Safety Training Meeting
February 10, 2010
It was an exciting morning for the group
of Area Managers and Site Supervisors as they
gathered January 30th for the first quarterly safety
training meeting of 2010. They all knew that there was plenty
on the agenda to look forward to and that they would all have a
chance to chime in. So, with coffee and doughnuts in hand,
the Cardinal Training Center was opened for business.
We were lucky enough to have John Paul-Surdo of JohnsonDiversey
in our presence that morning for a refreshing take on the updated
Healthy High Performance Cleaning Procedures. After a general
review of the program, which has gotten a great response from both
our customers and employees, John took us on an in-depth look into
the specific HHPC requirements that we will be implementing to our
current customers.
Continuing on with the "Green Theme", President Jim DeGrado
introduced Cardinal's newest member to the family, The Ionator from
Activeion. The updated Activeion product delivers portable,
on-demand, safe and sustainable cleaning by converting tap water
into a powerful cleaner. After a brief training and
demonstration session, the Area Managers and Site Supervisors were
both impressed and excited going forward with this piece of
equipment in their arsenal.
Finally, as a yearly reminder for all Area Managers we reviewed
in detail Cardinal's Employee Training Checklist. This review
is a reminder for all Trainers to pay special attention to the
little things at each building we service, and re-emphasizes the
importance of their initial training process.
It's Getting Hot in Here
January 15, 2010
Hot Spot Cleaning
I think that we all could have assumed that children are more
susceptible to infection by microbial pathogens picked up from
their environments than adults exposed to the same pathogens, now
there is substantial evidence that leads us to that same
conclusion. There are many reasons for this increased risk, but the
major factor is that children's immune systems and the natural
protection against pathogens don't fully develop until adulthood.
With the increased risk, crowding in schools, the fact that
children have frequent hand-to-mouth and object-to-mouth contact,
etc., make it very important to understand what environmental
sources present the most important risks for infection.
A surprisingly inefficient way of transferring diseases is
direct person-to-person transfer from sneezes and coughs.
Conversely, the transfer of human microbial pathogens to a surface
or material that is touched by many other individuals, known as
highly touched objects (HTO's), in the course of their daily lives
and to allow each individual's touch-to-mouth or
touch-to-hand-to-mouth practice spread the infection is highly
efficient.
The big questions are (1) whether or not microbial
pathogens can survive on these surfaces, (2) which surfaces have
the highest probability of holding microbial contamination and (3)
how can they be best removed? Within the last few years these
questions have been addressed through studies and highly touted
papers.
1. It was determined that common pathogens may persist on
surfaces for times ranging from two hours to more than four
years.
2. With a wide variety of data recovery methods, results of
these studies are difficult to determine, however a number of
general conclusions can be made. Restroom floors and walls do not
rank at the top of the list, most directly related to the idea that
most cleaning efforts are focused there. Highly ranked HTO surfaces
include the following: Children's playground equipment, faucets,
armrests, phones and importantly computer keyboards. In schools,
the previously mentioned HTO's were most contaminated with
bacteria, while desktops, faucet handles and paper towel dispensers
were most contaminated with viruses. Most importantly, the study
showed that contamination levels had a strong positive correlation
with student absenteeism due to illness. So in the case of schools,
HTO's can be efficient in spreading person-to-person and
person-to-home microbial contamination.
3. While creating the best method for disinfection of HTO's is
ideal, it is not easily obtained. A good example is the common
method of applying a disinfectant as a liquid from a wiper. It has
been determined that wipers vary greatly in their ability to
release disinfectants to surfaces. In particular, microfiber-based
wipers have shown to release far more disinfectants than their
cheaper less effective cotton rag counterpart.
HTO's can be an efficient way of spreading infections within
schools and from schools to homes. The physical and organizational
tools that can be used to clean and disinfect HTO's and to monitor
the effectiveness of the cleaning and disinfection are well known
and available. What is required is the knowledge that to implement
and use these tools.
For more information on Cardinal Building Maintenance, Inc.
contact us at 708.385.3575 or info@cardbldgmnt.com
The New Look
December 04, 2009
I would like to welcome all visitors to the new Cardinal
Building Maintenance, Inc. website. Everyone at Cardinal is
very excited about the new site and the opportunity to better
serve you, our customers. We are not stopping here. You will
see something new every time you visit the site. What you find will
be informative, relevant, and resourceful. We are not in the
business of wasting time; our focus is getting rid of your
waste.
What you will find:
Updated news and events from across the industry that will keep
you informed and up to date.
Important websites, articles, and videos that you can use as
reference points to better educate your company.
Cardinal Building Maintenance, Inc. services, cleaning tips, and
company profiles.
And much, much more…
Thank you for visiting, enjoy.