At the end of the day when you leave your office or facility, you close the door behind you, knowing that your commercial cleaning or facilities maintenance service partner is going to arrive shortly to do the evening clean. The office looks in pretty good shape; in fact, you almost wonder if it needs much cleaning. You ask yourself, “We’re being charged for 5 hours, but does it really take that long?”
You are wise to ask the question, particularly at a time of tight budgets. You want to make sure that you are getting the service you’re paying for. But do you really know how long it takes to get the job done? How do you know if your expectations are unrealistic, or if you actually being overcharged?
Don’t assume. Find out what you are paying for.
Professional cleaning services understand your dilemma. Typically, clients don’t know how much time it should take to get the job done, so they don’t know whether they are being overcharged.
That’s why a company like Kleenway takes scheduling seriously, and we “workload” our services. Workloading is a technique that helps cleaning contractors to more precisely determine the time, labour needs, and related costs involved in cleaning a facility. To do workloading effectively, Kleenway tracks various kinds of cleaning and scheduling data, something that’s easier to do these days with software tracking systems.
Here’s what we do:
- Each facility is given an iPad for signing in, and geofencing software for the actual tracking of people and equipment. Employees sign in once they arrive on site, and as work proceeds, progress is tracked. Both Kleenway and their clients are then able to confirm whether or not a person is where they say they are, and when the services are completed (and then checked off).
- In addition to the above, Kleenway’s quality audits and inspections are carried out by the supervisors or managers, typically on a monthly basis (or scheduled whenever the project requires). The client has access to the audit reports in their client files. This gives everyone a much better understanding of what takes place during a regular cleaning, and how long it takes.
- Kleenway’s clients are provided with access to secure digital files so that they can access all their facilities schedules, work progress and inspection files at any time.
Inspection reports include details on:
- The facility location (clients often have multiple locations)
- The Kleenway team member who conducted the inspection
- A description of what was included in the inspection
- If there were any quality concerns and how they will be rectified
Why it matters
Professional cleaning and facility maintenance providers care about their customers. We want to make sure that services are effectively scheduled based on realistic time frames. We also care about our workers. Since 2018, the University of Minnesota has published various studies about janitors that uncover a worrying rate of injury for workers, as well as sleep issues (which increase the chances of getting hurt). No one wants that. Effective workloading is important to workers as well as the companies they serve.
Your choice in cleaning services makes a difference
Don’t assume and don’t guess how much time it takes to clean your facility or do each task. A reputable service partner should be able to provide quality audits and workload tracking systems to assure you that you are getting the most for your money—and the staff doing the cleaning are being treated fairly.
For more than 35 years Kleenway has been providing superior and trusted commercial cleaning and facility maintenance services. Contact us for a quote today.
