Product innovation from around the world
ISSA LAS VEGAS REFLECTS INDUSTRY INNOVATION
Dateline: 29th September 2008
INCLEAN'S US correspondent Bill Griffin reports...
Business Not As Usual was a good theme for this year’s ISSA/Interclean Show held in Las Vegas from 9 to 11 September. There was something for everyone at this year’s show… so much so that you couldn’t attend everything, even if you tried.
This show was a jam packed time with seminars, presentations, exhibits, contests, parties and food. Whatever you came looking for; you could find it at the ISSA/Interclean Show in Las Vegas. Educational events ranged from a two day IICRC Floor Care Technician certification seminar to 45 minute presentations on technical or management subjects, to round table discussions, product demonstrations in exhibitor booths and on the education stage.
Last, but not to be forgotten was the wild Housekeeping Olympics sponsored by the Las Vegas chapter of the IEHA that included a bed making contest, floor pad toss and vacuum cleaner races all with noisy energised costumed participants from local hotels. This by itself was a sight to behold as all hell broke loose when participants gathered in the lobby chanting and yelling and then marched through the show floor disrupting everything within sight and earshot. It was akin to something that looked like a cross between a union demonstration and a gay pride march. Luckily there were no naked bike riders, but of course maybe I missed them.
Hundreds of product booths welcomed visitors on a show floor so large that a shuttle service from one end to the other was advised, even for veteran attendees. Everybody I talked to was having a good show and a good time. I think most would admit that show attendance numbers were slightly down a bit over last year. I would guess around 15,000 people attended the three day event. All of the exhibitors I spoke to were pleased with the turnout and impressed by the quality of the attendees that came by their booth.
Not Your Father’s ISSA Show
The face of the show is changing. Several years ago the ISSA opened the show to end users and they have responded in mass. Certainly some abuse the opportunity to collect free samples, pens and literature like they were trick or treating on Halloween but, for the most part, attendees see the show as an educational opportunity and a chance to speak directly with manufacturers about their wants and needs as well as their likes and dislikes about service and product offerings.
The ISSA has been successful in its effort to make the ISSA/Interclean Show the ‘One Show for Cleaning Industry’ by including and sharing the limelight with other groups. Official partners include the International Executive Housekeepers Association (www.ieha.org), the Association of Residential Cleaning Services International (www.arcsi.org), and the National Paper Trade Associations DistriPakUSA (www.distripakusa.com). A number of other groups held meetings and or exhibited at the show including ICAN, CIRI, NISH, BSCAI, CMI, NPTA, NISSCO, APPA, IFMA, IICRC, CRI, NFSI, Green Seal and the list goes on.
The ISSA unveiled several new initiatives at this year’s show, including its membership in the US Green Building Council (www.usgbc.org); a partnering agreement with the Cleaning Industry Research Institute (CIRI) to develop a cleaning standard; a Spanish language website for its members; and an online green cleaning resource centre.
Comedian Bill Cosby was this year’s key note speaker and he filled the room with thousands who laughed at his jokes and enjoyed his light hearted thoughts on marriage, work and growing old. It was a welcome, if short, respite from the pressures of long show hours and sore feet from walking the aisles or standing in a booth all day.
Well known cleaning industry speakers and seminar leaders included Don Aslett, Alan Bigger, Ian Greig, Jim Peduto, Steve Ashkin, Dave Frank and others.
Green Is In
Green cleaning was a major topic at this year’s show and was widely promoted on the show floor by many exhibitors. An innovation contest was held with attendees voting on new products in five different categories. The ISSA’s Cleaning Industry Management Standard (CIMS) was the topic of a number of seminars and presentations and continues to gain momentum as a widely accepted industry wide certification standard for building service contractors (BSCs) and in-house facility service managers (FSMs). More than 350 consultants (ICE) have been trained nationwide to assist CIMS applicants to prepare for onsite audits by 15 specially trained auditors.
Griffin’s Innovation Winners
Although not endorsed by the ISSA, some of my favorite new products exhibited at this year’s show include:
* Twister and 3m diamond polishing pads for stone, terrazzo and concrete, www.htc-america.com, www.3m.com/commcare
* Windsor Industries’ micro auto-scrubber (Saber Blade) with the footprint of an upright vacuum. www.windsorind.com
* Tennant’s Echo2 electrolyzed water auto-scrubber that eliminates the need for detergent www.tennant.com
* Mini-Max Steam Vapor Cleaning System by PDQ Precision Inc., www.minimaxcleaner.com
* Slip-On/Slip-Over Floor Protectors for chair and table legs, www.expandedtechnologies.com
* Rubbermaid’s Pulse bucketless hygen microfiber flat mopping system, www.rubbbermaidcommerical.com
* Sonic Scrubber, hand held ProDetailer and spot remover, www.sonicscrubbers.com
* Activeion Spray bottle that transforms water into a high performing cleaning agent, eliminating the need for detergent. www.activeion.com
* ReKrete waterless concrete cleaner/spot remover, www.american-reKrete.com
* Hurricone Cordless Floor Dryer/wet floor safety cone, www.hurricone.com
Next year’s North American ISSA/INTERCLEAN Show will be held in Chicago from 6 to 9 October 2009.
www.issainterclean.com
To comment or communicate with Bill Griffin, call his cell at 206-849-0179 or email: www.wgriffin@cleaningconsultants.com or visit:
www.cleaningconsultants.com
INCLEAN'S US correspondent Bill Griffin reports...
Business Not As Usual was a good theme for this year’s ISSA/Interclean Show held in Las Vegas from 9 to 11 September. There was something for everyone at this year’s show… so much so that you couldn’t attend everything, even if you tried.
This show was a jam packed time with seminars, presentations, exhibits, contests, parties and food. Whatever you came looking for; you could find it at the ISSA/Interclean Show in Las Vegas. Educational events ranged from a two day IICRC Floor Care Technician certification seminar to 45 minute presentations on technical or management subjects, to round table discussions, product demonstrations in exhibitor booths and on the education stage.
Last, but not to be forgotten was the wild Housekeeping Olympics sponsored by the Las Vegas chapter of the IEHA that included a bed making contest, floor pad toss and vacuum cleaner races all with noisy energised costumed participants from local hotels. This by itself was a sight to behold as all hell broke loose when participants gathered in the lobby chanting and yelling and then marched through the show floor disrupting everything within sight and earshot. It was akin to something that looked like a cross between a union demonstration and a gay pride march. Luckily there were no naked bike riders, but of course maybe I missed them.
Hundreds of product booths welcomed visitors on a show floor so large that a shuttle service from one end to the other was advised, even for veteran attendees. Everybody I talked to was having a good show and a good time. I think most would admit that show attendance numbers were slightly down a bit over last year. I would guess around 15,000 people attended the three day event. All of the exhibitors I spoke to were pleased with the turnout and impressed by the quality of the attendees that came by their booth.
Not Your Father’s ISSA Show
The face of the show is changing. Several years ago the ISSA opened the show to end users and they have responded in mass. Certainly some abuse the opportunity to collect free samples, pens and literature like they were trick or treating on Halloween but, for the most part, attendees see the show as an educational opportunity and a chance to speak directly with manufacturers about their wants and needs as well as their likes and dislikes about service and product offerings.
The ISSA has been successful in its effort to make the ISSA/Interclean Show the ‘One Show for Cleaning Industry’ by including and sharing the limelight with other groups. Official partners include the International Executive Housekeepers Association (www.ieha.org), the Association of Residential Cleaning Services International (www.arcsi.org), and the National Paper Trade Associations DistriPakUSA (www.distripakusa.com). A number of other groups held meetings and or exhibited at the show including ICAN, CIRI, NISH, BSCAI, CMI, NPTA, NISSCO, APPA, IFMA, IICRC, CRI, NFSI, Green Seal and the list goes on.
The ISSA unveiled several new initiatives at this year’s show, including its membership in the US Green Building Council (www.usgbc.org); a partnering agreement with the Cleaning Industry Research Institute (CIRI) to develop a cleaning standard; a Spanish language website for its members; and an online green cleaning resource centre.
Comedian Bill Cosby was this year’s key note speaker and he filled the room with thousands who laughed at his jokes and enjoyed his light hearted thoughts on marriage, work and growing old. It was a welcome, if short, respite from the pressures of long show hours and sore feet from walking the aisles or standing in a booth all day.
Well known cleaning industry speakers and seminar leaders included Don Aslett, Alan Bigger, Ian Greig, Jim Peduto, Steve Ashkin, Dave Frank and others.
Green Is In
Green cleaning was a major topic at this year’s show and was widely promoted on the show floor by many exhibitors. An innovation contest was held with attendees voting on new products in five different categories. The ISSA’s Cleaning Industry Management Standard (CIMS) was the topic of a number of seminars and presentations and continues to gain momentum as a widely accepted industry wide certification standard for building service contractors (BSCs) and in-house facility service managers (FSMs). More than 350 consultants (ICE) have been trained nationwide to assist CIMS applicants to prepare for onsite audits by 15 specially trained auditors.
Griffin’s Innovation Winners
Although not endorsed by the ISSA, some of my favorite new products exhibited at this year’s show include:
* Twister and 3m diamond polishing pads for stone, terrazzo and concrete, www.htc-america.com, www.3m.com/commcare
* Windsor Industries’ micro auto-scrubber (Saber Blade) with the footprint of an upright vacuum. www.windsorind.com
* Tennant’s Echo2 electrolyzed water auto-scrubber that eliminates the need for detergent www.tennant.com
* Mini-Max Steam Vapor Cleaning System by PDQ Precision Inc., www.minimaxcleaner.com
* Slip-On/Slip-Over Floor Protectors for chair and table legs, www.expandedtechnologies.com
* Rubbermaid’s Pulse bucketless hygen microfiber flat mopping system, www.rubbbermaidcommerical.com
* Sonic Scrubber, hand held ProDetailer and spot remover, www.sonicscrubbers.com
* Activeion Spray bottle that transforms water into a high performing cleaning agent, eliminating the need for detergent. www.activeion.com
* ReKrete waterless concrete cleaner/spot remover, www.american-reKrete.com
* Hurricone Cordless Floor Dryer/wet floor safety cone, www.hurricone.com
Next year’s North American ISSA/INTERCLEAN Show will be held in Chicago from 6 to 9 October 2009.
www.issainterclean.com
To comment or communicate with Bill Griffin, call his cell at 206-849-0179 or email: www.wgriffin@cleaningconsultants.com or visit:
www.cleaningconsultants.com
CIRI seizes innovative thinking high ground
Dateline: 19th June 2008
CIRI has now run a very successful second International Scientific Congress and the fledgling organisation looks well placed to continue leading discussion on the best thinking for innovation within the cleaning industry into the future. Greg Whiteley reports exclusively for INCLEAN.
Imagine writing a cleaning specification and contract that focused on objective outcomes such as measurable microbial counts; measurable dust measurements; measurement of carpet cleanliness; defined levels of moisture and moulds; and defined and measurable levels of floor dirt. That is an achievable quest for our cleaning industry.
The second meeting of the Cleaning Industry Research Institute (CIRI) was held in Washington DC over three days in June at the University of Maryland University Centre just outside of the District of Columbia. The meeting’s host was Dr Steven Spivak, chairman of CIRI’s Scientific Advisory Council and Emeritus Professor (former Professor of Fabric Engineering) at the University of Maryland.
In launching the congress some very clear messages were presented by a group of the undisputed leaders in this global market. Bobby Cohen, past president of ISSA and president of Penguin Care Corporation, speaking on the very first night of the meeting declared to all “CIRI is the future for our industry. It will be ‘where it’s at’ from now on for anyone who wants to know where the cleaning industry is headed.”
The following day in launching the congress, CIRI foundation president Jim Harris said, “I came into this sector as a contractor originally, although a long time ago. But I have never seen as much opportunity as I see today. Science is sharpening our focus and understanding on the linkages between cleaning and health.”
In response and as chairman and Congress host, Professor Spivak went on to say that the role of the Science Advisory Council “was to create the themes and manage the program for CIRI”. And with that the congress kicked off with a very eminent scientific speaker, the principle editor in chief of the International Journal of Hospital Infection, Dr Stephanie Dancer.
Over the three days 14 scientific papers were presented, ranging across the latest issues in cleaning for health; equipment developments; new findings on carpet and fibre care; and proposals for properly and scientifically defining ‘clean’.
A range of discussions took place during most sessions as the focus of the leaders of the industry was directed to how to improve cleaning and the cleaning sector overall. Participants were represented from most parts of the US, Canada, Puerto Rica, the UK, India and Australia.
The panel of speakers was quite mixed with at one end some very eminent scientists including various professors in their fields from some of the most prestigious institutions in the United States. There were researchers from various companies including most of the global players.
Most of the major carpet manufacturers had at least one technical representative including Interface, Shaw and Tandus. The Carpet and Rug Institute and IICRC were also present. Several of the elite members of the building service contracting sector were present, as were several of the professional organisations represented.
The papers varied in quality as is usual with these types of gatherings. The key note speaker, Scotland’s Dr Stephanie Dancer, spoke on new approaches for the control of infectious organisms in healthcare and hospital settings. She presented a great deal of research showing that the common positioning of cleaning services and the clinical understandings of cleaning required substantial revision. The audience was gripped by fear, soothed by new findings and learnt to properly wash and dry their hands each time they go to the bathroom, or visit a friend or relative in hospital.
Dr Dancer, in referring to work in which she has collaborated and published, including some data that is currently ‘pre-press’, stated that it has now been conclusively proven that visual inspection models of managing cleaning are meaningless, particularly in the healthcare setting. In fact, research has shown that visual inspection is totally unable to detect the key dirt.
Another important UK researcher, Dr Griffith, has demonstrated that what often is masqueraded as cleaning is just shifting the dirt from one place to another within the same institution, thus aiding spread of germs rather than removal or even killing of key infectious organisms.
Other presentations included sessions on measuring the dirtiness of carpet in a ‘quantitative’ and ‘scientifically defensible’ manner. Another paper dealt with steam killing fungal spores without distorting nylon carpets. Another paper dealt with the issues of risk associated with the cleaning process and the necessity to evaluate risk in a health outcomes manner.
The Congress’s overall quest was to determine whether cleaning and health outcomes can be linked in a more practical and scientific manner through the development of better measurements of cleaning outcomes as and when the cleaning is done, through more than just the discredited visual inspection methods.
The funding for CIRI is somewhat sketchy at present. The Institute has received some seed funding from a limited number of companies and ISSA is a fiscal supporter of the fledgling organisation. The founding president of CIRI and long time ISSA member Jim Harris advised that CIRI has now been granted ‘Tax Exempt’ (not for profit) status from the IRS, which will allow more formal fundraising to now be commenced. He has committed the next 12 months of his commercial time to almost solely raising funds for CIRI to allow the science to continue and grow with its mission, and not to let the absence of funding slow down the progress being made towards creating new objective performance and outcomes based standards for our cleaning sector.
A major project that has already been commenced by CIRI and its Science Advisory Committee is the development of the first ever objective standard for cleaning of schools in the K to 12 bands. This work will look at developing, vetting, sponsoring the research of, and validating objective scientific measures to define ‘clean’ in the context of a school classroom. This task, if successfully completed will have enormous ramifications for the entire cleaning industry.
Imagine writing a cleaning specification and contract that focused on objective outcomes such as measurable microbial counts; measurable dust measurements; measurement of carpet cleanliness; defined levels of moisture and moulds; and defined and measurable levels of floor dirt etc. The days of the policeman mentality monitoring head counts and just checking toilet smells might be given over to technical definitions of cleanliness and the measurement of the outcomes of the cleaning process and not just the physical presence of the cleaning staff.
The next meeting is not yet planned for 2009 but the Scientific Advisory Committee, led by Professor Spivak, will select a suitable location and organise the congress program during the next few months. The intention is to make CIRI’s annual congress the premier internationally coordinated research and scientific forum for cleaning technology and practice.
CIRI has now run a very successful second International Scientific Congress and the fledgling organisation looks well placed to continue leading the discussion on the best thinking and forum for innovation within the cleaning industry into the future.
www.ciri-research.org
CIRI has now run a very successful second International Scientific Congress and the fledgling organisation looks well placed to continue leading discussion on the best thinking for innovation within the cleaning industry into the future. Greg Whiteley reports exclusively for INCLEAN.
Imagine writing a cleaning specification and contract that focused on objective outcomes such as measurable microbial counts; measurable dust measurements; measurement of carpet cleanliness; defined levels of moisture and moulds; and defined and measurable levels of floor dirt. That is an achievable quest for our cleaning industry.
The second meeting of the Cleaning Industry Research Institute (CIRI) was held in Washington DC over three days in June at the University of Maryland University Centre just outside of the District of Columbia. The meeting’s host was Dr Steven Spivak, chairman of CIRI’s Scientific Advisory Council and Emeritus Professor (former Professor of Fabric Engineering) at the University of Maryland.
In launching the congress some very clear messages were presented by a group of the undisputed leaders in this global market. Bobby Cohen, past president of ISSA and president of Penguin Care Corporation, speaking on the very first night of the meeting declared to all “CIRI is the future for our industry. It will be ‘where it’s at’ from now on for anyone who wants to know where the cleaning industry is headed.”
The following day in launching the congress, CIRI foundation president Jim Harris said, “I came into this sector as a contractor originally, although a long time ago. But I have never seen as much opportunity as I see today. Science is sharpening our focus and understanding on the linkages between cleaning and health.”
In response and as chairman and Congress host, Professor Spivak went on to say that the role of the Science Advisory Council “was to create the themes and manage the program for CIRI”. And with that the congress kicked off with a very eminent scientific speaker, the principle editor in chief of the International Journal of Hospital Infection, Dr Stephanie Dancer.
Over the three days 14 scientific papers were presented, ranging across the latest issues in cleaning for health; equipment developments; new findings on carpet and fibre care; and proposals for properly and scientifically defining ‘clean’.
A range of discussions took place during most sessions as the focus of the leaders of the industry was directed to how to improve cleaning and the cleaning sector overall. Participants were represented from most parts of the US, Canada, Puerto Rica, the UK, India and Australia.
The panel of speakers was quite mixed with at one end some very eminent scientists including various professors in their fields from some of the most prestigious institutions in the United States. There were researchers from various companies including most of the global players.
Most of the major carpet manufacturers had at least one technical representative including Interface, Shaw and Tandus. The Carpet and Rug Institute and IICRC were also present. Several of the elite members of the building service contracting sector were present, as were several of the professional organisations represented.
The papers varied in quality as is usual with these types of gatherings. The key note speaker, Scotland’s Dr Stephanie Dancer, spoke on new approaches for the control of infectious organisms in healthcare and hospital settings. She presented a great deal of research showing that the common positioning of cleaning services and the clinical understandings of cleaning required substantial revision. The audience was gripped by fear, soothed by new findings and learnt to properly wash and dry their hands each time they go to the bathroom, or visit a friend or relative in hospital.
Dr Dancer, in referring to work in which she has collaborated and published, including some data that is currently ‘pre-press’, stated that it has now been conclusively proven that visual inspection models of managing cleaning are meaningless, particularly in the healthcare setting. In fact, research has shown that visual inspection is totally unable to detect the key dirt.
Another important UK researcher, Dr Griffith, has demonstrated that what often is masqueraded as cleaning is just shifting the dirt from one place to another within the same institution, thus aiding spread of germs rather than removal or even killing of key infectious organisms.
Other presentations included sessions on measuring the dirtiness of carpet in a ‘quantitative’ and ‘scientifically defensible’ manner. Another paper dealt with steam killing fungal spores without distorting nylon carpets. Another paper dealt with the issues of risk associated with the cleaning process and the necessity to evaluate risk in a health outcomes manner.
The Congress’s overall quest was to determine whether cleaning and health outcomes can be linked in a more practical and scientific manner through the development of better measurements of cleaning outcomes as and when the cleaning is done, through more than just the discredited visual inspection methods.
The funding for CIRI is somewhat sketchy at present. The Institute has received some seed funding from a limited number of companies and ISSA is a fiscal supporter of the fledgling organisation. The founding president of CIRI and long time ISSA member Jim Harris advised that CIRI has now been granted ‘Tax Exempt’ (not for profit) status from the IRS, which will allow more formal fundraising to now be commenced. He has committed the next 12 months of his commercial time to almost solely raising funds for CIRI to allow the science to continue and grow with its mission, and not to let the absence of funding slow down the progress being made towards creating new objective performance and outcomes based standards for our cleaning sector.
A major project that has already been commenced by CIRI and its Science Advisory Committee is the development of the first ever objective standard for cleaning of schools in the K to 12 bands. This work will look at developing, vetting, sponsoring the research of, and validating objective scientific measures to define ‘clean’ in the context of a school classroom. This task, if successfully completed will have enormous ramifications for the entire cleaning industry.
Imagine writing a cleaning specification and contract that focused on objective outcomes such as measurable microbial counts; measurable dust measurements; measurement of carpet cleanliness; defined levels of moisture and moulds; and defined and measurable levels of floor dirt etc. The days of the policeman mentality monitoring head counts and just checking toilet smells might be given over to technical definitions of cleanliness and the measurement of the outcomes of the cleaning process and not just the physical presence of the cleaning staff.
The next meeting is not yet planned for 2009 but the Scientific Advisory Committee, led by Professor Spivak, will select a suitable location and organise the congress program during the next few months. The intention is to make CIRI’s annual congress the premier internationally coordinated research and scientific forum for cleaning technology and practice.
CIRI has now run a very successful second International Scientific Congress and the fledgling organisation looks well placed to continue leading the discussion on the best thinking and forum for innovation within the cleaning industry into the future.
www.ciri-research.org
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ISSA LAS VEGAS REFLECTS INDUSTRY INNOVATION
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