The Down and Dirty on Cleaning in Virus Season
Industry Report Reveals Burnout Prevalence Among Cleaning Professionals
How Surfactant Use is Expanding in Commercial Cleaning
Clean Buildings Conference
HerbCo is a large-scale grower and producer of fresh organic herbs comprised of eight locations throughout the U.S. mainland and Hawaii. Forty-five minutes south of Dallas, HerbCo’s Texas location is made up of over 50 acres of farmland, 325,000 square feet of greenhouse space, and a large warehouse/production facility.
Everyone who works for HerbCo pursues the company’s mission to provide quality herbs that taste as fresh as possible and last as long as possible. One day on the job at HerbCo Texas, Production Supervisor Jon Barnette noticed that dust was blowing in through the receiving doors and settling on the packages of fresh herbs waiting to ship out.
“Our facility is all one big open area from receiving to the warehouse to the production area in the back. So if I don’t keep the receiving area clean, the dust coming in gets everywhere,” says Barnette. “I couldn’t take any chances that dust or pollutants would get on the herbs. With the ProTeam backpack vacuum, I don’t have to worry about that anymore.”
HerbCo Texas employs one primary janitor, and the rest of the staff shares cleaning duties, with Barnette handling all high cleaning on a ladder. Dusting supplies for the facility had been costing about $10 a week. But after crunching the numbers, Barnette discovered that a high-quality backpack vacuum with advanced filtration would do the same tasks and pay itself off in a year. Then the company would save roughly $500 each year after that. So, in December 2015, Barnette gave up on dusting with rags and cleaning chemicals and switched to the ProVac FS 6 backpack vacuum.
“I needed something that wasn’t heavy, so it could go up 20 to 30 feet in the air with me on the ladder. The ProTeam backpack vacuum is lightweight and comfortable. You can adjust the harness to form to your back, so it stays secure in all situations — even at the top of a ladder. With the power switch and tool belt right on my side, I don’t have to climb up and down the ladder for different attachments,” said Barnette. “Time is money, and the ProVac definitely saves me time.”
Barnette uses extension wands to reach high into the rafters and remove dust. The vacuum’s Four Level Filtration system ensures that fine dust doesn’t escape out the exhaust. Barnette is satisfied that there is no more dust moving around the HerbCo Texas facility, removing the possibility of contaminating the product. For him, this is an investment in the long-term success of the business.
“Some changes are made for the quick profit and the ability to save money short-term, but when you’re planning on being in business for many years (20 years so far), planning for the future helps the company in the long run,” said Barnette. “It also helps our customers, because we can keep our prices as low as they are.”