Cleaning Industry News May 2008

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Home > Cleaning Industry News May 2008

KEY CLEANING MANAGEMENT CONSTANTLY ON THE MOVE
A recent survey by industrial analysts, Plimsoll publishing has recently looked at the profile of business leaders operating in the UK cleaning services market, and found that in 2007 a record 1106 new directors were appointed to the top 1500 cleaning companies. But they are also staying in the job for a much shorter time, on average they are moving after just two years, which is amongst the quickest in the UK.

They found that the average director in the UK cleaning services market is 51 years old and earns around £28,000 per annum. The youngest director is aged just 21, whilst the oldest is 94. But the core band of owners/directors is diminishing year on year as they sell up or retire.

They are being replaced by a new wave of management, who are free to move on when the mood takes them. It is suggested that the industry's business behaviour is heavily influenced by this style of management, as the emphasis switches from financial prudence and long term vision, to quick fix solutions.

Davis Pattison, Plimsoll's senior analyst on the project said "If you are dealing with these companies, it goes unnoticed that new management has been put in charge". He also said "I do not think that it is any
coincidence that a third of cleaning services companies are losing money at the minute, as the cavalier management chase the kudos of sales.

"For these businesses, this is a blatantly unsustainable position, potentially putting the business under severe financial pressure, at a time when no cleaning company can afford any slip in their competitiveness. Then, before the strategy falls apart, these individuals responsible can easily slip away, their reputations intact, leaving others to pick up the pieces."

Source: Cleaning and Hygiene Today.

ENDS

THE CONTINUING HOSPITAL CLEANING WAR AGAINT MRSA and C.DIFFICILE SUPERBUGS
With the virulent hospital bug Clostridium difficile spores, being resistant to a range of disinfectants including alcohol gels which are one of the health service's recommended regular cleaning products, a research team at the University of Southampton, have undertaken a year long programme, to solve the problem.

As this research has already shown that MRSA microbes were completely eliminated within 90 minutes of contact with a copper surface, but remain alive for up to three days on the regular stainless steel surfaces, they
have been testing the C.diff spores on copper surfaces, and results have been very good. These spores can live in the environment for a long time and are becoming a major cause of hospital acquired infections, despite the recent £57,000,000 clean up of all hospitals ordered by the government.

The research team have established that copper inactivates the same c.diff spores which are proving to be resistant to the standard hospital cleaning programmes. The C.diff microbes placed on a copper alloy surface died within one or two days, compared with a stainless steel surface, where they were still alive after a week.

As a result of their work, the US environmental protection agency has officially registered copper as an antimicrobial agent, the first ever solid material to be so registered. This allow products made from copper alloy
to be marketed in the US by firms making public health claims. In this country, the Selly Oak Hospital in Birmingham has already replaced all frequently touched surfaces in one ward with copper.

This includes door handles, grab rails, bathroom taps and light switches, all of which can still be cleaned and disinfected as normal, but which now have the benefit of antimicrobial surfaces.

ENDS

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