Summertime is a great time for cleaning professionals and building managers to review their current cleaning regime. The summer months usually bring gentler weather and less foot traffic with people on summer vacation, giving building managers a chance to test out new cleaning techniques before the fall and winter wetness arrives. To help keep your commercial building - and its occupants - healthy, here's eight quick tips to make the job easier.
Keep your floors in...
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Tracked-in soil is the biggest threat to indoor air quality and building cleanliness. The best way to mitigate the destructive power of tracked-in soil is to trap it before it gets a chance to damage your floor by using high quality, well-maintained walk-off matting. That is why a good set of commercial-grade floor mats is absolutely crucial to a complete floor care program. Heavy duty entrance matting captures and stops soil and debris before they get...
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According to studies conducted by CNA Insurance, slip and fall accidents account for 61% of all claims and 53% of total claim costs for businesses with retail or public-facing areas. How can business owners or custodial operations managers know the condition of their floors and prevent slip and fall accidents?
It's easy! You can use the formal safety standards governing floor safety published by the American National Standards Institute.
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI), in conjunction with the...
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Did you know that nearly 80% of all the soil that accumulates on carpets consists of sand, dirt, and other dry particulates? This type of soiling is gritty and abrasive, and directly contributes to the premature wearing-out of your carpet's fibres and producing a dull, lifeless appearance. If this soil isn't removed through regular cleaning and maintenance, the particulates work their way down to the bottom of the carpet pile and rest against the primary backing. ...
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The first step to reducing slip and fall accidents is identifying their causes! Here's a list of the top ten most common causes of slip and fall accidents in commercial buildings that you should know:
Flooring surface type. Some types of flooring surfaces have coefficients of friction that vary immensely under different conditions! Various types of tile flooring can be nice and grippy when dry, but as soon as it's wet it can become slicker than...
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Instituting proper cleaning procedures, mat programs and chemical use training will help to reduce or eliminate slips and falls in a healthcare facility. However, how can healthcare facility executives know for sure their floors are compliant with all national traction standards for patron and patient safety? The answer is to have the floors independently tested by a qualified auditor that utilizes ANSI national testing slip-and-fall safety standards.
These testing standards quantify the traction requirements for pedestrian safety...
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Did you know that American National Standards Institute (ANSI) B101 Committee on Slip, Trip and Fall Prevention has an official document describing walkway safety standards for commercial buildings?
The ANSI/NFSI B101.6-2012 "Standard Guide For Commercial Entrance Matting In Reducing Slips, Trips And Falls" provides criteria for the selection, installation, inspection, care and maintenance of entrance mats and runners in commercial facilities. The goal of these standards is to reduce slip and fall accidents, tripping hazards, and other...
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Although most people think of summertime when they think about swimming pools, hotel and community centre operators know that their pool and hot tub facilities are open year round and need attention even in the middle of winter! While most maintenance is focused on the parts of the pool that come in specific contact with the water, it's important to not overlook the wet areas around the pool and hot tub too. Cleanliness and safety of...
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Slip and fall accidents should be top-of-mind for all commercial building operators, for both your staff and the general public! Here's 9 quick facts you probably didn't know about slip and fall accidents:
Slip and fall accidents are the #1 cause of workplace injuries when averaged among all industries.
Slips, trips, and other fall accidents account for 20% of all worker's compensation costs.
In 2007-08, slip and fall accidents accounted for a third of all worker...
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Here's four quick and easy ways to increase the floor safety in your commercial or retail main entrance!
Conduct a safety audit. Slips, trips, and fall accidents tend to happen in the same spots in any given building, but it's sometimes hard to pinpoint the reason why due to "house blindness"! Walk the trouble spots with a person unfamiliar with the day-to-day operations of your building to see if they can help you spot the areas...
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Slip and fall accidents are a serious problem for building operators that have publicly-accessible areas. We've all been out shopping on a rainy day and have seen those yellow cones warning us of a wet floor, but is that enough to satisfy a building operator's duty to floor safety?
There's a yellow warning cone, but can you spot what's missing that would have prevented this customer's slip and fall accident?
That's right - there's no entrance matting! It's easy...
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Did you know that approximately 20% of all workplace injuries are caused by slips, trips, and falls? They might make for funny YouTube videos, but slips and falls are serious problems!
Workplace slip and fall accidents result in an average of 11 missed days of work, occasionally permanent injury to the worker, and increased WorkSafeBC insurance premiums for the employer. Slips and falls are an even greater problem in commercial kitchens - all too often, proper safety...
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