Category: Tips

Think about this. You open the door to your office at 8am. You have a meeting scheduled for 8:30 am that you had completely forgotten about. You have to impress the client but your office is a mess. You have papers littered everywhere, a dusty table and you don’t have a cleaning service that can help you get rid of the mess.

You need to get your office together ready for the meeting and you need a couple of minutes also to prepare. So, how do you go about it?

In this blog, we will share some tips on how you can get your office together in just 15 minutes and spare yourself some time to go over your notes and keynotes for that crucial meeting.

What you will need

You can save time by going to the supply room and grabbing everything you need at once instead of making the back and forth trips every time you need something. Some of the things you will need include:

• A box or bucket
• A surface cleaner (preferably one with a pleasant scent)
• Paper towels and cleaning cloths or wipes
• Cleaning wipes that are computer-safe
• Baking soda
• A broom or vacuum
• A mug or a pen holder to organize the pens and other small objects
• Folders for the papers
• Rubber bands or hair bands to organise computer cables

Declutter

Now that you have everything you need, you need a clear plan of action that will allow you to do each job only once without a redo.

Start by picking up papers, clutter and large chunks of dirt. Start from the back of the office working your way towards the door. If you can’t make up your mind on whether to throw something or not, keep it in a safe location to have a closer look at it later.

Why not also read: 10 Tips to Increase Recycling in your office

Vacuum or sweep

Once you have all the papers and litter around the office in the box, it’s time to get sweeping if you opted for a broom or vacuum.

The idea behind vacuum or sweeping first before cleaning other surface is to avoid a redo that would take up precious minutes. Be thorough with the groundwork and make sure that carpet is spotless. If the carpet has unsightly stains or has a bad smell, sprinkle some baking powder and let it sit for a while before vacuuming it up. It will freshen up the room and conceal the stains until you can get them properly addressed.

Wipe down the surfaces

Now that the floor is free of clutter, it’s time to address the surfaces around the office. Pick a cloth and wet it with some water and a mild soap solution. Wring it, so you don’t have to keep wiping the surfaces over and over.

Start with high surfaces working your way down. Leave your office table for last because you need a bit more time on it.

When you get to the office table, start with the table and designate a place where you will wipe down pens and other small items. Make sure you organise everything as you wipe it. The last thing you want is to try to figure out after what goes where.

Wipe down the laptop or computer screen on the table and finally wipe the dust into a box. As you walk out to throw the dirt, tie down the cables and open the windows for ventilation.

And there you have it! How to clean up your office in under 15 minutes. Now you have some time to sit down and polish up for the meeting to make sure it’s not only your office that takes the day but your presentation as well.

To avoid the same rush in the future, it’s a good idea to have a cleaning company that can help you keep the office in tip-top condition at all times. Most companies have a flexible schedule and will let you choose how often you want them to come to clean up. That gives the ability to budget and pick a schedule that works for you and the office.

Here at OCCO we offer our affordable commercial cleaning services that are bespoke for your business, get in touch with our helpful team today for more information.

Choosing to recycle around the office is easily one of the best business decisions you can make. It not only helps an ailing environment but helps you to cut back on your overheads and makes it easier and more affordable to run affairs at the office.

With so many varying approaches to recycling, the only challenge is where to start. Luckily, it is just as easy to get this done. Here are some quick tips that will take the confusion out of recycling and help you hit the road running.

1. Start small

When going green, you have many impressive ideas in your mind on how to reduce waste and cut back on expenses while improving the environment. But, even with the financial muscle to actualise your dreams, you should start small.

It’s going to be a new culture for the office and the employees and you need to give everyone time to catch up with the new requirements and sustain it.

By starting small, you reduce the pressure on your employees and give them a chance to embrace the idea because it’s doable. Start with no brainers like duplex printing. This will not only halve paper consumption but it doesn’t need any additional resources to carry out.

You can also initiate pull printing at the office to reduce printing volumes and make sure any work sent to the printer is collected and useful.

2. Go for the organics

This tactic is often underused in most office spaces and you can’t afford not to pick it up. By picking up on organic materials and waste, you can increase your diversion rate and get closer to your goal of zero wastage.

Some of the organic waste is compostable and can be used to grow crops and revive nutrient-deprived land. Some can even be used to produce power. Some of the organic waste you can collect around the office include:

• Paper towels and napkins
• Compostable plates and cutlery
• Food scraps
• Tea bags and coffee grinds
• Cardboard sleeves from hot beverage cups

3. Have centralised recycling bins

To get the best effects, take away individual bins and have centralised recycling bins. By having bins in convenient locations, the employees have to sort out their trash. In the process, they become more away of what they are throwing away as opposed to just chucking it into a bin at the end of the desk.

This method also allows the employees to learn to sort out the waste properly and understand what goes where prevent stream contamination.

4. Cut back on the take out coffee cups

It’s impossible to get employees to give up their morning coffee, but you can do something about the take out coffee cups. Think of the number of cups that are tossed in the waste bin daily. It’s a huge waste of resources and one that you can easily nip in the bud.

Replace the takeout coffee cups with reusable mugs and water bottles. This little change will drastically reduce the number of cups and plastic bottles filling up the system and will also help to cut back on expenses around the office.

5. Reduce on the waste coming into the office

One of the key parts of recycling is reducing. You can reduce a lot of things around the office. From the consumption of power by switching off electronics and lights that are not in use to making sure the taps are not dripping.

You can also make your vendors aware of your recycling program and encourage them to only bring recyclable or compostable items to the office. If you can control consumption and what is coming into the facility, you can greatly reduce what goes into a landfill because your waste is recyclable.

6. Go paperless

With the current technology trends, it’s possible to run your business on a paperless system. Send emails instead of fax and letters, save papers for only formal documents and make sure all internal communication is done by email or on an online message board.

To save even more, you can have all billing done online to save on paper. Also, let your customers and vendors know of your decision so they can adjust accordingly.

7. Re-use

Some of the items around the office can be used multiple times. Things like packaging boxes and stationery items should be carefully stored so they can be used at a later date when the need arises. This saves you the trouble of buying new items and at the same time, you reduce what goes to the landfill.

8. Post reminders

With so much going around the office, it’s easy for a few notes to slip through the fingers around the office. Make sure you have plenty of reminders to keep everyone on their toes about the new changes.

Have stickers close to the switches to remind people to switch off the lights and electronics once they finish using them and at key points and send out email blasts to remind the employees of the recycling goals and the different methods you’re using to help increase recycling around the office.

9. Make it a competition

You can make the recycling mission much easier with some healthy office competition. Competitions are a great incentive when you want people to participate in different activities. It makes the challenge at hand easier and more fun. After all, who doesn’t like winning?

Give your competition an interactive edge and keep constantly updating the teams on the progress and who is winning. If possible, set up a leader board so employees know what their current status is. Ensure there is a prize waiting for the winner.

10. Buy recycled

Don’t aim to recycle only but also promote the recycling trade. Use recycled paper for printing and other items. Today, recycled products are no longer the low-end and poor quality products they once were.

There are ethical, good quality and you will be doing the environment a great justice by reducing landfills. In some cases, you will also be able to save some money by buying recycled products.

Increasing recycling around the office is not an easy task, especially for a big office with more than 50 employees. But, with these tips, you can improve and gradually achieve your recycling goals.

With OCCO Cleaning Services we can help you start to recycle more while providing our office cleaning services.

Why not also read: 7 Best Places to Live in Sheffield

As the leading office cleaning company in Sheffield, we know dirt and dust are part of every office space. Whether your office is located around a busy corner or tucked away in the outskirts of town, you will always have to deal with the dirt and dust.

Keeping your office clean is an uphill task. Various surfaces need attention and with so much that needs to be done, you’re likely going to forget a few surfaces that might be a turn off for potential clients.

If you want to keep up with the cleaning duties around the office, you need a comprehensive cleaning checklist for your office. It’s going to be beneficial and convenient for your workplace.

It will also cut down on cleaning time since you won’t be cleaning in circles and trying to guess what you missed.

If you don’t have the time to put together a cleaning checklist for your office, you’re at the right place. Here’s a quick and comprehensive one.

General Areas

General areas carry the most dirt. They include the breakrooms, office rooms, conference rooms, workstations and more. Such areas usually have heavy traffic and are highly populated.

Daily cleaning tasks: 

• Clean seating areas or debris and dust
• Tidy any papers littered around the office space
• Remove cobwebs and dust the light fixtures
• Wipe down doorknobs and horizontal surfaces
• Remove rubbish and replace the bin liners

Weekly cleaning tasks:

• Vacuum the floors and air vents
• Clean glass surfaces and all the windows
• Polish metal surfaces like door handles, window frames and grills

To keep the general and common rooms hygienic and sanitised, you need to schedule deep cleans once in a while. This will ensure the office is as clean as possible. The frequency of the deep cleans depends on the size and traffic of the office. At the very least, you should have a deep clean once every three months.

Washrooms

Washrooms are an integral part of every office space. They must be kept clean at all times to keep operations in the office running smoothly. For customer retention and employee satisfaction, washrooms should be given plenty of attention when it comes to cleaning.

Daily cleaning tasks:

• Remove dust and cobwebs from light fixtures
• Clean the toilets inside and out with disinfected
• Clean the mirrors and glasses
• Sweep and mop the floors
• remove trash and replace the liners
• restock amenities like toiletries, paper towels, and soap

Weekly cleaning tasks:

• wipe the stalls down with a disinfectant
• vacuum the air vents

Dining and Kitchen areas

The dining and kitchen areas are the most susceptible to get dirty around the workplace. Food residue from preparations and cooking and spills can make these spaces a haven for bacteria. To keep them clean and safe, you need to take extra precaution when cleaning these areas.

Daily cleaning tasks:

• remove cobwebs from light fixtures and dust them
• Wipe tables, countertops, and other horizontal surfaces. Tidy up the countertop by organising salt shakers and paper products
• Wash dirty dishes and clean the sink
• Wash coffee pts
• Wipe down windows and glasses
• Remove trash and have the trash liners replaced
• Vacuum, sweep and mop the floors

Weekly Cleaning tasks:

• Remove items that are more than a week old in the fridge and clean. Notify the employs of your intention to throw away old items other than regularly used condiments during the weekly cleaning exercise

It’s vital that you emphasise the need for your employees to keep a tidy workspace. This is even more important if they meet the customers around such spaces. They should keep the desks decluttered and reduce the number of personal items they have.

The employees should also be encouraged to keep the monitors and keyboards clean and sanitised. The cleaning staff should clean these items at least once a week.

Having a cleaning checklist will help to keep the office space tidy at all times. It will reduce the chances of missed spots and make it easier to assign cleaning duties even to the employees.

Why not also read: 7 Best Places to Live in Sheffield