germs and dirt as bathrooms or kitchens, but they are one of principal touch points in the whole office. Employees spend most of their day at their desks and any germs they pick up somewhere else will be brought back there. Employees should be provided with wipes etc., to keep their desks hygienic during the week but once a week a proper clean is required.
Monthly
The interior glass of windows should be cleaned on a monthly basis. Window frames and handles can also be done once a month, provided that they aren’t opened frequently. There generally isn’t a lot of contact with the interior of windows and since they are at a height they don’t gather dust and dirt the same way horizontal surfaces do.
Twice-yearly
Surfaces such as carpets, wooden floors etc., need a more in depth cleaning with specialist products every six months or so. Surfaces like these can build up dirt and grime that isn’t cleared away by the weekly clean. Doing this type of clean regularly helps to prolong the life of these surfaces and reduce what can be a significant cost in replacing them.
The exterior glass of windows should be cleaned on average every six months but this is highly dependent on the local environment, time of year, as well as a couple of other factors.
Make sure the office is cleaned properly each time
A schedule like this is considered the most cost effective and efficient. It is dependent on the job being done correctly each time and those kinds of consistent results are best delivered by a commercial cleaning company. By using the right products and equipment, they can clean the office to the highest standards, maximize the time between cleaning.