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Janitorial Services for Creative Offices

by | May 12, 2017 | Hiring a Commercial Cleaning Company

Green janitorial services are the ideal complement to maintain the health, safety, and appeal of amenities in the coolest offices in America.

 Creative industry jobs are in high-demand, and businesses everywhere are changing the way the view their offices and the services they provide their employees to attract and retain a talented workforce.

Though a unique set of amenities is just one factor in an extremely complex market, investment in amenities can make the difference between a vibrant, productive property and one facing vacancies.

10 Most Wanted Office Amenities

While the amenities are perfect for relaxing and re-centering, they create a series of unique challenges that very few janitorial providers are prepared to accept.

Everything from Infosys’ bowling alley to Google’s office slide and Tumblr’s Pomeranian, while excellent for employee morale, requires an incredibly flexible cleaning service to maintain the health and safety of the office and its staff.

Let’s take a look at some of the coolest offices and amenities around the country and learn what is required to keep them clean.

Food Options

Depending on the size of your office and the available budget, food options can range from buffet-style selections to full blown catering with an in-house chef.

Where general hygiene and restaurant cleaning practices are usually sufficient to prevent germs from aggressively spreading for catered or chef prepared meals, the buffet-style services require a bit more attention.

All it takes is one person not taking the time to thoroughly wash their hands before eating and, within hours, germs and bacteria could be spread throughout most of your office and to many of the workers.

Obviously, the use of green cleaning products, though ideal for use in dining establishments and office cafeterias, are not capable of addressing the immediate potential for germ transfer due to poor hygiene.

However, a straightforward and elegant solution does exist:

  • Turn the spoon around and designate a buffet server as opposed to allowing diners to serve themselves directly.
  • Place hand sanitizer at the start of the buffet line and encourage patrons to use it before going through the line.

This eliminates concerns over multiple individuals coming into contact with serving utensils, possibly touching and returning food, as well as disparate levels of personal hygiene.

For More Information:

Outdoor and Rooftop Decks

Rooftop decks can be a great place to get above all of the noise, get some fresh air, and relax.

One of the best examples of modern building design is Kickstarters rooftop garden getaway where employees can enjoy an island of nature in a sea of commercial buildings.

Just one problem–all of the dirt, germs, and bacteria that we track around on the bottom of our feet, right back into the office.

Depending on the volume of foot traffic, people can dump pounds of soil onto the floor each year.

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The easiest solution in this scenario would be to strategically place high-performance custom matting on the inside and outside of the entrance to capture dirt and germs before they are tracked into and spread around the office.

Commuting Options

Transportation costs, especially in the major metropolitan areas, are on the rise at the same time many creative industry workers have dedicated themselves to a holistic healthy lifestyle.

This means many of them will want to ride their bikes to work.

Often, these bikes are worth a considerable sum of money and employees will expect the same level of security available for the bikes as anyone would expect for cars.

This often leads to a compromise between the management and staff–allowing the employees to bring the bikes into the office.

While that is great for the security of the bike and the worker’s peace of mind, it’s terrible for the health of the office.

Bike tires, like shoes, can transfer toxins acquired from the road, into your office building.

Additionally, sweaty workers can present a health issue, and can be unpleasant to work around.

The best solution for this situation is to establish a bike locker area where everyone can safely store their bicycle and other equipment inside the office, as well as provide an out of the way place for employees to freshen up.

This eliminates the concern that the tires will transfer whatever toxins may have been picked up from the road during the commute and spreading it all over the floor, as well as the potential for bikes to be classified as a safety hazard in the event of a fire.

Fitness/Wellness Centers

Gyms are a great place for workers to de-stress, stay healthy, as well as improve cognitive functions and creativity.

They are also Petri dishes for germs and bacteria, requiring a thorough daily cleaning, as well as a commitment on the part of those using the facilities and equipment to maintain a healthy environment.

Additionally, shower and locker rooms need to be regularly tended to, in order to prevent bacteria from spreading in the high heat and humidity.

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Recreation and Gaming Rooms

Few companies may be more well known for their employee arcade and game room than Facebook or LinkedIn.

According to WebMD, arcade game controllers reportedly containing 551 microbial colony-forming units (CFU’s) per square inch, ranking them in between a school musical instrument, and a public park sandbox.

For More Information:

  • Which Has More Germs – A Restaurant Tray or a Park Sandbox?

Video game and entertainment system controllers are additional hotbeds for germs to spread, and every item in the recreation area should be treated as a high-contact, non-porous surface that has a strong potential for passing germs and infectious disease throughout your offices.

General green cleaning practices will often suffice for these types of amenities, especially when combined with a well-stocked supply of liquid hand sanitizer strategically placed throughout the room.

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Office Pets

Tumblr’s Tommy the Pomeranian may be the most famous office pet in the tech industry, but he also presents an interesting challenge for office and facilities managers–how do you accommodate a creative workers affection for, and attachment to, their pets they wish to bring to work with them?

As with all things, an easy compromise can be struck to satisfy the needs of all parties.

  • Ensure the worker understands that dog paws carry germs just like the bottom of shoes and bicycle tires, so they will need to avoid allowing the animal to come into contact with food prep and service areas.
  • Designate a ‘dog park’ area outside for the pets to stretch their legs and handle their business outside of the office.
  • Provide disposable bags at the entrance to the park area to encourage cleanliness and sanitation.
  • Place liquid hand sanitizer at the entrance back into the building to encourage staff to disinfect their hands before touching anything else that might have come into contact with waste.
  • Store microfiber towels at convenient locations to facilitate the quick clean up of any accidents.

References

Takeaway

Current trends in tenant and worker demands require building designers and facilities managers to rethink how patrons and employees engage with the modern work space.

Employees don’t want to have to walk five minutes away on a fifteen-minute break to relax, so it’s vital to ensure amenities are in-house and readily available.

Creative industry workers often work odd hours and through the night, meaning the facilities will need to be available to them, according to their schedule.

To accommodate those challenges in a cost-effective manner that benefit occupants and the environment, a highly skilled, multi-disciplined, and extremely flexible janitorial services provider relationships is mandatory.

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