By now we've all heard of microfiber. We've given insight to its many advantages in our previous blogs (read more HERE). Microfiber has superior cleaning abilities, enhances worker productivity, and reduces long term cost by reducing chemical and water use. Although utilizing a microfiber program will reduce your long term cost, it requires an upfront cost. An issue for some facilities is mismanaging their microfiber program, which can lead to frustration and lower productivity. There are important steps to take when implementing and maintaining a microfiber program.
Where do I begin?
Determining how many microfiber rags and mops are needed for each custodian's shift, conducting an audit of your facility to assess the microfiber needs. This program can be can be further individualized by taking into account size of their facility, average number of rooms cleaned, and general put through rates. Utilizing a check in/check out system in which cleaning staff retrieves their allocated number of rags and mops when grabbing their keys helps to reduce the likelihood of misplaced microfiber. At the end of their shift, staff can then check in the microfiber products they used for their shift to reduce the likelihood of accidentally taking product home. This also helps to consolidate your inventory and you can determine the amount of microfiber required for effective infection prevention.
Training
It's important for employees to understand the techniques and processes for using microfiber to make sure you're capitalizing on the full benefits of a microfiber program. This will help reduce cross-contamination and exposure to potentially harmful chemicals. Utilizing an online training platform, or LMS, can reduce the time administrators spend facilitating training for current and new employees, and can give you insight into training retention. Having different colored microfiber for different areas and applications can also reduce the likelihood of cross contamination, and can simplify training/overcome language barriers.
Laundering & Proper Care Procedures
Laundry personnel should be required to understand protocols and recommendations for cleaning microfiber. Working with a managed microfiber program reduces the chance of cross-contamination and growth of harmful bacteria. Always read the label to follow any specific laundering instructions, and make sure fibers aren't losing their effectiveness by following best practices. These include not mixing cotton with microfiber loads, not adding fabric softener when laundering microfiber, and avoiding bleach which can degrade microfiber fabric. Microfiber lasts up to 5x as long as reusable cotton rags and mops when taken care of correctly. This is important to know because higher quality microfiber products tend to cost more than conventional cotton products; however, their cleaning effectiveness and enhanced life span typically make them more cost-effective in the long run.
Choosing the Right Microfiber
As simple as it sounds: it's important to keep in mind that the quality of your microfiber correlates with the health of your facility. If microfiber fabric has a low percentage of microfiber to the total composition split, uses foam backing or is unable to withstand high drying temperatures or chlorine bleach, it is likely to be less durable than higher quality microfiber. Quality microfiber is more effective in removing dirt from the surface, and requires less chemical for cleaning and disinfecting. This also reduces the amount of times necessary to wipe the surface. Ask your sales professional about which vendors offer top-performing microfiber.
