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The Business of Green Cleaning
- 1. The Business of Green Cleaning Stephen Ashkin and David Holly
- 2. AgendaAgenda 1 . The Busine ss o f Gre e n Cle aning 2. Define Green & Green Cleaning 3. “Roadmaps” 4. Take-Aways 5. The Future
- 3. BookObjectiveBookObjective • Identify how green cleaning operations and best practices will affect facility and property management, tenants of buildings and suppliers of such practices. This document will provide real data that demonstrates how one can realize environmental, economic and operational success in their facilities through: – Substantiated research – Case studies – Model programs and guidelines
- 4. BookFormatBookFormat 1. Book Green Definitions, Terms, Organizations & Standards “Roadmaps” to Green Cleaning Products, Process and Procedures Finding a Green Service Provider; RFI & RFP Process Selling Green Cleaning Internally Common Challenges Hard and Soft Costs of Green Cleaning Where We Go From Here
- 5. BookFormatBookFormat 2. Appendixes Global Eco-labeling Network Provider List Green Cleaning Products Selection Criterion Green Cleaning Products Proposed Contract IU’s Sustainability Task Force Recommendations RFI & RFP Prototypes Establishing a Performance-based Cleaning System Walk-Through Audit Management Tool Green Cleaning Survey Results
- 6. BookFormatBookFormat 3. Case Studies Adobe Systems – Cushman & Wakefield Bentall Capital Great River Energy Harvard Medical School Massachusetts State Office Buildings Metro Health Pacific Northwest Laboratory Shell Oil Troutman Saunders Universities of Alberta, McMaster & Michigan Viva Verde Vonachen
- 7. BookFormatBookFormat 3. Case Studies --- continued AbilityOne FBG GOJO Harvard Maintenance JohnsonDiversey Maintex Millicare Servicon Tennant UGL Unicco
- 8. TheBusiness of GreenCleaningTheBusiness of GreenCleaning Defining Green & Green CleaningDefining Green & Green Cleaning
- 9. • …products and services that reduce the health and environmental impacts compared to similar products and services used for the same purpose.” What Is Green & Green CleaningWhat Is Green & Green Cleaning
- 10. • …products and services that reduce the health and environmental impacts compared to similar products and services used for the same purpose.” What Is Green & Green CleaningWhat Is Green & Green Cleaning
- 11. • …products and services that reduce the health and environmental impacts compared to similar products and services used for the same purpose.” • Green Continuum It’s a journeyIt’s a journey What Is Green & Green CleaningWhat Is Green & Green Cleaning
- 12. • …products and services that reduce the health and environmental impacts compared to similar products and services used for the same purpose.” • Defining Green Cleaning Cleaning that protects health without harming the environment What Is Green & Green CleaningWhat Is Green & Green Cleaning
- 13. • Concept / Approach to Cleaning – Preventative maintenance – Time management – Pollution prevention – Continuous improvement – Just-in-time inventory – Six Sigma – Total Quality Management What Is Green & Green CleaningWhat Is Green & Green Cleaning
- 14. • Concept / Approach to Cleaning – Preventative maintenance – Time management – Pollution prevention – Continuous improvement – Just-in-time inventory – Six Sigma – Total Quality Management • Focus on reducing health and environmental impacts What Is Green & Green CleaningWhat Is Green & Green Cleaning
- 15. TheBusiness of GreenCleaningTheBusiness of GreenCleaning RoadmapsRoadmaps
- 16. RoadmapsRoadmaps • LEED for Existing Buildings • 10 Steps To Green Cleaning Implementation • Collaborative for High Performance Schools • Quick & Easy Guide to Green Cleaning
- 18. Chapter5:Chapter5: Product ConsiderationsProduct Considerations Bio-Based / Renewable Resources Biodegradability pH Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) Flashpoint Dyes Fragrances Ingredient Choices
- 19. Case Study 3Case Study 3 Pacific Northwest National LabsPacific Northwest National Labs CRITERIA RESPONSE BACK-UP DOCUMENTATION 1. Meets all mandatory Requirements Items 1-8 Yes/No (add in description as required for nos. 3 and 8) Certify 9. Price/unit Describe 10. Aquatic Toxicity Whole product single ingredient(s) (please list as attachment) Measure (e.g. LD50):_____ Concentration (mg/l):____ Type of fish_____________ MSDS other_______________ 11. Skin Irritation Index None MSDS other_______________ 12. Eye Irritation None MSDS other_______________ 13. Dilution range Heavy duty __:__ Daily use __:__ MSDS other_______________ 14. Product Container Returnable/reusable_______ % recycled content________ Recyclable plastic # ______ Screened labeling ________ Color coded labeling______ Other _______________ MSDS other_______________
- 20. Case Study 12 – IU RecommendationsCase Study 12 – IU Recommendations Chemical Cleaning ProductsChemical Cleaning Products 1. All Purpose Cleaners: shall meet the requirements of Green Seal’s GS- 37 and/or Environmental Choice’s CCD-146. shall meet the requirements of Green Seal’s GS-37 and/or Environmental Choice’s CCD-146. 2. Glass Cleaners: shall meet the requirements of Green Seal’s GS-37 and/or Environmental Choice’s CCD-146. 3. General Purpose Cleaners: shall meet the requirements of Green Seal’s GS-37 and/or Environmental Choice’s CCD-146. 4. Washroom Cleaners (non disinfecting): shall meet the requirements of Green Seal’s GS-37 and/or Environmental Choice’s CCD-146. 5. Floor Care Products (Finishes): shall be durable and slip resistant. In addition, the finish shall be free of zinc (metal-free) OR shall meet the requirements of Green Seal’s GS-40 and/or Environmental Choice’s CCD-147.
- 21. Case Study 12 – IU RecommendationsCase Study 12 – IU Recommendations Chemical Cleaning ProductsChemical Cleaning Products Item # Description Green Cleaning Chemicals QTY Unit Brand / Order # Unit Price Extended Amount Dilution Rate for Medium Soils Cost Per Usable Gal 1 GREEN CLEANER, general purpose/floor cleaner. Must be certified by Green Seal (GS-37) or Environmental Choice (CCD 110 or CCD 146I). Gal $47.50 $47.50 64:1 $0.74 2 GREEN CLEANER, glass, windows and mirrors. Must be certified by Green Seal (GS-37) or Environmental Choice (CCD 146A). Gal $ $ $ 3 GREEN CLEANER, restroom & tile cleaner. Must be certified by Green Seal (GS-37) or Environmental Choice (CCD 146J). Gal $ $ $ 4 GREEN CLEANER, carpet and upholstery cleaner. Must be certified by Green Seal (GS-37) or Environmental Choice (CCD 148A). Dru m $ $ $
- 22. RequirementsRequirements • Green chemicals • Carpet & Rug Institute for vacuums
- 23. RequirementsRequirements • Green chemicals • Carpet & Rug Institute for vacuums • EPA for janitorial paper and liners
- 24. RequirementsRequirements • Green chemicals • Carpet & Rug Institute for vacuums • EPA for janitorial paper and liners • Training and Standard Operating Procedures
- 25. RequirementsRequirements • Green chemicals • Carpet & Rug Institute for vacuums • EPA for janitorial paper and liners • Training and Standard Operating Procedures • Communications
- 26. • Other janitorial products – Entrance mats – Micro-fiber cloths – Micro-fiber mops – Recycling bins • Other products – Automatic flush valves and faucets – Hand hygiene – Waterless urinals – Compact fluorescent light bulbs – Pest management products – Landscaping products OtherRequirementsOtherRequirements
- 27. • …products and services that reduce the health and environmental impacts compared to similar products and services used for the same purpose.” In Lieu of Standards and CertificationIn Lieu of Standards and Certification
- 28. • …products and services that reduce the health and environmental impacts compared to similar products and services used for the same purpose.” • Green Continuum In Lieu of Standards and CertificationIn Lieu of Standards and Certification –Conserve chemicals –Conserve water –Conserve energy –Reduce toxicity –Recycle content –Durability
- 29. TheBusiness of GreenCleaningTheBusiness of GreenCleaning Take-AwaysTake-Aways
- 30. Global Ecolabelling NetworkGlobal Ecolabelling Network
- 31. Request forInformation (RFI)Request forInformation (RFI) Mission or Vision Statement Corporate Environmental Policy or Sustainability Statement Company Strategic and Succession Plans Organizational Chart Evidence of Corporate Compliance Service Delivery Model Administrative Systems References
- 32. Request forProposal (RFP)Request forProposal (RFP) Basic Administrative Information Accurate Operational Information Detailed Set of Specification Performance-Based Contracting Quality Control Plan Communications Plan Weighting
- 33. Site ManualSite Manual Introductory Material Schedule of Routine Cleaning Operations Green Floor Care Plan Schedule of Other Periodic Cleaning Operations Green Cleaning Plans for Special Situations − Vulnerable Populations Recycling Program Green Chemical Policy Green Equipment Policy Training Program Communication Plan
- 34. TheBusiness of GreenCleaningTheBusiness of GreenCleaning The FutureThe Future
- 35. Where We Go FromHereWhere We Go FromHere • Green Collar Jobs and the “Living Wage”
- 36. Where We Go FromHereWhere We Go FromHere • Green Collar Jobs and the “Living Wage” • Extended Product Responsibility/Take-Back Programs
- 37. Where We Go FromHereWhere We Go FromHere • Green Collar Jobs and the “Living Wage” • Extended Product Responsibility/Take-Back Programs • Sustainability
- 38. Next StepsNext Steps • Internationally Data – Developed Countries – Developing Countries
- 39. Next StepsNext Steps • Internationally Data – Developed Countries – Developing Countries • Case Studies
- 40. Next StepsNext Steps • Internationally Data – Developed Countries – Developing Countries • Case Studies • Contracting Language
- 41. Next StepsNext Steps • Internationally Data – Developed Countries – Developing Countries • Case Studies • Contracting Language • Translated into Other Languages
- 42. The Business of Green Cleaning Stephen Ashkin and David Holly
Editor's Notes
- INTENT: BE GRACIOUS AND INTRODUCE THE PROGRAM. THE PERSON INTRODUCING YOU SHOULD HAVE READ YOUR INTRODUCTION WHICH YOU PROVIDED TO THEM. SO THANK THEM FOR THE “VERY KIND INTRODUCTION”. GO ON TO EXPRESS YOUR GRATITUDE TO THE SPONSORS OF THE EVENT AND/OR MEETING HOSTS, AND ANYONE ELSE THAT MIGHT BE APPROPRIATE. AND FINALLY THANK THE AUDIENCE FOR COMING. THIS SECTION IS 8 TO 12 MINUTES IN LENGTH DEPENDING ON THE INTRODUCTION AND DISCUSSIONS ON SLIDES 5, 6, 7 & 8. I know that all of you are very busy and I appreciate you coming today. Thus, I want to make this an interesting and valuable use of your time. And it is my pleasure to introduce to you the newest book from the IFMA Foundation --- The Business of Green Cleaning, which was written by a couple of friends of mine --- Steve Ashkin and David Holly who are considered the leading national, and perhaps international experts on this subject --- and was sponsored by Millicare. NOTE: Depending on the amount of time you have, you may either take questions during your presentation or if time is relatively tight, it might be preferable to take questions at the very end. But at this point in your introduction you should establish the “ground rules”. If you are going to take questions tell them “because I want to make this as valuable use of your time as possible, please feel free to ask questions at any point throughout the presentation” otherwise you don’t have to say anything about questions.
- INTENT: LAY OUT THE AGENDA AND CREATE THE RIGHT EXPECTATIONS. THIS SECTION COVERS THE OBJECTIVES AND THE FORMAT OF THE BOOK ITSELF TO HELP THE AUDIENCE GET A BASIC UNDERSTANDING OF WHY THE BOOK WAS WRITTEN, WHAT’S CONTAINED IN IT AND WHY ITS OF VALUE. I don’t know about your organization, but many that I deal with are very concerned about these economic times. And as some have “tighten their belts” they have placed their “green” and sustainability efforts on hold --- along with any project that requires an upfront capital investment regardless of the payback period. Thus, I have found that this is a particularly good opportunity to talk about Green Cleaning because it is cost neutral and it’s a great way to keep your momentum on “green” and sustainability moving forward until the time when there is money available for some of the other projects you’d like to undertake. So to help you I want to accomplish two things today. My first goal is to introduce to you The Business of Green Cleaning which is the newest book from the IFMA Foundation, and explain what’s in it and why its such an excellent resource to help you implement a new Green Cleaning program or to improve an existing one. And my second goal is not just to talk about the book --- as I’m really NOT a book salesman/saleswoman, so in addition, I want to provide you with some good information about Green Cleaning. CONTINUED NEXT PAGE.
- CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE. Thus the agenda today is to talk briefly about the book --- its objective and format. Secondly, I want to spend some time defining green and Green Cleaning so YOU have the foundation to make the appropriate decisions for your organization. I suspect that many of you are being called on by lots of sales people trying to sell you Green Cleaning and this will help you make better, more informed decisions. Along these lines, the Book is based upon a number of what are called “roadmaps”. These include programs like the US Green Building Council’s LEED-EB Rating System, and I want to share with you some of the various requirements that you should consider for your Green Cleaning program. OPTIONAL: You might want to ask a question or two such as “please raise your hand if you are familiar with LEED?” or “please raise your hand if you have a building in the LEED Rating System.” I also want to discuss what I consider are some of the most valuable “take-aways” from the Book, and finally what the future looks like and how you can participate in future editions of the book.
- Please don’t worry, this presentation is NOT going to teach you how to clean a toilet or carpet. Rather this Book was designed at a higher level to help facility managers with the issues and in the level of detail that they need. So the main objective of the Book was to make it have real value --- to focus on the kind of value that facility managers could actually act upon, both in North America and to begin addressing the issues internationally. Ultimately the Book was intended to go beyond just the theoretical and to provide actual model programs and guidelines, all of which are substantiated by international research and case studies from people just like you. USE YOUR LASER POINTER TO HIGHLIGHT THE LAST BULLET POINTS ON THIS SLIDE FOR EMPHASIS.
- INTENT: THIS SLIDE BEGINS THE INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK ITSELF. YOU DO NOT NEED TO READ THE SLIDE TO THE AUDIENCE, JUST LET THEM READ IT FOR THEMSELVES. YOU CAN JUST CALL-OUT A FEW OF THE SECTIONS THAT YOU THINK ARE INTERESTING --- AND YOU HAVE TIME TO SPEND AN EXTRA MINUTE OR 2 ON THIS. The Book is comprised of three basic sections. The first section I will simply call “the book”. This is about a hundred pages of background information. It is all footnoted and provides dozens upon dozens of websites and references that can make it easy for you to find the information that you’ll need to successfully implement a new Green Cleaning Program, or to continually improve an existing one. To me some of the most interesting and unique information is in the sections on “Finding a Green Service Provider; Request for Information and Request for Proposal Process”, which can help you actually “green” a cleaning contract, along with the “Hard and Soft Costs of Green Cleaning” which is incredibly important these days due to the economy. I also have to admit that I found the “future” findings in the section “Where We Go From Here” to be very interesting especially because this issue is evolving so quickly.
- The second section include the Appendixes. While the “book” or first section contains all of the background information, the Appendixes contains all of the tools and things that you may want to use over and over again. For example, the Appendixes include a number of different approaches to purchasing Green Cleaning products including information that you can copy right into your purchasing requirements. And because it is based on “roadmaps” like LEED-EB, not only will this allow you to buy with confidence, it will also help you meet your LEED requirements. I actually think many of you will find this extremely valuable and later in my presentation I will give you a couple of examples so you can see what I’m talking about. While the Book contains a chapter on “Finding a Green Service Provider” and the RFI and RFP process --- the Appendix actually contains a prototype which you can use. And one final Appendix that I think you’ll find extremely valuable is in the “Walk-Through Audit Management Tool”. This Tool is something that you can use to audit the existing condition of your building relative to cleaning, and use this information to identify opportunities for improvement.
- And the third part of the Book is a collection of over 20 case studies. These help highlight real-world examples of what facility managers and building owners are doing relative to Green Cleaning. This section includes case studies about offices buildings, health care facilities, laboratories, universities and more. DO NOT READ THE ENTIRE LIST OF NAMES, BUT YOU CAN IDENTIFY ONE OR TWO THAT YOU THINK MIGHT RESONATE WITH THE AUDIENCE AND THEN GIVE THEM TIME TO READ THROUGH THE REST OF THE LIST.
- And the Case Studies also include a number submitted by manufacturers that support the facilities efforts. So not only do you get the how-to’s of contracting and implementing a Green Cleaning program, but there is information on communicating with occupants, the use of new & emerging green technologies, the cost implications of converting to day-time cleaning, and more. DO NOT READ THE ENTIRE LIST OF NAMES, BUT YOU CAN IDENTIFY ONE OR TWO THAT YOU THINK MIGHT RESONATE WITH THE AUDIENCE AND THEN GIVE THEM TIME TO READ THROUGH THE REST OF THE LIST.
- INTENT: THE INTENT OF THE NEXT 6 SLIDES IS TO PROVIDE SOME REAL “MEAT” FOR THE AUDIENCE BY GIVING THE A STRONG UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT GREEN ACTUALLY MEANS. THIS IS YOUR CHANCE TO DEMONSTRATE YOUR PERSONAL GRASP OF THE INFORMATION AND THAT YOU ARE NOT JUST TALKING ABOUT A BOOK THAT SOMEONE ELSE WROTE. SPEAK WITH CONFIDENCE AND IN THE “FIRST” PERSON --- FOR EXAMPLE, “I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH YOU….” TIME CHECK: YOU SHOULD BE 8 TO 12 MINUTES INTO THE PRESENTATION. THIS SECTION SHOULD TAKE APPROXIMATELY 5 TO 7 MINUTES. Enough about the format of the Book. Now I’d like to share with you how The Business of Green Cleaning defines “green” and Green Cleaning.
- The research behind The Business of Green Cleaning found a consistent thread running between a large number of public and private “green” programs that all seemed to have as its genesis or core, a specific definition of “green” that is actually based on US Presidential Executive Order 13101. In this Executive Order, first published in 1993, “green” or “environmentally preferable” is defined as --- “…products and services that reduce the health and environmental impacts compared to similar products and services used for the same purpose.” In this definition there are a couple of things that I want to point out.
- The first is that the definition defines green in terms of BOTH health and the environment. This is very important because it emphasizes that green is NOT just about protecting the environment. After all, what good would a “green” product be if the user got cancer? (PAUSE FOR EFFECT). Rather, green simultaneously addresses BOTH health and the environment. I also find it interesting that health is before environment. ADVANCE SLIDE TO UNDERLINE THE WORD COMPARED The second important issue is the term “compared”. This is important because we are NOT suggesting that traditional products or services are “bad”. We are NOT converting to Green Cleaning because we have been placing cleaning personnel or occupants at imminent risk of harm. Rather, this definition is using the process of continual improvement and recognizes that we can cost-effectively accomplish our tasks, but with products and services that further reduce the potential for harm. ADDITIONAL PRESENTATION INFORMATION CONTINUES ON THE NEXT PAGE.
- CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE To illustrate this, let me ask all of you a question. I want you to think about the first car you ever had. (Depending on your speaking style you can kid with the audience about how old you are and how hard it is to remember back that long ago…) Now I want to ask everyone to raise your hand if your first car did NOT have seat belts? OK, now raise your hand if your first car did NOT have anti-locking brakes? Thank you, and now raise your hand if your first car did NOT have air bags? Thank you. Now my question to you is --- because your first car did NOT have seat belts, anti-locking brakes or air bags, did it make it a “bad” car? I suspect the car still got you from point A to B, and I suspect many of you “loved” that car and would still like to have it today. And these safety improvements were added to cars when these new technologies became cost effective. So too is this happening in the Green Movement. Traditional products aren’t “bad”, rather new, cost-effective technologies simply allow us to perform the desired task, but to now do it in a way that reduces the health and environmental impacts compared to older traditional products.
- The Book goes on to further illustrate the definition as a “continuum”. No matter where you are on the continuum, the goal is to get “greener”. USE YOUR LASER POINTER TO HIGHLIGHT THE RED PART OF THE LINE AND STATE THAT THE GOAL IS TO MAKE IT GREENER. AND THEN MOVING TOWARDS THE YELLOW AND GREEN PART OF THE LINE REPEAT THAT THE GOAL IS TO CONTINUALLY IMPROVE AND TO GET GREENER REGARDLESS OF WHERE ONE IS ON THE LINE. ADVANCE SLIDE NOW And ultimately we need to recognize that green and Green Cleaning is a journey. No matter where we are, whether we have been at the journey for a short or long time, we still have a long way to go. And I’m proud to tell you that this is especially true in cleaning, because the cleaning industry has really bought into the “green” concept, and as a result new technologies and methods are quickly entering the marketplace that really can make your buildings cleaner, safer and healthier, while at the same time reducing our impacts on the environment.
- What all of this is leading to is a simple working definition of Green Cleaning. Based on the definition of “green”, Green Cleaning in its most simple form is (ADVANCE THE SLIDE) “cleaning that protects health” USE YOUR LASER POINTER TO HIGHLIGHT THE WORD “HEALTH” IN THE DEFINITION. ADVANCE THE SLIDE AGAIN “without harming the environment”. USE YOUR LASER POINTER TO HIGHLIGHT THE WORD “ENVIRONMENT” IN THE DEFINITION.
- In concluding this discussion defining green and Green Cleaning, the Book ultimately defines “green” as a concept (ADVANCE SLIDE NOW) a concept similar to other concepts such as preventative maintenance, time management and other “concepts”. What this helps put in perspective is that “green” is not a product or tangible “thing”. It does NOT require the government to “bless” it or a third-party non-profit to “certify” it.
- Rather green is an approach, a thought process that focuses on reducing the health and environmental impacts of a product or service. So for example, if you were evaluating two different carpet cleaning methods that cost the same and both do a good job cleaning the carpet --- but one used less water and energy than the other, then the one using less water and energy would be “greener”. And this thought process can be applied to buying anything from cleaning chemicals to toilet paper to plastic liners to mop buckets, and it of course can be applied beyond just cleaning products for other things you buy such as copier machines to lighting systems to furniture and more. The green concept or approach simply “prefers” products or services that work and are cost competitive, but sets as an important priority those that reduce health and environmental impacts. Do you all see how the definitions all fit together? If you can apply these simple definitions when making your decisions about buying cleaning products or cleaning services, you are now an expert on Green Cleaning!
- INTENT: OVER THE NEXT 14 SLIDES YOU’LL DISCUSS WHAT CONSTITUTES A GREEN CLEANING PROGRAM. SOME OF THE SLIDES ARE “BUILDS” AND WILL GO VERY QUICKLY. THE USE OF THE “ROADMAPS” AND TYING THE REQUIREMENTS TO THOSE OF LEED-EB AND OTHERS, IS TO GIVE THE AUDIENCE CONFIDENCE THAT YOU JUST DIDN’T MAKE THIS STUFF UP. ITS NOT JUST YOUR OPINION, BUT THE RECOMMENDATIONS ARE BASED ON THE LEADING NATIONAL PROGRAMS SO THEY CAN HAVE CONFIDENCE IN YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS. THIS SECTION WILL ALSO PROVIDE MULTIPLE EXAMPLES SO THE AUDIENCE CAN GET A SENSE THAT THERE IS INFORMATION IN THE BOOK THAT THEY CAN ACTUALLY USE. TIME CHECK: YOU SHOULD BE 15 TO 19 MINUTES INTO THE PRESENTATION. THIS SECTION SHOULD TAKE APPROXIMATELY 15 TO 20 MINUTES DEPENDING ON HOW MUCH TIME YOU SPEND ON SLIDES 21, 22, 23 & 28. One of the things the IFMA Foundation did NOT want to do was to “reinvent the wheel”. And based on the research it was quite obvious that a lot of work had already been done on Green Cleaning. Thus, the objective really focused on how to make it EASY for facility managers to meet the requirements of the various existing programs, rather than create a new set of unique requirements.
- Thus the authors evaluated the requirements for Green Cleaning imbedded in a number of existing programs, including: ADVANCE SLIDE NOW: the US Green Building Council’s LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance Rating System, ADVANCE SLIDE NOW: Hospitals for a Healthy Environment’s 10 Steps to Green Cleaning Implementation, and two school programs: ADVANCE SLIDE NOW: the Collaborative for High Performance Schools’ Operations & Maintenance Manual, and ADVANCE SLIDE NOW: the Healthy Schools Campaign’s Quick & Easy Guide to Green Cleaning in Schools. Interestingly, all of these “roadmaps” defined Green Cleaning almost exactly the same. The Business of Green Cleaning consolidates these requirements and because the cleaning industry also follows these same “roadmaps”, these products are readily available and equally important, they’re priced competitively to traditional products. What I would like to do now is to get into just a bit of the detail about these requirements --- and provide a few examples from the Book to help you get a sense of what is included.
- All of the “roadmaps” require the use of “certified” cleaning chemicals either from Green Seal or TerraChoice’s Ecologo program. For those of you who are not familiar with these organizations, they are not-for-profit product standard setting organizations --- and NOT part of the government, which is a common misconception. These organizations have standards specifically covering a host of cleaning products addressing their environmental, health, safety and PERFORMANCE characteristics. The value for using these kinds of third-party certifiers is that it makes it easy for you or your purchasing people to identify green products and then you can simply buy the product that is the most cost competitive. The Book goes on to provide a number of examples that you can adapt to best meet your individual needs.
- For example, in Chapter 5, the Book lays out the general attributes that should be considered in a Green Cleaning chemical. USE YOUR LASER POINTER TO HIGHLIGHT SOME OF THE ATTRIBUTES ON THE SCREEN BUT DO NOT READ THE SLIDE TO THE AUDIENCE.
- Case Study 3 actually takes these and other related attributes and lays them out so that you could request information on each of the various attributes in order to make product comparisons. While this requires a lot more effort and technical expertise to make product comparisons, but some organizations nonetheless prefer getting the detailed information. YOU DO NOT NEED TO SPEND MUCH TIME ON THIS SLIDE. IF ANYTHING, YOU CAN USE YOUR LASER POINTER TO HIGHLIGHT SOME OF THE CRITERIA IN THE LEFT HAND COLUMN, SUCH AS AQUATIC TOXICITY OR PRODUCT CONTAINER AND THEN POINT OUT THE CORRESPONDING MIDDLE COLUMN TO SHOW THEM HOW THIS APPROACH SIMPLY REQUESTS DETAILED INFORMATION THAT CAN BE USED TO DETERMINE WHICH PRODUCT IS PREFERABLE. AS YOU CAN SEE, THIS APPROACH IS MUCH MORE COMPLICATED, BUT IS USED BY SOME ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAVE THE TIME AND TECHNICAL EXPERTISE TO MAKE THE EVALUATIONS.
- Another approach is found in the Case Study submitted by Indiana University’s sustainability task force which took the requirements from the same “roadmaps” used in the Book and lays them out by product type. So for example, an All Purpose Cleaner shall meet the requirements of Green Seal’s GS-37 and/or Environmental Choice’s CCD-146. And so on, and covers 18 total products. YOU DO NOT NEED TO SPEND TIME DISCUSSING THE OTHER PRODUCT EXAMPLES.
- This case study also takes the previous information and provides it in a way that is common in procurement language. In this example you can see how it requests unit price USE YOUR LASER POINTER TO HIGHTLIGHT THE COLUMN HEADER TITLED “UNIT PRICE”, as well as identifying the dilution rate, and more importantly the actual cost per usable gallon USE YOUR A LASER POINTER TO HIGHTLIGHT THE COLUMN HEADER TITLED “COST PER USABLE GAL”, which as I’m sure you know is one of the keys to actually buying cleaning chemicals especially because we want to buy highly concentrated products to reduce the environmental impacts from packaging materials and transporting water. I have to say that the purchasing people that I have shown this to have found this information very helpful.
- In addition to chemicals, the “roadmaps” all provide the requirements for the other products and components necessary for a comprehensive Green Cleaning program. These include: For vacuum cleaners and deep cleaning extractors and systems, the “roadmaps” rely upon the Carpet & Rug Institute’s Green Label Program. Using the appropriate equipment and systems at the right frequencies are incredibly important because carpets can look clean, but be very unhealthy. Scientific studies clearly demonstrate that clean looking carpets can still contain significant quantities of soils which can be made up of dust contaminated with chemicals and pesticides, heavy metals like lead and arsenic, mold spores, pollens and other allergens that can affect occupant health and cause serious problems indoors.
- For janitorial paper products such as hand towels and toilet tissue, as well as for plastic trash can liners, the “roadmaps” rely on EPA’s Comprehensive Procurement Guidelines. While the EPA Guidelines primarily focuses on the minimum amount of post-consumer recycled content contained in the various products, the Book also provides some practical ideas on how to reduce consumption and protect health. For example, if any of you are currently using multi-fold hand towels, by switching to large rolls and automated, hands-free dispensers, you can reduce consumption by about 30 percent. Not only will simple and practical steps like this reduce our impacts on the environment, but it can save you money. One other thing I found interesting was that if those using inexpensive, brown paper towels that is literally made from cardboard would switch to a higher quality of paper that the actual consumption goes down as the quality goes up because less paper is needed to dry hands. So even if the unit cost is higher for a better quality of paper, the overall budget goes unchanged because less is used --- and occupant satisfaction increases.
- Interestingly, in addition to product requirements, the “roadmaps” all address other issues necessary for creating a healthy, high performing indoor environment. And among the most important are training for product users and written standard operating procedures. Think about it --- what happens if you convert to the greenest product available but the cleaning people aren’t diluting or using the product properly and use 10 times more then they should? Or if they are not cleaning the carpets properly and all that nasty stuff that is hidden below the surface of the carpet is being put into the air where your occupants can inhale it? Proper training and written standard operating procedures are incredibly important and the Book helps put all of this into perspective.
- One final issue that all of the “roadmaps” address is the importance of communications --- especially with building occupants. For example, while cleaning is clearly the primary responsibility of the cleaning personnel, but occupants have an important impact on the building, its health, and the ease or difficulty maintaining it. OK, I have a little exercise for you --- please raise your hand if in your building you have people who have boxes, files, papers, clothing, what have you --- covering every square inch of their floor, desk, credenza and filing cabinets. GIVE THEM A SECOND TO RAISE THEIR HANDS. The problem with this is that the cleaning people are typically told NOT to touch or move anything. So these offices are NOT getting cleaned, except maybe getting the trash emptied. And while this may save some time for the cleaner who just skips this office, but the contaminants that build up in this office get circulated throughout the entire building via the HVAC system and expose everyone to potentially harmful contaminants. Thus the Book talks about the concept of “shared responsibility” and how to communicate with occupants, as well as visitors and outside contractors to help them understand the important role they play. And while I’m not going to spend time discussing how the Book provides details on each of these issues as I did with chemicals, suffice it to say that it’s in there.
- INTENT: THIS SLIDE ALLOWS FOR A “TIME ADJUSTMENT”. IF YOU ARE RUNNING SHORT OF TIME, THEN KEEP IT SHORT (SEE INFO BELOW) AND IF YOU HAVE MORE TIME, YOU CAN EXPAND ON EACH OF THESE ISSUES. Finally, the Book also addresses other opportunities to “green” janitorial products or how to use them to create a healthier environment, ADVANCE SLIDE NOW As well as other products such as waterless urinals to reduce water consumption and the importance of hand hygiene and how to actually encourage occupants to wash their hands.
- Before I complete the discussion on the “roadmaps” and how they address product standards and requirements, I want to share with you one final comment, which I think is very important. While there are third-party standards and recommendations for the major product categories, inevitably there are some products where there are no existing standards. And there are companies who chose NOT to get their products “certified” even if these standards exist. ADVANCE SLIDE NOW So in lieu of standards, the Book recommends that you simply apply the definition of green. You be the expert and assuming that the products work and are cost competitive --- you can now determine if one product reduces the health and environmental impacts compared to other options. And for companies that chose NOT to get their products “certified” for whatever reason, simply ask them for their laboratory test data to make sure they can support their claims of being green --- and again, you be the expert.
- Just remember, that “green” really is a continuum and we always want to try and drive improvements. This is especially true considering how fast new greener technologies are entering the marketplace. ADVANCE SLIDE NOW And keep in mind that the improvement can be in lots of different areas from reduced toxicity to recycled content to durability to conservation and more.
- INTENT: THE NEXT 5 SLIDES ARE SOME OF THE “TAKE-AWAYS” OR INTERESTING PARTS OF THE BOOK AND THE GENERAL SUBJECT OF GREEN AND GREEN CLEANING. YOUR “TONE” SHOULD BE THAT YOU FIND THE BOOK AND INFORMATION INTERESTING AND VALUABLE, SO YOUR AUDIENCE CAN SENSE THAT IN YOU. AFTER ALL, IF YOU’RE NOT ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT THE BOOK, WHY SHOULD THEY CARE… TIME CHECK: YOU SHOULD BE 30 TO 40 MINUTES INTO THE PRESENTATION. THIS SHORT SECTION SHOULD TAKE BETWEEN 3 AND 5 MINUTES DEPENDING ON HOW MUCH TIME YOU SPEND ON SLIDES 33, 34 & 35. Allow me to briefly share with you some of the “take-aways” that I think are really some of the most important features of the Book.
- The first take-away is that the Book, while still significantly North American-centric, provides plenty of international information. And while I know that this is an incredibly busy slide, but what I am simply trying to illustrate are some of the international standard setting organizations discussed in the Book, which creates the opportunity to make the recommendations relevant to locations around the globe.
- Two additional valuable “take-aways” is some very specific detail on the Request for Information, and the Request for Proposal --- which I’ll discuss briefly in a moment. ADVANCE SLIDE NOW In this case, the RFI covers a number of topics, as you can see. This two step process will allow you to pre-qualify potential cleaning contractors to increase the potential of not only getting a competitive price, but to actually get a company that can do what they promise to do. And if any of you have ever gone through the contracting process only to end up with a vendor that really can’t do the job, you know exactly what I’m talking about. DO NOT READ THE ENTIRE LIST, BUT YOU CAN IDENTIFY ONE OR TWO THAT YOU THINK MIGHT RESONATE WITH THE AUDIENCE AND THEN GIVE THEM TIME TO READ THROUGH THE REST OF THE LIST.
- And the second part of the process is the Request for Proposals ADVANCE SLIDE NOW and these are the issues covered in this section. DO NOT READ THE ENTIRE LIST, BUT YOU CAN IDENTIFY ONE OR TWO THAT YOU THINK MIGHT RESONATE WITH THE AUDIENCE AND THEN GIVE THEM TIME TO READ THROUGH THE REST OF THE LIST.
- And the final “take-away” that I want to share with you is the information on the requirements of a “site specific” cleaning manual. ADVANCE SLIDE NOW While buildings have lots of similarities, from my experience and I suspect you’d agree that there are important differences whether it is due to the finishes, HVAC system, impacts by the neighbors and locations, the unique vulnerabilities of the occupants, or budgets --- buildings are different and cleaning plans to be most effective need to be specific to the building. The Book goes into quite a bit of detail that you, your cleaning people or contractor can use to develop a plan that works best for you. Frankly I found this section of the Book to be very valuable. DO NOT READ THE ENTIRE LIST, BUT YOU CAN IDENTIFY ONE OR TWO THAT YOU THINK MIGHT RESONATE WITH THE AUDIENCE AND THEN GIVE THEM TIME TO READ THROUGH THE REST OF THE LIST.
- INTENT: IN THESE FINAL 8 SLIDES (SOME ARE “BUILDS” SO SOME SLIDES ARE VERY SHORT) YOUR INTENT IS TO BE A LITTLE “VISIONARY”. EXPERTS (YOU) NOT ONLY UNDERSTAND THE CURRENT STATE-OF-AFFAIRS, BUT REAL EXPERTS ALSO HAVE THE ABILITY TO UNDERSTAND OR PREDICT WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS BECAUSE THEY SO CLEARLY UNDERSTAND WHAT IS GOING ON. THIS SECTION (THE LAST SLIDE) ALSO CREATES THE OPPORTUNITY FOR THE AUDIENCE TO GET INVOLVED --- FOR EXAMPLE TO PROVIDE A CASE STUDY FOR THE NEXT EDITION OF THE BOOK. TIME CHECK: YOU SHOULD BE 35 TO 45 MINUTES INTO THE PRESENTATION. THIS CONCLUDING SECTION SHOULD TAKE APPROXIMATELY 5 MINUTES. In the last few minutes, I would like to share with you some of the future issues.
- The Book identifies three issues that will potentially have significant impact in the future. Those issues are: ADVANCE SLIDE NOW Green Collar Jobs and the “Living Wage”, which seems to be frequently in the news these days. The Book asserts that the new “green” economy may create good paying jobs for the poor and minorities workers, but in doing so it may affect service workers including cleaning people. After all, how can an organization promote itself as “green” or sustainable when workers within its buildings can’t afford to feed their families or buy health insurance? And this may become an issue not only for those companies outsourcing the making of sneakers or soccer balls in an Asian sweatshop, but cleaning our buildings here as well.
- The next issue is Extended Product Responsibility, also known as a product Take-Back Program. This is a concept that has taken hold in Europe where manufacturers remain responsible for their products, even after the end of its useful life. We are beginning to see this in the carpet industry here, where the carpet manufacturer “takes back” the carpet when the building is renovating --- keeping it out of the landfill and using the materials to make new carpets. The Book suggests that in the future the cleaning industry will begin “taking-back” part of the one billion pounds of products that are disposed each year including vacuum cleaners, floor machines and mop buckets --- and turn them into new products.
- And the final “future issue” is Sustainability. By this the Book predicts that when all suppliers offer “green” cleaning products and services then facility managers will differentiate between them based on which supplier is the “greenest”. So it is the evolution beyond just the product or service itself to how sustainable the supplier actually is. For example, do they have a green building, how are the measuring their energy and water use, and other environmental impacts, and how are they addressing their social impacts? Another way to think of this is which one is actually walking the talk.
- In closing, I would like to share where the IFMA Foundation is going and how you might get involved. ADVANCE SLIDE BOW Clearly they are looking to collect more data on Green Cleaning both from developed countries especially in European and Japan that have been working on the issue of Green Cleaning perhaps even longer than the US, so they can continue to share “best practices”. In addition, they want to collect more information from developing countries such as China and India to make sure they don’t overlook what lessons they have to teach, as well as to insure that the information provided to facility managers in those countries can find the information in the Book actionable based on the realities of developing countries.
- It is also their intent to include more case studies and this might be a opportunity for you to share the good work that you are doing. So if you have a good Green Cleaning program and want to share the lessons you’ve learned --- and get some good PR for yourself and organization, you may want to consider submitting a case study to be included in the next edition of the Book. And since its likely that they will want to introduce the next edition at the World Workplace Conference which is in the Fall, I suspect you will need to get these submitted by June to the IFMA Foundation.
- One of the most important contributions this Book has made to the body of work on Green Cleaning is its development of contracting language, including the RFI and RFP process along with information on performance-based contracting. And in the next edition of the Book, I think we can anticipate more information on these subjects.
- And finally, because IFMA and the IFMA Foundation are international organizations, it is clearly their goal to take the Book international and to do this they will have it translated into a number of other languages.
- Thank you very much for your time today. I hope you found this information to be of interest and value to you. Before we take some questions, I would once again like to thank... (SAMES AS THOSE YOU THANKED AT THE BEGINNING OF THE PRESENTATION). TIME CHECK: AFTER COMPLETING YOUR PRESENTATION, FILL THE REMAINDER OF THE TIME WITH QUESTIONS & ANSWERS.