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Cleaning Industry Trends For 2022: Green Cleaning and Going Electric

How Fleetclean is supporting businesses towards embracing green cleaning, going electric and reducing plastic waste.

After the emphasis that the Covid-19 pandemic placed on hygiene and cleaning, it should come as no surprise that the industrial and commercial cleaning industries have experienced a huge amount of demand, change and scrutiny. That’s why, as we move into 2022, we thought we’d take a look at some of the biggest cleaning industry trends set to take off this year.

  1. Embracing more green cleaning

One of the biggest trends in the cleaning industry this year, is the move towards embracing more green cleaning. This has a number of considerations for businesses such as trying to reduce plastic, using more recycled products and investing in more reusable products. It also factors in using cleaning products and procedures that are safe for the environment and don’t cause pollution.

Here at Fleetclean, green cleaning solutions have been a key priority for a number of years already and there’s more than one way we’re working towards being more sustainable and environmentally friendly.

Like many companies in the tanker, IBC and industrial cleaning industry, our cleaning processes generate liquid waste which enters the sewer system. To make sure this is safe, we have to pre-treat the effluent we produce using a Dissolved Air Flotation Plant or a DAF as they are more commonly known. This process in turn creates another waste product: sludge (and yes that is the technical term).

The necessary production of all this sludge got us thinking about ways we could make disposing of this sludge more environmentally friendly and so, in late 2020, we took delivery of a Screw-type Sludge Press. This press essentially de-waters the sludge (you can read a little bit more about that here) and turns it into a lighter, more transportable “cake” which we then send off to an anaerobic digestion plant, which turns this sludge into bio-gas, which is then converted to electricity. Not bad for a waste product!

  1. Stem cleaning for disinfection

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s probably no surprise that steam cleaning has gained popularity over 2020 and 2021 and this looks set to continue through 2022. Steam cleaning is a reliable (and generally green) method of sterilising and sanitising equipment and surfaces. It’s effective at destroying micro-organisms that are capable of causing infections and it’s also great at deodorising too.

Steam cleaning machines are great because they only use a small amount of clean water which is heated in a boiler making it fast, efficient and cost-effective, as well as eco-friendly and effective. Here at Fleetclean we have a wide range of commercial and industrial steam and carpet cleaning machines available for sale today. Our experts are also available to offer independent advice on commercial steam cleaners from the world’s biggest brands, so we can help you choose the right machine for your cleaning requirements.

  1. Battery powered equipment

Similar to the move towards embracing more green cleaning, another big trend for the cleaning industry in 2022 is investing in more battery powered equipment. This green energy, battery powered category of machines eliminate polluting exhaust fumes. They are safe to use indoors without the need to invest in expensive flue arrangements and they will make a positive contribution to reducing your carbon emissions and making your business more environmentally friendly.

At Fleetclean we are confident that this is the future of cleaning procedures like pressure washing and that’s why we have already invested in all-electric hot pressure washers and are proud to offer the Mac International Plant Master range for sale or hire. If this is something you’re interested in investing in for your business, call us today to speak to one of our experts about battery powered and all electric cleaning equipment.

  1. Reducing plastic waste

Keeping on the environmental and green cleaning trend is number four on our list, the move towards reducing plastic waste. This is a concern globally and not just within the cleaning industry however, in 2019 the CHSA (Cleaning and Hygiene Suppliers Association) made their Cleaning Industry Plastics Pledge and this really helped make reducing plastic waste in the cleaning industry, an industry-wide priority.

Luckily, there are a number of ways businesses can tackle this problem and embrace the trend for reducing plastic waste. First and foremost, you can focus on resource-efficiency. This means looking at the lifespan and lifecycle of the plastic containers or packaging you do need to use. Look out for plastic items made from recycled materials and plastics that are responsibly produced and make sure plastic containers are well made, high quality and appropriate for continued, sustained and regular use, so they need replacing less often.

IBCs or Intermediate Bulk Containers are a fantastic example of high quality, reusable plastic containers which, with the right care, maintenance and IBC cleaning, can last for years. You can also buy reconditioned IBCs if you don’t want to buy new and they can be recycled too, making them well worth the investment and highly likely to reduce the plastic waste you’re sending to landfill. Here are Fleetclean, looking after IBCs and keeping them clean is a core part of what we do. We’re fully certified IBC cleaning providers and we have over 30 years’ experience repairing and maintaining IBC tanks, meaning we can help you maximise the resource-efficiency of your IBC containers.

  1. Increased cleaning frequency and visibility

The last prediction on our list of cleaning trends for 2022 is another result of the Covid-19 Pandemic. That crisis saw cleaning placed at the forefront of virus prevention, hygiene, sanitisation and sterilisation. This in turn saw consumers demanding more information about how the businesses they interacted with, cleaned and maintained their spaces.

This visibility of cleaning procedures and the frequency of cleaning is not predicted to ease in 2022. Consumers continue to want to know that places are clean, safe and hygienic and they want to see the evidence. This means businesses will need to maintain frequent cleaning regimes that are noticeable. This could mean cleaning during active working hours or more commonly, cleaning before and after business hours to refresh the space for the next day.

Businesses will also need to be more transparent about what these cleaning regimes are and how they are done, potentially even sharing the equipment and cleaning products used to do it. If you’re cleaning procedures and equipment aren’t up to scratch, now could be the perfect time to invest in new cleaning machines and best practices. For expert advice on the best cleaning equipment to suit your business, contact our experts today.

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