Tag Archives: cleaning news

Cleaning App: Angry Janitors

mzl.ufkkamicA mixture of Mario and Angry Birds is this app that wants us to learn more about cleaning and to make us aware of the importance of Health & Safety.

This free game was brought by ISSA (International Sanitary Supply Association) last year.

Help Sweepy, the janitor, clean all dirt and germs to unlock new levels and get high scores. There are three areas to clean: the school, the office and the hospital.

This app is a fun and quirky mix-match game that may put a smile on your face, even if you are not a cleaning professional.

Give it a try! You can install it for free at Google play.

Flying robots to clean your space!

A new cleaning system that uses mini robots to clean your home has been the winner of this year’s Electrolux Design Lab. Maybe elbow grease will be a thing of the past sooner than we expect it!

mab electrolux design lab 2013

Check the video to see these robots in action:

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tech/news/a524667/flying-robot-beehive-cleaner-wins-design-prize.html

And if you want to know the ins and outs of the project (designed by Adrian Perez Zapata), check this:

http://electroluxdesignlab.com/en/submission/mab/

What do you think? Will this invention be suitable for a domestic environment? Share your thoughts!

The use of antibacterial cleaning products

antibacterialWe recently red some news about the possible dangers of using antibacterial soaps. Some recent studies suggest that the overuse of antibacterial soaps may help create drug-resistant germs.

Antibacterial products have been used on the health sector for decades. It has only been recently that antibacterial cleaning products have become “a norm” for private households and families. It has been so extended that almost half of the soaps/chemicals on sale contain antibacterial agents, such as triclosan and triclocarban.

 

But, apparently, scientists are starting to get worried. They are still unsure whether antibacterial cleaning products work any better than the good old soap and water to keep germs below dangerous levels.

Soapy water wash away germs; antibacterial products kill everything, even bacteria that are helpful to the body because they keep other dangerous bugs at bay, experts say.

Scientists are warning to use antibacterial products just when needed, that is, when taking care of a child or sick person. Indeed, recent research suggests that antibacterial soaps and chemicals my encourage the growth of “super bugs” resistant to antimicrobial agents.

What do you think about the findings? Do you think this “antibacterial fever” on the consumer market is a marketing strategy to sell more products or in fact we need these cleaning products to survive?

New increase on the minimum wage

The government has accepted the independent Low Pay Commission’s recommendations for this year’s National Minimum Wage rates.

As from 1 October 2012, the adult rate will increase to £6.19 per hour. On the other hand the rates for 18-20 and 16-17 year olds will remain the same.

In this time of uncertainty and tough economic environment, the increase has been welcomed by Cleaning businesses.

House cleaning robots

Improvement in the domestic lives have been massive on the past century. House cleaning has benefited from this thanks to the up-rise of the robotic cleaners.

There are hundreds of robotic vacuums and “mops” on the market and people seem to be happy about the change of house cleaning “machinery”.

But, how good are they? are they really better than the usual hoover or mop?

We have to agree that their compact size makes it easier to go into hard-to-reach areas, so there is no need to move furniture around.

Also they remove all kinds of dust, and even pet hair, better than the usual stuff, and this is great news for allergy sufferers.

These robot cleaners are made specially for busy people as you can program them and forget about it, knowing well that it will do its job at the set time.

But not everything is so straightforward. I think that one of the downsides of these robots is the fact that they tend to miss corners and can only clean flat surfaces (so the need to have a regular vacuum cleaner to do the odd bit here and there is obvious).

There is also a lot of people that have complained about the noise they produce and the price.

Do not think that by buying one of these robots you can stick cleaning out of your chores list; you will still need to do some “elbow dance” to remove tough stains, as they are not able to do this by themselves.

I have seen some of these robots in action and they look like a lunatic creature trying to find their way out of the room. It is kind of funny, but I have my reserves about these robots in terms of replacing the traditional way of cleaning; nothing like a good domestic cleaner happy to go the extra mile (robots don’t do this)!

Do you have any “robotic experience”? What do you think about this new technology? Share your thoughts!

domestic cleaning and the minimum wage

There was a lot of debate in the domestic cleaning services industry about the minimum wage increase in October 2008, some people saying that it would decrease employment, others saying that it would have little effect.

Interestingly the credit crunch and the recession has diverted people’s discussions away from this debate.

http://www.amycleaning.co.uk is friendly with most other domestic cleaning firms, it is a small industry where everyone really knows everyone .  The general conclusion is that in most areas it has had no measurable difference. 

This is partly because it is hard to measure in comparison to the general recession of the economy which has had a far larger effect.  Also before the minimum wage increased to £5.73, in most areas agencies had to pay a bit more than the minimum wage to get the great staff they needed anyway. 

Also as far as individual agencies are concerned, as all their rivals also have to pay more in each area to get staff they are at no disadvantage to their competitors.   Cleaners are needed in a specific areas so it is not something where there are competing with those located abroad that are not subject to these laws.

All in all, the challenging marketplace is caused by the current state of the economy and not the minimum wage increase. 

The management at Amy Domestic Cleaning Agency Services has been through a few recessions and has always been fine, so we regard it as all just a little history repeating. 

It is a sad fact though that many newer agencies do not have experience with these conditions and have not set themselves up correctly for them.  Normally the domestic cleaning agency services that are not managing to make it during these conditions are those that do not have proper financial reporting, organisation skills, management experience and biggest of all they have bank borrowings.

If you are a  agency that is having troubles, please do feel free to give us a call and we are always happy to chat to and help good people.