Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

District Goes Cordless for Speed and Safety

  • 10/01/18
cordless backpack vacuum

Blue Valley School District was able to eliminate cordrelated safety hazards, increase environmental cleanliness and cut cleaning time nearly in half with ProTeam cordless backpack vacuums.

“It’s just like the name, GoFree; you can go anywhere with it,” says Matthew Brooks, custodial coordinator for Blue Valley School District, one of the major school districts in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The district recently implemented the ProTeam GoFree Flex Pro cordless backpack vacuum to reduce vacuuming time and improve safety.

The district’s 50-plus facilities span 4.4 million square feet of space. Some of the older buildings have limited outlets making it difficult for Brooks’ staff to vacuum the buildings, and he found custodians taking risks to get the job done.

When a custodian cleans with the Go-Free Flex Pro cordless backpack vacuum, cord-related risks are eliminated and cleaning is significantly faster.

Vacuuming used to take three hours for 18 to 20 classrooms, including hallways. The cordless backpack vacuum reduced that to two hours. Since the staff has been using the GoFree, the time-savings is approaching 40 percent.

The time saved from using cordless backpack vacuums has gone to dusting, spot cleaning carpets and sanitizing desktops daily rather than every other day. The custodians also switched from rags to backpack vacuums for dusting. According to Brooks, backpacks are more effective at capturing dust.

The reallocation of time to improve cleaning has had measurable results. One school was hovering around a 2.5 on the APPA scale (one is the highest standard of cleanliness and five is the lowest). Implementing the cordless backpack vacuums improved the school’s score to 2.0.

“If you’re not maintaining your building so your students have a safe and clean environment, it hurts their ability to learn,” says Brooks.

proteam.emerson.com

This article originally appeared in the School Planning & Management October 2018 issue of Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • University of Pennsylvania Releases Design of Future Physical Sciences Building

    The University of Pennsylvania (Penn) in Philadelphia, Penn., recently released renderings of an upcoming 350,000-square-foot Physical Sciences Building, according to news release. The facility was designed by CO Architects and will unite the university’s departments of Physics and Astronomy, Mathematics, and Earth and Environmental Science.

  • Back-to-School Playground Safety: 7 Common Hazards to Look for After Summer Break

    As summer break comes to an end, school administrators have plenty to prepare before students return. While classrooms, hallways and common areas often receive attention during all the back-to-school preparations, the playground should not be overlooked. Months of weather exposure, storms, and regular wear can leave behind hazards that may not be immediately noticeable.

  • Nashville Elementary School Receives LEED Gold Certification

    Goodlettsville Elementary School, part of Metro Nashville Public Schools in Nashville, Tenn., recently achieved LEED Gold Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), according to a news release. The 81,750-square-foot school opened in 2023 and was designed by Goodwyn Mills Cawood (GMC).

  • University of Mary Washington Selects Builder for New Theater, Dance Facility

    The University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Va., recently announced that it has selected construction and development firm Skanska to lead a series of renovations and upgrades to fine arts facilities, according to a news release.