Disagreement Brews Between Groups Over Slip Tests
The polishes and floor maintenance division of the Consumer Specialty Products Association (CSPA) recently is “concerned that recent claims made by the National Floor Safety Institute (NFSI) regarding slip-resistance testing for floor-care products are misleading and could result in an increased risk of slip-and-fall accidents.”

The CSPA recognizes the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) method for classifying walkways as “slip-resistant” or “slip-retardant” — The Static Coefficient of Friction of Polish-Coated Surfaces as Measured by the James Machine. CSPA adopted the standard in 1970.

CSPA says that NFSI, a nonprofit organization, gives manufacturers and customers “false assurance” of floor slip resistance. The group said the ASTM D-2047 standard has provided assurance since 1970.

NFSI uses a wet coefficient-of-friction test conducted with the Universal Walkway Tester (UWT). The ASTM D-2047 test is based on dry conditions. CSPA recently evaluated the UWT and NFSI’s wet resistance standard using different floor types. The group concluded that, in all scenarios tested, floors that the CSPA would classify as hazardous passed the NFSI test.

However, NFSI’s executive director Russ Kendzior indicated in an interview with Housekeeping Solutions Magazine that the two machines — the James Machine and the UWT — are designed to be used under different floor conditions, and the results of tests under the wrong conditions will be misleading.


ISSA, Other Industry Associations Team Up
The International Sanitary Supply Association (ISSA), Lincolnwood, Ill., recently announced two new relationships with other industry associations:

• It has formed a partnership with Association of Higher Education Facilities Officers (APPA). The new partnership is designed to further the sharing of information within the cleaning and facility management industries. As part of the new alliance, ISSA and APPA will co-locate such events as the APPA Supervisor’s Toolkit workshop, to be held in tandem with the ISSA/Interclean show in New Orleans. ISSA recently exhibited at APPA’s Educational Facilities Leadership Forum in Washington, D.C. ISSA and APPA also hope to share products and services to benefit their members and work toward identifying new industry research regarding the benefits of cleaning in built environments.

• ISSA also announced a new relationship with the International Facility Management Association (IFMA) as part of its ongoing effort to expand the sharing of information between cleaning and facilities management professionals in the United States and around the world.

ISSA and IFMA will have a presence at one another’s annual tradeshows in 2004 and are discussing other ways to work together to improve educational opportunities for both memberships.


HP Products, Indianapolis, has acquired The Seybold Co., Cincinnati. Seybold/HP is a distributor of industrial and commercial cleaning products, paper, packaging, equipment and chemicals in the greater Cincinnati area. HP Products services 10 states, and is the largest independent, integrated distributor of its goods and services in the Midwest.


Stephen Ashkin, president of the Bloomington, Ind.—based Ashkin Group has helped The Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS) develop their new Custodial Maintenance and Operations Manual. This “best practices” manual addresses the maintenance and operation needs of high-performance schools — buildings designed in a healthy, efficient, and sustainable manner and then maintained by properly trained building engineers, groundskeepers and custodians.


The Illinois Association of Building Maintenance Contractors (IABMC) is now offering a workers’ compensation insurance program to industry companies.

“Workers’ compensation is one of the largest variable expenses in this and other industries, and our unique emphasis on safety training and assessment not only protects employees and customers but significantly lowers costs,” says Mark Herbick, vice president of IABMC.


ICAN Appoints Treasurer/VP
The International Custodial Advisors Network, Inc. (ICAN) has appointed Perry Shimanoff treasurer and vice president. Shimanoff has worked with educational facilities as a maintenance and operations consultant since 1979. His company, San Carlos, Calif.-based Management & Communication Consultants (MC2) performs cleaning audits, custom training, route design, and goal setting for customers utilizing a “work smarter, not harder” approach.




POSTED ON: 10/1/2004