You’ve probably read platitudes like “The green revolution is right around the corner!” more times than you care to count. I’ve even written something of the sort, in my January note, asking whether 2005 would be the year that green comes of age in the cleaning industry. At this point, though, I am wondering if progress will be more subtle than that.

Two industry organizations — Washington-based Green Seal and Managemen Inc. in Salt Lake City (which, we should point out, in the interest of full disclosure, is run by Contracting Profits columnist John Walker) — recently announced they would be offering green-cleaning certification for building service contractors and other facility service providers. (We’ve got the scoop.)

Green Seal is still developing its standard, and Managemen awarded its first certification this month, so we won’t know for awhile what kind of impact these programs will have on the cleaning industry, and on the environment.

Will they be “revolutionary?” Perhaps not. But I do think they represent a small part of the ongoing evolution of green from “tree-hugger” territory to standard business practice. It’s quiet, but it counts.


Stacie H. Rosenzweig, Editor




POSTED ON: 5/1/2005