3 Reasons Commercial Upholstery Should be in Your Facility’s Cleaning Program
In many commercial cleaning programs, facility managers focus on surfaces that tend to “look dirty” from everyday use. It’s understandable, of course. Having a facility that appears clean makes a good impression on employees and customers.
But, even if the facility looks clean, is it really?
Hidden dirt, oils, and allergens hide beneath the surface in your upholstery, even if they can’t be seen. Though it’s a vital piece of your cleaning program’s puzzle, upholstery is often overlooked until there is a spill or day-to-day wear begins to show.
That’s why we recommend putting your facility’s upholstery on a preventative maintenance cleaning program so you can stay ahead of potential problems. Here are just a few reasons why…
Why You Should Add Upholstery To Your Facility’s Cleaning Program
1. It keeps your upholstery clean on a recommended schedule.
Your upholstery should be sanitized annually, at minimum. Our usual recommendation is every six to 12 months.
There are a few factors that call for additional cleanings. These include staff changes, cubicle reconfigurations, and industry needs (e.g., childcare and healthcare), to name a few.
Adding upholstery to your commercial carpet or floor cleaning program ensures that the upholstery your facility never goes longer than recommended without sanitizing.
2. It improves the overall health in your facility.
Similar to carpet, upholstery absorbs allergens, dust, dust mites, and bacteria. Over time, these build up and can negatively affect your employees’ and customers’ health.
According to the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology, dust alone can trigger sneezing, stuffy nose, itchy eyes, and coughing in those who have allergies.
Upholstery cleaning is essential for any commercial facility but, as we mentioned, it’s especially crucial for childcare and healthcare facilities. Harmful bacteria can live for several days on these surfaces, causing sickness to spread.
3. It makes your life easier.
You’ll never have to ask, “When is the last time we had the upholstery cleaned?” because it will be part of your regular cleaning schedule. When upholstery is added to your preventative maintenance cleaning program, you can be confident that your upholstered furniture and cubicle panels aren’t getting overlooked.
Plus, if your carpet and floor cleaning team is already in the building, you’re not scheduling a separate time for these surfaces to be cleaned.
Upholstered Surfaces to Include in Preventative Maintenance Cleaning
So, which types of upholstered surfaces should you include in a preventative maintenance cleaning plan?
We recommend cleaning all upholstered and leather furniture, including task chairs, conference chairs, dining chairs, lobby couches and sitting chairs. Additionally, cubicle dividers, upholstered panels and hard surfaces such as desks, chairs, tables and counters should be included as well.
Cubicle dividers are sometimes ignored because they aren’t touched as much as the other upholstered surfaces in the facility. However, much like your chairs and carpet, upholstered dividers act as a filter for allergens and will affect the overall health of your facility if not cleaned regularly.
The same goes for leather. However, much like cloth, leather surfaces also absorb body oils, dust, debris, soil, and even clothing dye. These substances deteriorate the leather’s protective finish, absorbing them into its pores. Leather is difficult to clean because most traditional cleaners will damage the material or give it a dull look. Including leather in your cleaning program ensures that your furniture is always clean and properly maintained.
How to Plan and Budget for a Commercial Upholstery Cleaning Program
Most surface cleaning companies charge per piece of furniture. If you would like to include your upholstered furniture in a preventative maintenance program, start by building an inventory of all furniture that needs cleaning. That will help your surface cleaning vendor build a budget for your upholstery cleaning program.
If you’re in Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga or Atlanta, we make it easy to add upholstery and leather cleaning to your program so that it’s taken off your to-do list for good. DPM Care offers upholstery cleaning programs for all of our commercial clients. Existing clients can contact us to add upholstery to their preventative maintenance programs.
For new clients, request a free site assessment and we’ll come to your office space to determine your facility’s specific needs and the general use of the building. After our site visit, we design a preventative cleaning program for your building that keeps surfaces clean and lasting longer.
Don’t want to worry about your upholstery cleaning program? Let us help. We’ll take it off your plate, so you can focus on the core functions of your business.