London 2012 hygiene under spotlight

Amid concerns that poor hygiene put the health of athletes at Delhi’s Commonwealth Games at risk, the British Cleaning Council has asked the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) to demonstrate its regard for adequate hygiene in the preparations for the 2012 London Olympic Games. The move comes following media reports that up to 15 swimmers on the England and Australian teams suffered from a stomach virus, potentially caused by water in Delhi's pools at the Commonwealth Games aquatics centre.

Around 20% of England's swimmers - up to 10 competitors - had an upset stomach, according to team doctors. Commonwealth Games Federation officials said they would investigate the matter.

The BCC has made a formal request to LOCOG, calling that it demonstrates that the preparations and planning for the cleanliness and hygiene of the 2012 Olympic Games is sufficient, and that there is no chance that Britain’s reputation as a clean, safe, world-class destination will be risked.

Mark Woodhead, chairman of the BCC, said: "The adverse publicity surrounding the Commonwealth Games in Delhi has demonstrated that without adequate preparation, the health of both the spectators and competitors is at risk. Hygiene is very important, and a perceived lack of it caused great concern in the run up to the Commonwealth Games and marred the competition. We want to see an extensive and detailed plan from LOCOG to reassure both ourselves and the public that there is no chance of these events being repeated in two years time."

www.britishcleaningcouncil.org

OCS staff win Team Clean Challenge

OCS’s cleaning team at the MOD Abbeywood site in Bristol have been named joint winners of the 2010 Team Clean Challenge while their team manager was awarded the title of Best Manager. The Team Clean Challenge competition, now in its third year, is organised by Asset Skills and aims to highlight the high quality training which takes place in the industry and to show that cleaning is a skilled job which requires solid technical knowledge and leadership.

"The OCS Abbeywood team had strength and depth of skills that were exemplified from the overall winning manager downwards through the team," said Chris James, director of research and development for Asset Skills. "They were an exceptional team who made the most of the opportunity to showcase their skills and rightfully deserve the Gold Medal position they have achieved."

Chris Hunt, OCS’s team manager, said: "Whilst I found it quite difficult to perform under competition conditions, I was relieved that I was able to apply the knowledge and techniques that I undertake every day at work."

Richard Williams, one of the cleaning operatives who took part, said: "It was a great morale booster for everyone; I got the chance to personally test myself and was very proud of us all. We all worked well under competition conditions."

The event gave OCS the opportunity to demonstrate the skills of the team which cleans the Abbeywood site for its client Debut. The 121,000 sq m of the MOD’s Procurement HQ in Bristol comprises office and conference space as well as dining, crèche and fitness facilities.

Competing against teams from across the UK from the public and private sector, as well as being judged on quality cleaning standards, the Abbeywood team was assessed on their ability to work safely, to time and to plan and on their work as a team, training and communication.

Richard Beamish, chief executive of Asset Skills, said: "The Team Clean Challenge is a competition held every year for employers in the cleaning industry. The contest is very popular with employers because it highlights the good quality training that staff at all levels undertake. The competition seeks to show the importance cleaning plays to a healthy, functioning society - and how crucial it is to have skilled staff who know how to manage the environment and have the right skills to control bacteria and other biohazards properly."

www.ocs.co.uk

3rd annual CHSA Golf Day

Against a backcloth of bright but breezy weather and a course in superb condition, 100 players battled it out for both team and individual prizes at the 2010 CHSA Golf Day held at Oulton Hall, Leeds on Thursday 16 September.

This year’s tournament took the form of an 18 hole Stableford pro-am competition. 25 teams, each with a professional provided by the Yorkshire PGA, soon discovered that this magnificent course had been set up to challenge even the best of them whilst providing enjoyable competition for them all. Returning, wind-swept, exhilarated and exhausted to the multi million pound Claret Jug club house, all hailed it as a wonderful success.

The day’s events were completed with a presentation dinner at Oulton Hall. Led by MC, Vince Miller and entertained by comedian John Stiles, £1500 was raised for the chairman’s charity, Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People. John Stiles auctioned two England shirts autographed by his father, Nobby.

Congratulations were offered to the winners who received an array of golf equipment for the amateurs and cash prizes for the professionals to mark their success.

The winners

Tournament joint winners (professionals): John Wells of Cherry Burton Golf Club and Adam Davison of Waterton Park Golf Club.

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Monthind expands through further acquisition

Contract cleaning provider Monthind Ltd has announced the acquisition of Sanitec Cleaning Services of Norwich for an undisclosed sum. This follows the recent acquisition of B&G Services, an Ipswich based contract cleaning services company.

Colchester based Monthind is an independent cleaning contractor and enjoys a long established reputation for delivering high levels of service to a broad range of clients in both the private and public sectors. The acquisition of Sanitec includes its portfolio of commercial clients in Norwich and the surrounding area, together with materials and vehicles, and expands Monthind’s coverage in the region.

Sanitec is a family business providing a whole range of cleaning services encompassing daily office cleaning, retail, builders cleans and a portfolio of specialist cleaning services including window cleaning, carpet cleaning, PC and electronic cleaning.

Tony Clarke, managing director of Monthind, said: "We are delighted that this significant acquisition includes the 170 Sanitec employees who have chosen to come with Monthind as we expand our operation. We firmly believe that a successful organisation is driven by the employees within it. The relationships our staff have with our clients and the pride they take in their work are key to the continued growth we have achieved and will continue to develop."

The acquisition of Sanitec Cleaning Services brings Monthind’s total workforce to in excess of 1000 employees.

Sanitec was formed in 1997 by Nick Scrivens with an initial focus on specialist technical cleaning services which remains a key strength area within the range of cleaning services delivered. "We are delighted that Monthind has taken over the Sanitec business," he said. "Monthind has an excellent reputation in contract cleaning and I am pleased that the future of our employees will be secure and that our customers will continue to receive a high quality service. My family and I will work with Monthind over the next few months to ensure a smooth transition, before we move on to concentrate on our wedding limosine business and the management of Lenwade House Hotel, which we have recently purchased."

www.monthindclean.co.uk

BinIt! celebrates 5th anniversary

Celebrating its fifth year of success in educating young people on good gum disposal, the Bin it! Schools Programme is again preparing to tour the UK and Ireland to tackle anti-social littering amongst this crucial age group.

Five years after it was launched, the Bin It! Schools Programme has so far reached 20,000 pupils in over 2500 secondary schools across the UK. Over 5000 Bin It! resource packs have now been requested, helping to educate young people on the impact of littered gum, and to make them more aware of the local environment around them such as their school, high street and local park.

When the tour visits London in November, the young people will be specifically encouraged to take pride in their city leading up to the 2012 Olympic Games.

Designed for 11-13 year olds, the resource has been successful in raising awareness around the important issue of litter, with 83% of pupils saying that dropping gum was more serious than they had originally thought having taken part in the lesson, and 66% of pupils claiming that they would now try to put their gum in the bin more often.

Developed by the Wrigley Company in partnership with specialist education consultancy Edcoms, the programme incorporates a team of actors who visit schools to encourage greater awareness of the environment and educate young people about responsible litter disposal. Schools are also provided with a resource pack that includes teachers notes, resource cards, activity cards and colour posters. The resource packs are available to all secondary schools and have been designed to fit in with PSHE Citizenship lesson. There is also a website that can be accessed for further information and resources. It can be found at www.chewitbinit.com.

Alexandra Dalgleish, corporate affairs, Wrigley UK & ROI, said: "This is the fifth year that the Bin It! Schools Programme has been made available to schools in the UK and the programme has now reached over 2500 schools. We believe that the issue of littered gum can only be tackled by engaging with young people at an early age and educating them about responsible behaviour. We recognise the importance of this in the next two years leading up to the London 2012 Olympic Games."

Ruby celebration for Jangro

Jangro, the network of independently owned janitorial supplies companies covering the UK and the Isle of Man, is enjoying its ruby celebration with the announcement of Swift Janitorial & Catering Supplies of Cornwall, becoming its 40th member outlet.

Swift has, for the past 20 years, provided a very personal local service to hotels, restaurants, the catering trade and businesses in Cornwall. Customers range from the Fifteen Restaurant at Newquay, the Tregenna Castle Hotel at St Ives, to all areas of the hospitality and tourism industry, offices and the retail trade.

Managing director, Tresco Richards, said: "We started in the catering and leisure trades, but have for many years provided every type of business in the county with a wide range of cleaning and maintenance products and equipment. Joining Jangro has strengthened our product offer with many new items and we now have the excellent, top of the range Jangro brand and the Jangro Enviro range. Jangro’s attitude of ‘going the extra mile’ meets our business philosophy and already we are receiving the benefits of our membership."

www.jangro.net