Via CarrollCo.com

Versatility, environmental safety and worker safety are built into this multi use cleaner. It may be diluted in varying ratios to effectively clean floors, walls, restrooms, kitchens, food service areas or any other washable surface. It is gentle but effective; ideal for the daily maintenance of schools, offices, institutions and other public facilities. It features “no-rinse” ease in most cleaning applications. Use to clean surfaces such as plastic, metal, laminates, vinyl and more. It’s neutral pH makes it safe for surfaces.

Features and Benefits:
- Neutral pH
- Water-based powerful formula
- Concentrated, versatile
- Long-lasting fresh lavender fragrance
- Free rinsing
- No rinse cleaner
- Gently cleans soils from most surfaces
- Reduces the need for several products
- Pleasant to use
- Will not leave dulling soap film

Areas of Use:
- You may use this product on all washable surfaces
- General cleaning for floors, walls, restrooms, kitchens, food service areas or any other washable surface
- This product is safe for use on all types of polished or unpolished, resilient and non-resilient floors

Via ISSA.com
By Daniel Frimml

Most cleaning professionals know vacuum cleaners with high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters can help protect indoor air quality.

These filters capture the smallest of particles, down to 0.3 microns in size, 99.97 percent of the time. They can trap smoke, molds, bacteria, dust mites, pollen, and other particles.

However, over time, HEPA filters need to be replaced. This is crucial for the vacuum cleaner to operate at optimal performance.

But because HEPA filters can last a fairly long time, it is not uncommon that cleaning professionals to simply forget to change them.

There are no “cut and dry” rules as to how often a HEPA filter should be changed. It depends on how often the machine is used, the type of conditions, the indoor environment, and even the location.

However, the following suggestions can be used as a guide for cleaning professionals:

•In a residential setting, the HEPA filter may last two or three years before it needs to be changed.
•In a commercial setting and used on a daily basis, it should be checked every six months. If heavily soiled it should be replaced; otherwise, it should be changed once per year.
•If a musty odor is detected when the vacuum cleaner is used, the HEPA filter should be changed.
•Some vacuum cleaners have a pre-filter designed to capture large particulates; these should be checked/changed every three to four months.
•If the system has a carbon pre-filter, these should be changed every two to three years.
•If the filter or the housing holding the filter is ever damaged, the filter should be changed.

When replacing the filter, users should contact the distributor where it was purchased or the manufacturer directly. And always select the HEPA filter designed for that specific machine and model.

via Proctor & Gamble

CINCINNATI, Feb. 1, 2010
– Procter & Gamble Professional, the away-from-home division of Procter & Gamble, today released the findings of its “Cleaning in a Down Economy” survey, which revealed that 85 percent of surveyed cleaning professionals have adopted a “doing more with less” approach in response to current economic conditions. P&G Professional launched the survey to gauge how decision makers managing in-house or contract cleaning services in the health care, education, retail, commercial, foodservice and hospitality industries have reacted, and adapted, to recent business conditions. The findings point out that cleaning service managers have often had to tackle the same amount of labor with fewer employees, placing increased demands on staff productivity and cleaning efficiency. Many managers have been forced to streamline operations, with 76 percent reporting being under pressure from upper management to keep operating costs down over the last six months. To address these demands, nearly nine in ten respondents have made cut backs, including staff reductions. While these cut backs have not been easy, 97 percent of the decision makers surveyed feel they have been able to effectively keep expenditures down. In fact, more than nine in ten respondents using this “doing more with less” approach are likely to do so even after the economy improves. “Managers in charge of cleaning services were faced with belt tightening activities at the same time as the H1N1 outbreak,” said Matt Koloseike, customer development manager, P&G Professional. “To meet this challenge and ensure the effectiveness of their cleaning program, decision makers maximized efficiencies across the entire breadth of their operations, including getting more out of their staff and the products they purchased. We found the past year has opened a lot of cleaning professionals’ eyes to the efficiency benefits of simplified cleaning routines and effective, multipurpose products – both of which are core components of the cleaning solutions, and philosophy, that P&G Professional brings to its customers.” Cleaning Industry Prompted to Increase Efficiency Amidst Down Economy
When it comes to increasing efficiency and delivering cost savings, the importance of product selection was particularly noted, with 22 percent of respondents highlighting “products that get the job done right the first time” as most helpful when it comes to performing their cleaning services. Surprisingly, the survey also found that in spite of constrained resources, cleaning professionals primarily judge the value of a product based on its quality and effectiveness (56 percent) and versatility of use (36 percent) rather than its price point (5 percent).
“Cleaning in a Down Economy” Survey Highlights:
* Nine in ten (90 percent) cleaning product decision makers would rather find ways to perform their services more efficiently than raise prices for their customers or clients.
* Over two in five (41 percent) respondents feel being as efficient as possible with current resources is what is most vital to their business right now. In fact, 35 percent think keeping customers happy is more critical than other fiscal matters like growing the business (10 percent), keeping all staff members employed (6 percent) or making a profit (3 percent).
* More than six in ten (61 percent) of those willing to spend more on a product would do so if it enabled employees to work faster by getting the job done the first time. Additionally, 43 percent would spend more if the purchased product could replace multiple cleaning products they currently use.
* Eighty-one percent of respondents do not think having more cleaning products in their arsenal will lead to getting the job done right.
* The biggest hurdle for cleaning providers who are not performing at their best is having to train staff on how to properly clean (68 percent). With a high staff turnover during tough economic times, this is likely to get even more difficult.

Via issa.com:

Medical researchers at Mayo Clinic say they have decreased hospital-acquired infections among patients by one-third in areas prone to such infections by cleaning more often with a germ-killing formula, according to the Post-Bulletin, produced out of Rochester, MN.

“Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) is one of the leading pathogens causing hospital-acquired infection in the United States. It may cause diarrhea, colitis, sepsis and lead to prolonged hospitalization and death,” said the Post, quoting a Mayo announcement. “Researchers at Mayo studied hospital units where the rate of hospital-acquired illness was high with a new campaign they’re calling the ‘Wipe Out C. difficile Project.’”

“We chose the units studied because they had the highest burden of C. difficile disease,” said Dr. Robert Orenstein, an infectious diseases specialist. “This is in part because many patients were being admitted with diarrheal illness to these and thus the ‘colonization pressure’ was high. This means the more patients with this illness, the likelihood of transmission is greater.”

Researchers used the only formula approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for use against C. difficile.

“The process involves consistent daily cleaning of all high-touch surfaces with a spore-killing bleach disinfectant wipe for all patients on units with high endemic rates of C. difficile infection,” the Mayo announcement says.

“We educated our regular environmental service staff to switch from the product they used daily, which had no activity versus spots of C. difficile, to a new bleach wipe, which was sporicidal,” Orenstein said. “Otherwise, the cleaning process was similar. We assessed cleaning before and after and it was consistently excellent. This suggests it was the product change that made the difference.”

Deaths related to C. difficile increased from 5.7 deaths per million in 1999 to 23.7 deaths per million in 2004, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which notes that most such deaths occur in hospitals.