Deleting Dust from Your Distribution Center
How Two Services Support Each Other and Your Process
Little things add up in logistics, where stripping a few seconds out of a process could be a big-money move. Little things can be big trouble, too, when slipping on dust could land your distribution center in some big medical, legal, and productivity costs.
Born from cardboard or other causes, dust on the floor endangers our feet and wheels, and dust in the air hampers our lungs, turns grease into paste, and gums up our electronics. Difficult-to-control particles, like microdust, create maintenance problems and drag down asset life for critical equipment in the distribution center. Dust contributes to error counts and worker hours lost.
Since dust gums up so much productivity, let’s see how a distribution center keeps things speedy and safe, with a dual approach to controlling dust.
Hip Hop Hooray for HEPA Filters
Unless it’s that one perfect day of weather we get a year, you’re already moving air through your facility to control the temperature and humidity affecting your products (and your people and their productivity). Air filtration uses your HVAC system to capture dust and particulates from the air. The type of filter and your HVAC maintenance schedule affects how much dust gets through the vents and into places you don’t want it.
Running an HVAC system without basic filter changes would cut the useful life of the equipment, so that’s probably already on your maintenance schedule. The type of filter and when its changed can make a big difference. HEPA filters remove more and smaller particles than standard filters.
It’s a good idea to get proactive about changing out filters and HVAC maintenance, assessing seasonal differences and product cycles that affect the particle count in your air. The amount of air changes in your facility can vary over the year, as can your sources of dusts and particles, so it’s a good idea to stay ahead of it, maintaining air quality and safeguarding your equipment at the same time.
Due to micro-filtration, HEPA filters can also help you reduce more than dust, including some allergens, mold spores and bacteria. If needed, filters can also be treated with antimicrobial agents.
Clean Floors, Clean Air
HEPA filters can also make sure labor hours spent vacuuming don’t leave microdust in the working environment. Keeping floors – and surfaces – clean keeps particulates from getting airborne and reduces the work HVAC filters have to do. Vacuums aren’t the only tool in the arsenal here. Properly deployed wet mops control dust buildup, while specially designed cloths keep particles from just being wiped around on surfaces.
The key to efficient dust control is blending cleaning technology with expert training to create cost-effective operating procedures. Boxes on rollers, shipping pallets, products or packing materials, all need attention to the source and spread. The core work process you’re constantly perfecting also needs to be protected and supported by janitorial, not interfered with. Expertly developed standard operating procedures (SOPs) with key tools like HEPA filtered vacuums make that happen for you – controlling dusts and costs.
Deep-level cleans need to be scheduled around your production time, with cleaning schedules modular for your seasonality and more. Protocols for debris management, emergency spillage, or special requests need to be ready to go. Experts in janitorial for distribution centers will have experience:
Lock-out and tag-out for deep cleaning (stripping, resurfacing and more…)
Cleaning saw-cut floors
Controlling retrofit and upgrade dust
OSHA protective equipment and specialized training for particulate control
Dual Expertise in Defeating Dust
Alongside effective janitorial SOPs, expert air filtration will combine to protect assets, workers, and productivity from dust and microdust. Look for janitorial teams experienced with programs for controlling dust sources before they create so much to clean up, such as corrugate management and pallet management. If their service teams also include expert HVAC technicians, that’s a service partnership ready to deliver a complete, cost-effective strategy.
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