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BCC emphasises importance of hygiene after hospital norovirus outbreak
The British Cleaning Council has urged healthcare managers to focus on hygiene after an outbreak of nirovirus struck at hospitals across the UK. Hundreds of beds around the country have been made unavailable as wards were closed and visitor numbers limited, as hospitals isolated patients infected by the virus.
Norovirus, also known as the winter vomiting bug, is extremely contagious and can be lethal to the elderly, very young or very sick patients. The condition causes nausea, vomiting and diarrhea with the symptoms beginning about 12 to 48 hours after infection and usually lasting between 12 and 60 hours.
Mark Woodhead, chairman of the British Cleaning Council, emphasised the importance of updating cleaning regimes and hand hygiene in combating the spread of infections. He said: "When the risk of infection is high, it is vital that best practice is followed for hygiene, with rigorous cleaning regimes focusing on touch points and other areas at risk of contamination. In addition to this, if you are due to enter a hospital environment it is recommended that hands are washed regularly and thoroughly, while everyone should avoid visiting friends or relatives until they have fully recovered."
www.britishcleaningcouncil.org
Royal Charter awarded to WCEC
The Worshipful Company of Environmental Cleaners was formally presented with a Royal Charter of Incorporation at its annual Ladies’ Banquet on 25 November last year.
A Royal Charter is used to establish significant organisations and changes a body from a collection of individuals into a single legal entity. This will enable the Worshipful Company of Environmental Cleaners to be firmly placed into the livery movement alongside other older companies. It will also greatly benefit the cleaning industry as a whole by acknowledging the importance of the industry in the UK.
The Environmental Cleaners Company is the 97th livery company of the City of London, and is also this year celebrating its 25th anniversary of receiving livery from the Corporation of London. There are currently 108 livery companies in the City, the oldest going back to 1155.
Her Majesty The Queen, upon the advice of her Privy Council, was pleased to approve a Charter of Incorporation on 21 July 2010.
Because of their importance, charters are often highly elaborate manuscripts. The Royal Charter is printed on vellum and was signed by Her Majesty.
The official document was formally presented to the Master of the Worshipful Company, Peter Holt, by the Windsor Herald of Arms, Mr William Hunt, at the Ladies Banquet held in Drapers’ Hall, in the company of some 200 members and guests from the cleaning and support services industry, the military and livery. Guests also raised over £1000 for the Red Cross City Branch.
The Royal Charter will be displayed at most company events alongside the Letters Patent, presented some 25 years ago.
One of the key projects the Worshipful Company supports on an annual basis is the work of cadets training to be environmental health technicians within military units. This is a crucial role which involves promoting and maintaining health and the prevention of disease. The job includes advising on all aspects of environmental health, occupational hygiene and environmental protection, both in barracks and under field conditions. Qualified technicians serve throughout the United Kingdom and overseas.
An award was made at the Ladies Banquet for excellence of an environmental health cadre Territorial Army officer. The Worshipful Company donated £1000 from its charity fund to the Royal Army Medical Corps for social equipment for their personnel at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan.
Annual military awards are made by The Worshipful Company. Further medals and prizes were awarded to individuals from the Army & RAF’s Environmental Health Cadres and trophies awarded to the best cadets from the South East London Army Cadet force and the London wing of the Air Training Corps.
Hydro Nova Europe announces name change
Hydro Nova Europe will, with immediate effect, be known as Hydro Systems Europe. The company is a subsidiary of the world's largest independent manufacturer of dilution and dosing systems for concentrated chemicals and covers markets throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Hydro Systems Europe offers a comprehensive range of application-specific solutions from mechanical hand pumps and water-activated dilution dispensers to fully automated, electronically- controlled dosing systems for warewash and laundry applications.
The name change reflects Hydro's growing global presence and its expansion into new markets and areas of cleaning industry technology.
A company spokesman commented: "With more than 40 years experience and over a million products in use worldwide, Hydro has a proven reputation for innovation and dependability. The name change underlines our continued expansion into new and emerging global markets. It also reflects an ongoing commitment to our well established policy of working with new and existing customers to provide innovative products and solutions which are specifically tailored to their requirements."
www.hydrosystemseurope.com
BTA 2011 Innovation Award results
The BTA Innovation Awards recognise innovation in three key areas of ‘away from home’ toilet provision: new products, new services and efficiency improvements. A panel comprising members of the BTA management committee judged each nomination and decided the winners for each award. The awards were presented to the winners during the 2011 Loo of the Year Awards Event.
The Centrego Toucan Ego was awarded the ‘new product’ award. The Toucan Eco device is a revolutionary product that converts tap water and a small quantity of salt into a combined disinfectant and cleaner using electrochemical activation (ECA). The science of ECA has been around for some time and there are larger units that produce chemical free alternatives to disinfectants and detergents. The Toucan Eco is the first of its type and size making it an affordable entry point into this environmentally friendly cleaning regime. The fluids are cheap to produce and are made on the spot, saving transportation costs as well as packaging and carbon footprint.
The ‘new service’ award was presented to the City of London for its innovative Community Toilet Scheme (CTS). The CTS is considered to be a great achievement. It has increased toilet provision across the City and built better relationships with local businesses by promoting trade and increasing footfall into their premises. The City takes great pride in achieving the highest concentration of members (50) in the smallest geographic area (square mile) within the shortest period of time (four months). Unlike some other local authorities, the City was not looking to replace any of its facilities by the CTS, rather supplement what it had.
Healthmatic won the ‘efficiency improvements’ award for its Moxie Remote management system for remote council assets. Maintaining, staffing and the open/close routines of council assets can be highly wasteful of precious resources as well as very difficult to manage in an efficient manner. Moxie is a completely configurable tool, located within the service room of a building, which empowers the manager to monitor activity within the building as well as schedule routine events like the opening and closing of toilet building doors.
“The Loo of the Year Awards Event, promoted by the BTA, is a once a year opportunity for providers of publicly accessible toilets to network with product and service suppliers and celebrate the very best in ‘away from home’ toilet provision,” said Mike Bone, director of the BTA. "It also provides an ideal opportunity to recognise the cutting edge of washroom product development and service provision through the presentation of the BTA's annual Innovation Awards.”
www.britloos.co.uk
BPI celebrates awards success
Manufacturer of refuse and recycling sacks, bpi.recycled products is celebrating its success after being named ‘best environmental business’ at the Pride in Your Place Awards. Organised by Caerphilly Borough Council, these awards aim to recognise the innovation and commitment of groups and individuals helping to improve the environment in the local area.
bpi.recycled products received the award as a result of its commitment to introducing greener practices at its Rhymney, South Wales, factory.
The site produces many of its products from recycled waste polythene and recycles over 11,000 tonnes of material each year, contributing to bpi.recycled products’ position as the largest recycler of waste polythene in Europe.
Specifically, the manufacturer has invested in robust waste stream management practices designed to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill. It has also been working closely with local schools to educate children on the benefits and importance of recycling as part of the Rhymney First Communities Partnership Steve Harris, manager of the Rhymney factory, said: “As a business, bpi.recycled products is fully committed to not only reducing our own environmental impact but also to encouraging waste reduction and recycling in the wider community. Our recent success at the Pride in Your Place Awards is a fantastic achievement and should be seen as a real testament to this commitment and to the hard work of the bpi.recycled products team.”
Training for cleaners in 2012
Whether starting up or looking to improve existing skills, knowing how to do the job properly remains critical to a successful career in the cleaning business. With more than 35 years’ experience, Prochem Europe claims to be the UK’s largest commercial provider of training for professional cleaners.
The Surrey-based company is again running one- and two-day, professionally-recognised courses at its purpose-built training academy in Chessington, covering all of today’s key floor and fabric cleaning disciplines, and more.
For established cleaners looking to improve skills and learn more about products and methods, the Prochem one day carpet cleaning course is ideal, while one-day upholstery courses and one-day hard floor maintenance courses are the solution for cleaners looking to expand their existing service offer.
For newcomers to carpet cleaning, the two-day carpet cleaning course incorporates all the theoretical and practical elements of the one-day course on the first day, with further guidance on surveying, pricing, timing and setting up your own business, and more advanced techniques including rug cleaning on the second.
For the first time, the two days of each course can be attended consecutively or separately, bringing some added flexibility for the busy cleaning independent. Clear and practical, each course uses face- to-face instruction and step-by-step demonstration by dedicated trainers to enable delegates to gain the knowledge and confidence to clean to the highest professional standards, while a free comprehensive reference manual helps put that new-found learning into practice.
2012 dates for Prochem Europe training comprise:
• One-day carpet cleaning courses: 21 February, 13 March, 22 May, 3 July, 24 July, 4 September, 16 October, 6 November, and 11 December.
• Two-day carpet cleaning courses: 7/8 February, 17/18 April, 19/20 June, 25/26 September, and 20/21 November.
• One-day upholstery courses: 14 March, 23 May, 4 July, 5 September, and 7 November.
• One-day hard floor cleaning courses: 20 March, 29 May, 10 July, 11 September, and 27 November.
www.prochem.co.uk/training.htm
