With covid cases on the rise again and the Omnicron variant creating mass uncertainty, places of work and public places are starting to gear up their hygiene requirements yet again. One of the UK’s leading hygiene specialists companies, Trovex, has released a list of key hygienic items to maintain cleanliness at work and reduce the risk of the virus spreading.
Trovex is a family business set up over 20 years ago, specialising in the manufacturing of hygienic products, surfaces and panels, with their case studies including The Royal Free Hospital in London and Fitzpatrick Referrals, the clinic of TV’s Supervet.
Surface Protection
Protecting common surfaces such as tables, desks and kitchen spaces is key for any busy workplaces or ones that remain open over the next few weeks.
At a school and clinic level, we look at products known as hygienic wall cladding and wall panels, which refer to walls and materials that are made at high pressure, so they are built robustly and able to minimize bacteria and germs from spreading. This is often what you see hospital walls and doors being made out of. These surfaces are often brightly coloured and easily wipeable, making them clean and safe to use in public areas with high traffic.
Whilst common in schools and healthcare, they are less common for your average workplace, but there is no reason that they cannot be introduced – since they are cut and made to measure for their specific area.
Door Safety
Doors get a lot of action, since they are touched every time someone opens and closes a door, enters or leaves a room. They are in fact one of the biggest hotspots for germs, explains Trovex, and beyond covid, can carry other bacterias such as E.coli and Staphylococcus.
Door handles and panels should always be regularly cleaned with alcohol gel or alcoholic spray – and this is an area that is often overlooked when an office or workspace is cleaned.
This could be a good time to install specific door handles which enable the door to be opened by foot or elbow – something that has become more common since the covid pandemic began.
Hygienic Washrooms
Washrooms and shared toilet facilities are another key area that deserves hygienic attention, especially in light of covid.
Toilet facilities should be cleaned and wiped down, including toilet flushes, door handles and walls.
There should be good ventilation in the rooms, to avoid any covid germs harbouring and this is something that should be checked regularly.
Toilet precautions may need to be introduced, including the encouragement of wiping down of surfaces after use, something that is regularly seen in gyms today. Also, only allowing a certain number of people in the toilets at once, may be encouraged.
In fact, studies have shown that around 86% of employees would not use a work toilet if it were unhygienic, highlighting its importance as a right to employees – and beyond keeping it clean for covid.
