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AHCP opens two new branches in Ireland
The Association of Healthcare Cleaning Professionals (AHCP) has announced the setting up of two new branches serving healthcare cleaners in Ireland. The branches cover Northern and Southern Ireland and are based in Belfast and Dublin respectively. The development comes following a number of meetings with domestic, estates and facilities managers from hospitals in Ireland.
This is the first time AHCP has established branches outside England, Scotland and Wales and it reflects a growing awareness throughout Ireland of the need to implement state of the art healthcare cleaning techniques and practices in order to raise cleanliness standards and lower the risk of infection. It is proof of the increasing need to share knowledge on healthcare cleaning and to raise the profile and status of the healthcare cleaning profession in Ireland. Inaugural meetings have already taken place at the end of last year and both branches have announced programmes of meetings for 2011, details of which can be found on the AHCP website.
Christine Behrendt, membership development officer of AHCP, said: "We are delighted to welcome the two new branches to the AHCP and invite all healthcare cleaners in Ireland to join the association. The level of interest both north and south of the border has been above all expectations and reflects the common concerns of healthcare cleaning professionals throughout the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. The AHCP looks forward to sharing knowledge and expertise with colleagues and fellow professionals throughout Ireland and to learning from experiences there."
www.ahcp.co.uk
Apprentice contestant praised by BCC chairman
Apprentice contestant Joanna Riley has been commended for her perseverance and vigour during her stint on the BBC’s entrepreneurial television series. Lord Sugar, the show’s host, expressed his regret as he fired the Leicester based cleaning company owner during the penultimate episode of the series.
Although Lord Sugar criticised Riley for lacking business skills and questioned why she had failed to grow her own business sufficiently, he offered praise and encouragement to the 25-year-old mother of two: “We all admire what you have done in your career and you can leave this competition with your head held high. You’ve done very, very well.”
Riley confessed that on entering the competition she didn’t know anything about business, but defended herself by claiming she had raw business instinct, which she has demonstrated with her successful cleaning company. Referring to her future plans, she said that she hopes to grow her company and help people in situations similar to her own to start up their own businesses.
Mark Woodhead, chairman of the British Cleaning Council, said: “The praise received by Ms. Riley from Lord Sugar was well deserved. Although she admits that she comes from a background where opportunities are limited, she has demonstrated that with hard work and determination it is possible to go places in your career. I hope that she stays true to her commitment of helping people from similar backgrounds establish businesses; she is a credit to the cleaning industry and we wish her the very best of luck.”
www.britishcleaningcouncil.org
Increased activity within the manufacturing sector welcomed by BCC chairman
Activity in Britain's manufacturing sector ended 2010 on a 16-year high, according to data released jointly by Markit and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply. The monthly survey showed the manufacturing index rising to 58.3 in December, as it reached its highest level since September 1994 and easily exceeded economic forecasts for the sector.
Mark Woodhead, chairman of the British Cleaning Council, said: "Today's figures will bring new year cheer for all UK based cleaning manufacturers, with the levels of demand in both domestic and international markets boding well for the UK’s economic recovery as we enter 2011. Although this increase is undoubtedly good news for both our own sector and the wider economy, it must be noted that employment levels in the manufacturing industry have been consistently declining, falling for several decades. With the expected drop in headcount in the public sector this year due to the coalition’s austerity measures, continuing job-creation within the manufacturing sector will become crucial if we are to avoid high levels of unemployment.”
Manufacturing currently accounts for around 9% of the UK economy. The coalition government has emphasised its commitment to strengthening the manufacturing sector in the coming years as Britain seeks to boost exports and reduce its reliance on the financial sector.
www.britishcleaningcouncil.org
UK cleaning services industry - what’s in store for 2011?
As the UK cleaning services industry emerged from the depths of recession in 2010 a fragmented industry appeared from the chaos. According to new research by industry analysts Plimsoll, the market is polarised between those getting it right and those struggling to recover.
David Pattison, senior analyst and author of the 2011 Plimsoll Analysis, said: “Now that the storm is lifting we have been able to assess the damage left behind. 201 companies are in parlous state and starting the new year clinging on for dear life. We have rated them as ‘danger’ accordingly. Falling demand was the final nail in the coffin for many. The mistake they made, though, was to not make those painful cuts early enough to protect their business.”
However, the green shoots are now well entrenched with the number of companies rated as ‘strong’ rising to 503. Pattison continued: “We rated these companies as ‘strong’ in our latest report and I have to congratulate them. In fact, many of them retained a ‘strong’ rating throughout the recession. They have managed to be commercially successful without jeopardising their financial stability. While others fail around them, they are in pole position to capitalise in 2011.”
When pressed on what these contrasting fortunes mean for the UK cleaning services industry, Pattison offered the following four points:
• Getting back to growth will be paramount this year as costs and overheads continue to increase. Without growth companies will have to reduce overheads dramatically. Companies need to look to beat the current average profit margin of 4% if they are to cover costs and invest in other growth areas.
• Identifying these growth areas will be vital as the market grows slowly. A group of 244 companies are leading the way with growth of over 10%. With bank funding still scarce, fast growing companies will have the resources and business model to further exploit exciting new opportunities.
• The 201 companies rated as ‘danger’ will be increasingly squeezed out of the market as they are simply not competitive in the current economic environment. Even their attractiveness as an acquisition is diminishing as new growth areas look more exciting. Watch out for a wave of corporate failures among these companies in 2011.
• Mergers and acquisitions will continue but the profile of companies involved will shift. There will still be distress sales this year as companies buy struggling competitors on the cheap. However, there will be a return of more strategic acquisitions as larger companies look to buy into growth areas in the market. The new Plimsoll Analysis has named 83 ‘distressed’ companies that could be bought for a discount and a further 103 ‘fast growing’ companies that are sure to attract the attention of the larger players in 2011.
The new Plimsoll Industry Analysis - Cleaning Services gives an instant performance rating on the top 1000 companies in the market. Each company has been rated as strong, good, mediocre, caution or danger according to their latest performance. A graphical and written analysis will tell you which companies are in trouble and who is getting it right. Readers of Cleaning &?Maintenance are entitled to a £50 discount on this publication. Call 01642 626400 for further details and quote reference PR/SV20.
www.plimsoll.co.uk
Pub chain takes Loo of the Year top prize
J D Wetherspoon has won the much coveted UK Overall Winners Trophy in the 23rd Loo of the Year Awards competition to find the very best ‘away from home’ toilets in the UK.
Awards managing director, Mike Bone, said: “The UK’s hospitality sector is placing significantly increasing importance on the provision of first class toilets that contain the facilities their customers need and expect when visiting their premises. Wetherspoon’s is continually raising the bar within this sector, providing excellent and unique toilets in its pubs throughout the UK.”
Entries for Loo of the Year Awards continue at high levels despite the economic situation and over 1400 entries were received in 2010. Standards in awards entrant’s toilets are also improving - 72% of the total entries achieved the top 5 Star grading (58% in 2009).
Other major UK trophy winners were: Asda Stores for individual category entries, Ceredigion County Council for public toilet entries, Haven Holidays for corporate provider entries, Tesco/TC Contractors for accessible facilities, Ceredigion County Council for Changing Places toilets, Asda Stores for baby change facilities for the second year running, Harrogate Borough Council for eco-friendly toilets, Staffordshire County Council for toilets in education, and Highland Council for local authority toilet entries.
Trophy winners in the associated Attendant of the Year Awards, for the important people who put the sparkle and pride into the UK’s toilets, were: Sandwich Town Council (individual attendant team), Larne Borough Council (in-house cleaning team) and Danfo UK (external contactor team).
Cleaning and FM companies recognised included Carlisle Cleaning & Support Services, City Facilities Management, Dougland, GBM Support Services Group, Mitie, TC Contractors and Wettons.
Representatives from the top 20 local authority public toilet providers - the Loo of the Year Awards ‘premier league’ - were also honoured at the awards presentation, held on 3 December at the Chesford Grange Hotel in Kenilworth, along with 34 members of the awards ‘champions league’ - the standards of excellence for participants achieving five or more five star award grades. TV show host Les Dennis provided the after lunch entertainment with a special edition of a unique ‘Flushing Fortunes’ quiz show.
The 2010 Awards were run in association with Airdri, the UK based manufacturer of warm air dryers, the British Toilet Association, the Changing Places Consortium, and the British Cleaning Council. The four national tourism bodies - Visit England, Visit Scotland, Visit Wales and The Northern Ireland Tourist Board, Danfo, flush-wiser (PHS Washrooms), Healthmatic, Lotus Professional and SCA Tork also supported this year’s awards.
Full details of the 2010 award results are available at: www.loo.co.uk.
Helping hand for Haiti
Almost a year on from the devastating earthquake, the International Rescue Committee has mounted a major effort to call attention to the critical role basic sanitisation and hygiene can play in Haiti. Responding to a radio campaign in The Netherlands, Derbyshire based hand hygiene experts, the Deb Group, has donated over 200,000 bottles of Deb InstantFoam hand sanitiser to this cause.
Jeff Bell, Deb Limited’s managing director, said: “As Deb Group is an international group of companies operating in 16 countries, we were able to respond to this radio campaign through one of our international offices: Deb Benelux BV. We are delighted to be able to give a helping hand to Haiti by donating Deb InstantFoam, with the added bonus of being able to supply the product with the labels in French. Our hand sanitiser has been specifically formulated so that it can be used without water to kill 99.999% of many common germs in just 15 seconds and therefore reduce the spread of bacteria quickly and effectively.”
The hand sanitiser will be distributed by the Red Cross and Dutch based organisation, Artsen Zonder Grenzen, providing aid to thousands of people who now live in makeshift camps in Port-au-Prince, following the earthquake in January.
www.debgroup.com
