Cleaning and Housekeeping

With so many items around the home and numerous cleaning products from which to choose, it can be difficult to match item and product. We also tend to relax once the house looks spotless and the chores are all done, but this can be a never-ending task if not organised properly and carried out in the most efficient way. Ensure that you have time to relax, enjoy your family and entertain friends by following time-saving guides for cleaning and good housekeeping performed by our maids and enjoyed by our customers.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Who is the “do-it-now” person?


When we operate on a do-it-now basis focus remains on the important activities that need to be completed in order to meet organizational objectives. It is the only start to working effectively!
The do-it-now personality can be relied on to get work done on time. They do not put anything off until later, whether the issue involves taking immediate action, thinking matters through or gathering the facts necessary to make a decision. They also tend to create and maintain excellent relationships with their team, colleagues and business partners.
Do-it-now people have the uncanny ability to cope with stress in their business lives due to their well organized approach and intuition in dealing with issues of the day in an orderly manner allowing them to keep stress at a minimum. Once they go home, however, they leave work behind them entirely, pleased that their tasks are under control.
Do-it-now people never need reminding that they need to complete a task and will tell you when to expect that task to be done. Sadly, you never know where you are with people who put things off. When these individuals experience difficulty with a task, they fail to inform management and the error is only detected once the deadline elapsed.
You need to obviously make significant changes in order to become a do-it-now person. Getting organized would involve initial tasks such as changing your filing systems, using a new system for making decisions or implementing a new way of prioritizing actions. Your attitude needs adjustment as well when taking control of your work. In essence, be a proactive person who initiates actions rather than a reactive one who waits to be prompted.
Furthermore, the do-it-now person is quite clear about what their goals are. You should decide what your objectives are and begin to separate what you must do to achieve these objectives from any other matters encountered throughout the day. Simply be ruthless in avoiding unnecessary work!

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Maintaining a public toilet

Public toilets are usually outsourced to municipal agencies or private companies and a checklist will ensure that no task is left undone. While checklist items or standing orders would vary according to the facilities and local requirements, a number of tasks are common to most lists.
The maintenance team should spray the sink and all countertops with antibacterial disinfectant and then wipe the surfaces down.
Any fecal matter or obvious stains on the toilet bowl should be wiped off or scrubbed out. The bowl should then be disinfected and wiped down, both inside the bowl and outside.
Any litter contained inside the waste basket should be removed and be disinfected as well.
Urinal cakes should be replaced when they have begun to disintegrate and should be checked for foreign items which should be disposed of.
A constant supply of toilet paper should be maintained.
Hand soap dispensers should be examined to determine that they are in a working condition and then refilled to capacity.
All fixtures, including the knobs on the door, the paper towel dispenser and any other metal object, should be wiped down and polished so that all visible stains are removed.
All floors should be first swept and cleared of litter and then thoroughly mopped. A “Caution” sign should be placed and kept up until the floors are dry.
Mirrors should be sprayed with glass cleaner and wiped clear of smudges and stains.
The walls and partitions should also be disinfected and wiped down.

Monday, January 7, 2013

Benefits of our bin cleaning


Bins on our sites need to be cleaned for the following reasons:
Reduce bacterial build up causing bad odours
Decrease the risk of pest infestation: rodents, ants and flying insects
Remove fly eggs and maggots
Kill 99% of all known germs
Reduce the chances of cross contamination to the cooking/trading areas
Provide a clean and hygienic smelling wheelie bin
Disinfected and deodorized wheelie bins will ensure that there will be no mess left on your property

Friday, December 14, 2012

Why property managers need a reliable cleaning service?


Busy property managers need to ensure that vacant properties are presented to potential tenants in the best condition. A cleaning service has the experience to present your properties allowing you to give prospective renters the best view of the property. Cleaning companies can customize their service to meet the needs of property management firms, facility managers and building owners in commercial, institutional and industrial markets. Operations teams utilize check sheets to ensure that properties are cleaned according to agreed specifications. Any maintenance or cleaning needs can be communicated to have the necessary information available to manage the properties more effectively. Furthermore, property managers place a lot of research into trends and statistics when pricing their listings. The difference between selling your home for its listing price is how it feels and smells.

Duties of a cleaner at a public facility


Daily cleaning duties, including toilets, change rooms, activity/programme areas, function rooms, kitchens and other areas to a high standard
Carrying out any minor maintenance as instructed or required
Reporting any damage to the buildings, fixtures or equipment
Maintaining stock levels of cleaning equipment and chemicals
Maintaining all cleaning equipment and report on any breakages or replacement requirements

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

A brief history of spring cleaning


Spring cleaning refers to the annual act of cleaning a house in the first warm days of the year typically in spring or in certain regions during December in preparation for the festive season like the Scottish “New Year’s Cleaning” on Hogmanay (31 December).
The origins of spring cleaning could date back to the Iranian Norouz, the Persian New Year, which falls on the first day of spring. Iranians continue the practice of “khooneh tekouni” meaning “shaking the house” just before the new year.
Spring cleaning could possibly be traced to the ancient Jewish practice of cleaning the home in anticipation of the memorial feast of Passover. During this period Jews are only supposed to refrain from leavened foodstuffs but are commanded to rid their homes of small remnants of chametz for the length of the holiday. Observant Jews would therefore conduct a thorough “spring cleaning” of the house, followed by a traditional hunt for chametz by candlelight.
During the 19th century in America March was often the best time for dusting as it was getting warm enough to open windows and doors and the high winds could carry the dust out of the house. Modern rural households in North America continue to use the month of March for cleaning projects involving chemical products generating fumes.

Friday, November 23, 2012

Environmental Health workshop at Nyanga Central

Proper management of waste would reduce all risks of contamination and improve the overall cleanliness of the site. All traders were encouraged to adhere to the simple cleaning system of removing all waste in a plastic carrier and dispose of them using the bins that are present all over the site. Animal fatty matter should by no means be dumped in any of the drains and perhaps a mesh covering should be introduced. This would prevent further contamination and assist in the greater pest control initiative. Item was delivered by site manager Marlon Herwel.

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Recovery when failures occur


Our operations managers need to constantly decide what they will do when failures do occur.  Our operation benefits regularly from well planned recovery.
The breakdown may be disruptive but not as much as it might be if operations managers had not worked out what to do.
Recovery procedures will also shape the customer’s perception of failure.  It is not necessarily the failure itself that leads to dissatisfaction but our response to the break down.  Mistakes may be inevitable, dissatisfied customers are not.  A failure may even be turned into a positive experience.
A good recovery may possibly turn angry, frustrated customers into loyal ones.  An effective response to failure may yield a high pay-off in terms of the long term success of our organization.  It will also send positive signals to our clients and employees about our policy to encourage corrective action to achieve high customer satisfaction.

Thursday, October 18, 2012

Staff failures


People failures come in two types: errors and violations.  Errors are mistakes in judgement; a person shall have done something different and the result is some significant deviation from the normal operation.
Violations, however, are acts which are clearly contrary to defined operating procedure.

Friday, October 5, 2012

Customers are the most important element of any business


Defining customer expectations is a key task for marketing.  Marketing must also understand the ability of the operation so that it does not promise something that cannot be delivered.  In the TQM approach, meeting the expectations of customers means more than this, it means understanding things from a customer’s point of view.
The whole organization should understand the central importance of customers to its success and even survival.  Customers are not perceived as an external entity to the organization but as the most important part to it.  Customers should also be seen as human beings, rather than statistics, with individual needs and expectations and deserving of attentive and courteous treatment.

Monday, October 1, 2012

A definition of Total Quality Management



Our specific TQM is concerned with the following:



·         Meeting the needs and expectations of customers
·         Covering all parts of the organization
·         Including every person in the organization
·         Examining all costs which are related to qualify
·         Getting things “right first time” namely, designing quality rather than regular inspection
·         Developing the systems and procedures which support quality and improvement
·         Developing a continuous process of improvement


Thursday, September 13, 2012

Continuous improvement


Organizations that produce excellence are those that continuously improve. The more granular, no matter how insignificant, and frequent the improvements, the better. How organizations react to "failure" reveals the key reason why innovation comes from startups more often than large organizations. These startups are often a very good training ground for product development and business talent. Startups are just trying to get it right before they run out of money. Our success is built on the foundation of a huge amount of hard work over many years. Continuous adjustments based on frequent feedback eventually lead to long term gains.

Monday, September 10, 2012

Outsourcing encourages fresh ideas!


Making the right decision can add significantly to your organization's bottom line in terms of cost savings and increased efficiency. Beside bringing fresh minds to your business it can also free time for new innovations and other vital tasks. Making the wrong decision can put your business at a competitive disadvantage. You could lose control of proprietary information, or receive components that don't meet your organization's quality standards.
With a professional cleaning company, you can be sure that the property is well cared for and properly maintained. Outsourcing allows decision makers to focus on their specific job and reduce the time devoted to areas outside of their expertise.

Thursday, September 6, 2012

You don't have to dedicate your valuable staff resources to routine cleaning tasks!


Your employees will have more work and more stress, which could eventually hurt your business via high rates of absenteeism, poorly done work and higher turnover rates. Not to mention cleaning services not being performed if they are absent!

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Outsourcing your cleaning allows you to focus on running your business!


Successful companies know that outsourcing is a necessary factor in their success. Why waste your valuable time and resources on details such as keeping your workplace clean? This will severely reduce the amount of time you have to run your business. It will also free up time you could used instead to focus on your business.