January 31, 2023
Predicted Cleaning Industry Trends 2023
The year 2023 will certainly be a challenging one for facilities managers and cleaning teams. With the economic climate continuing down an uncertain pathway, and ever-evolving and increasing expectations of the clients we service & the occupants & workers of our facilities, it’s important to understand what developments are happening in the industry to help meet these challenges.
There are new innovations and developments now that can help and support facilities teams with more efficient ways of working, achieving better results and lowering the costs of cleaning. In this blog, we’ll provide examples of these developments and illustrate exactly how they can be of benefit to facilities.
There are 5 key areas that are going to trend for facilities in 2023. They include: Increased used of automation & cobotics, Green cleaning, The use of data in cleaning, outsourcing, and finally resrourcing.
1. Increased Use of Automation
Automated machines are rapidly becoming a popular option in the industry with machines that are designed to work collaboratively with cleaning operatives, such as industrial automatic floor cleaning machines and cobotic vacuum cleaners.
These machines take care of the tedious, repetitive tasks, like cleaning large areas of flooring, that take up huge amounts of time and can cause a lot of strain for cleaners.
Implementing this new technology is helping facilities to combat issues regarding staff shortages as cleaning duties are shared between the operative and the machine.
More strenuous duties are assigned to the machines, so there is less risk of injury for the operative as well as helping to reduce what would usually take hours to complete, down to a drastically shorter amount of time that is more realistic and achievable for facilities.
Not only does automated cleaning lessen the amount of time taken to perform a task, but it can also offer better, cleaner results, as it allows the operative freedom to focus on more detailed cleaning whilst the machine takes care of the time-consuming tasks.
A cleaner facility means a safer environment for visitors and staff and presents a respectable image, meeting those high standards that are expected following the pandemic.
The increase in demand for automated cleaning is high as result of those embracing the technology experiencing better results and a higher ROI.
Automated cleaning is really helping facilities to grapple with today’s challenges by increasing efficiency in their cleaning processes.
2. Green Cleaning
Sustainability is a very significant topic and will continue to be into 2023.
Consumers value corporate responsibility and are more likely to purchase from companies that are showing efforts to be more sustainable. In 2023, customers will begin to expect more liability and transparency from manufacturers and distributors in their processes.
The production of goods will be examined and its environmental impact. This encompasses the entire product’s journey, from its creation, all the way through to transportation, trading, and expiry of the product.
Investigation will expose if there are negative consequences for the environment, or any violation of human rights at any point during the process.
Green cleaning is a practise that means adopting sustainable products and processes that reduce any negative affects to wildlife and the environment.
More businesses are turning to green cleaning to reduce their environmental impact and present an ethical image.
There are three core areas in cleaning that facilities can focus on to becoming more sustainable.
1. Cleaning products – by employing products that are made with natural ingredients, such as probiotics, or SAO, which requires just water, oxygen and electricity, facilities are able to eliminate any risk of harmful chemicals entering the environment and causing damage to the planet.
2. Water consumption – facilities are embracing technology that requires less water, such as microfibre and turning to water-saving floor cleaning machines instead of the traditional mop and bucket, to reduce their water usage and help save resources for the planet.
3. Single use plastics – tonnes of single use plastics end up in landfill sites every year and cause considerable damage to the environment. Companies are helping to combat this by eliminating single use plastics from their cleaning by adopting refillable products, products made from recyclable materials, or that have a recycling service in place.
There are simple switches you can make to help your processes to be more sustainable.
From just swapping cotton cloths out for microfibre, you can save on water and chemicals as microfibre only needs a small amount of water to clean and is much more durable than cotton.
By using a refillable dosing system, you can cut out single use plastics and, at the same time, control your chemical usage, eliminating waste and saving on cost!
More facilities are making the switch and turning to green cleaning as it has many benefits.
By adopting sustainable processes, facilities can establish areas of waste regarding water consumption and chemical usage and save on cost.
Products made with natural ingredients means no harm is caused to the environment, or people, so less training is required; and by employing sustainable practices, companies can help support efforts to save the planet and gain trust with consumers.
3. Data Driven Cleaning
In 2023 it is expected that facilities will be embracing new data collection methods to help drive efficiencies, plan daily cleaning schedules, and ensure that time & resource is well used across the cleaning processes.
Data is crucial in our day to day lives now, utilising smart technologies that include The Internet of Things (IoT), which uses sensors that record data and store it in cloud-based software.
When smart technology and monitoring systems are implemented, it produces real-time data. This tracks metrics, and provides accurate numerical data on things like:
· Consumption levels – paper hand towels and toilet paper left in dispensers.
· Visitor traffic – the amount of people entering a facility.
· Air quality – detection of any harmful particles and bacteria.
· Hygiene levels – areas that have dirt and require attention.
· Time spent on a cleaning task – how long it takes an operative to complete a job.
This information is displayed on a software platform ready to view at any time by facilities management. The data empowers cleaning staff and facilities managers to streamline processes and increase efficiency by identifying time and resources that are being wasted on unnecessary tasks. Backed with this knowledge, facilities are able to save on cost and maximise their resources. We call this data driven
cleaning.
Facilities already utilising data driven cleaning are reaping the benefits. Reports show that:
Even big corporations are beginning to use the technology. Edo den Hertog, the Chief Operating Office for D&B Facility Group at the World Trade Centre in Amsterdam says
“[data driven cleaning] enables us to improve quality while keeping costs low.”
Facilities are currently facing many challenges such as staff shortages, absenteeism, low profit margins, and expectations of hygiene following the pandemic.
With many advantages to implementing smart technology and utilising data driven cleaning to increase efficiencies and properly allocate precious resources, this technology is enabling businesses to overcome both long-standing and new challenges, allowing them to compete and improve performance in the marketplace.
4. Outsourcing
In 2023, during a time of economic struggle, facilities are beginning to look to outsourcing cleaning to a third-party company in order to save money and reduce overhead costs.
Employing an operative to clean in-house at a facility requires a lot of admin and expenditure.
Facilities managers have to take into consideration the extra salary expense, HR responsibilities that come with it, and sickness and holiday cover.
They also have to purchase and re-order cleaning equipment and chemicals and implement training regarding manual handling and COSHH.
This is why many facilities choose to outsource their cleaning.
The benefits of outsourcing means you will receive a professional cleaning service and better results from someone who has experience and who will always be on top of industry standards.
It also saves on time and resources that goes into screening, hiring, training, and managing cleaning staff as responsibilities and training are handled by the third-party company.
This is just another method on how management are cutting down on costs, maintaining resources and ensuring a high level of clean in their facilities.4
5. Resourcing
One of the biggest issues for facilities management this year is securing staff in the cleaning industry. This is affecting performance, time and resources and levels of clean for facilities.
With fewer cleaning operatives, facilities are struggling to keep on top of important cleaning duties. This has an impact on the levels of hygiene which affects health and safety of visitors and staff, and leaves a poor image.
The few staff that are available are struggling to complete the more time-consuming tasks, such as cleaning the floors of large rooms and spaces and high touch points -objects and areas that numerous people come into contact with – aren’t being regularly cleaned, which can aid the spread of bacteria and viruses.
Fortunately, there’s a solution. The new technology that’s available, such as data driven cleaning and cobotics can actually help combat the issue surrounding the lack of staff.
Smart technology monitors performance and level of clean, helping facilities managers to properly allocate their resources and staff to focus on the tasks that need the most attention and avoid wasting it on those that don’t.
Automated machines and cobotics help to reduce the time spent on cleaning by taking care of those time-consuming tasks whilst the operative can get on with detailed cleaning and taking care of those hot points in a facility, increasing the level of clean and reducing the spread of illness.
Implementing data driven cleaning and automated machines aids the cleaning operative, saves time, produces better, cleaner results and ultimately presents a high ROI
So whilst there is a huge challenge to find the right people and ensure the right levels of training for the job, there are also new ways of working as we enter a new era of technology within the cleaning industry that enables smarter working and more efficient cleaning processes with less staff. You just need to embrace it.
In Conclusion
With facilities management and cleaning operatives facing many challenges, such as low profit margins, staff shortages, absenteeism, and expectations regarding high levels of hygiene and sustainability, the year 2023 will see an increase in smart tech and sustainability.
More companies will start practicing green cleaning by switching from products containing harmful chemicals to ones made with natural ingredients and eliminate single use plastics. These sustainable practices will help facilities reduce waste, help support efforts to save the planet and gain trust with consumers.
The biggest takeaway in trends for the cleaning industry this year will be the prominent use of technology. Automation, smart technology, and data-driven cleaning will be in demand with benefits that reduce costs and improve efficiency in cleaning processes.
Facilities will embrace automated cleaning machines and cobotics that work with cleaning operatives and perform time-consuming repetitive tasks, allowing the operative time to get on with detailed cleaning. Thus, saving on time and increasing the levels of clean. Smart technology and data driven cleaning will enable facilities to review data relating to performance and levels of hygiene so that they can properly allocate resources and streamline processes, saving on time and cost.
As an extra solution to save on overhead costs, facilities will begin outsourcing cleaning to a third-party company. However, embracing smart technology and automated machines will prove to be most outstanding as it saves on time and resources, whilst still producing great cleaning results and a high ROI.
You’re now up to date on all the latest trends in the cleaning industry for 2023. For more information and tips about cleaning, visit our Knowledge Hub.
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