Most green cleaning programs focus on using less toxic cleaning
chemicals. While using greener cleaning products contributes to a
healthier and greener workplace environment, facilities managers can do
so much more.
A whole systems green cleaning program embraces a systems view that encompasses all
aspects of the building cleaning process: from the building’s initial
materials’ design and use, to the disposal and reuse of the facilities’
entire custodial labor, including the entire material and equipment
supply chain. It is not a quick band-aid fix, but part of a long-term
continuous green cleaning improvement process.
Rather than
focusing on greening the cleaning chemicals only, let’s go upstream and
start at the beginning. To properly set goals for a whole systems green
cleaning program, we need to first define green cleaning.
Definition of Green Cleaning
Having a clean workplace is fundamental to a safe and high quality
workplace. But who’s to say what’s clean? Clean is in the eye of the
beholder, it means different things to different people. Degrees of
cleanliness vary across cultural backgrounds, geographic locations, and
industries. It even varies between two people .
There are many definitions of green cleaning. Here’s one from Wikipedia:
" ...
term that has been coined to describe a trend away from
chemically-reactive and toxic cleaning products which contain various
toxic chemicals some of which emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
causing respiratory and dermatological problems among other adverse
effects. Green cleaning can also describe the way residential and
industrial cleaning products are manufactured, packaged and
distributed. If the manufacturing process is environmentally-friendly
and the products are biodegradable, then the term 'green' or
eco-friendly may apply."
In other words, our current, common definition of green cleaning is all
about chemicals. I propose we embrace a new definition of green
cleaning: Creating a clean, safe and healthy workplace in a sustainable manner. And if one needs further clarification, I’d add Bill McDonough’s phrase "without harm to any children." This concept involves much more than just choosing the right cleaning chemicals.
Traditional FM Green Cleaning Opportunities
Traditional green cleaning consists of adopting greener (less toxic)
cleaning products and practices in your office to improve the air
quality which can result in healthier workers and less absenteeism. If
you want to improve on your traditional green cleaning program, there
are plenty of articles and discussions about various green cleaning
products and the meaning of the various green labels and
certifications. My advice is to dig a bit deeper and find out for
yourself what is behind any green labeling.
Let’s
focus on what you can do beyond buying green cleaning chemicals and get
started on a whole systems green cleaning process. This is truly a
triple bottom line (TBL) opportunity.
Beyond Green Cleaning Chemicals
To move beyond greener cleaning chemicals, a whole systems approach is
needed. In facility management this approach must be applied to both
new and existing buildings/projects. Figure 1 below illustrates the
components and relationships within a whole systems green cleaning
process.
For new buildings, a
whole systems green cleaning approach is relatively straightforward.
Specify better, more intelligent materials that require less cleaning
and adopt a design approach that eliminates dust and dirt
accumulation. A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach must be used to
the green cleaning process. This includes:
Figure 1: Components of Whole Systems Green Cleaning Process
If you want to get started within your organization on a whole systems
green cleaning approach for new buildings/projects, it is best to start
at the end and work backwards. For example:
While
it may not be the job of the designer to educate a client about the
various tradeoffs in materials and cleaning -- though I maintain it should be -- some client knowledge will make a big difference in the long-term
effectiveness of a whole systems green cleaning program. Once the
material is in place it needs to be cleaned for the life of the
building, sometimes more than 50 years. Somebody needs to take the lead
in understanding the life cycle differences between various material
choices. Either the client specifies to the designer, or the designer
educates the client on the cleaning impact of different material
choices.
For example, instead of using carpets and
horizontal blinds, it might be easier to use hard floors and vertical
blinds. Dense (hardscape) materials need less cleaning than porous
(softscape) ones.
We have all seen the life cycle
costing examples of various carpets regarding their cleaning, wear, and
disposal. Differences between soft and hard flooring are obvious -- the
LCA of cleaning is not.
Work with your architects
and designers. Educate yourself on the various new eco-products and
materials that are being developed to minimize cleaning. A future
article will illustrate various new eco-materials that can help
minimize and even eliminate cleaning.
STM and SLA
Like the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDCA) Shewart cycle (which is the center
piece of all continuous improvement processes), whole systems green
cleaning starts with the end goal: What is the desired result? What
service level will be needed to meet this desired end result? The STM
(Serviceability, Tools & Methods) standard already provides a
framework of relative scaling for various SLA’s (Service Level
Agreements) for various cleaning environments. Table 1 illustrates
some of these SLA differences.
Area
SLA 3
SLA 9
Exterior
The
building site, exterior, and interior public spaces can have a low
level of upkeep and cleanliness whether to conform with the
neighborhood, or to present a cost conscious appearance to the public.
The
building site, exterior, and interior public spaces must be very clean
and tidy at all times. The site must have a consistently well
maintained look.
Office - Interior
A
low level of cleanliness can be tolerated for building interior
surfaces, fittings, and fixtures appearing dirty or dusty and in need
of cleaning.
Require that
the interior of the building and fittings and fixtures, are and appear
to be extremely " sparkling" clean at all times.
Toilets + washrooms
Condition
of toilets and washrooms or other amenities can be below average.
There are no visitors to the facility, or a below average image is
acceptable.
High public
profile and/or many visitors requires that toilets, washrooms, and
other amenities be " sparkling clean", well supplied, and tidy.
Subsequent
steps in the PDCA cycle involve an actual pilot or test program to
check the program against the planned goal and adjust as necessary. In
short, do what you say you're going to do.
For whole systems green cleaning this means you’ll need to try out a
test or pilot workplace area for new materials, new cleaning processes,
etc. and see if it meets your desired results. So, for instance, if you
want to use Lotusan paint to stop removing grafitti, try a test area,
monitor it (invite taggers?), and check how it works for you.
Once the end result (desired SLA, cleaning standards, equipment, etc)
is known, the designer can specify and select the most appropriate
materials, similar to the way an HVAC or electrical engineer would
specify the comfort and lighting systems based on client needs and
operational standards. An optional step here can include considering
the method of cleaning in the initial building/project design. The
designer must understand a specific facilities’ cleaning process to aid
in specifying materials and appropriate cleaning solutions.
There are various standards for cleaning available to the facility
manager. Green cleaning and chemical standards are evolving and being
developed to aid in a whole systems approach and encourage use of
easier to clean materials, fabrics, and office equipment.
Summary Guideliens for Whole System Green Cleaning for New Buildings
Fred Klammt is principal of Aptek Associates, specializing
in adapting appropriate and leading-edge processes and technologies
for the built environment. Over the past 30 years, Klammt has worked
on corporate real estate and facility management projects for over
40 Fortune 100 companies including Cisco, Northrop Grumman, HP,
Southern Cal Edison, USC, Paramount Studios. He was one of California’s
first Certified Energy Auditors in 1978, and is a Baldrige-Certified
Quality Auditor for the State of California and Senate Productivity
Awards. Klammt can be reached via his Web site under development
that will be dedicated to wind and solar initiatives at www.winsol.org.
This report originally appeared at McMorrow Report.com's Sustainable Facilities Management Trends and News..
Links:
[1] http://www.winsol.org/
[2] http://www.mcmorrowreport.com/sfm/