University Improves Carpet Care

UC Riverside

The University of California, Riverside, has reduced costs and improved the care and maintenance of its carpeting, protecting its investment, by switching to carpet encapsulation cleaning.

The University of California, Riverside (UCR) is one of 10 general campuses of the University of California system. With an average undergraduate enrollment of around 20,000, UCR’s foot traffic increases each year.

When UCR hired new Assistant Director of Custodial and Housekeeping Services Aaron Uresti, he brought along his experience using the carpet encapsulation cleaning method from another university and showed his team the benefits of using this process, rather than the carpet bonnet machines and method they had traditionally been using.

In June 2018, UCR ordered six Whittaker Smart Care® TRIO systems for interim maintenance. The TRIO features three counter-rotating brushes for greater mechanical action, and is available in various widths to accommodate cleaning requirements. With a low-fatigue machine-mounted solution tank and lite-touch control, the ergonomic and easy-to-use TRIO helps staff maintain carpet in a safer, more productive, and cost-effective way.

“Using a Whittaker machine is as simple as vacuuming, and our staff really appreciates that,” says Ray Varela, custodial supervisor, UCR. “The machines are well built and easy to maintain.”

The machines also arrived with the chemistry needed to perform interim cleaning, deep cleaning, and spot and stain removal.

UCR experienced numerous benefits after switching to Whittaker’s carpet cleaning system, including increased productivity, improved carpet appearance, cost savings, and peace of mind.

“From its incredible customer service to its well-made machines, we’ve had a great experience with Whittaker so far and look forward to working with them more,” adds Varela.

whittakersystem.com

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management July/August 2019 issue of Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Massachusetts K–12 District Selects Architect for New Junior High

    Swansea Public Schools in Swansea, Mass., recently announced that it has selected Finegold Alexander Architects to design a new junior high school for the district, according to a news release. The firm will create the Feasibility Study and Schematic Design for Joseph Case Junior High School after a lengthy selection process by the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA).

  • How a Portable Sink Helped an Art Classroom Run More Smoothly

    Classroom design decisions can have outsized effects on instructional time and safety at schools juggling mismatched infrastructure, strict budgets, and crowded schedules — particularly in the arts. Between spilled paint and dirty brushes, art classes run smoother with a sink in the studio. But many schools don’t have a sink in every art classroom.

  • Construction Begins on New University Research Vessel

    Boat-building company All American Marine recently announced that it has begun construction on a new catamaran research vessel for the University of Texas Marine Science Institute (UTMSI) in Port Aransas, Texas, according to a news release.

  • abstract illustration of school gym

    How the Gymnasium Can Serve as a Model for Learning Space Design

    Multipurpose gyms work because flexibility was built into the brief from the start, not retrofitted later. The same logic applies to academic spaces.