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Thinking Outside the Square – A Housekeeping Industry Initiative
The Housekeeping Dilemma in Australia
All accommodation hotels have one thing in common – the requirement to turnaround rooms quickly and efficiently to maximise their yields. The Housekeeping Department is sourced with doing the hard work and Hotels are using a variety of options including internal and outsourced Housekeeping workers to provide this service.
Often Hotel’s make decisions on whether to keep the Housekeeping department services themselves or outsource to third party housekeeping contractors like AHS and others based on the availability and quality of suitably qualified Housekeepers.
Decor Disasters by Col Nation
In my specialty cleaning business on the Sunshine Coast I am often asked to clean or fix some difficult or unusual situations.
Nearly every Monday I would get called to one particular resort that held conferences and supplied accommodation to guests in a multi-story building. The individual units were owned by many different people and the in-house housekeeping service maintained the units to a very high standard. The penthouse units were often used for hosting corporate parties and hence the drinks and red wine flowed and often was spilt on their plain coloured, beige, pure wool carpet, and this is where I come into the picture.
Can Bed Bugs be Prevented?
Stephen L. Doggett, Senior Hospital Scientist, Department of Medical Entomology, Westmead Hospital
This article is written by Stephen L. Doggett, Director, Department of Medical Entomology, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, NSW 2145, Australia
The global resurgence in bed bugs was as unexpected as it was dramatic and there are few signs that infestations across the world are on the decline. It is not so much a question of if your facility may become infested with bed bugs, but more of a case when.
Bed bugs are bloodsucking insects that can inflict a very nasty and irritating bite. The big problem is the associated financial costs. Bed bug eradication is expensive (even into the thousands) and if done poorly by the unskilled can result in the spreading of an infestation. This can substantially escalate control costs, even a hundred fold as has happened in with at least one facility in the past. Guests bitten are unlikely to return and the negative publicity generated can severely affect a hotel’s reputation. In one case, eight figure litigation (yes $20million!) was initiated as a result of a guest being attacked in an upper end hotel.
So what can you do to prevent bed bugs? The simple answer is very little. However, a great deal can be done to reduce the risk of bed bugs becoming established and developing into a major fiscal burden for your organisation.
SEQPHA Trade Show a great success
Liz with SEQPHA President Libby Sharp and Gavin Lysaght – MC and Executive Housekeeper of the Intercontinental Sanctuary Cove Resort
It was great to attend the recent South East Queensland Professional Housekeepers Association trade show this week at the Intercontinental Sanctuary Cove Resort on the Gold Coast. There were over 30 suppliers and exhibitors showing off their latest in everything from towels and upholstery to uniforms and latest trends in cleaning techniques. We will follow up on soon on the more cutting edge innovations.
Final Reminder! Register now for the online elearning course “Finance for Housekeepers” – starts 2nd September 2013
Don’t forget to register today! Also suitable for Room Division Managers who want to gain more Housekeeping Management knowledge.
This workshop helps to clarify and demystify everyday Housekeeping related operational finance and accounting practices. It explains in simple and clear language the different budgets a Housekeeper deals with, the structure, reading and analysis of a P&L, and offers many tips and tools on how to save and control departmental costs. The program thus develops participants’ confidence and professional know-how when dealing with the financial management of their department and enables them to contribute to the profitability and financial success of their operation.
The fully accredited (Australia) online “Finance for Housekeepers” program is mapped against the three financial Units of Competency from the Australian Certificate IV in Hospitality from the Tourism, Hospitality and Events Training package v2 (SIT07).
Catch up with PHAN in Sydney and upcoming Housekeeping events
While Liz was in Sydney recently she took the opportunity to meet up with some of the Committee of PHAN at the Radisson Blu Hotel on 5th August. The group included current PHAN President Maureen Jolowicz, Executive Housekeeper of the Hotel along with Chona Ogilvie from I.H.S. and Zarife Melick from the Menzies.
There was a good exchange of ideas and Liz was updated on the latest Soap Aid project. Currently 13 hotels in Victoria along with Rotary are conducting a trial in Melbourne to collect, clean and recycle used soap. Click Here To Read More
Recycling soap to save lives: 2 metric tons of used soap collected in Sands China
I wonder what they do with that bar of soap from the hotel room?” This simple question has led to an initiative of recycling soap to save lives. Thousands of hotels worldwide discard over three million bars of soap into landfills and incinerators every single day. Meanwhile, thousands of children around the world die from hygiene-related illnesses that can be prevented by simply washing with a bar of soap.
“How do we put the soap into the hands of those who need it the most?” asked Shailesh Adhav, Managing Director of Clean the World-Asia, at a promotional event held in the back of house area at Holiday Inn Macao Cotai Central yesterday. “Many have thought about what happens to the bar of soap, but they don’t do anything, because it is like boiling the ocean. It’s an amazing task to try to accomplish, and one person alone can’t do it. It’s the strength of taking very simple actions together and saying, ‘how can we find the right partners?’”
Bedbugs Training DVD
Do you have an issue with bedbugs? Do your staff know what to look for? Our DVD teaches Housekeeping staff everything they need to know about detection of bedbugs.
Go to http://www.lycetteandassociates.com/housekeeping-products/ and for Aus$89 plus postage you can include this important information as part of your housekeeping training.
The Power of Steam
In the accommodation industry, presentation is paramount. First impressions are everything and guests are quick to make judgements about the cleanliness of their accommodation. But appearances can be deceptive. Some cleaning methods are only ‘skin deep’ and what you see is not necessarily what you get. The old mop and bucket days are well gone but many traditional methods of cleaning may provide the “presentation” but not the “cleanliness”. Straight vacuums, for example, merely produce a top surface clean rather than the necessary deep clean. Vacuuming only lightly picks up surface dirt, when the actual odour-causing grime, dirt and soil is deep down.
Housekeeping Health Check
Have you tried the Housekeeping Health check here on the L&A website? It is a great way to see how healthy (or unwell) your Housekeeping Department is. Just click on the link and answer the 15 questions honestly. We will diagnose and evaluate your operation based on the results and give some recommended follow up actions to take. Just hit the link and do it NOW!
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