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Equipment Innovation Brings Low Cost of Ownership, Improved ROI
Cleaning contractors and facility managers have long attempted to optimize their staffing levels in three ways: by reducing or eliminating cleaning tasks, mechanizing cleaning tasks or improving cleaning processes. However, a rapidly growing focus centers on using innovative cleaning equipment that delivers a low-cost of ownership, contains labor costs and improves worker productivity.
A recent study by the American Institute for Cleaning Sciences (AICS) commissioned by Sanitaire found 45 percent of workers’ time is spent vacuuming high-traffic areas of commercial buildings. This compares with 16 percent of time spent cleaning restrooms and 16 percent of time collecting and emptying trash. The remaining 23 percent of a crew’s time goes toward detail vacuuming, auto scrubbing, dusting, mopping and burnishing hard-surface floors. Most, if not all, of these tasks are completed daily.
Maintenance directors should purchase equipment that allows workers to vacuum traffic areas faster, requiring fewer employee hours at the job site. This allows maintenance directors to deploy workers to other areas in the building, or to other jobsites. In an industry with high employee turnover, it allows the contractor or facility maintenance director to operate with fewer employees.
Sanitaire recommends contractors and maintenance directors conduct a type of audit when they are ready to replace their vacuums. The audit should include the following:
- A time and motion study to compare how large of an area employees can vacuum each day with different machines.
- An analysis of the life expectancy of different machines based upon the manufacturers’ warranty as well as the anticipated yearly workload of the machine.
- A calculation of annual downtime for each machine for maintenance and repair and the cost to repair or replace belts, frayed cords or other parts.
- The cost of the machine and the expected cost of disposables such as bristle strips, brushrolls and bags, and whether current disposables can be used in competitive machines.
- An analysis of which machine offers a lower cost of ownership factoring in both hard costs as well as the cost of labor.
Time and Motion Study
To conduct a time and motion study, map out a 1,000 square-foot area. Have several employees vacuum it with the machines they currently use. Then calculate the average time it takes to clean. Repeat the steps with a different brand of vacuum and determine whether it takes less time. An AICS time and motion study using the Sanitaire EON™ QuietClean® upright found the average employee could clean 1,000 square feet in less than five minutes, equivalent to 12,000 square feet per hour, considerably more square footage than earlier studies estimated.
Employees should also be surveyed to determine which piece of equipment they found easier or less stressful to operate. Equipment that is light in the hand and has enough brushroll spin to help move the machine forward can allow a worker to cover the cleaning area faster.
Equipment Reliability and Maintenance
Any time equipment breaks down or needs maintenance is time your workers are aren’t cleaning. Calculate the amount of time your current equipment has been out of service for maintenance or repair, and determine whether a different vacuum can reduce that downtime. Consider equipment such as the Sanitaire EON™ QuietClean® upright that comes equipped with a pigtail cord that prevents machine-connected cord fraying, an easily replaceable and washable HEPA filter, convenient bristle strip and brushroll replacement, and a side-panel that allows for quick removal of any clogs. Also consider equipment that can work with your existing accessories such as brushrolls and bags.All of these factors suggest that calculating the true cost of machine ownership involves more consideration than its purchase price. It also includes the impact the machine has on the productivity of your cleaning crew and, ultimately, your bottom line.
Posted On October 20, 2017
