After the long winter months have finally passed, many facility managers are excited to no longer have to deal with the snow, salt and other ice-melting contaminants that are trekked onto floors by the shoes of customers and employees. However, floor care is a year-round priority, and the spring and summer seasons have their own set of challenges to overcome.
Flooring your Customers with Cleanliness
Often, a customer’s first impression of your facility is formed based on the cleanliness of your entryway. Keeping floors at entrance points as well as floors throughout your business clean is key to wowing guests, maintaining safety and reducing long-term floor care costs.
Many areas of the country experience higher levels of precipitation during the spring and summer months, making floor care an important priority. Not only is this water deposited onto floors from guests’ shoes, but slippery mud, leaves and debris can also be tracked in. Facility managers must train employees on proper floor care to ensure first impressions are always positive.
Consider the following best practices to ensure that your facility’s floors always look their best:
Use high-quality finishes and sealers.
To avoid the need to replace floors prematurely, which drives up costs and is disruptive to business operations, look for a durable finish that reduces the need to strip and refinish. The right finish will optimize the appearance of floors by resisting black heel marks, scuffs, dirt penetration and detergents. Look for sealers that improve gloss and durability by filling in surface pores, and offer excellent adhesion.
Combine machines and manpower.
One way to make your team more productive and make cleaning more consistent is to incorporate floor care machines. Whether you select a ride-on, walk-behind or robotic machine, it’s important that the equipment features a working width that makes sense for the size of your facility, a large tank to reduce the frequency of tank refills and a durable squeegee that offers superior water pick-up, even along curves. This ensures that floors are properly cleaned, and no water is left behind that might cause a slip-and-fall incident.
Select the right floor care pads.
The right floor care pad can further enhance productivity and improve the appearance of floors. Today, pads constructed with billions of microscopic diamonds can clean and polish floors at the same time, without the need for chemicals. This makes floor maintenance easier, more cost effective and environmentally friendly.
Clean spills and spots as soon as possible.
When spills and spots are left on floors, they can result in hard-to-remove stains and can create a slip-and-fall hazard for guests. They also have a negative impact on your business’ image and thus should be cleaned up as quickly as possible. Use microfiber mops to remove spills and spotter solutions to keep spots from impacting the look of surfaces like carpet.
A successful floor care program has numerous components, including chemicals, application tools, smart machines, training and support. To learn more about solutions from Diversey, visit www.diversey.com/solutions/floor-care or contact your Diversey representative to learn more about essentials for your facility.