The Facility Services Custodial Team has put in place standard practices for a healthier and more content, environmentally friendly work environment. These include our choice of chemical, the use of paper and plastic bags with a high degree of recycled content, the use of efficient equipment and the ability to increase the efficiency of waste management programs.
Listed below are portions of our program with brief descriptions following.
| Products | Processes | Equipment |
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Products
Facility Services continually seeks new cleaning products that provide a healthier work environment and have minimal environmental impact. We introduce these products to our staff and test them for efficacy on site, prior to making wholesale changes. Products include:
- Green Seal and/or Environmental Choice approved Non-Ammoniated Glance Glass Cleaner
- Stride Neutral Floor Cleaner
- Green Seal Floor Finishes and Finish Removers
- DIN and EPA approved Virox Disinfectant
All products can assist our McMaster Community in satisfying their needs for a healthier work environment and comprise approximately 80% of the cleaning products that our organization utilizes.
Cleaning Chemical Portion Control
Diversey products enhances our daily use of cleaning products through a ready to dispense system that allows for maximum efficiency when distributing chemicals. Portion control can reduce consumption by 30% to 65% compared to non-portion controlled dispensing methods. Packaging is minimized and water is conserved in both the manufacturing process and usage of product.
Tersano
Facility Services will be installing Tersano units that produce stabilized aqueous ozone units in all new LEED certified buildings to further eliminate the use for chemicals for our daily cleaning tasks.
Floor Scrubber Chemical Portion Control
Equipment partnerships allows our department to deliver environmental stewardship of floor scrubber chemicals with FaST® soaps – 70% less water in/out than traditional chemical mixtures, 90% less chemical usage, no touch dilution and mixing and less chemical residual on floor improving both air quality and slip and fall liability. Facility Services uses environmentally preferable floor finishes that require less frequent stripping, re-application and lower amounts of product to produce desired results. Only products that meet the most stringent environmental guidelines.
Paper & Plastic Liners
Facility Services recommends the use of post consumer recycled content in paper products and plastic liners. In conjunction with our partner suppliers. Facilities also recommends the use of fully certified chlorine-free bleached pulp combined with recycled fiber such as Cascades’ North River brand of products. These paper hand towels and bathroom tissues are Ecologo certified through the Government of Canada’s environmental choice program.
For every 2,500 cases of Ecologo certified paper supplies used:
§ 500 trees are preserved
§ 3,000lbs of landfill are protected
§ 300,000 gallons of water saved
Microfiber Towels
One of the more efficient ways of cleaning includes the use of micro-fiber products. A successful micro-fiber cleaning program must employ on-site laundering facilities.
LEED
The Custodial Service assists our Project Team in seeking certification in The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) building rating system through its Green Clean Programs.
See the link below for a feature article on McMaster’s Green Cleaning Change:
ON THE COVER: McMaster University Greens Cleaning Operations
New Measures Help Protect The University And The Environment
McMaster University has announced its transition to green cleaning practices throughout all campus buildings. In a program developed with the assistance of Johnson Diversey, a global provider of cleaning and hygiene solutions, McMaster replaced all cleaning chemicals with those proven to reduce harmful effects on humans and the environment. The goal of the measure is to reduce the amount of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) used in cleaning while also eliminating many of the indoor airborne particulates which are known to create mild to severe respiratory issues and other health problems.
“Our Custodial Management Team started looking at using green products over a year ago,” said Carlos Figueira, Director of Custodial Services at McMaster University.“In the Facility Services Department, we realize the effect our service has on the good health of our buildings and their occupants, so we wanted to do what we could to protect our McMaster Community. We also wanted to help reduce the effect of our operations on the environment. Greening our cleaning processes was the right thing to do.”
Use & Care of Microfiber Towels
Facility Services was one of the first Universities to uses Microfiber Towels in our existing cleaning systems and procedures. These towels are very effective cleaning tools that have several advantages over regular cleaning towels tasks.
| Traditional Towels | Microfiber Towels |
| Spread out much of the dirt and bacteria that they come into contact with, absorbing as little as 30% | Use static electricity when dry & capillary action when wet to absorb dirt & bacteria
Absorb as much as 99% on a given surface. Help prevent spreading of viruses & bacteria |
| Require machine washing using detergent, bleaches or fabric softeners | Reduce the use of and need for, cleaning chemicals
Engineered to handle most daily cleaning tasks using only water Release a high percentage of the dirt absorbed by rinsing them in warm water – saves use of bleaches & softeners towels tasks |
| Considered “disposable”, short lifespan | Effective lifespan of 2 years |
Air Quality Impacts
To minimize air pollutants from cleaning activities Facilities purchases equipment for our daily tasks that minimizes airborne dust activity as well as our chemical dispensing in all areas of our service.
Exterior Maintenance Products
Facility Services uses snow and ice removal compounds that do not include sodium chloride for our building entrance and stairs/handicap ramps. We currently recommend Proven Ice Melt, a potassium chloride based product. We also utilize hot water/hi pressure washing systems for spring cleaning of our building entrances as well as graffiti removal and gum removal.
Waste Management
Facility Services actively supports and works to improve our customers’ recycling efforts. Achieving diversion rate goals can only be met through proper separation of waste classes to minimize contamination of recyclable materials.
Restroom Care
Our cleaning expectation is for “show quality” in all restroom facilities. Equipment is colour coded to prevent cross contamination, daily schedules are established to maintain quality and employees are trained and monitored to ensure compliance with our standards.
Touch point initiatives
Facility Services provides Hydrox Disinfectant Surface Cleaner to support our on-going efforts to minimize cross contamination through our cleaning methods and practices.