How to Keep Your Commercial Office Building Clean

Owning or managing a Commercial Office Building in the Greater Boston Area requires significant care and attention to detail. Between evolving real estate trends and unpredictable weather, a lot can impact the cleanliness of your building. While many things are out of your hands, like those Nor’easters, there are things you can do to keep your building in optimal condition.

The best way to keep your building as clean as possible is keeping up with a comprehensive cleaning plan. Keeping your building exceptionally clean is not only good for the building and the tenants, but also business. In a study conducted by the Cleaning Coalition of America, 66% of US workers said having good cleaning practices in the workplace is very important. 62% of workers said seeing sanitation professionals regularly at their workplace would make them feel safer.

Academic research backs up these survey findings. In a study titled, “Impact of Cleanliness on the Productivity of Employees,” researchers found that cleanliness correlates significantly with a higher perceived productivity of employees.

In this article, we’ll share the ways you can keep your commercial office clean so employees and visitors can feel safe and healthy in your building.

Developing a Comprehensive Cleaning Plan

The first thing we recommend is creating a schedule that outlines all the areas that need to be cleaned and the various cleaning tasks that should be done on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis. This comprehensive cleaning plan will help keep you organized and on track.

Not every task is of equal importance. You’re going to want to make sure to prioritize high-traffic areas like

• lobbies
• kitchens
• bathrooms

These areas see the most frequent use and have the highest levels of germ buildup. Make sure to regularly clean high-touch surfaces, including your doorknobs and light switches.

Scheduling Your Routine Cleaning Tasks

There are a wide variety of cleaning tasks that should go on your list of routine tasks. For example, you’re going to want to clean all your important surfaces that get touched by human hands. As mentioned above, put special emphasis on those highest-touch furnishings and items that you might overlook because they are so commonplace—these are most important.

Another important task is to regularly empty your trash bins. Leaving trash buildup full of discarded papers and yesterday’s lunch can leave behind unpleasant smells. Your office will feel (and smell) better when you regularly take out your trash. Recycling is also an important part of routine cleaning.

Decluttering is another task that doesn’t just keep your commercial office space looking better but will also make people feel better and enjoy their environment.  Keep extraneous items to a minimum, and the necessary items neat and organized.

Floor care is also very important, especially here in Greater Boston where snow, leaves, and mud frequently come into play. Have a regular sweeping and mopping schedule, prioritizing high traffic areas. Also, clean floors with a wet mop and vacuum carpeted areas.

Lastly, put special emphasis on those key areas we mentioned above. Make sure your lobby, kitchen, and bathroom tasks are scheduled and prioritized every day, week, and month.

Regular Maintenance and Deep Cleaning Tasks

It’s also important to make sure you are doing regular maintenance and taking care of deep cleaning tasks beyond the daily and weekly routine tasks.

Many people often remember to dust desks and easy-to reach surfaces, but they often overlook ceilings and high shelves. You’ll also want to make sure you are maintaining your HVAC systems and dusting and vacuuming your vents.

Keeping your mirrors, windows, and exteriors clean is also essential. The exterior appearance should always match the interior—otherwise guests will get the wrong impression.

Encouraging Employee Participation and Hygiene

One of the best ways to maintain commercial office buildings is to get buy-in from employees, tenants, and guests. Create an office culture in which everyone is encouraged to do their part in the work of keeping the workplace clean and healthy.

Companies can remind their employees to keep their own personal workspace clean. They should be tidying up their desks at the end of each day in addition to keeping their desk surfaces and computer equipment clean. Computer cleaning wipes are a useful tool in keeping equipment like keyboards and screens germ free.

Also encourage employees to take part in the waste management process. If you bring on a professional cleaning team, they will handle everything from taking out the trash and recycling to composting and cleaning out.

You’ll also want to make sure that your employees are taking care of their own hygiene. Remind employees to wash their hands properly and to use hand sanitizer when appropriate during the day. To that end, keep the bathroom well stocked with soap and other essentials. It also helps if you provide easily accessible sanitation stations throughout the offices.

Encourage your workers to take ownership of the cleaning process and everyone will quickly feel a lot better about the spaces in which they work.

Finding the Perfect Commercial Cleaning Partner in Greater Boston

In this article, we discussed how to keep your commercial office building clean:

• Organize the work by creating a master schedule with daily, weekly, and monthly tasks.
• Pay attention to high-touch objects and high-traffic areas.
• Don’t forget your deep cleaning tasks, exteriors, windows, and HVAC vents.
• Encourage employees to take ownership of keeping their own spaces as well as communal spaces clean.

Maintaining a robust daily, weekly, and monthly cleaning schedule can be a lot for even the best managers and owners, so that’s why forming a partnership with a commercial cleaning service is so valuable. The right janitorial partner will keep your office clean and your building healthy by handling many tasks for you.

At Janitronics Building Services, Boston’s premier building services company, we specialize in taking care of first-class commercial office buildings so that you can focus on your work. Our highly skilled commercial office janitorial team is equipped to handle all types of cleaning services, including general housekeeping, detail cleaning, and specialty cleaning services.

Learn more about commercial janitorial services at Janitronics today.