CMM Survey: Pandemic Pushes BSC Technology Trends

It’s no surprise that 92% of building service contractors (BSCs) report they have performed some form of coronavirus-related cleaning service this year, according to the annual CMM Building Service Contractor/Contract Cleaning Benchmarking Survey Report sponsored by SoftBank Robotics.

As BSCs work to fight the spread of the novel coronavirus, it appears they are growing more open to implementing new technologies that they previously brushed aside, perhaps as too expensive or complicated. The pandemic looks to be the push the cleaning industry needed to not only warm up to the idea of autonomous cleaning solutions, but also rapidly move to implement them.

Last year, Walmart announced that by February 2021 it expects to have autonomous floor scrubbers in 1,860 stores in the U.S. In October, it was reported Sam’s Club, which is owned by Walmart, will distribute 372 new autonomous floor scrubbers manufactured by Tennant Co. to its stores this fall in a partnership with Brain Corp.

In fact, robotic floor care usage at retail locations spiked 13.6% in March 2020, compared to March 2019, 13% during the first quarter of this year alone, according to Brain Corp network data, as CMM previously reported. The question is will commercial facilities follow suit?

The 2020 CMM survey found only 10% of BSCs currently use autonomous/robotic equipment, up 1% from last year. However, those who report they don’t currently use this equipment but are considering it jumped from 17% last year to 29% this year.

When asked what emerging technologies BSCs will adopt in the next 12 months, the top three were directly related to disinfection—electrostatic sprayers, antimicrobial surfaces, and UV light. Next in line at 31% were autonomous cleaning machines.

Download the full BSC survey for more statistics. We look forward to watching the new trends and innovations that unfold for the entire cleaning industry in 2021.