Clean & Hygiene Review ( Nov-Dec 2013) The magazine for Cleaning professionals.

May-June ’13

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E Publisher cum Editor Rajneesh Sharma Resident Editor Sharmila Chand (Delhi) Ashok Malkani (Mumbai) Layout & Design Hari Kumar. V Narender Kumar Production Assistant Mamta Sharma Business Co-ordinator Pooja Anand Advertising Sales Delhi: Debabrath Nath, Sumesh Sharma Mumbai: Rajesh Tupsakhre Subscription Sales Dattaram Gangurde Director Sales Sanjay Anand Director Operations & Finance Rajat Taneja Editorial & Advertising Offices: Delhi: Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd. 1202, Pragati Tower, 26, Rajindra Place, New Delhi-110008 Phone: 91-11-45084903, 25854103 / 05 Mumbai: Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd. 105, 1st Floor, Aarpee Centre, Gufic Compound, 11th Road, MIDC, Near Tunga Paradise, Andheri (E), Mumbai-400 093 Ph.: 91-22-28395833 Telefax: 91-22-28388947 Website: www.chrmag.com E-mail: hammerpublishers@vsnl.net © 2013 Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd.

Clean & Hygiene Review is a bi-monthly magazine, printed, owned and published by Rajneesh Sharma from 313, Himgiri Apartments, J-Block, Vikaspuri, New Delhi. Printed at Print Creations, C-112/3, Basement, Naraina Industrial Area, Phase-1, New Delhi-110 028.

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Editorial Policy : Editorial emphasis in Clean & Hygiene Review magazine is on educational & informational material specifically designed to assist those responsible for managing cleaning & maintenance, Laundry, Pest Control, Water & Waste Management and Environment. Articles are welcome and will be published on the sole discretion of the editor.

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As we look back at the year that has gone by, it doesn’t take much time to realise that for many, the year turned out to be a turbulent one. And this is not only because of cricket’s favourite son Sachin Tendulkar’s retirement from all forms of the game in this year. More people remained worried about the economy’s poor performance.

With growth below 5 percent, this year registered the slowest growth in a decade, affecting the performance of various sectors of the economy, including the service industry. The hospitality industry suffered because of lower than expected arrivals of foreign travellers, affecting both the luxury and business travel segments.

However, this doesn’t mean 2014 holds no hope for the country. In fact, things have already started looking up at the fag-end of the year. Not only has domestic tourism surged, at 4.8 percent, the GDP growth of the second quarter is a notch better than the first quarter (4.4 percent). India’s successful launch of the Mars Orbiter that could make it the first Asian nation to probe the Red Planet has also lifted the spirits of one and all and served its purpose of reassuring the world about India’s capability, however limited the means may be.

And if at all you also need to reassure your customer in 2014, a shining floor of your property can just do the wonder for you. This is because the floor attracts the fist gaze of the visitors that step into your property and immediately paints the first image about your potential and capability. The Cover Story of this issue, therefore, offers a comprehensive overview about the importance of floor care for your business, which floor to choose in case you are opening a new property and how best to extend the life of your flooring by following the correct methods of cleaning.

The story on waste management unravels the potential of generating energy from the mounting wastes that have become parts of our lives in this age of rapid urbanisation. The practice of treating wastes before disposal and using in energy generation solves the twin problem of pollution and energy scarcity. Moreover, turning waste into energy also reduces the demand for landfills in land-scarce cities. It is now estimated that there is a potential of generating 3,600MW of power from urban, municipal and industrial wastes in the country and it is likely to be increased to 5,200MW by 2017. The story not only sketches the opportunities available in every component of the waste to energy value chain, it also points out the various supports that the government provides in this sector.

The Report on the key indicators of drinking water, sanitation, hygiene and housing condition in India reveals a bitter truth - an old rural-urban divide in a new India, as according to the government’s own data, even after 66 years of India’s Independence, almost 60 percent of rural households do not have access to toilet facilities, while the corresponding figure for urban India is 8.8 percent.

The other regular sections of the magazine are also packed with in-depth analysis, valuable updates and helpful tips.

I pray for the good health of all and hope that 2014 will bring more happiness to all of you. Happy New Year!

Nov-Dec ’13

Contents 16

10 COVER STORY PEST MANAGEMENT

20 LAUNDRY

22 WATER MANAGEMENT

SECTIONS 4

News Scan

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Report

30

IAQ

34

Product Preview

36

Interview

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WASTE 3

NEWS SCAN

Jaypee Hotels Wins National Energy Conservation Award Jaypee Vasant Continental in New Delhi, a unit of Jaypee Hotels (a division of M/s Jaiprakash Associates Ltd.), has won the prestigious National Energy Conservation Award 2013 in the category of hotels along with two other properties – The Leela Palace, Bangalore (Karnataka) and Floatels India Pvt. Ltd., Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala).

“These Awards have been instituted to recognize outstanding contributors from the industrial sector towards energy conservation. I congratulate all the winners of this year’s Awards, who have set benchmarks of excellence for their peers,” President Pranab Mukherjee said at the presentation of the National Energy Conservation Awards on the occasion of National Energy Conservation Day in New Delhi on December 16.

For Jaypee Hotels, Manju Sharma, Director, Jaypee Vasant Continental, received the award from President Mukherjee.

Jaypee hotel has always been very conscious towards the environment and is overwhelmed to receive the award, Jaypee Hotels said in a statement.

“The award is recognition of the hard work of the committed workforce at the Jaypee Hotels,” it added.

Minister of State for Power Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia was also present on the occasion. The prizes included 1 top rank award, 34 first prizes, and 34 second prizes to the national energy conservation award winners who were the finest energy performers in diverse sectors i.e. industries, thermal power stations, office buildings, BPO buildings, hotels, hospitals, shopping malls, etc.

Green Tribunal Bans Burning of Plastics, Rubber Taking a serious note of pollution caused by burning of plastics, rubber and such other articles, a bench headed by National Green Tribunal Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar has banned “unregulated open burning” of such articles across the country.

“There shall be no unregulated open burning of plastic or rubber or such other articles anywhere in India,” it said.

The order restrains all the plastic waste/scrap dealers and/or recyclers including the members of the PVC and Plastic Waste Dealers Association from “carrying on their business of segregation of plastic waste and its eventual transfer to recyclers or disposal contrary to and without registration under the Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011”.

The bench also observed that there was a need to completely ban unregulated handling and disposal of plastic waste Saying that the use of plastic and the waste from its use need not be baneful for the environment if handled properly, the Tribunal directed all the municipal authorities to “set up, operationalise and coordinate the waste management systems within their limits, work out and set up systems for use of plastic waste in road construction and/or in co-incineration plans for generation of energy in accordance with law and lastly incorporate necessary provisions in their by law for enforcement of the said rules”.

The authorities have been directed by the NGT to submit their plan within a month.

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Electrolux Professional Opens First Laundromat with Lagoon Wet Cleaning System in New Delhi

QUALITY ASSURED COMPANY

Electrolux Professional inaugurated its first Laundromat with Lagoon professional wetcleaning system installation in New Delhi, on December 18. Lagoon is an integrated cleaning, drying and finishing system that uses water as natural solvent.

The newly opened Laundromat with Lagoon wet-cleaning system is located near Kingsway Camp in north Delhi.

Speaking on the occasion, Harsh Rohtagi, owner of three Laundromats, including the newly opened ECO Clean, remarked, “The Lagoon system endorsed by The Woolmark Company is a sustainable eco-friendly alternative, and a new, innovative way of cleaning delicate fibres with better result.”

He said that the Electrolux Team in India planned and suggested the right equipment and their qualified technical team executed the installation of the system.

“Soon after installation, training was conducted for me and my staff. Several delicate garments, including wedding dresses and sarees & Indian men’s attires (with delicate embroideries), were cleaned using Lagoon. The results surprised us greatly.

The delicate garments were brighter, softer and cleaner,” he said.

Anshul Gupta, Director, Quick Clean Pvt Ltd, authorized dealer-partner of Electrolux Professional Laundry systems said the first Lagoon installation, ECO Clean, would provide customers an eco-friendly option to the conventional dry cleaning process.

“More and more customers are asking about eco-friendly solutions, as more and more fabrics are becoming suitable for wet-cleaning. The time is right for the Indian consumer to start looking more closely at safer cleaning methods and greener alternatives. And Electrolux Professional offers that solution,” he said.

The Lagoon installation at ECO Clean will be available for clients, end-users, consumers, Electrolux dealer-partners, and Laundry consultants to utilise this venue as a demo site for wet-cleaning trials on complex fabrics, for exchanging experiences, and for discussions on Lagoon wet-cleaning process.

“This flagship installation will be a showcase for other Lagoon shops poised to open in Delhi-NCR region, followed by Lagoon shops in other metro cities,” Electrolux Professional said in a statement.

The Lagoon professional laundry package from Electrolux Professional was launched in 2005 as an alternative to dry cleaning based on wet-cleaning technology.

Tissue Paper Demand Likely to Go Up: Reports The global tissue paper market will grow at a CAGR of 4.9 percent over the period 2012-2016, says a report that covered the markets of the Americas, EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa) and the APAC (Asia-Pacific) regions.

Personal hygiene would be the key driver of this growth, the report, the Global Tissue Paper Market 2012-2016, said. The increasing interaction between the eastern and the western world was identified as another major reason for the rise in tissue paper demand.

Prepared on the basis of in-depth market analysis and inputs from industry experts, the report however cautions that increasing use of hand-drier machines could pose a challenge to the growth of this market.

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REPORT

Parametres of Hygiene Key indicators of drinking water, sanitation, hygiene and housing condition in India, released by National Sample Survey Office, exposes old rural-urban divide in a new India

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ven after 66 years of India’s Independence, almost 60 percent (59.4% to be precise) of rural households do not have access to toilet facilities, government data have shown on December 24.

However, the corresponding figure for urban India is not as gloomy as only 8.8 percent of urban households do not have latrine facilities.

“59.4 percent and 8.8 percent households in rural India and urban India respectivel y had no latrine facilities,” the key indicators of drinking water, sanitation, hygiene and housing condition in India released by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, showed.

In terms of garbage disposal facilities too, the divide between rural and urban India is as stark.

While 68 percent of rural households do not have any garbage disposal arrangement, only 24 percent of households in urban areas do not have such an arrangement,

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which do not call for any celebration though.

“In rural India 32 percent households had some garbage disposal arrangement, whereas in urban areas the corresponding figure was 75.8 percent,” the data showed.

The rural-urban divide is only slightly less stark in terms of dwelling units with ‘good ventilation’, a key indicator of indoor air quality.

“Only 26.3 percent and 47.1 percent households in rural India and urban India respectively had dwelling units with ‘good ventilation’,” the NSSO said.

The report is based on the data collected in NSSO’s 69th round survey during July 2012 to December 2012.

Some of these subjects were covered in 65th round of NSS ( July 2008- June 2009). The survey covered the whole of the Indian Union. The key results of the survey are based on the central sample consisting of 4,475 villages in rural areas and 3,522 urban blocks spread over all States and Union Territories. The total number of households surveyed was 95,548 (53,393 in rural areas and 42,155 in urban areas).

Some key findings of the survey, as reported by NSSO, are: • About 88.5 percent households in rural India had improved source of drinking water while the corresponding figure was 95.3 percent in urban India.

• Among rural households, 85.8 percent had sufficient drinking water and for urban India the corresponding figure was 89.6 percent.

• Percentage of households who got drinking water facilities within premises was 46.1 percent in rural India and 76.8 percent in urban India.

• About 62.3 percent of rural households and 16.7 percent of urban households did not have any bathroom facility.

• 59.4 percent and 8.8 percent households in rural India and urban India respectively had no latrine facilities.

• Among the households having

latrine facilities, 31.9 percent and 63.9 percent households in rural India and urban India respectively had access to its exclusive use.

• About 38.8 percent and 89.6 percent households in rural and urban India respectively had access to ‘improved’ type of latrine.

• 80 percent of rural households and 97.9 percent of urban households had electricity for domestic use.

• 94.2 percent households in rural India had secured tenure in their dwelling.

In urban India, the corresponding figure was 71.3 percent.

• 65.8 percent of rural households and 93.6 percent of urban households lived in a house with pucca structure whereas 24.6 percent of rural households and 5 percent of urban households lived in a house with semi-pucca structure during 2012.

• Only 26.3 percent and 47.1 percent households in rural India and urban India respectively had dwelling units with ‘good ventilation’.

• 31.7 percent of rural households and 82.5 percent of urban households had ‘improved drainage’ facility in the environment of their dwelling units.

• In rural India 32.0 percent households had some garbage disposal arrangement, whereas in urban areas the corresponding figure was 75.8 percent.

• 10.8 percent of urban dwelling units were situated in slum.

• Among the households living in slums/squatter settlements, percentage of households who tried to move out of slums/squatter settlements were 8.5 percent, 4.9 percent and 6.9 percent in case of notified slums, non-notified slums and squatter settlements respectively.

• At all-India level, 70.8 percent of households had cited ‘ better accommodation’ as the main reason for which they thought to move out of the slum/squatter settlement whereas 11.7 percent households had identified ‘proximity to place of work’ as the main reason. 

Nov-Dec ’13

NEWS SCAN

India, Germany Join Hands to Bring Clean Cooking Technologies to Rural India With the vision of enhancing the use of improved cookstove technologies, envisaged under the National Biomass Cookstove Programme (NBCP), Dr Farooq Abdullah, Minister of New and Renewable Energy inaugurated the India Clean Cookstove Forum 2013 organised jointly by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH operating on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), a statement said on November 26.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Farooq Abdullah said, “Increased use of clean and efficient cookstoves is crucial to reduce the burden of disease from indoor air pollution as well to avoid the overuse of biomass resources. Efficient cooking technologies have a direct tangible impact on the livelihoods of the poor, as they save time and money that previously had to be spent on procuring cooking fuels.”

During the Forum, the Minister launched a new initiative on biomass cookstoves developed under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the United Nations Frameworks Convention on Climate Change to reduce the cost of improved stove technologies to rural customers through the sale of carbon credits. He added that this is just one of several joint efforts to provide clean and reliable energy to rural areas and these initiatives have further endorsed the close relations and cooperation between India and Germany.

Heiko Warnken, Head of the Development Cooperation, German Embassy highlighted the importance of cooperation between India and Germany on renewable energy attributing it to the relevance for both poverty alleviation and environmental sustainability, as well as the energy needs of the vast rural population for cooking and income-generating activities.

1.5 Lakh Tonne of e-Waste a Year by 2020

Going by the fast penetration of electronic items across the length and breadth of the country, the Manufacturers’ Association for Information Technology (Mait), the IT hardware industry body has said that India is likely to generate 1.5 lakh tones of electronic waste every year by 2020.

“India, being a geographically complex country, the task of creating awareness about e-waste is an exigent task. This effort also assumes importance as it is expected that the country will generate about 150,000 tonne per year of e-waste by 2020,” MAIT said in a statement on December 6.

At a workshop in Noida that stressed the importance of generating awareness about the right way of disposing e-waste among the people, Chhanda Chowdhury, Director, Ministry of Environment and Forest, said, “Electronics industry is growing exponentially and with rapid advancements in technology and rise in demand and rate of technological obsolescence. We all face a new challenge of e-waste.”

The workshop was organized by Mait in partnership with the Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF) and Central Pollution Control Board and Dataserv APAC .

He said that the main challenge was to bring the informal sector into the mainstream of e-waste management.

Speaking on the occasion, Anwar Shirpurwala, MAIT Executive Director, remarked, “This workshop targets the bulk consumers with an aim of training organisations to spread wider awareness about e-waste management.”

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COVER S T O R Y It’s not enough to make floors shiny; they should also be safe for the inhabitants and the guests.

Ashok Malkani takes a look at some of the flooring options available today and how they can be maintained to keep their beauty and attractiveness intact

F loor Care undamentals of

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loor is to décor what clothing is to fashion.

This is because the first thing one notices on entering a facility, be it a hotel or a hospital, a resort or a restaurant, is its floor. It is therefore important to choose the flooring of a facility very carefully.

The look of a floor is important; but equal consideration must also be given whether one would have

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the resources to maintain it. It is not at all uncommon to see how a fine floor turns into a scruffy one in the absence of a proper maintenance regimen. Therefore, one must consider all the pros and cons, the advantages and disadvantages of all available flooring types before deciding on the flooring of a facility.

However, this shouldn’t lead us to think that maintenance of a floor is important only for maintaining the

décor of a facility. In the absence of a maintenance programme, the floors may easily lose their luster and make it harder for the housekeepers to clean. Some of the factors why one should take floor cleaning seriously are:

Ensuring Safety Most accidents in workplaces happen due to slips in floors. Bathrooms, washrooms or toilets are high risk

Nov-Dec ’13

C O V E R STORY areas where surface contamination is also high. The kitchen floor is also a priority area for cleaning professionals as oily greases can contaminate the surface, resulting in slips and trips. When such slips cause serious injury to guests, they may sue the property and cause serious damage not only to its reputation, but also to its coffers.

Therefore, it is important not to leave the floor dirty. Application of the right cleaning procedure and use of the correct cleaning equipment and proper cleaning agents in appropriate measures can ensure that the floor is not left wet after cleaning. The cleaning professionals should also undertake the necessary safety measures and see that any wires of cleaning equipment are not left unattended.

Quality Indoor Air If floors are not cleaned regularly and with proper attention, dust particles settled on the floors can contaminate the indoor air, posing serious risks to the health of the occupants and the guests. However, it is important to take note of the fact that mere cleaning or dusting may not ensure improved indoor air quality, because dusting or ordinary vacuuming can result in resettling the dust on other furniture of the room. So in this case too, choosing the right cleaning equipment is ver y important. According to cleaning experts, a quality backpack vacuum cleaner can be very handy in this regard. Vacuuming using a backpack with its attachments and advanced filter system helps achieve

Nov-Dec ’13

different types of floors can help one choose the best flooring:

a better outcome not only in terms of boosting cleaning quality and productivity, but also in improving indoor air quality.

Maintaining Décor The importance of flooring in maintaining the décor of the property cannot be understated.

In the absence of regular cleaning and proper maintenance, floors can easily lose their luster, making the entire indoor décor unattractive and dull.

Floor Life Regular cleaning and maintenance is also crucial for ensuring a long floor life. It is not difficult to understand why the expenses incurred in floor maintenance can ensure a better return than no expenses on floor care.

Know Your Floor Keeping oneself abreast with the advantages and disadvantages of

Key Challenges of Floor Care W h i l e p r o p e r t y ow n e r s a n d managers can hardly afford to undermine floor care, on the other hand, for the cleaning professionals, floor maintenance may be a key challenge. It often demands careful study, elaborate preparation, detailed planning and in some cases, a lot of risks. The complex floor care process involves various stages including installation, sanding, stripping, finishing and repairing floors with quality finish. And that too may not be enough for the high-end customers. Giving that fine look to the floors may require multiple stages of cleaning, maintaining, restoring and vacuuming.

Training and super vision is also a key challenge as different floors require different cleaning procedures and floor care workers must also be educ ated about the use and effect of different cleaning solutions. Choosing the appropriate timing for cleaning and maintenance in a property is an important consideration for cleaning professionals.

Choosing the Right Floor Care Equipment/Solution Every facility requires multiple floor cleaning equipment, stating from the humble broom to vacuums, mops, auto scrubbers and burnishes.

It’s not that only different floors need different range of equipment, the same kind of flooring in facilities

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COVER S T O R Y Floor Type

Disadvantages

Tile is often considered as elegant. It is stylish and quite durable, but it is also hard and noisy and can be prone to chipping and other signs of wear. Glazed tiles, available in most popular types, offer the best durability and easiest maintenance. Ceramic tiles are the most popular, though other types are available.

• Elegant looks • Durable • Can be easily cleaned

• Can crack or chip • Can be slippery • Can be hard and noisy

Stone floorings, including marble, granite and travertine, can also look very elegant. All stone floors require periodic sealing to maintain durability, but once sealed, stone floors are easy to clean and maintain. Marble and granite are two of the most classic stone flooring options, while slate offers a warmer, more rustic appearance.

• Classic look.

• Moisture resistant, with sealant.

• Durable

• Cold and slippery underfoot • Expensive • Can chip

Wood flooring looks great and is durable with proper care. Experts say solid hardwood flooring is an expensive but extremely durable choice because its usual thickness of three-quarters of an inch allows for multiple refinishing. Engineered wood flooring has a lower initial cost, but the thin top layer of high-quality wood resting atop several layers of cheaper wood allows for only one to three refinishing.

• Attractive looks.

Adds to the value of the establishment.

• Not as noisy as tile or stone

• Expensive • Easily dented • Can warp if wet. Hence difficult to maintain and clean.

Laminate flooring reproduces the look of more expensive wood or stone flooring, but costs much less. Laminate flooring has a fiberboard core with a photographic layer on top, and is covered on top and bottom by a layer of plastic. Laminate flooring resists stains and fading better than wood. Laminate floors are durable and wear well, but they cannot be refinished and must be replaced when damaged. Because it has a fiberboard core, large spills can damage a laminate floor.

• Cheaper facsimile of wood • Resistant to staining and fading

• Can’t be refinished • Can be damaged by water

Vinyl flooring can be used even in wet environments like kitchen, etc. and is less likely to fade as compared to wood. It’s nonabsorbent and easy to clean. It’s not as cold underfoot as stone or tile. And it comes in an almost limitless variety of designs, colors and textures. However, it is not particularly elegant in looks.

• Inexpensive • Easy to clean

• Grades vary widely • Not very appealing

Green flooring like cork, linoleum and bamboo are the most popular environmentally conscious options. Reviewers recommend cork, linoleum or bamboo for people who want flooring made of easily renewable resources. Not many in India use these types of floorings as yet.

• Can look stylish • Bamboo is very durable

• Difficult to maintain • Cork is sometimes plastic coated, hence it is not really green flooring

of different natures may require a different set of equipment. For example, the equipment required in a concrete floor of a healthcare facility may be different from the set of cleaning equipment required in the care of a concrete floor in a restaurant. Therefore, it is very important to assess the requirement and make the purchases of equipment on the basis of the specific needs of the facility.

The important factors that one must consider before zeroing in on the set of cleaning equipment are the type of flooring, size of the facility,

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Advantages

number of people engaged in cleaning services, size and types of soil (whether it is dry or wet and oily greasy) and the amount of dirt that build up.

Facilit y managers are also faced with three other important

c hal lenges in moder n times: meeting more stringent cleaning standards, delivering cost-effective cleaning solutions and catering to rising environmental concerns.

So productivity, effectiveness and sustainability are three important qualities that facility managers look for in their cleaning solutions.

Therefore, the market seems to be responding to those cleaning equipment suppliers who offer multipurpose cleaning equipment that run on auto mode and with chemical free cleaning solutions.

Nov-Dec ’13

Floor Factors

Facility managers also prefer easy-to-operate machines as they reduce the risk of abuse or incorrect operation and the operator can fully focus on the cleaning task at hand.

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Moreover, to reduce operator fatigue and increase their productivity, machines with enhanced ergonomics (both on ride-on machines and on walk-behind models) are preferred.

• Purchasing department must ensure that availability of the required cleaning equipment and materials; • Flooring suppliers, who should supply information on their floor and how to effectively clean it; • Equipment and chemical suppliers to ensure suitability of the product for the type of contaminant and floor; • Cleaning contractor and client to ensure the contract provides appropriate cleaning by trained cleaners. The contract should be reviewed if the work environment changes; • Cleaners who need to be consulted on their duties and why the cleaning needs to be undertaken in a particular way or at a particular time. Lack of understanding can lead to inappropriate shortcuts. They should also be informed of any changes.

Source: HSE, Health and Safety Executive

In the priority list of facility managers, machines that offer

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COVER S T O R Y Healthy Habits • Use of entry mats can significantly help in keeping the indoor floors clean as most of the soil come from outside along with the people who enter the property.

• Remove dry soil by vacuuming regularly.

• Wet clean regularly with a neutral floor cleaner.

extended cleaning paths or a choice of different scrub heads or brushes, generally occupy higher places, as they can address the financial and space constraints of most facilities.

O the r i mp or tan t conc er n s associated with the choice of cleaning equipment are acceptable noise levels so that cleaning work can be carried out at the preferred timing, and also sustainability concerns such as energy consumptions or water usage.

Along with the choice of the equipment, the choice of right cleaning solutions is also ver y i m p o r t a n t . H ow e v e r, m e re l y choosing the non-chemical or most eco-friendly product may not always result in effective floor care regime. Equal importance must also be given to their proper usage. It is often seen that while application of disproportionately less solution may not give the best results in shining your floors, at the same time,

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application of disproportionately more of the cleaning solution than what is required, may leave the floor slippery, putting the workers and guests at risks. Therefore, proper precaution and adequate training in usage of the cleaning products are equally important for keeping the floors shiny and everyone around safe.

Methods of Maintenance Mentioned here are a few tips on maintaining some of the popular types of floorings: Tile flooring: With proper care, tile flooring can look like new for years. Basic tile flooring care consists of sweeping or vacuuming the floor daily. After sweeping, one should run a dry cloth duster or dust mop over the floors. In cases where the floor is without any stains and therefore doesn’t require heavy cleaning, simply running a damp mop can be sufficient for keeping it clean. However, the mop must be cleansed in fresh warm water or in water mixed with detergent after mopping every small section of the room. Once mopping is done, one can again run a dry mop over the floor to help prevent new dirt from quickly accumulating and staining the grout. Spot cleaning is the solution in case of spills as the longer it rests, the more time it will have to soak into the grout.

Mar ble flooring: The elegant marble floors get easily discoloured by food & beverage spills, sitting pots, metal furniture legs, oil, ink, etc. as marble floor tiles are porous. The acid in food & beverage spills can cause it to etch, or leave a dull mark on the surfaces of the marble tiles.

In such cases, cleaning the

floor with a solution of hydrogen peroxide mixed with a few drops of ammonia can help bring the floor back to its original shiny stage. Such a solution works wonder for spills of fruit juices, carbonated beverages, wine and even tea. However, cleaning marble surface with detergents which contain acid can be dangerous because instead of cleaning it, such detergents can be a source of etch marks and stains on the floors.

Therefore, such floors should only be cleaned with PH natural, gentle cleaners. Polishing the floor after cleaning it will help it display the shiny reflection.

Wood flooring: As far as wood floors are concerned, cleaning them could be speeded up by first dusting the floor with a mop that has been treated with a dusting agent to pick up dust and dirt. However, before mopping it with water, it’s important to find out how the floor is sealed and whether the floor is water resistant or not.

Facility manager state that penetrating-seal-treated and oiltreated floors must be pampered and protected with liquid or paste wax.

The lacquered, varnished, shellacked and untreated floors should be treated in the same manner as one would treat penetrating-seal-treated and oil-treated floors.

Mosaic floors: Although mosaic floors look stylish and have already caught the imagination of the western world, there is no escaping the fact that grime settles on it very easily, making it look dirty in no time. Vacuuming is the standard method of cleaning such floors.

Cleaning with a brush or a dusting attachment can dislodge particles from between the tiles. They can also be cleaned with soap water.

L a m i n a t e d f l o o r i n g: T h e beautiful appearance of laminated floors is result of a photographic reproduction, which is layered inside protective plastic coatings on a supporting core of woodbased material. However, unlike hardwood, laminated floors cannot be refinished. Besides a dry mop for regular cleaning, warm water or mild cleaners can also be used for intense  cleaning.

Nov-Dec ’13

C O V E R STORY

‘Routine Maintenance Key to Floor Care’

By Abhay Desai

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floor is often the first thing a person notices upon entering a building. Floor care is an integral part of keeping a facility’s appearance pristine. Whether it is of a commercial building or of a 5 star hotel, maintenance of hard flooring is every housekeeper’s nightmare. It is not an easy task to do, but careful study and proper planning can help ease the process a lot.

Most commercial buildings today, have various types of flooring present such as wood, stone or terrazzo in the lobby and quarry or ceramic tile in the restrooms, making floor maintenance, protection and restoration challenging. Even routine maintenance can require various methods and chemicals as for example, stone and terrazzo floors should be cleaned with true pH-neutral cleaners, marble floors should not be cleaned with acid based chemicals and wood floors do not like water.

The first step for a facility manager is to determine the manufacturer’s recommendations for maintaining a particular floor. As an example, some customers may request that a floor be made shiny because they think it should be, when the floor is actually designed to have a matte or natural finish. Improper maintenance can lead to floor damage and ultimately, expensive restoration. When a building is constructed or renovated, a BSC can be the perfect source for helping to determine the best type of flooring to fit the building’s needs.

Daily Care Routine maintenance procedure which is designed to catch dirt at the door is the finest and least expensive approach to floor maintenance. The best way to remove soil from a building is not to let it

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in, in the first place.

A housekeeper or BSC should know what type and how many entrance mats are needed at every door and therefore, should serve as a good consultant for the facility manager to advise the best way to entrap soil and water.

Dust mopping helps remove as much of the loose dirt and soil as possible.

Particulate soil is the largest cause of floor wear so removing various types of grit and grime that track in each day can make a huge difference in extending the life of a floor finish. One effective way to get rid of remaining soils after dust mopping is to use a floor cleaner that is both effective at removing this particulate soil and has a “neutral impact” on floor finishes. This is critical to extending the gloss life of the finish. With any cleaner, auto-scrubbing (with vacuum pick-up) is much more effective at soil removal than damp mop cleaning.

However, even with daily maintenance, interim measures, such as buffing and burnishing and restorative procedures such as a full strip and re-coat of a floor, also need to be done. Frequency of various types of maintenance is determined by the type of building, building traffic, weather, type of floor and other factors. Therefore, it is very important a facility manager work closely with a BSC to understand and establish a floor care maintenance plan that is the most effective and cost efficient for a building’s floors.

Stripping and Refinishing Prior to stripping, maintenance workers should be diligent in removing debris from floors. When using a stripper, it’s important to ensure all of the old, yellowed, damaged finish is removed.

To effectively strip and refinish floors means an investment in staffing hours.

When looking at the stripping process, there are several necessary steps, including thoroughly cleaning the

floors and applying the stripper, to wet vacuuming and applying a clean rinse.

When refinishing, it’s important to remember that floor finish dries from the top down. Even though the top film may make the floor appear dry, not allowing enough time for the entire layer of finish to dry can make the floor appear murky.

It can also make the finish less durable, meaning it won’t wear as long and the staff will need to repeat the process sooner than normally needed.

Rule of thumb states that a proper floor finish requires three to four coats to ensure durability throughout the year. Because of the effects of humidity and low airflow on the refinishing process, it is extremely critical to apply thin, even coats and make sure each of these coats is completely dry before applying the next.

Applying these coats in thin, even layers will enable each layer to dry more thoroughly and cure into a stronger, more durable film with a higher gloss and clarity. The finish will last longer – ultimately saving time and money.

A beautiful, clean, properly maintained floor will give back in value by enhancing the building’s image, protecting the health of its occupants, ensuring public safety, as well as sustaining, if not increasing, the life of the floor.

The author is Regional Sector Sales Director – BSC, AMAT, Diversey India Pvt. Ltd.

15

PEST MANAGEMENT

Beat the

Pest Menace Keeping the commercial kitchen free of pests demands a canny combination of different pest control methods

O

ne goal, many roads.

Those may well be the words of a secular p r o p h e t a p p r ov i n g different paths to come closer to the divine. And such an approach is equally applicable to beat the menace of pest, especially in commercial kitchens. For that to happen, those in charge of the kitchen, be it of bakery, a food processing unit or that of a restaurant, must be well-versed

16

with the behavior of different pests and the most effective, economical and safe ways to control them. In fact, controlling the pest in kitchen requires the cooperation of all the employees involved as each employee can advance the cause of pest control in kitchens and the associated areas.

Therefore, the new employees should also be adequately educated about the pest management programme in place at the organisation and how

he or she could contribute in that programme. The importance of pest control must also be underlined as food can act as a carrier of diseases caused by pests who have the unique ability to fit in compact spaces and survive in adverse conditions.

The ‘many roads’ method is necessary in pest control because the pests vary in their shapes, sizes as well as in their ability to contaminate surroundings. This journey in the

Nov-Dec ’13

kitchen starts with adopting the best hygiene practices and other prevention techniques. But it’s not always a straight road and one may have to change course thereafter and eventually opt for mechanical and chemical control methods whenever required.

Common Pests & their Control To control pest, one must first be able to identify them. It is important to know which pests harbour kitchens because there are some species of rodents, which are not found in other places otherwise.

Pests found in kitchens are classified under rodents, cockroaches, flies, microorganisms like bacteria in foods stuffs and spiders. All these pests are different from each other in terms of their habits and therefore one single control treatment can hardly be effective.

RODENTS or simply the house mouse, are amongst the deadliest of pests. They not only contaminate food but also disrupt the basic hygiene of a kitchen. Rats, very easily reappear once the use of rodenticides is stopped under the impression that the kitchen is free from them. Therefore complacency must not seep in in checking them.

Rats are not difficult to find because of their restless nature and the damage they cause to stored goods.

They are fast and agile with a strong olfactory system and tremendous acrobatic skills. All these factors make it difficult for people to catch them. Moreover, they are generally very suspicious by nature and new rodenticides fail against them after using them for few times, as rats don’t

Nov-Dec ’13

come near them.

H o w e v e r, a p p l y i n g a g o o d combination of mechanical and chemical control methods, their population can be brought under complete control.

FLIES or houseflies develop in warm moist environment. Their growth is faster near fermenting materials. Garbage, rotting vegetables, moistened dust flour or any place where water accumulates provides a good breeding condition for flies.

A kitchen possesses all the abovementioned conditions; therefore it is always under the threat of infiltrating flies. Their rapid rate of reproduction is also a big problem in their control.

Flies affecting kitchens are of more than one variety: Fruit Flies are associated with material that is acidic or sour in taste; Metallic Colored Bottle Flies are found on dead mouse, bird or meat scraps, etc.

In a bakery, flies are found in mixing room, ingredient scaling area, and dishwashing area. Areas where sugar, eggs, lard, grease, milk, etc. are handled should receive particular scrutiny. In cake and pie bakeries (where fruits are used) the fruit line and peeling rooms tend to offer conditions for breeding.

Electric fly screen (Electrocutor) is one of the easiest ways to keep them away while mechanical measures are also effective.

COCKROACHES are most resilient of kitchen pests. Their capacity to survive all kind of chemical and mechanical control is stronger than any other pest. Cockroaches have survived the ice age and they can keep themselves alive in the hottest and most inhospitable environment.

The peculiarity about cockroaches is that unlike any other pest they are shy of light and humans. They rarely come out of their shelter during daytime. They strike after the shutters are down. Cockroaches never make shelters. They easily fit themselves in cracks and crevices in walls and floors.

Chemicals have proven their potential against them but not completely. They maintain their effectiveness only when they are used regularly and are changed before the cockroaches develop resistance against

17

PEST MANAGEMENT prevent humans becoming a carrier.

Uses of good antiseptic soap for hand cleaning and wearing a clean apron are also important.

Mechanical Barriers Mechanical measures can be used against all kinds of pests. For example, cages and traps for rats, electrocutors against flying insects and vacuum cleaner or broomstick against spiders can also be used. a particular composition or type.

They have unmatched resistance power and scientists believe they are potential survivors of post nuclear war era. Therefore, when it comes to cockroaches, prevention is the best cure.

It is important to make sure that all food items are sealed along with the cracks, crevices and empty and unused idle gaps in the kitchens.

SPIDERS are a different kind of pests. They do not infiltrate until and unless other pests like flies, cockroaches are present in the kitchen area. Nevertheless, they create situations, which will make a place suitable for their presence, as they are architect of capturing other pests with élan.

Spider’s cobwebs can be vacuum

cleaned easily. Spiders such as the Brown Recluse, Black Widow and the Hobo Spider require immediate control efforts. These spiders should be controlled because their bites could have serious repercussions on us.

Against MICROBES action, installing air conditioners and air purifying systems are recommended as good measures. These can restrict or minimise entry of microbes through air but strict sanitar y practices should be enforced to

Preventive Measures • Make sure there are no cracks in the doors or walls. All potential entry points must be taken care of. Use of silicone caulk to seal cracks and crevices in baseboards, moldings, cupboards, pipes, ducts, sinks, etc. can be useful.

• Garbage should be stored in sealed packets and they should be cleared as frequently as possible. The garbage cans should be clean of food residue.

• Keep ripe fruits in fridge.

• Dishes must be cleaned at the earliest or at least they should be submerged in soapy water.

• Any food spills must not be allowed to stay unattended for long and all food and beverage items outside the fridge must be properly stored in sealed containers. Kitchen should be clean and free from cooking grease and oil.

• Blocking all sources of water for pests in very important.

Therefore, besides fixing leaky plumbing, one must also see that standing water doesn’t accumulate anywhere.

• Make sure that the kitchen is not very damp.

• Screens on all floor drains, windows, and doors can be installed to discourage pests from entering the kitchen.

18

Chemical Control They are available in the form of sprays, chalks and gases. Though they are more effective than the mechanical traps in cases of rats and cockroaches, using chemical sprays against flying pests should be done restrictively because of the volatility of chemicals and the pests’ ability to fly and escape. Chemicals can kill flies immediately, but can’t restrict their entry completely.

Fumigation is very effective against rats and cockroaches as it penetrates the most compact of areas including inaccessible holes.

But chemicals should be used with precaution. It can affect the staff and can contaminate food kept in kitchen or indirectly through utensils. They can’t be used in kitchens or storerooms until and unless foolproof arrangements are not envisaged beforehand.

U ltimatel y, it needs to be understood that the best way of pest management is always a combination of preventive methods, mechanical and chemical measures depending upon the situation of the concerned area.

A successful pest management program includes pest-proofing, use of pest monitoring devices and judicious use of pesticides for control. Kitchen personnel should also keep a check from time-totime, and report on the same to the concerned department for taking quick recovery steps.

Maintaining the cleanliness and hygiene of a kitchen is the first step towards pest management and acts as a precautionar y measure. Any other measure, whether chemical, mechanical,  etc., is secondary to it.

Nov-Dec ’13

Nov-Dec ’13

19

LAUNDRY

The Fine Art of

Dry Cleaning At the heart of dry cleaning is stain removal that requires accurate analysis, proper training and adequate experience

T

here is hardly anyone who can explain dry cleaning better than William Seitz, the “sultan of stain removal” as the New York Times called him. And he says that dry cleaning is not dry. That come as a shocker to the uninitiated, but those who are in the trade would not be able to agree more. Speaking to an attentive audience in the New York School of Dry Cleaning some 20 years back, Seitz explained that dry cleaning is called dry because this cleaning process uses a liquid that contains no water. This liquid is usually a solvent called perchlorethylene (or ‘perc’), to which a detergent is added. “More garments are damaged by mechanical action than by chemical action,” he said.

One of the primary reasons why dry cleaning became popular is that a lot of fabrics do not mix very well with water. Wool is just one example.

Water is also not considered very effective in handling certain types of stains. Moreover, in the normal laundry process where water is used,

20

the natural fibres absorb water and swell. In this process, the water could be said to become part of the fibres. Subsequently, some of their properties get altered. The fibres become thicker and shorter and therefore shrink. Clothes made from natural fibres also become crumpled and the dyes may migrate, causing discoloration.

On the other hand, in the dry cleaning process, the natural fibres are rinsed with solvents and once cleaned the solvent is extracted from the cloth. The fibres do not absorb them and therefore the solvents do not become part of the fibre.

So the fibres basically retain the same properties they had before the solvents were added, that is, when they are dry cleaned. They remain smooth, retain their shape and dyes do not bleed.

Although finished natural fibres are washable, they may lose the ability to absorb moisture from the body and evaporate it into the air. However, man-made fibres, in

particular synthetic fibres (such as polyester, nylon, polyacrylic or polychloride) do not absorb either water or solvents during textile care cycles and therefore do not swell.

Therefore, dry cleaners are today no longer restricted to using solvents in textile care as a higher proportion of materials are manufactured from man-made fibres. Therefore, the so-called wet cleaning has become more widespread over the past few years and the cleaners are able to choose between water and an organic solvent as a detergent base depending on the material to be cleaned. The increasing health and environmental concerns regarding exposure to perk has also led many to prefer ‘wet cleaning’ over the traditional dry cleaning methods.

So while we talk about the using of chemicals in dry cleaning, one has to know and analyse the type of textiles and its various type of soiling (smear or stain) on it. And the most appropriate type of detergent to use will depend on whether the shop is

Nov-Dec ’13

LAUNDRY in a heavy-soiling or low- soiling area. Also the dry cleaners should ensure that the entire correct chemical “tools” are available to treat any staining and soiling. Most of dry cleaning chemicals have a shelf life of 12 to 18 months and they should be used within that period to avoid any damage to textiles.

Detergents in Dry Cleaning Normally, two distinct categories of detergents are used in dry cleaning: Anionic and Cationic.

Anionic detergents contain various types of surfactants (substance which affects, especially reduces, the surface tension of a liquid containing it) that can remove a good amount of soiling and wet-bound stains. It has soil suspension qualities as well, eliminating redeposition of the soil and the risk of graying, colour loss and shrinkage. It contains anticorrosive additives.

Cationic detergents, on the other hand, are absorbed into fabrics during the cleaning cycle. They have additives that prevent electrostatic charges and lint formation on the textiles during the drying phase.

These detergents help keep the textiles remain almost crease-free, making the garments easier for people to handle. They contain additives to eliminate unpleasant smells in the dry cleaning bath.

A combined detergent is a mixture of anionic/cationic substances and will work in all the areas mentioned above. However, it does not have as concentrated an action as a pure anionic or cationic detergent. It is also important for the dry cleaning machine to be well maintained. The solvent should be kept clean and the separator drained regularly.

Nov-Dec ’13

Spotting Kits The dry cleaners depend heavily on spotting kits for removing stains. The spotting kits contain various types of chemicals. According to David Mackenzie Robinson, an expert on dry cleaning, there is a Seitz (a method of filtration of liquids through a small replaceable disc of compressed asbestos fibres) three bottle spotting kit designed for different solvents: the V kit, for use with perc (a non flammable, synthetic solvent); the Solvex for hydrocarbon; the Hydret for water and the G kit for Green Earth. All the bottles are colour coded. The No 1 in each Seitz range is denoted by purple, the No 2 by red and the No 3 by orange.

The first one bottle is the dryside/oil-based remover. It dissolves soil or dyestuff that is not readily soluble in water or other wet side solvents. It also lubricates the stain, and just as oil can free up a rusty hinge, it loosens the bond between the stain and fibres. It can keep the softened soil in suspension, allowing the stain to be flushed away more easily. It is suitable for treating stains resulting from: adhesive, oil, paint, lacquer, varnish, tar, nail, polish, ballpoint pen ink, stamping ink, lipstick, natural or `synthetic resins, polish, cosmetics, grease and wax.

The second bottle is for using on wetside/water-soluble stains and is alkali based. It can treat: sugar, starch, mustard, ice-cream, mould, milk, honey, beer, liqueurs, chocolate,

perspiration, urine, many general food stains, blood and mud.

The third one is for wetside /water-soluble stains, but is acid based. Its products are chemical reagents, which act to make the stain colourless or to effectively camouflage the stain rather than remove. It should also know that chemical reagents should only be applied to clearly identifiable tannin stains. As there are some of the most difficult reagents to use, it is important to test the reaction on a hidden seam before tackling the main stain. Substances like tea, coffee, fruit juice, perfume, cola, tobacco, wine, grass, medicines, curry band any yellow-brown stains of unknown origin can be treated with this solution.

There are also various types of chemical used as an advance spotting kit. Some of them can be mentioned as: Purasol, is a dryside blend or solvents specifically for removing adhesive oil pant lacquer, varnish etc; Quickol, a popular spotting reagent, is usually the first to be used for general stain removal; Lacol is a stronger blend of solvents usually used after using Purasol; Frankosol, is a universal wetside reagent for treating water bound stains including those caused by sugar, starch, mustard, ice-cream etc; Cavesol is a pre and post-spotting agent specifically for stubborn tannin stains including tea, coffee, fruitjuice, perfume, cola etc.

Blutol is a pre and post- spotting agent specifically suited for removing blood and other stains which contain albumin and include soup, meat and fish, sauces or gravy, milk etc. Colorsol is a pre and post-spotting agent for removing natural and synthetic dyestuffs and trace colouration remaining after the treatment for stain arising from ballpoint pen ink, printing ink etc; and Ferrol is a wetside spotting agent for treating rust and metallic oxide stains.

Stain removal is thus the trickiest part in dry cleaning. It requires accurate analysis, proper training and adequate experience. It is for these reasons that Seitz called dry cleaning  a “fine art”.

21

W

WATER MANAGEMENT

aving ater oes

off

Conservation of water by adopting different measures like grey water recycling, use of water efficient equipment and rainwater harvesting, among others, is the key to cut water use and also cost of operations for several sectors of the economy

By Jyotismita Sharma

W

ith India consolidating its position as a major power house in an increasingly open and integrated world economy, the pressure on its finite natural resources, including water is also on the rise. In fact, it

22

is only natural that growth of the industries that drive the growth of the country’s economy hinges to a large extent on uninterrupted supply of some of the basic resources like water. Therefore, while demand for water across the sectors is on the rise, there is also fear about the availability of water in the near future among the industrialists. Going by the increasing demand for water across the industries in the country, a Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) study points out that India is projected to move into the category of water stressed nation by 2020.

“The water demand for the industrial sector is on a rise and will account for 8.5 and 10.1 percent of the total freshwater abstraction in 2025 and 2050 respectively. This is a 4 percent rise from the current level of 6 percent of the total freshwater abstraction by the industries in 2010,” the Nov-Dec Sep-Oct ’13

WATER MANAGEMENT ‘ Water Use in Indian Industry Survey’ by FICCI Water Mission said.

However, supply of adequate water is not the only concern of Indian industries, be it the hospitality industry or the food processing industr y where water plays a significant role. The rising cost of water and quality of water are two other major concerns. Many also fear that environmental changes due to global warming and lobbying by environmental groups may also impact access to water for a variety of sectors.

These are of course not figments of imagination of a few individuals, but very valid anxieties based on studies on emerging trends in water use, availability and its supply.

These are also the factors that have propelled many industries to take up the cause of water conservation very seriously.

Source of Inspiration The work of the Nagpur division of Central Railways in Maharashtra which now recycles over 5 lakh litres of water every day is regarded exemplar y in this regard. The recycling plant has a capacity of 6 lakh litre per day. While the raw

water for the plant is supplied from the drain near the railway yard, they store the treated water in an overhead tank. The treated water is then used to wash coaches, apron and platforms.

The railway division has also commissioned a water recycling plant in Ajni railway colony. The recycling plant saves water used in bathrooms and kitchens from going waste as they are reused in watering cricket ground after the treatment.

Nov-Dec’13 Sep-Oct ’13

Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) Brijesh Dixit is reported to have said that the division had also commissioned rainwater harvesting schemes at Ajni electric loco shed and railway hospital at Nagpur. The existing open wells are recharged and water from these wells is used for gardening.

As part of the joint IndoEuropean project on ‘Natural Water Systems and Technologies’, the Central Railway has also proposed to construct sewage treatment plant (STP) in Ajni colony. Experts from European Union and National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) visited Ajni colony in February this year.

The water conservation efforts of the division help the railways save cost of an estimated Rs. 25,000 every day.

To recover water from municipal sewage Rashtriya Chemical Fertilizers in Mumbai, Maharashtra set up a plant. It uses the recovered water for cooling applications in its set up.

The hotels in India, especially the Ecotels, are proactive in i n it i a ti n g a n d i m pl e m en t i n g water conservation technologies.

According to Ecotel hotels, just to give examples, The Rodas and Meluha The Fern in Mumbai divert their entire wastewater to a huge sewage treatment plant located

within the Hiranandani Gardens.

“Wastewater generated within all the developments in the Hiranandani complex is sent to this plant, where it is treated with the latest technology and reused for air conditioning, gardening, and new constructions within the Hiranandani complex,” it said.

In the capital of Tamil Nadu, Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd has invested heavily in desalination of sea water. It has also laid a pipeline to convey the desalinated water all the way to their refinery. The refinery was also one of the first to invest in a plant to recover water from treated municipal sewage and effluent from the refinery.

Effective water conservation measures From the examples mentioned above, it appears that grey water (wash water which is not foul; so water that comes out of kitchen sinks, showers, washing machines, etc.) recycling for non-potable use and rainwater harvesting have already gained currency among various sectors of the economy. However, they are not the only measures used to conserve water.

Some other measures range from use of various devices such as low flow showerheads, low-flush toilets, faucet aerators, etc. to reduce the use of water, to engaging employees and

23

WATER MANAGEMENT

guests in saving and reusing water by adapting behavioural changes to adopting strict water audits to monitor the use of water and check its wastage.

Other water conser vation measures in industries may also include the following: • Strict water budgeting norms

evaporative cooling, ozonation and air heat exchange, the ozonation cooling water approach is regarded best as it can result in a five-fold reduction in blow down when compared to traditional chemical treatment.

• De-ionized water may also be considered for reuse in several areas because it may still be better than supplied municipal water.

• Effluent treatment before disposal.

It is now said that with water conservation practices in place, urban areas can reduce the demand as much as by one third, besides minimising pollution of surface and ground water resources.

• Industrial process modernisation to cut down on water requirement • Recycling water with a re-circulating cooling system (using the same water to perform several cooling operations • O f t h e t h re e c o o l i n g water conservation approaches --

Drinking Water Standards of BIS (IS: 10500: 1991) S.No

Parameters

Desirable limits mg/l

Permissible limits mg/l

5 Unobjectionable agreeable 5 6.5-8.5 300 0.3 250 0.2 1.0

25 10 No relaxation 600 1.0 1000 1.5

Essential Characteristics 1 Colour Hazen unit 2 Odour 3 taste 4 Turbidity (NTU) 5 pH 6 Total Hardness, CaCO3 7 Iron (Fe) 8 Chloride (Cl) 9 Residual Free Chlorine 10 Fluoride (F) Desirable Characteristics 11 Dissolved Solids 12 Calcium (Ca) 13 Magnesium (Mg) 14 Copper (Cu) 15 Manganese (Mn) 16 Sulphate (SO4) 17 Nitrate (NO3) 18 Phenolic compounds 19 Mercury (Hg) 20 Cadmium (Cd) 21 Selenium (Se) 22 Arsenic (As) 23 Cyanide (CN) 24 Lead (Pb) 25 Zinc (Zn) 26 Hexavelant Chromium 27 Alkalinity 28 Aluminum (Al) 29 Boron (B) 30 Pesticides

500 75 30 0.05 0.1 200 45 0.001 0.001 0.01 0.01 0.05 0.05 0.05 5.0 0.05 200 0.03 1.0 Absent

NTU = Nephelometric Turbidity Unit

Source: Water Quality Assessment Authority, Government of India

24

2000 200 100 1.5 0.3 400 100 0.002 No relaxation No relaxation No relaxation No relaxation No relaxation No relaxation 15 No relaxation 600 0.2 5.0 0.001

Importance of Water Audit Any business establishment for which water supply is crucial to its very existence and operations must take stock of its supply to keep a plan ready to meet any impending crisis.

Water audit inevitably becomes an important part of such a management plan that can rescue an establishment before a water crisis hits it.

However, a water audit is not only geared towards identifying the areas of excessive water use in the establishment, but also making an assessment about whether the supplied water for each application meets the required quality standards, and also to set up norms for water budgeting

Nov-Dec ’13

WATER MANAGEMENT should also be assessed. Conscious efforts shall be made to effect savings in cost of treating the effluent.

• The next step is to establish bench marks for water consumption based on international practices for similar industries and identify areas of excess consumption.

• An action plan should then be drawn for reducing the consumption of water in those areas.

Focal Points • Surface water is the major source of water for the industries (41 percent) followed by groundwater (35 percent) and municipal water (24 percent).

• The use of municipal water is limited to industries located in urban/ peri-urban areas.

• The Government has declared the Year 2013 as Water Conservation Year • As per report of standing sub-committee for assessment of availability and requirements of water for diverse uses in the country, the future water requirements for meeting the demands of various sections in the country for the year 2025 and 2050 have been estimated to be 1093 BCM and 1447 BCM respectively.

• Only 2.7 percent of the water on earth is fresh.

Nov-Dec ’13

and optimize the cost of treating water. Thus, according to the Press Information Bureau, water audit involves the following: • Measurement of water consumption at user points by calibrated instruments. Flow through closed pipes can be measured by an Ultrasonic flow measuring instrument and flow through open channels through V-Notch weirs.

• The quality and quantity of effluents generated from each section

Effluent Treatment: Ensuring safe water supply Effluent treatment is necessary for any industry to ensure availability of safe water in the downstream habitation. While untreated effluent discharge in a public sewer or receiving stream poses health risks, the treated effluent can be used for low-end applications. To ensure uninterrupted water supply and achieve the goal of zero liquid discharge, it is very important for an industry to have facilities to treat, recycle and reuse effluent in its premises. 

25

WASTE

Turning Trash into Treasure With growing awareness about environmental issues, Indian waste to energy sector is poised to grow at a rapid pace in the coming years, providing ample attractive opportunities for investors and project developers in the waste to energy sector

By Ashok Malkani

R

apid urbanisation and industrialisation, regarded as two primary markers of development in the modern era in which we live, bring with them the mountains of wastes generated through various

26

developmental activities cutting across sectors. And the problem of waste hardly comes alone. As most of the wastes ďŹ nd their way into landfills and water bodies, they end up becoming sources of pollution. They emerge as sources

of green house gases like methane and carbon dioxide when they are disposed off without proper treatment. Recycling of waste cannot be the final solution to waste management in all cases as it doesn’t necessarily put an end to

Nov-Dec ’13

WASTE

the waste.

This is one side of the development picture visible across all developing countries including India. Now, consider this. Increasing development also inevitably means more demand for energy, a fact which hardly needs any explanation given the fact that all of us are so heavily dependent on energy on every step of our lives – be it the air conditioner in office or the microwave at home, most things modern are also energy guzzlers.

In such a scenario, technologies that can turn wastes into energy are a real boon for the developing world and can facilitate the entrepreneurs to tap the enormous business potential of the waste to energy market.

The practice of treating wastes before disposal and using in energy generation solves the twin problem of pollution and energy scarcity.

Moreover, using waste for

Nov-Dec ’13

energy also reduces the demand for landfills in land scarce cities. As Amiya Kumar Sahu, President of National Solid Waste Association said if waste is used for producing energy “there will be three-fold benefits in terms of environment protection, economy and optimizing use of space”. It also cuts down the cost of wastes transportation. Such a practice can even produce by-products like fertilizer in some cases.

It is estimated that there is a potential of generating 3600MW of power from urban, municipal and industrial wastes in the country and it is likely to be increased to 5200MW by 2017. It can be set up by the urban local bodies, government as well as participation by the private developers. At the end of February, 2012 the cumulative achievement of grid interactive power from waste was

36.20 MW in urban sector and 53.46 MW in industrial sector. In off-grid/ captive power cases the cumulative achievement of waste to energ y capacities was 3.50 MWeq for urban sector and 90.15 MWeq for industrial sector.

However, the wastes to energy technologies are at present often expensive and even imported to India. The approximate cost per MW for waste to energy projects based on different technologies is high. While for biomethanation, it ranges between 6-9 crores, for gasification and combustion, it is in the order of 9-10 crores, according to the Ministr y of Ne w and Rene wable Energ y, Government of India. However, t h e re i s a f i n a n c i a l s u p p o r t provided in the scheme ranging from 20 lakhs to 3 crores.

Procedures for Generating

27

WASTE

Energy from Waste Biomethanation: In this process, the organic waste is segregated and fed into a biogas digester. The waste undergoes biodegradation under anaerobic conditions to produce methane rich biogas. The so produced biogas can be used for cooking, heating, generating

electricity, etc. The sludge can be used as manure depending on the composition of the input waste.

Combustion/Incineration: This process involves direct burning of wastes in the presence of excess air (oxygen) at high temperatures (about 800C). It results in conversion of 65-80 percent of heat

MSW to Energy Value Chain Primary collection & segregation of inerts, dry organics and others

Business Opportunities

Table-1

•

Collection of reusable plastics and metals etc. for sale in local market • Waste processing and sale of RDF pellets to biomass power plants • Mobilising construction debris to make tiles and bricks

Separation of wet organic wastes

• •

Production and sale of compost to bio fertilizer firms Biogas based power generation from sludge for selling it to the grid

Secondary collection and storage

• •

Maintenance of transfer stations High throughput screening of materials for recycling, energy recovery and land fill disposals

• • •

Recyclable commodity transactions from transfer stations Sale of recycled plastic or metal granules Conversion of processed wastes to industrial commodities

•

Transporting solid waste from the source to the landfill or to the processing centers for energy recovery Revenues from automobile manufacturing and sales to corporate bodies and contract holders etc

Recycling of wastes

Transportation and logistics

•

MSW to energy recovery

Management of wastes at dumpsite Organisation/financing for service and value chain enterprises

28

content of organic matter into hot air, steam and hot water. The steam generated can be used in steam turbines to generate power.

Pyrolysis/Gasification: It is a process of chemical decomposition of organic matter through heat.

The organic matter is heated in the absence or restricted supply

• • • •

Production of machineries and equipments for energy recovery technologies Decentralized technology installations Power generation and sale of power Income from Certified Emission Reductions(CER’s)

• •

Design and construction of secured landfills Urban landscape development at abandoned landfills

•

Debts and equity financing

Nov-Dec ’13

Constraints Faced by the Indian Waste to Energy (WTE) Sector • Awareness about the potential of the sector is still lacking • Most of the WTE technologies need to be imported • The costs of the projects especially based on biomethanation technology are high as critical equipment for a project is required to be imported.

• Segregated municipal solid waste is generally not available at the plant site • Lack of financial resources with Municipal Corporations/Urban Local Bodies.

Lack of conducive policy guidelines from State Governments in respect of allotment of land, supply of garbage and power purchase/ evacuation facilities.

of air till it breaks down into smaller molecules of gas (known collectively as syngas). The gas so produced is known as producer gas which constitutes carbon monoxide (25 percent), hydrogen and hydrocarbons(15 percent), carbon dioxide and nitrogen(60 percent). The producer gas is burnt in internal combustion (IC) generator sets or turbines to produce electricity.

Landfill Gas Recovery: It is measure for recovering gas from waste dumps wherein the waste slowly decomposes to produce ‘Landfill gas’. This gas consists of high percentage of methane (approximately 50 percent) and has a high calorific value of about 4500kcal/cubic metre and hence can be used for heating cooking and generating power.

Plasma Arc: It is a relatively new technology for disposal of wastes, particularly, hazardous and radioactive wastes. As it involves nearly complete destruction of waste while producing energy, it is less polluting. It does not produce

Nov-Dec ’13

oxides of nitrogen and sulphur and makes toxic ash left in the process easier to hand le. Howe v er, the technology is costly and has not been tried in India.

Business Opportunities According to Energy Alternatives India (EAI) that provides consulting, research, promotion, and marketing support to the fast growing renewable energy and cleantech industry in India, business opportunities are present in every component of the waste to energy value chain. The varied business opportunities that exist along the municipal solid waste (MSW) to energy value chain, according to EAI, are mentioned in Table 1.

The cost of power generation from urban and industrial waste is about Rs.2.50 to Rs. 4.00 per unit of electricity depending upon the types of wastes and the technology deployed. This cost is competitive with the cost of power generated from conventional resources.

The norms for collection, segregation, processing and disposal of the waste have been laid down under the Municipal Solid Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000. The rules, inter-alia, prescribe specific ations for landfill sites, standards for composting, treated leachates and incineration.

For large sc ale generation of renewable energy the Government is currently giving various fiscal and financial incentives, such as capital/ interest subsidy, generation based incentives, accelerated depreciation, concessional excise and custom duties for the promotion of renewable energy sources in the country. The other initiatives to promote power generation from renewable energy are, setting up of demonstration projects, intensive resource assessment, development of power evacuation, testing facilities and manpower trainings and awareness raising among people.

MNRE has supported about 120 waste to energy projects so far including biomethanation projects and spent Rs. 66.33 crores and Rs.12.44 crores during 11th five year plan and first year of 12th five year plan respectively. 

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IAQ

I

nsulating from ndoor Odour

How arriving at the right solution to deal with the problem of unpleasant indoor odour can improve your health and satisfy your customers

By Jyotismita Sharma

“People assess the quality of the air indoors primarily on the basis of its odour, and on their perception of associated health risk” - W. Cain

O

nly for a limited few, things turn out to be as rosy as they were at the time of planning. The rest often crib and blame their destiny. They may well have their reasons as unfortunate and unforeseen twists and turns hardly fail to enforce their unwelcome entry in our lives. However, in certain cases, inadequate attention to a small detail may eventually turn out to be a big obstruction in successfully establishing a business as per plan.

The problem of indoor odorants, that often go unnoticed unless it is encountered, may be counted among those small details. This is because even though the customers cannot see the air that they breathe, their olfactory systems instantly react to unpleasant odorants. Will anyone

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stay for long in a bar, however fine drinks it may serve, if it is full of cigarette smoke? And who will come to dine again in a restaurant if smoke and waste food odour from the kitchen invade the dining space. Therefore, be it a restaurant, bar, hotel or for that matter a mall, controlling the indoor odorants deserves serious attention from those who want their business to flourish.

Unpleasant odours cannot be dismissed as simple nuisance. Often dubbed as “pathogenic messengers” of faulty design, improper construction and bad maintenance of building ventilation systems, indoor odorants pose serious health effects to the occupants or workers of such buildings. In a bid to fix the problem quickly, it is not uncommon to see that the home owners and building managers resort to spraying air fresheners and deodourisers. Such quick fixes, contrary to solving the problem, only

compound it further as most of them emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in indoor air, which are harmful to our health.

Health Effects of Odour The Central Pollution Control Board, Govt. of India, in its ‘Guidelines on Odour Pollution & its Control’ said, “Toxic stimulants of odour may cause ill health or respiratory symptoms. Secondary effects, in some, may be nausea, insomnia and discomfort. Very strong odour can result in nasal irritation; trigger symptoms in individuals with breathing problems or asthma.” However, different other reports on indoor odourants throw light on several other health effects Loss of sense of smell: Researchers have found that chronic exposure to certain types of odorants can lead to serious

Nov-Dec ’13

IAQ

olfactory dysfunction. The risk is found to be higher among those who are exposed to paints and solvents. Another study concludes that a worker’s ability to detect test odorants goes down with chronic exposure to menthol.

Asthma: It is seen that asthma patients react sharply to odorants.

From insecticides, paint vapours in buildings, perfumes, household cleaners to cigarettes, auto exhaust and body odours are specifically associated with worsening of asthma conditions in patients.

Cancer Risk: Certain indoor

Nov-Dec ’13

odorants like benzene, chloroform, formaldehyde, and most significantly, ETS are known human carcinogens. Exposure to common odorant air freshener and constituent of moth balls, paradichlorobenzene may be considered a serious factor leading to cancer deaths. Such risks arise because of exposure to volatile organic compounds that are exceeded only by benzene and chloroform.

Miscellaneous: Malodours may also cause several digestive disturbances like anorexia, nausea, vomiting, gagging; central nervous system symptoms like dizziness, lightheadedness and lethargy; and headaches.

Sources of indoor Odour • Occupant-Produced Odorants • Pe r f u m e s a n d O t h e r Commercial Odorants and Deodorizers • Odorants from Building

Materials: Aldehydes and Solvents • Reentramed Odorants from Outdoor Air: Motor Vehicular Exhaust and Industrial Process Odorants • Bio-odorants: Mercaptans and Other Sulfur Containing Compounds Resulting from Organic Materials, Molds, and Foods • Smoke-Related Odorants

Odour Control Strategies There are three common strategies to get rid of malodours. The first strategy of odour control, according to the experts, must always be ‘source control’ – the strategy to identify and remove the sources of contaminants.

Such a strategy, according to the experts, is the most effective method of preventing the problem of malodour from taking root. “Source control solutions could include the elimination of smoking in an area or building, venting the exhaust from a manufacturing process to the outside, or by simply moving the source to another area (e.g., moving

31

IAQ

Sources of Odour in Industries Industry

Odorous Material

Pulp & Paper Tanneries Fertilizers Petroleum

Mercaptans, hydrogen sulfide Hides, flesh Ammonia, nitrogen compounds Sulphur compounds from crude oil, mercaptans

Chemical

Ammonia, phenols, mercaptans, hydrogen sulfide, chlorine,

Foundries Pharmaceuticals

organic products Quenching oils Biological extracts and wastes, spent fermentation liquors

Food

Cannery waste, dairy waste, meat products, packing house wastes, fish cooking odours, coffee roaster effluents

Detergent

Animal fats

General Swine Operations

Burning rubber, solvents, incinerator, smoke Hydrogen sulfide and ammonia

Waste Water Treatment Plant

Hydrogen sulfide

Municipal Solid Waste landfill

Hydrogen sulfide

Source: Central Pollution Control Board, Govt. of India all laser printers and photocopiers to a separate ventilated room),” says a study by Purafil Inc., USA. However, in cases when the source cannot be identified, it is not possible to remove the source.

In such circumstances, ventilation control method, which primarily constitutes the process of introducing clean air to dilute the affect of odour, may come to one’s rescue, at least temporarily. This is because ventilation can hardly be a permanent solution, especially in the urban space where finding clean outdoor air to breathe is as improbable as finding roads without garbage in India. So in such circumstances, where quality of outdoor air is far from meeting the acceptable parameters, depending on ventilation control alone to get rid malodours in a workplace or hotel is like expecting corrupt politicians implementing sweeping reforms to clean the political system.

‘Removal control’ comes in handy when both these methods – source control and ventilation control fail to deliver the desired results.

This method, which has attracted the attention of most researchers, involves the removal of contaminants from airstream.

“Removal control, as employed as part of an HVAC system, is usually accomplished by physical adsorption and/or chemisorption through the

32

use of various dry, granular, gasphase (dry-scrubbing) air filtration media,” says the study by Purafil Inc. Common filter media, according to the report, include plain and chemically-impregnated activated carbons and alumina, silica gel, and zeolites.

W h i l e “a d s o r p t i on i s a physical process whereby gaseous contaminants are ‘captured’ by the media, chemisorption “involves the reaction with various chemical species contained in (or on) the media which can convert the contaminants to carbon dioxide, water vapor, organic and inorganic salts, etc.”

Adsorption is a reversible process because the gases once adsorbed by the media may well desorb later, but chemisorption is an instantaneous

process that is irreversible.

The air filters that are widely used to remove gases and odours can be categorised under the removal control strategy. According to US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), such gas-phase air filters remove gases or odours with the help of a material called a sorbent, such as activated carbon, which adsorbs the pollutants. However, it adds the caution that because such “gas-phase filters are specific to one or a limited number of gaseous pollutants, they will not reduce concentrations of pollutants for which they were not designed.”

Therefore, before going for a solution, it is important to understand the gravity and nature of the odour problem and seek professional help in case such a need is felt. 

Nov-Dec ’13

Nov-Dec ’13

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PRODUC T P R E V I E W HERBAL EXPERIENCE

COMBII Organochem was established in 1978, incorporating 20 years in the field of research and application of Botanical & Mineral materials on the human body. COMBII, the brand owner of HERBLINE, is one the largest, the most assured and the only manufacturer and vendor of Natural Skin & Hair Care products with ISO 9001:2008 accreditation in India. HERBLINE brand has won international acclaim for quality and service at the “Quality Summit ” in Madrid, Spain in 1999.

Having commissioned a new state of the art, modern plant in the Himalayas at scenic Bhimtal (close to Nainital), an excise free industrial area, natural spring water is used to manufacture the products. Being the largest purveyor of guest toiletries to the hotel industry in India and Nepal, since 1978, COMBII has been a market dominator since inception.

HERBLINE purveys to the exacting leaders in the industry – Oberoi Hotels & Resorts (Trident), Marriott, Crown Plaza (Nepal), Yak & Yeti, Radisson (Shimla & Nepal), Chioce Hotels, Charlet Hotel (Mumbai), Park Plaza and scores of other chains & stand-alone properties as well as heritage properties. The HERBLINE product range includes all the Guest Toiletries and Health Club & Spa products. HERBLINE products are also exported to international clients in countries like Mauritius, The Czech Republic, Japan, Maldives, Hungary, Cyprus, UK and USA , to name a few.

Manufactured in a modern FDA and ISO approved plant, using internationally approved formulations that have been developed in house through extensive and ongoing efforts of the R&D team, the complete range is based on ‘Naturally derived’ ingredients and well researched ‘Ayurvedic’ properties of plant and mineral matter. In-house microbiology and quality assurance laboratories ensure that perfect, international quality standard products are manufactured and dispatched from manufacturing facilities. All HERBLINE products are gentle and effective on the human body, are biodegradable, eco-friendly, not tested on animals and use recyclable packaging materials.

COMBII Organochem Pvt. Ltd. info@herbline.com

WHEN GARDENS ARE MINIATURE

A miniature garden is a term widely used for small sized gardens, whether they be living or artificial. Dish gardens, terrariums, bonsai, tray gardening, windowsill gardening, tea cup gardening are all considered miniature gardens.

Many people living in apartments miss having a garden, and thus the trend of miniature gardens is fast catching on. Just like life- sized landscapes, the possibilities for miniature gardens are many. They can be placed indoors or outdoors, in-ground or in a pot, and their size may vary.

A miniature garden should ideally have a perfect blend of plants, hard surfaces, patios, and accessories, all in proportion to each other The miniature gardens can also have their healthy roles in the hospitality industry, where they can provide soothing views and as well as infuse environmental-friendliness in hotel spaces. There are many benefits of keeping greenery indoors. Plants can absorb harmful substances in the air from cooking or even from chemicals in the paint on your walls. Furthermore, they can absorb carbon dioxide and also filter dust from the air, thereby returning fresh oxygen and increase humidity in your environment.

In hotels, the ideal place for miniature gardens is hotel lobbies and reception areas. Each of the miniature gardens from The Finishing Touch can attract not only the children but also the adults.

The Finishing Touch thefinishingtouch07@gmail.com

T

he information published in this section is as per the details furnished by the r e s p e c t i v e m a n u f a c t u r e r / d i s t r i b u t o r. I n a n y c a s e , i t d o e s n o t r e p r e s e n t t h e v i e w s o f Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd.

34

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I N D E X

COMPANY

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QUARTZ HOME CARE (I) P LTD.

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APPLIANCES EMPORIUM

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ROOTS MULTICLEAN LTD.

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SINTEX INDUSTRIES LIMITED

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SUPESHINE LAUNDRY SYSTEMS PVT. LTD.

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COSMIC HEALERS PVT. LTD.

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UNIQUE TRADING COMPANY

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GRAND CHEMICAL WORKS

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WASHROOM HYGIENE CONCEPTS PVT. LTD.

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IFB INDUSTRIES LTD.

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PRODUCT PREVIEW

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JMR CHEMICAL (WORLD)

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KARCHER CLEANING SYSTEM PVT. LTD.

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35

INTERVIEW

‘Housekeeping Makes or Ruins the Experience for a Guest’

B

By Sharmila Chand

By Sharmila Chand

etter known as the “pre-opening expert for housekeeping” in the Indian hotel industry, Garima Nagpal, currently the Executive Housekeeper of The Imperial, New Delhi, has the distinction of being at the helm of housekeeping during the opening of some of the best hotels in the country.

Staring with Le Meridien Hotel New Delhi, she has had the opportunity to get involved in the opening of Grand Hyatt in Vasant Kunj (now The Grand New Delhi); Shangri-La’s Eros Hotel, New Delhi and Aman, New Delhi (now The Lodhi), just to name a few.

Nagpal’s illustrious career, which now spreads to almost four decades, started with The Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai in 1975 right after completing her course at Institute of Hotel Management, Catering & Nutrition, Pusa, New Delhi in the very same year.

She was later selected in the Oberoi School for the Executive Housekeepers Program and worked in various Oberoi properties including the Oberoi Palace in Srinagar, Oberoi Cecil in Shimla and Oberoi Towers before leaving as the Executive Housekeeper of The Oberoi New Delhi in 1985. Thereafter, her spirit of accepting new challenges led her to join pre-opening projects for several prestigious properties across the country.

A short stint at the Taj Mahal Hotel in New Delhi helped her to ensure that operating out of existing hotels was not something she could not handle. She views her current stint at The Imperial, New Delhi as the culmination of a long stretch of working in the best of hotels of the country. But even after 39 years of working in the industry, Nagpal finds fulfillment in the fervor and zest of a new project.

For her outstanding contribution to the hospitality industry, she was chosen as one of the awardees at the Hospitality Rendezvous 2013 organized by Indian Hotel Academy in collaboration with Association of Hospitality Professionals. ”A housekeeper should always have an organized system and should follow it wholeheartedly. He or she should never take an easy route, but just be extremely efficient. I strongly believe that once your momentum is perfect, the understanding of the brand is outstanding and you know how to go with the flow, the world is yours,” Garima Nagpal said on being conferred with the award. And her words will definitely echo in the ears of budding housekeepers for years to come.

Excerpts from an interview with this veteran housekeeping professional:

36

Q

What is the current market scenario in your sector?

Housekeeping is an intrinsic department in all hotels which makes or ruins the experience for a guest. Niche luxury, exclusivity, guest satisfaction and impeccable service has always been at the upfront for housekeeping sector amongst premium hotels in the hospitality industry and will continue to be the tradition in the years to come.

Q

What are the three most important challenges you have to face these days?

Training of staff, consistent dedication and procurement of quality products are usually the three main challenges a housekeeper like me has to face.

Q

How do you combat the tough competition?

I have always been aware of trends in other similar hotels across the globe. Avid reading has always been my routine which goes hand in hand with being net savvy and innovating with times.

Q

What is your working philosophy which has sailed you through in your long tenure of work?

Passion for knowledge, a high-level of adaptability and willingness to accept change are what drive me to deliver my best.

Q Q

How do you like to de-stress?

Meeting my family and cleaning up a cupboard at home are my favourite stress busters!

Anything else you would like to comment on?

I love facing new challenges and even after working for so many years I still feel that I have the energy for new projects where I can use all the knowledge and skills I have picked up working with so many of the best brands in the industry.

Nov-Dec ’13

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