Advance SC6500 Rider Scrubber Offers Unsurpassed Agility

Advance’s newest scrubbing powerhouse, the SC6500, delivers effortless control and efficient, sustainable scrubbing in a compact package. The tight turning radius, simple operation and up to 48-inch clean path deliver effective, single-pass cleaning to demanding environments such as warehouses, manufacturing plants, athletic facilities, universities and more.

Efficient, single-pass cleaning.

The SC6500 boasts high-capacity, 70-gallon solution and recovery tanks and the tightest aisle turn radius in its class, helping you to maximize scrubbing time and get the job done faster. With its high power scrub deck driven by dual 1.5hp motors, a single pass is all you need to achieve an amazingly clean floor. 

Heavy-duty durable construction.

Specifically engineered for the most severe industrial applications, the SC6500 packs an array of features that extend its service life and minimize downtime. The maintenance-free AC brushless propulsion drive delivers a quiet yet powerful and precise performance. Combined with an industrial bumper, frame-mounted deflectors and a tubular, steel construction, the SC6500 is as tough as they come and built to last.

Versatile operation.

The SC6500 delivers the highest level of clean no matter what the job or who is behind the wheel. Heavy-duty adjustable Linatex™ side squeegees apply downward pressure leaving floors clean, dry and safe. Even rough floors are no match for the SC6500. The optional dual vac system is designed to enhance water pickup on uneven and porous floors, even at high speeds. The available EcoFlex™ System cleans smartly and more sustainably with customizable settings that allow the operator to effortlessly switch between chemical-free, water-only cleaning and varying degrees of detergent use. 

The flexibility of the SC6500 doesn’t stop there—an offset scrub deck effectively cleans hard-to-reach edges and the Clear-View adjustable tilt steering column provides an ergonomic ride for virtually any operator. The SC6500 easily adapts to just about any conditions you throw at it, ensuring improved cleaning productivity for facility maintenance crews on a wide variety of challenging floors.

Cleaning for Manufacturing Markets

Soils ranging from ordinary dust and dirt to oil and debris are commonplace on factory floors, requiring an industrial-strength floor cleaning solution. Advance’s rugged floor cleaning equipment tackles these challenges with ease, cleaning thoroughly while delivering a low maintenance design that increases productivity. The equipment also boasts large debris trays and high quality air filters that work together to capture floor soils without contaminating the air—maintaining a healthy environment for your employees.

To learn more about the versatile cleaning equipment options from Advance for your manufacturing facility, visit: http://www.advance-us.com/industries/industrial/manufacturing.aspx

Cleaning for Warehouse & Transportation Facilities

Frequent deliveries, paired with forklift and foot traffic can lead to dusty, dirty conditions in warehouses and shipping areas. These conditions are unhealthy for personnel, potentially damaging to stored commodities and difficult to manage due to the size and scope of warehouses—which may span tens of thousands of square feet.

With solutions ranging from powerful, rider scrubbers to efficient, walk-behind sweepers, Advance industrial floor cleaning equipment works effectively and efficiently, leaving floors clean, attractive and safe for workers.

Learn more at: http://www.advance-us.com/industries/industrial/warehouseandtransportation.aspx

The Different Levels of Clean

As we discussed last week, the definition of “clean” carries a lot of ambiguity in the industrial and commercial cleaning communities. For example, a retail store may define its facility’s level of clean by physical appearance, while a healthcare facility is required to define “clean” by certain standards and regulations. For our purpose of providing you with a general overview of “clean” standards, we can differentiate among three levels: cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting.

• Cleaning: removing dirt, grease, debris and many germs by scrubbing with detergent and water. In buildings, floors are cleaned to improve their appearance and make them safer by reducing the likelihood of slip-and-fall accidents.
• Sanitizing: reducing the number of disease-causing germs to what is considered a “safe level.” One definition of hard-surface sanitizers states that these chemical agents must be capable of killing 99.9% of the infectious organisms present in a bacterial population within 30 seconds.
• Disinfecting: destroying disease-causing bacteria or pathogens (but not spores or all viruses, which would require sterilizing, a process not applied to floors). A disinfectant is a chemical agent capable of reducing the level of pathogenic bacteria by 99.999% in a time frame of between 5 and 10 minutes. Recent outbreaks of the MRSA and H1N1 viruses have increased the frequency of disinfecting surfaces, usually with a quaternary disinfectant.

The majority of facilities are likely to describe their floor maintenance programs as “cleaning,” but even within this category there is a wide range of desired outcomes—from the retailer that demands a high-shine finish to greet shoppers every day to the school that needs its hallways free of dust, dirt and grime.

Equipment Features Contribute to Cleaning Productivity: Part I

What makes a floor-cleaning machine “productive”? The next two posts will guide you through equipment features to look for when selecting your cleaning equipment.

Choice of cleaning path widths – By matching the size of the machine to exact application requirements, you can minimize your investment while maximizing productivity. The difference in the purchase price between a 17-inch and a 20-inch walk-behind floor machine can be as little $50 to $100. Matching the right size floor-cleaning machine with efficiency features that meet exact needs will minimize your investment while maximizing productivity.

Easy equipment changes – Slide-out decks for edge cleaning and easy-to-swap brush and cylindrical decks allow your workers to clean different surfaces with one machine and spend minimal time changing out accessories. Machines that offer “tools-free” maintenance allow operators to make any needed adjustments quickly and easily, as do user-friendly controls that are easy to understand and operate.

Onboard battery chargers – Many battery-powered auto-scrubbers, burnishers and carpet extractors can be ordered or even come standard with onboard battery chargers. This means that operators don't have to return a machine to a battery-charging station, but can recharge machine batteries almost anywhere. Gel-battery powered equipment offers increased safety and convenience because there is no potential for battery acid spills or noxious gas emissions during charging that can occur with conventional batteries.

Check back next week for Part II to learn out about noise levels, water usage and tank size.

Equipment Sizing: How Big is Too Big?

As a general rule of thumb, you should purchase the smallest walk-behind or ride-on equipment that will allow you to complete your active sweeping or scrubbing in no more than two to three hours (exclusive of dump and refill cycles). For most companies, the person doing the cleaning is also responsible for other jobs in the plant, and it’s generally not economical to have him spending more than half a day on cleaning.

Look for machines with larger capacity hoppers or solution tanks in order to minimize unproductive dump and refill activities. If you need to scrub a 9-foot-wide aisle, a 48-inch-wide machine will accomplish that task in a minimum of three passes. While you might think that a 50-inch-wide machine would get the job done more quickly, it doesn’t. It will still require three passes to complete the cleaning. This is a case in which a larger and more expensive machine offers no gain in productivity.

By matching the size of the machine to your exact needs, you minimize your capital investment while maximizing productivity. In many instances, you may need a ride-on sweeper or scrubber for large open areas and a smaller walk-behind sweeper or scrubber for narrow aisles or to get in around and between individual workstations. Again, each machine you choose should be the smallest practical size for the job in order to minimize your investment.

Sweep vs. Scrub

After assessing the size and amount of dirt and debris to be removed, the primary decision to be made is “sweep vs. scrub.” This decision is not always straightforward.

Think about this scenario: if the material to be cleaned consists of mostly fine dust, it may appear that a sweeper would be the ideal tool to remove it. But the best way to handle dust is to “add water,” which eliminates your dust problem; this means a scrubber may actually be the better equipment choice.

Sweepers are ideal for bulky debris such as wood chips, metal shavings (swarf), paper and fibrous materials. Scrubbers are suitable for light, dusty debris on all types of hard floors—especially dirty or oily surfaces. In many instances, you may need to sweep first and then scrub. This requires either two separate machines or one combination machine. In smaller facilities where only one person is doing the cleaning, a combination sweeper/scrubber is often a good choice because with two machines, one of them would sit idle a good share of the time. However, combination sweeper/scrubbers, due to their dual function, sometimes have limited hopper and tank capacities, which can reduce productivity in the long run. More time spent dumping hoppers and refilling solution tanks on combination machines can mean less active cleaning time.

What does your job need?

What’s Affecting Your Choice in Floor Equipment?

A clean working environment helps promote worker safety, productivity and product quality. That’s why the floor-cleaning equipment you select for your facility is nearly as important as the manufacturing equipment you select. In addition, the cleanliness of your plant, warehouse or machine shop defines the message you are sending. A quality image carries over into higher employee morale and positive reactions from visiting customers and vendors. In short, keeping the workplace clean adds real value to virtually any enterprise.

Every facility requires a combination of floor-care equipment from brooms to vacuum cleaners to walk-behind scrubbers or rider sweepers. Getting the right mix of equipment is a matter of assessing your specific cleaning needs. Some of the factors that affect this decision include:

• Size of dirt and debris particles generated
• Amount of dirt and debris generated
• Character of the dirt (fibrous, oily, dusty, wet)
• Type of surface (tile, bare concrete, coated concrete, outdoor, etc.)
• Number of personnel involved in cleaning activities
• A definition of what constitutes “clean” for your facility

“Clean” can signify anything from getting rid of chunks of dirt on the floor to creating a shiny, scuff-free surface. Your facility’s cleanliness goal will be a factor in your equipment choice.

Setting the Standard in Green Cleaning

The cleaning industry offers a myriad of cleaning products, all claiming to deliver the best performance and longest-lasting solution. However, these conventional cleaning products come with environmental concerns—at a much higher cost for you. With today’s increasing demands to “go green” and make a sustainable contribution to the environment, green cleaning solutions are flooding the industry. How do you choose one that’s right for your facility?

Advance’s EcoFlex™ System, introduced in 2009, is a new cleaning technology that achieves both environmentally sustainable cleaning methods as well as the highest standards of effective cleaning. The EcoFlex System is designed to save you time, use fewer machines and reduce water and detergent consumption. With the touch of a button, you can effortlessly switch between chemical-free, water-only cleaning and varying degrees of detergent, down pressure and flow rates. Compared to conventional scrubbing—which can often use excess water—the EcoFlex System’s ultra-low-flow dispensing feature cuts water usage by up to 70 percent. The simple controls and operation of the EcoFlex System take the hassle out of cleaning so you won’t have to hesitate to make adjustments for higher sanitary standards, different surface types or unexpected cleaning challenges.

The EcoFlex System is defined by flexibility and allows you to get more out of one machine. Every cleaning challenge is different and requires varying cleaning methods; why waste time and money on multiple pieces of equipment? The EcoFlex System allows you to develop a cleaning routine that works for your facility and to make quick adjustments that will help you get the most out of all of your resources—from water and detergent to time and equipment.

The bottom line? The EcoFlex System delivers efficient results for the toughest cleaning challenges, while allowing you to clean green.

Introducing the Advance Smart Cleaning Blog

Hello and welcome to the new Advance Smart Cleaning blog. Here, you’ll find the latest information on efficient, environmentally friendly floor and surface cleaning—including tips, strategies and equipment that will help you achieve your clean standard, no matter what the application. Designed to increase productivity while driving down the total cost to clean, our cleaning equipment spans many markets, including: healthcare, education, hospitality, retail, recreation, casinos, building services, government, manufacturing, warehousing, parking and outdoor use. Our equipment cleans your floors and outdoor areas, while maintaining a professional, aesthetic appearance.

Nilfisk-Advance is one of the world’s leading manufacturers and suppliers of professional cleaning equipment. The company has developed professional cleaning equipment for over 100 years. Nilfisk-Advance has production facilities in North America, South America, Europe, and China, and has an extensive network of sales entities in 43 countries and is represented in more than 100 countries around the world. With the Advance brand, Nilfisk-Advance is committed to providing versatile equipment that supports facility cleanliness, the health and safety of occupants, as well as the environment.

The Advance Smart Cleaning blog will focus on the benefits we can offer to enhance your productivity and the tools needed to produce efficient cleaning results. We will also focus on relevant industry issues, the latest studies affecting these issues, and green cleaning solutions and equipment to help reduce costs while satisfying your environmental and cleanliness goals. This blog will feature many contributing authors, including representatives from product development and technology, marketing and sales. These professionals will contribute detailed technical information and knowledgeable opinions on a variety of cleaning industry topics, from green cleaning to improving efficiency and meeting the highest cleanliness standards.

For the latest information on floor cleaning and maintenance, bookmark this page or add our RSS feed. We welcome your feedback on future posts, as well as suggestions for topics that you’d like to see covered in the future. Stay tuned!