When you consider the sheer amount of space in warehousing, the cleaning process can seem daunting. It’s common for more than one crew member to be involved, but it’s common for warehouse cleaning to be a time-consuming endeavor.
In this article, you’ll get an actionable breakdown of best practices for efficiently cleaning a warehouse, regardless of the size.
The Scope of Warehouse Cleaning Requirements
There’s much more than just sweeping the floors when properly cleaning a warehouse environment. Requirements will vary from one building to the next, but optimizing the cleaning process means taking stock of what needs to be done.
While high traffic areas and zones that demand a clean working space should always be focal points. No matter how you approach cleaning a warehouse building, it’s guaranteed to come with a few challenges.
However, you can implement several strategies to help streamline the process without seeing a drop in overall quality. To help improve efficiency in cleaning processes and reduce downtime and additional workload, it’s best to work with commercial cleaning and janitorial services. Nevertheless, having a few cleaning tricks up your sleeve doesn't hurt, as warehouse work demands cleaning daily.
Focusing on Efficiency
To achieve the best outcome for warehouse cleaning practices, systems must be in place for every process step. Efficiency considers time, money, waste, resources, and much more. With the proper procedures, cleaning a warehouse can feel like a routine breeze for every shift.
Between optimizing internal processes and working with the help of a warehouse cleaning company, the task doesn’t have to feel so exhausting. It’s important to highlight that a blend of traditional and modern cleaning practices tends to be the best approach in this circumstance. For a more comprehensive take on the matter, a handful of best practices are bound to churn results.
1. Preparing a plan.
Before the team dives off into cleaning the warehouse, creating a plan is essential, first and foremost. This can be customized in various ways, but if efficiency is the goal, several critical steps must be taken.
- Clear the floor of any unnecessary items or equipment
- Remove and store warehouse vehicles, such as forklifts
- Call the cleaning crew to devise a plan.
While delegation is joint in any work environment, efficient warehouse cleaning stems from a team effort. This is partly what makes cleaning crews so successful. They have the knowledge and hands-on experience to deliver efficient results with a team-centric approach.
2. Initial cleaning stages.
There are stages to ensure the most thorough outcome when cleaning a warehouse space of any size. Some buildings are guaranteed to be a bit dirtier than others, but there’s more than simple dust to worry about.
For the beginning stages of cleaning, it’s best to focus on the most prominent spots of debris or dirt. This is primarily because these spots are stubborn and require the most cleaning time.
These spots can be pretty obvious, but this doesn’t address the upper levels of a warehouse building. The ground floor is vast in itself, but the upper areas also need routine cleaning. As one might expect, navigating this space can entail its own set of unique challenges. This also highlights the importance of cleaning with a top-to-bottom approach.
3. Check the high spaces first.
Aside from the fact that high surfaces add to the dirt down below, cleaning it first is a requirement to ensure you don’t have to clean the floor twice. However, like the ground floor, higher areas have several key areas that need routine cleaning.
Some of these include the following:
- Windows and frames
- Tops of storage and pallet racks
- Cooling and heating ducts
- Industrial fans
- And more.
There’s also the consideration of the potential danger of navigating a space so high above ground. This is another case where commercial cleaning companies are extremely helpful for everyone's safety. Those specializing in property management, university, or even healthcare cleaning services are more than equipped to tackle a warehouse project. Professionals can offer the safety expertise to ensure no one gets hurt cleaning a sizable warehouse building.
4. Floors come last.
Considering the top-to-bottom approach, floors should be the last part of the warehouse that goes through a deep cleaning. It's also helpful to look at historical data, as many warehouse injuries stem from slips and falls.
Not only can this affect the quality of life for employees, but it can lead to disastrous situations regarding legalities and business finances. There is a long list of incentives to keep a warehouse floor clean, but a consistent schedule is required to maintain efficiency. Once you’ve cleaned the entire warehouse, the final checklist comes next.
5. Step-by-step checklist.
This is a last look at everything that needs to be done before changing shifts or shutting down the warehouse for the day. A checklist can include many details, but the list below offers a gist of what that might look like for cleaning a warehouse.
- Empty all trash cans
- Sweep the floors
- Vacuum excess debris
- Confirm organization of materials and tools
- Check that all equipment is turned off
- Sanitize all surfaces
- Restock necessary workflow materials and toiletries
This comprehensive approach with a consistent cleaning schedule is the best way to ensure a warehouse always looks its best. It's no secret that some warehouses pose more considerable cleaning challenges than others, but proper cleaning must be noticed.
Tips for Maintaining Cleanliness
Aside from the primary cleaning days, keeping cleanliness around the clock as best as possible is essential. There's a difference between daily requirements and significant cleaning days, each with its upkeep standards.
Considerations such as having a daily cleaning schedule, assigning tasks, cleaning as you go, and accurate reporting are all helpful details. Employing these standards across the board is the best way to guarantee a warehouse is always in the best shape possible.
Of course, having employees work on the matter is a part of the process, but the benefits of commercial cleaning companies can help take some of the weight off. Although numerous cleaning organizations would happily take on the project, it's best to stick to those with direct experience with the space.
Warehouses are unique structures that deal with quite a bit of a mess on the inside. Cleaning requirements are thorough and sometimes dangerous, making it the perfect job for cleaning professionals.
The bottom line
Integrating efficient cleaning practices on top of daily checklists can guarantee a uniform look to any warehouse. Then again, this doesn't consider the time and effort spent making this a reality.
Hiring a warehouse cleaning professional can deliver an efficient service that exudes years of direct experience. Considering the sheer need for a clean warehouse for many industrial and regulatory reasons, it pays for itself. This article highlights exactly what you need to know to integrate best practices for warehouse cleaning moving forward.