Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Team Cleaning with Effective Tools

  • 09/01/16
Super Coach Pro vacuum

ProTeam helped WMU achieve better environmental quality with the Super Coach Pro vacuum, which removes microscopic dust and pollutants from the air.

Western Michigan University (WMU) opened its doors over 100 years ago. Today, its facilities house about 24,000 students from all over the world who are all there to pursue greater knowledge. For Steven Gilsdorf, director of building custodial and support services, removing unwanted matter like dirt, particulate and allergens from university facilities is key to fostering learning.

“We are cleaning for health and safety, not just appearance,” says Gilsdorf. “The key to that is removing matter.”

In order to become removers of unwanted matter, Gilsdorf and his team implemented a customized version of Team Cleaning they call Process Cleaning. Like a Team Cleaning program, Western Michigan custodial uses specialists who take on fewer tasks with state-of-the-art equipment to improve efficiency and clean to a higher standard. A typical Team Cleaning program has four specialists; WMU added three more specialists to fit the specific needs of their facilities.

At WMU, the standard restroom specialist, vacuum specialist, light duty specialist and utility specialist work in tandem with a light bulb specialist, a project specialist and a refresher specialist. This specialist “refreshes” restrooms and common areas, empties trash and addresses spills.

“Overall, we have seen cleaner buildings, because our method of cleaning removes more,” said Gilsdorf. “We maintain an APPA level of a high two, and we do not see the levels of illness and absenteeism that other schools and universities near us have had.”

In the last two years, Gilsdorf also expanded the use of ProTeam backpack vacuums to all departments of the school. With an advanced filtration system, the Super Coach Pro model backpack captures microscopic dust and pollutants, helping to further the goal of removing unwanted matter.

“Before ProTeam backpack vacuums, we were dusting lobbies and common areas daily,” says Gilsdorf. “The backpack vacuums made a huge difference. The environmental quality is so much better. We are now dusting those areas once a week.”

www.proteamnextgen.com

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management September 2016 issue of Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Kimball International Releases Curated Design Support Program

    Commercial furnishings company Kimball International recently announced the launch of a new end-to-end design support program, DesignSuite. According to a news release, its goal is to guide architecture & design professionals and dealer partners through the process from vision to specification.

  • Ohio State University Opens 26-Story Hospital

    The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center recently opened in Columbus, Ohio, standing 26 stories and covering 1.9 million square feet, according to a university news release. The project marks ten years of effort and is the university’s largest single-facility construction project ever.

  • College of the Desert Hits Construction Milestone on New Campus

    College of the Desert recently announced that the construction of its new Palm Springs Campus in Palm Springs, Calif., recently reached a major construction milestone, according to a news release. The college is partnering with general contractor C.W. Driver Companies, which recently “topped out” the facility by placing the final beam in its structure.

  • University of Arizona Approves New Residence Hall

    The Arizona Board of Regents recently approved plans for a new residence hall at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Ariz., according to a news release. The new facility is scheduled to open in fall 2028 and have the capacity for more than 1,200 students, enforcing a new university expectation that all first-year students live on campus.