Cleaning carts are a tool of the trade in professional office cleaning. But they are not useful only in office spaces. We use cleaning carts and warehouses, industrial spaces, and just about any kind of space with a large footprint. Cleaning carts just make our teams more efficient and productive. They should do the same for your team.
A cleaning cart might not be necessary if you are only cleaning a single room with a small footprint. But once you start throwing in multiple rooms and common spaces, cleaning carts are almost a necessity. When a cleaning team is looking at tens of thousands of square feet, not using cleaning carts is unthinkable.
Everything in One Place
A cleaning cart is designed to facilitate keeping everything in one place. A cart holds all the cleaner’s tools, equipment, and cleaning solutions. It might even have space to carry trash throughout the shift. A cleaning cart helps to keep things on track because the cleaner always knows where everything is.
This has obvious benefits:
- Improved Productivity – Cleaning carts improved productivity by keeping cleaners on task. They don’t continually have to run to the storeroom throughout a shift because everything they need is with them.
- Improved Efficiency – Keeping everything organized and in one place improves efficiency. Less time is wasted retrieving supplies and equipment. Furthermore, team members who might be tempted to purposely waste time going to and from the storeroom no longer have an excuse to do so.
- Better Inventory Control – Cleaning carts can improve inventory control by making it easier to keep track of all cleaning equipment and supplies. Cleaners restock their carts at the beginning of each shift, thereby allowing management to easily see what remains on the shelf.
Some cleaning teams restock their carts at the end of the shift rather than the start. Why? Because a fully stocked cart is ready to go first thing in the morning. Crews are not spending time preparing for work. They start working right away.
Deciding on the Right Cart
For many cleaning teams, the decision to use carts is an easy one. The hard part is deciding on the right type of cart for a particular environment. Needless to say, cleaning carts come in all shapes and sizes. They also come with a variety of features.
Our recommendation is to take the time to think things through. Ask crew members what they would most like in new cleaning carts. Ask them about their pain points, the things that make their jobs more difficult, and how a new cart could make their lives easier.
In some environments, like healthcare, carts with locking compartments are indispensable. Other environments are better served with larger, more open carts that easily facilitate large pieces of equipment. Warehouse and industrial environments come to mind.
Choose With Safety in Mind
Regardless of the eventual cart choice, decision makers should choose with safety in mind. Safety extends to multiple aspects of cart choice, including:
- Stability and load capacity
- User safety (ergonomics)
- Chemical storage and handling
- Industry-specific needs
- Compatibility with personal protective equipment (PPE)
- OSHA guidelines for safe work
More complicated cleaning carts designed for sensitive or dangerous spaces may require a bit of training. As silly as it might sound, training can help employees use more complex cleaning carts safely.
Cleaning small spaces with little more than a tray in which a cleaner carries microfiber cloths and cleaning solutions is one thing. But cleaning larger spaces that include multiple rooms is made easier with a cleaning cart. At least that’s our viewpoint.
