Equipment Maintenance That Controls Cleaning Noise

Healthcare EVS staffs need to fix the squeaky wheel, stresses Poole.

With all the rolling carts used today, it behooves staff to replace squeaky wheels and to maintain a stringent preventative maintenance schedule designed to keep all equipment operating quietly. It is estimated that rolling equipment noise can be reduced by up to 30 decibels by lubricating moving parts.

“We changed the wheels on our burnishers to lower the noise level,” says Johnson. “The wheels weren’t good or bad; we just changed them out to a material that made less sound moving across the floor. Our burnishers also have large filters on them that help muffle the sound.”
 
Duke also has a manager on each shift dedicated to maintaining equipment. In addition, workers are charged with checking over the equipment at the beginning and end of their shifts.

“If a belt is bad, it can make a vacuum really loud,” says Johnson. “When bags are not changed regularly or not installed properly, it can make the vacuum louder.”

Poole supports this level of due diligence.

“Departments need to stick to a preventative maintenance schedule,” he stresses. “Preventative maintenance keeps the equipment operating properly, which keeps noise levels down.”