The Green Building Solution

August 11, 2017 Steven Murphy Comments Off on The Green Building Solution

by Internet Archive Book Images

How much does it cost to become a Green office or Green Building? One of the challenges is that businesses have been encouraged to “Go Green,” but they have not been told what Green represents unless you consider a rambling list of environmental and ecological changes an answer. In truth, it seems that the concept of a Green building has been hijacked and taken to every extreme possible.

The foundation for a Green building comes down to the improvement of the health concerns of the building regarding the people that work there. It is admittedly helpful to change the light bulbs, reduce energy consumption, conserve fresh water, and recycle the trash. However, the best place to start a Green office is in the janitorial duties.

There are three pieces of the Green janitorial puzzle. The first of which is what we call the Green Agenda where the decision-makers implement polices. The second is to make sure the Green products are used, and the third is to require a Green certified janitorial service for your building.

The importance of a Green building is the improvement of the health factor for those who do the cleaning and those who put their eight hours in every day. Studies should that there are acute and chronic influences based on the cleaning of the building. This reflects in the cost of manpower and the loss of profitability through absenteeism, lost productivity, and increased medical costs.

The Green practices are just as important as the Green products. For instance, the use of microfiber cloths can reduce chemical use. It can also decrease the bacteria and dust shuffled around the building. New cleaning methods must change the old “Spray and Wipe” routine to install a “Dwell Time” of the cleaning product. The spread of disease is greatly reduced by change of cleaning methods as well as the tools. It is not sufficient to toss a Green product in the janitor closet and assume that the whole project is Green.

During the bid or quote process for your building, you should include a “Green Practices Clause” that gives preferential treatment to janitorial services that not only offer a line of Green products but also boast a Green trained and certified workforce. It makes ultimate sense that the operator is equally as valuable as the tools of the operation. A set of tools does not make an average guy into an expert mechanic. Why should this not be true of the people protecting the health of the building for your employees?

Find a Green Clean Institute Certified janitorial firm in your area or require that those hoping to service your building are Green Clean Institute Certified. Your employees will be healthier, your costs will go down, and you may even qualify for the Green Clean Institute Certified Green Building.

Categories: category

Tags: Building, Green, Solution