Cleanliness and hygiene in factories, particularly food production is a high stakes consideration. It’s not just about business risk, there are also legal obligations and the very real possibility of harming people through your actions, that’s why it’s important to never leave anything to chance.
How important is it?
Poor housekeeping in a manufacturing site or warehouse can lead to a whole host of problems for you and your employees, including:
- Slips, trips and falls caused by slippery surfaces and product build-up
- Respiratory conditions, skin irritations and gastrointestinal illnesses caused by unclean, damp or mouldy working conditions
- Attracting unwanted pests such as mice, rats, cockroaches and dust mites from dropped food matter and unsanitary spaces.
- Product contamination from pests, debris, dirt or mould.
- Decreased staff productivity due to cleaning related distractions.
To avoid these problems, a workplace must maintain cleanliness, by implementing regular cleaning tasks and deep cleans. Although this effort requires a great deal of management and planning, the benefits are many.
Maintaining an adequate level of housekeeping can result in:
- Fewer slips, trips and falls
- Lower worker exposures to hazardous products
- Reduces risk of contamination of products
- More efficient equipment clean-up and maintenance
- better hygienic conditions leading to improved health, therefore fewer sick days taken.
- Improved staff morale, leading to increased productivity
- No unwanted pests
How to achieve it?
Cleaning maintenance must be performed frequently and seen as a preventative method rather than just being completed when a problem arises. Integrating regular housekeeping tasks into everyday work life can help ensure this is done.
There are many steps you can take to help maintain the cleanliness of your manufacturing site or warehouse, in addition to regular deep cleaning sessions undertaken by professionals. Here’s what you can do in between visits:
- Clean up during or at the end of a shift
- Assign day-to-day clean-up tasks to your employees
- Dispose of waste regularly
- Perform inspections to ensure clean-up is complete
Want to enlist the help of the Real Cleaning Co? Get in touch with one of our friendly and professional team today.
