Is my building clean enough to Reopen?

If your like most facilities managers maybe you asked yourself this question when your local county or city began to roll back guidelines on your local shut down or shelter in place. Perhaps you didn't know if you should began to invite employees back, or continue to shelter in place and have everyone work remotely. What if your facility never shut down? Did you remain open the entire time during the shut downs and shelter in place orders? Was sanitation on your mind? Did you make sure to limit associating with your co-workers or employees unless absolutely necessary? How am i supposed to know if my building is safe or clean enough to re-open? Let's answer these questions together.

1. Should my employees come back to the office? Have you created a proper plan with your Janitorial or Sanitation parter on what to do should one of your employees test positive with Covid-19? Is your janitorial or sanitation partner prepared and ready for a possible outbreak in the facility? Right now, your sanitation or janitorial company should be stuck to you at your hip. They should be able to provide you with a proper plan or SOP in the event one employee comes up positive. Perhaps you are sadly, like some facilities managers or building owners, waiting for something to happen until you take action. Why not plan preventatively? Why wait until a fire happens to install fire sprinklers?
2. Did you remain open during the shelter in place? Did you decide or perhaps it was decided for you, that your doors will remain open and your employees will continue to come into the office because critical infrastructure needed people "on deck". Did your janitorial or sanitation parter assist you in cleaning key touch points? Did they ensure a Preventative Plan of Action (PPA) in the event on or more employees came in contact with a Covid infected person, or they themselves came down with Covid? Was electrostatic fogging presented to you by your sanitation parter as an option in the event someone came down with Covid? Most janitorial and sanitation companies are using electrostatic fogging as a preventative measure, but did you know, most hand held foggers don't have the power or strength to properly sanitize a large infected are. Sure, they are great for a few tables and chairs, but what about an entire open office area? Make sure your vendor has a backpack fogger on hand in the event you need to sanitize an entire office area. My company FGS has purchased only backpack foggers, with no hand held's in our possession. Our goal is not to Sanitize only the affected employees work station, but the entire workstation around them, because let's face it, the virus doesn't respect boundaries.
3. Has Sanitation been on your mind? Do you ever wonder if your janitorial vendor is really doing anything to keep your employees safe? Most office employees don't see their janitorial vendors. Most come in after hours when the office is empty. are you confident that your needs and wants are being covered and cleaned? Or do you look to the sky and pray to god that your janitorial staff is doing a great job in helping you fight the hidden enemy known as Covid-19? Be proactive with your janitorial staff, talk to your "account manager, or company owner". Make sure they are on the same page as you when it comes to the cleanliness of your facility. Maybe before the Covid epidemic you where just "satisfied" with your janitorial staff, maybe you overlooked a-lot of issues. Now is not the time to be overlooking issues and cleaning points. Now is the time to be proactive in working with them. If you feel like they can not meet your standards and needs, then look for another vendor that will. FGS is helping our customers meet the highest standards of cleaning right now, and we where before the pandemic.
4. How am i supposed to know if my building is safe or clean enough to re-open? Be honest with yourself in your sanitation program. Take a look at your facility and ask yourself, is it safe, and is it time to open? It's a financial struggle to stay closed, we all know that. Business wire magazine just wrote a great article on returning to the workplace. Most employees are tired of working from home, and honestly, it's taking a toll on mental and physical health. But before you can make an action plan on returning your employees to the office, you have to study your facility, and make sure that you are confident in your sanitation program from your janitorial or Sanitation vendor. Examine them, and if you feel like you need another vendor or another opinion, search for one. Your employees health depends on you.

About the Author:

Procopio Vera is Vice President at FGS Facilities Group. FGS Facilities Group has been providing janitorial and sanitation service's to the entire State of California since 1993. Our team has been on the front line in keeping health care facilities, manufacturing plants, food facilities, government offices, commercial buildings and office spaces cleaned and sanitized during the 2020 Covid-19 Pandemic. Are you looking for a fresh new cleaning perspective for your company or building? Contact Procopio at [email protected] and lets make clean happen!