Clean & Hygiene Review

Sept-Oct ’122

Cleaning the floors or maintaining impeccable cleanliness of floors in hotels, hospitals, offices or retail spaces is an important and onerous task for most cleaners across the globe. Floor cleaning involves lots of patience, judgment and skills in order to floor the guests or visitors. Floor cleaning is important for all kinds of offices and homes but especially in hospitals, hotels and malls, the importance of floor cleaning simply cannot be overemphasised.

In hospitals, with its environment being vulnerable to dangerous germs on a daily basis, the degree of thoroughness of floor cleaning operations can make the difference between life and death. Moreover, the spillage of urine and other body excretions of patients on hospital floors cannot be ruled out, which require stringent adherence to floor cleaning.

Without exhaustive floor cleaning operations, the spread of infections can be greatly facilitated among the patients, visitors and staff of hospitals, thereby defeating the hospitals’ very purpose of existence. Similarly, for hotels, malls and other public places, which usually attract huge footfalls on a daily basis, maintaining floor cleanliness is an uphill task. At the same time, difference between clean and unclean floors at these sensitive properties can make huge difference in their numbers of repeat visitors.

However, floors are of different types, and different types of floors require different cleaning operations. The challenges and precautions involved in cleaning of a ceramic tile floor vary from that of a marble floor or a granite floor. In our Cover Story, we have attempted to explore various floor cleaning solutions, which the readers from the housekeeping industry may find interesting.

The green building movement has gathered momentum in India too, but it is still far from developing into an established culture. More usage of renewable resources and optimal usage of non-renewable resources is the need of the hour, across our homes, offices, hospitals, hotels, malls and multiplexes. Better ventilation in homes and offices, along with safer and hygienic cooking methods in our kitchens are all practices contributing towards green building movement, which can eventually facilitate well-being of the society at large.

We must realise that sustainable architectures are not only good for our environment, but can be healthy for the respective companies’ or the property owners’ budget and bottom lines too, in the long-run, as they facilitate in saving electricity, waste, and water as compared to conventional buildings. Adherence to healthy eco-friendly practices also facilitates the durability the building, and can give an impetus to the productivity of the workers or the people inhabiting or working in it, besides contributing to the company’s/management’s/owner’s image. We cover these issues and some important green buildings of India in our Business Story.

The business of beauty is fast assuming healthy connotations, which now the clean & hygiene industry cannot afford to neglect. We have covered some maverick business visions geared towards organic or herbal cosmetic care, which should encourage other players participating in this beautiful revolution. The strengthening of the herbal beauty culture in India can make our cosmetic industry more hygienic, as people would repeatedly reject the beauty products with health repercussions and opt for hygienic cosmetics for care and cure. We have covered the issue of healthy beauty in our Feature Story.

Besides these relevant topics, we have attempted to explore a wide gamut of issues pertaining to housekeeping through our regular and additional sections, which we hope would keep our readers engrossed between the covers.

E d i t o r i a l

Publisher cum Editor

Rajneesh Sharma

Associate Editor

Swarnendu Biswas

Resident Editor

Sharmila Chand (Delhi)

Ashok Malkani (Mumbai)

Feature Editor

Kanishka Gupta

Sub-Editor

Tapapriya Lahiri

Layout & Design

Hari Kumar. V

Narender Kumar

Advertising Sales

Delhi: Debabrath Nath, Sudhir Pandey, Ashish Jha

Mumbai: Rajesh Tupsakhre

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Dattaram Gangurde

Director Sales

Sanjay Anand

Director Operations & Finance

Rajat Taneja

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Clean & Hygiene Review is a bi-monthly magazine, printed, owned and published by Rajneesh Sharma from 313, Himgiri Apartments, J-Block, Vikaspuri, New Delhi. Printed at Print Creations, C-112/3, Basement, Naraina Industrial Area, Phase-1, New Delhi-110 028.

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Editorial Policy : Editorial emphasis in Clean & Hygiene Review magazine is on educational & informational material specifically designed to assist those responsible for managing cleaning & maintenance, Laundry, Pest Control, Water & Waste Management and Environment. Articles are welcome and will be published on the sole discretion of the editor.

3Sept-Oct ’12

SECTIONS 4 News Scan

28 Pest Management

32 Industry

35 Profi le

36 Hygiene

38 Product Preview

40 Interview

10

CLEANING

24

14

BUSINESS

20

FEATURE

LAUNDRY

26

Contents

COVER STORY

Sept-Oct ’124

NEWS SCAN

Pune to get People’s Biodiversity Register

After Kolkata Municipal Corporation, it is time for Pune Municipal Corporation to form a biodiversity management committee to encourage conservation, sustainable use and documentation of biological diversity, as per the Biological Diversity Act 2002. PMC’s environment department, along with other institutions and organisations, has begun collecting data on various facets of biodiversity for the purpose of preparing a people’s biodiversity register (PBR).

As per the Biological Diversity Act 2002, local bodies need to constitute a biodiversity management committee within their areas of jurisdiction. The initiative is to explore into conservation of biodiversity, including preservation of habitats, conservation of land races, folk varieties and cultivars, domesticated stocks and breeds of animals, micro-organisms, and chronicling of knowledge pertaining to biological diversity. The committee comprises a chairperson and six people nominated by local bodies.

According to Mangesh Dighe, Environment Officer of PMC, the civic body has already begun collecting data on biodiversity and traditional knowledge from institutes, researchers, individuals and people working in the field. “There are lots of studies happening on our biological resources and we need to collect them for documentation and come up with a PBR,” he added.

The biodiversity management committee will play a crucial role in documenting biodiversity and their sustainable use and in dealing with access and benefit sharing issues. The people’s biodiversity register will feed information about the fine points of biological resources and traditional knowledge, available within the jurisdiction of the committee.

Post Celebration Environmental Fallouts Major festivities in India like Durga Puja and Diwali do have environmental

fallouts. On the last day of Durga Puja, several idols were immersed in the polluted Yamuna, thereby making the river still more polluted.

Most of the idols were not environment-friendly, and along with them several kilos of ceremonial flowers also got drained in the river — which has already reduced to being a polluted drain connecting the East Delhi with the rest of the metro — thereby choking the river further.This is the case in every year.

Though the Delhi government had designated four sites for immersion of idols, but people were seen callously dispersing small idols and tonnes of Puja material from wherever they found convenient. According to an official of the Delhi government, Irrigation & Flood Control Department had made temporary enclosures at the designated spots of Ram Ghat, Kudesai Ghat, Geeta Ghat and Kalindi Kunj for immersion of idols and signage were placed up to inform the public about the water level.

But according to one environmentalist, because of lack sufficient awareness generated by the Delhi government’s Environment Department among the public at large, regarding the designated immersion sites, people were seen opting for the convenient route for immersion.

However, thankfully, a day after a huge number of idols were dispersed on Yamuna along with kilos of ceremonial flowers and plastic bags, the Delhi government’s Environment Department started a praiseworthy week-long initiative of cleaning up and decongesting the river.

Now after Durga Puja celebrations comes Diwali, where for many people the joy of festival of lights gets frequently disturbed by the high decibels of noise pollution. Furthermore, the callous profusion of bursting of firecrackers paves the way for pollution from carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and suspended particulate matters. Moreover, sporadic studies have revealed that sudden increase in surface level ozone as a result of incessant bursting of firecrackers has negative effects on lung functioning, thereby making it susceptible to diseases like influenza and asthma. The massive vehicular pollution caused during Diwali only makes the matters worse.

Sept-Oct ’126

NEWS SCAN

India Loses Rs. 69,000 crore a Year for Small Infections

Small infections make for a huge economic loss. According to a recent study by London School of Economics, India loses a whooping amount Rs 69,000 crore a year as a result of small infections. Besides this loss, India loses 162 crore workdays every year due to small infections. The study exposes the appalling state of citizens’ hygiene in India still more starkly.

The study was conducted in Mumbai and Delhi, and the findings were extrapolated for the whole of the country. Small infections, including diarrhoea and skin ailments such as rash, blisters and prickly heat, as well as respiratory illnesses were covered under the study. The respondents were also probed on the direct and indirect costs for each episode of illness.

According to the findings every time a family member in India succumbs to illness, it costs the family an average of Rs.997. This works out to an average expenditure of Rs.8814 per household, per year. For national level, this cost snowballs to a huge amount of Rs.69,000 crore per annum.

What is more appalling that the incidents of these infections can be easily avoided by adhering to simple hygienic measures as washing hands with soap before eating and preparing food, and after using of the toilet.

The study also unearthed that two out of three incidents of illnesses among children aged 16 or less translated in loss of three school days. Besides, two out of three children in the country between five and 15 experience one bout of infection every two months.

The Lifebuoy Cost of Infection Study was conducted in association with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in India, a department of the London School of Economics. The findings were shared in a hand hygiene awareness campaign by Nitin Paranjpe, the CEO of Hindustan Unilever Ltd.

A Visionary Leaves His Legacy

Like the rest of the housekeeping fraternity, Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd. too is deeply grieved by the demise of Kapil Krishnatrey, on 7th Sept 2012. He suffered a sudden cardiac arrest on 12th August of this year. Krishnatrey began his career

under the guidance of his Guru, Shri Ravimoorthy. Soon he was motivated by his inherent entrepreneurial vision and started Quartz Home Care with Hemant Monga as partner, in 1991.Their venture evolved to become a Pvt. Ltd. company in 1995.

Quartz Home Care(I) Pvt. Ltd. is one of the leading manufacturing & trading companies in the Indian housekeeping industry, which is engaged in providing comprehensive cleaning solutions, equipments and accessories to the institutions and households.

Krishnatrey was a visionary in the field of housekeeping products, and he was one of the first in the Indian housekeeping industry to introduce the concept of modern

housekeeping tools like wringer and multipurpose trolleys, scrubbing machines, etc. He always showed a passionate interest towards product innovations in the field of housekeeping.

His wife Sudha, daughter Megha and son Vansh are determined to concertedly carry forward his legacy.

BMC to Impart Training to Street Food Vendors

With the advent of Food Safety and Standards Act, food hygiene has assumed great importance among the civic bodies and as well as the Indian food & beverage industry at large. Recently it came to light that Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has joined hands with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to conduct training sessions for street food vendors, which is expected to facilitate that better hygienic food will be served on street side food stalls of Mumbai.

According to the civic officials, about 25 percent to 30 percent of the population of Mumbai partake at least one meal at the multitude of roadside food stalls dotted across the metro by the Arabian Sea. However, they are unsure about whether the roadside stalls serve hygienic and healthy food. This project has been taken under the ambit of Food Standards and Safety Act, 2007.

The civic body will take off a pilot project under which 50 khau galis (food lanes) have been shortlisted, where vendors selling food will be trained. According to the Additional Municipal Commissioner of BMC, Manisha Mhaiskar, the sessions will involve training to street food vendors in cooking, storing and handling of food.

These food lanes are situated in the vicinity of important places of Mumbai like the stock exchange, railway stations, educational institutes and tourist spots, which attract huge footfalls. Civic officials hope that the incidents of diseases like jaundice, typhoid, and gastroenteritis could be reduced in the city following execution of this project.

A team of sanitary inspectors, doctors, and deputy health officers have been formed for this project. After the completion of the training, BMC is envisaging to conduct a safe street food festival.

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Sept-Oct ’128

QUALITYASSUREDCOMPANY

PepsiCo’s PepsiCorps Reaches IndiaPepsiCo has announced the India launch of PepsiCorps, a one-month on-the-

ground program that leverages an employee’s business skills to make a positive impact on the world. As part of the program, the PepsiCorps team of eight employees has initiated water conservation projects with Bhoruka Charitable Trust (BCT), in Churu district, Rajasthan, which aims to develop a long-term, sustainable solution to tackle the water scarcity

challenges faced by the Bhorugram community. PepsiCorps provides employees with an international business experience that

encapsulates PepsiCo’s ‘Performance with Purpose’ agenda, whose belief is that long-term profitable growth can be achieved by delivering a healthier, sustainable future for the people and our planet.

Talking about the project in Bhorugram, Sergio Ezama, the Senior Vice President, Talent Management and Development at PepsiCo, articulated, “One of our environmental sustainability commitments as part of ‘Performance with Purpose’ is the human right to clean water. In sending a PepsiCorps team to India, we can pass on the skills needed in Bhorugram to conserve water and improve availability in the region.”

Here it deserves a mention that PepsiCorps is the company’s first overseas employee skills-based service program. Its pilot project in 2011 entailed working with local Water Boards in Denu, Ghana, for improving community access to clean water, boosting eco-tourism, and teaching hygiene in schools. PepsiCo has been lauded for its water conservation initiatives across its business operations and agricultural supply chain around the world.

An Awareness Campaign for Hygiene Nirmal Bharat Yatra, an ambitious government campaign to disseminate awareness

and important information about hygienic practices, was flagged off from Wardha, in Maharashtra, on October 3. The multi-media campaign, which will culminate in Bettiah, located in Bihar, on 17th November, seeks to promote awareness and behavioral change around sanitation and hygiene in India. It is also known as the Great WASH Yatra.

The span of this yatra is 200 km and 56 days, and its ambit includes cities like Indore, Kota, Gwalior, and Gorakhpur, besides of course, Wardha and Bettiah. The yatra’s tenure in Indore saw the celebration of Global Handwashing Day. The programme of the yatra also entails tackling the nagging and hackneyed prejudices of our predominantly feudalistic society around menstrual hygiene management. It is promoting the message of making the country open defecation-free and ensuring proper sanitation in rural areas.

Berlin-based WASH United, and Quicksand Design Studio(a Delhi-based social innovation consultancy), who are organising this campaign with the government of India, have joined hands with Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan to translate into reality this fare like huge campaign to address India’s sanitation and hygiene problems. Among other prominent players participating in this healthy endeavour as key partners are Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council. The campaign entails an investment of Rs.12 crore.

As conceived likewise, the yatra is being showcased as a travelling carnival featuring sanitation and hygiene themed games, musical performances and magic shows. It is spruced with exciting interactive games, Bollywood style performances and dozens of other attractions — all aimed at tackling India’s sanitation and hygiene crisis.

An entirely innovative set of exciting interactive educational games, communication materials, and WASH events are being developed. These materials are taking inspiration from products, cultural paradigms, and symbols that create excitement amongst Indian people. This is what one can say fun with education, or should we say the height of edutainment?

Sept-Oct ’1210

COVER STORY

When you step into any place and praise it for its maintenance, its spic and span

appearance; chances are you have got impressed by the floor cleanliness of the premise. No wonder that floor cleaning is a major task and as well as a challenge for most cleaners all over the world. The main job of most of the cleaners across the globe still remains the mundane but extremely important job of cleaning floors. Be it hospitals, hotels, restaurants, malls and homes, the major cleaning of the day remains maintaining the cleanliness of the floors by using

the most suitable method, which in turn depends on the type of floor to be cleaned.

The main reasons for floor cleaning are:•To endow the floor with beauty and aesthetic appeal.• To do away with stains, dirt, grime, litter and obstructions.• To remove grit and sand which lead to scratching and wearing down of the surface. • To remove allergens, in particular dust.• To c r e a t e a h y g i e n i c environment• To prevent injuries due to tripping

or slipping. Non adherence to proper practice in floor cleaning is a cause of accidents.

H e a l t h , R e t a i l a n d Hospitality

Floor cleaning is a sustained and often a painstaking exercise. It assumes great importance in hospitals where it is extremely crucial to maintain sanitary conditions. As the environment of hospitals is potentially vulnerable to dangereous germs and virulent diseases on a daily basis, the role of floor cleaning becomes all the more important within hospital premises. Without exhaustive and thorough floor cleaning, hospitals

When you enter a premise of a property what is the first thing that you notice? Flooring, is inevitably, the most likely answer. Be it restaurant, hotel, mall or

any other public place the visitor is impressed when he sees clean flooring. The same applies for a residential premise. If you want to impress your guests, keep the floors looking spic and span. The interiors are generally noticed only at a second glance. No wonder, world over floor cleaning is one of the major tasks of the Facility Managers. However, as any Facility Manager — or for that matter even a housewife — will tell you, different types of floorings need different modes of cleaning. Ashok Malkani takes a look at the cleaning methods of some of the floors.

How to Remain

Floored? How to Remain

Floored?

11Sept-Oct ’12

COVER STORY

can become breeding ground for infections and thus the purpose of their very existence gets defeated.

The contamination of hospital floors takes place through airborne bacteria, and through contact with shoes, trolley wheels, other solid objects, and also through occasional spilling of urine and other body excretions. Replacing brooms with vacuum cleaners in hospital wards can significantly reduce dispersal of bacteria into the air, but for hospital floors, simply application of vacuum cleaners wouldn’t help to remove bacteria to a great extent. Good old fashioned scrubbing and disinfection are believed to be more effective alternatives in floor cleaning, especially for hospitals.

However, floor cleaning in malls, hotels and other public places, which attract huge footfalls on a daily basis, and where maintaining floor cleanliness is one of the important factors behind attracting repeat visitors, is also extremely crucial. Succinctly, floor cleaning has both immense utilitarian and cosmetic

appeal for properties, and especially for hospitals, malls and hotels, the role of floor cleaning cannot be overemphasised. In health, retail and hospitality sector floor cleaning is one of the edifices on which the operations function.

Facilitating Floor Cleaning Floor cleaning can be a Herculian

endeavour for a property attracting huge footfalls on a daily basis, but a

good quality entrance matting which is maintained well can facilitate to lower the load of floor cleaning in the property concerned to a great extent. In public and office buildings more than 80 percent of dirt infiltrates from outside, and in this regard, installing of good quality entrance matting consisting of both indoor and outdoor sections can be of great

help in absorbing most of the dirt at the entrance of the premises. Investing in good floor mats and

taking the simple precaution of removing the shoes when within premises can facilitate floor cleaning in homes.

One of the essential elements of floor cleaning is that the floor should not remain even slightly wet after it is mopped. This is not only very important for safety of the people residing, coming or living in the property concerned, but a wet floor can increase the task of floor cleaning,

whenever dirt and/or grime attracts wetness. Today, the application of sophisticated floor cleaning machines like floor buffers, automatic floor scrubbers and sweepers, and carpet extractors can afford deep cleaning of a wide variety of hard floor and carpeted flooring surface in much less time than a traditional floor cleaning technology could have

offered in the past. Though these sophisticated machines have been unable to make the task of floor cleaning easy, but they have made it easier than before.

While undertaking floor cleaning, one must realise that there are different types of floors and they cannot be subjected to the same cleaning operations, if one has to yield the optimum cleaning results. Different types of floors need different types of cleaning.

Ceramic Tile Flooring For ceramic tile flooring one must

remember that improper care for this type of flooring can result in a residue build up on the surface causing the tile to be hazardous. Wax or oil based detergents may decrease the slip resistance and are not recommended for ceramic tiles. Dirt clings easily to the surface of ceramic tiles, especially tiles with textured surfaces. However, most dirt can be eliminated through regular sweeping. A vacuum cleaner can be used for sweeping, but ensure that you use one without a beater bar for preventing dulling and scratching the tiles. Vacuum cleaner attachments are great to absorb dirt along edges or in between tiles. Ceramic tile floors should be damp-mopped

Sept-Oct ’1212

COVER STORY

using manufacturer-recommended grout and tile cleaners. For heavier soil, Facility Managers advice spot cleaning the floor with a sponge or clean cloth, using the same recommended cleaners.

Ceramic-tile floors can be cleaned easily with nothing but warm water, but be sure to sweep or vacuum first to remove any loose soil or grit. Do not apply a sponge mop for cleaning ceramic-tile floors. It will pull the dirt right into the grout tracks, thus making the floor more challenging to clean. “A micro fiber mop absorbs all the dirt that a sponge mop leaves as residue. Pour the ingredients into a bucket and use a rag or a micro fiber mop to clean. If you do use a rag and employ the on-your-hands-and-knees method, be sure to wipe in a circular motion across the floor,” offered an expert in the housekeeping industry.

Overall, the proper care of your ceramic tile floor will prevent it

from getting damaged, maintain its beauty and elegance and also make it enduring.

Marvel at the Marble Despite its classy statement,

marble flooring is also subject to soiling. It is better to sweep the marble floor every day, and mop it with plain water at least once a week. Never subject the marble floor to harsh cleaning chemicals as they can make holes in it.

Kanak Raj, Managing Director, Miraclean Tools Pvt. Ltd., advises that for cleaning marble flooring, one should always use a cleaner made especially for marble cleaning, as marble can be vulnerable to many things. Here it deserves a mention that marble floors are more susceptible to staining than say granite floors as a result of the former’s more porous nature. Both low PH liquids like orange juice and vinegar, and as well as caustic

household detergents and cleaners with high PH level can do damage to marble floors. Thus marble flooring needs extra care in its maintenance.

Marble floors require cleaning on a regular basis, but the cleaning

What is now being preferred by the utility owners and Facility Managers is green cleaning. Many of the conventional cleaning products that promise to us effective floor cleaning are laden with bad effects for our health and environment. If you use conventional cleaning products on your

flooS, then chances are that you may be applying potentially toxic chemicals across the largest surface area of your homes, offices, hospitals, hotels, etc. Here it deserves a mention that some of the conventional floor cleaners include a surprisingly high toxic content. People exposed to the heavy-duty cleaners often get eye irritation, dizziness, and/or are saddled with loss of concentration, fatigue, coughing, asthma attacks, respiratory infections, and hypersensitivity pneumonitis. Many of the conventional floor cleaners which may highlight your floor with shine may also give you off-gassing of petroleum-based polymers. Moreover, some of the fragrances that emanate from conventional floor cleaners are either indoor air pollutants on their own, or are inert on their own but get amalgamated with ozone to create formaldehyde and other toxic air contaminates. And then consider that indoor pollution is much more pervasive and dangerous in its affects than outdoor air pollution, and chances are you will be switching on to green cleaning of your floors, like many other intelligent and sensitive property owners and Facility Managers are doing already. Most of the conventional cleaning products we use or are habituated to use are petroleum-based and have adverse health and environmental influences. As the petroleum-based cleaning products that are conventionally used in housekeeping activities can affect the environment and health of the people adversely, quite obviously products which can keep the premises spic and span without the toxic side effects have slowly emerged as the preferred cleaning alternative in these relatively environmentally conscious times. Many of these green cleaning products are non-toxic, biodegradable, and made from renewable resources.Increasing eco-sensitivity among the entrepreneurs, and easy availability of eco-friendly products have also induced the housekeeping services to change their approach and offer better solutions that can take care of not only the health and hygiene of the employees and guests, but also of the environment. This, in turn, has encouraged the competition among the manufacturers of eco-friendly range of cleaning products. As people not only at homes but also at hotels and other commercial properties are opting for green cleaning products, manufacturers of these cleaning products need to meet the expectations of the people in order to grow their business.

The New Age of Green Cleaning

13Sept-Oct ’12

COVER STORY

of marble floors should not involve acidic cleaning detergents. It is ideal to clean marble floors with warm water and PH neutral cleaning solution.

Liquid hand soap, hot water and micro fibre mop are essential ingredients for cleaning marble floors. Drying the marble flooring after moping it is a must, for you can’t let water settle on marble. Therefore, mopping of marble floors should be followed by towel drying it. A wet marble floor gets quickly spotted. Regular polishing is also part of the maintenance of marble flooring. Marble floor is also vulnerable to scratches.

The first thing you should do with marble flooring is to seal it. The sealant will not only make it a little slicker than it would be otherwise, but also will keep the marble from getting stained. If your floor has wax on it and the wax is dirty, you can get a special wax remover to take the old wax off with so that you can re-seal your marble floor and put on a new coat of wax. “It should be remembered that lots of things can stain marble and the stain needs to be addressed with urgency. Simply rinse a piece of paper towel of the size of the stain with water and a little peroxide, then place it over the stain and come back in a couple of hours. You are likely to be pleasantly surprised to see that the stain has come off,” offered Raj.

To tackle stains of food and

plants on marble flooring you can make a paste of chalk dust and hydrogen peroxide, and then place the paste on the stain for overnight. It is prudent to cover the paste spot so as prevent yourself and others from inadvertently stepping on it. Wipe the paste in the morning, and you would be happy to see that the stain has gone. Wash the spot off and then dry it. For grease stains on marble flooring same method can be employed, but the paste would have to be slightly different. Here chalk dust should be mixed with those types of clear fingernail polish removers which have acetone in them.

Make the Stone Shine There are many ways to clean

granite floors in a manner so that they can look sparkling and brilliant. However, while undertaking cleaning of granite flooring it is wise to remember to avoid using harsh cleaners as they can damage the sealant and dull the finish.

It is advisable to periodically clean granite surfaces with a natural stone or granite cleaner to maintain their shine. Using granite cleaner for granite flooring is always preferred, though for its daily maintenance, sweeping and dusting can be sufficient. Resealing the granite surface c a n h e l p i t p r e s e r v e i t s s h i n e a n d make it have a n e n d u r i n g presence. If you have a scratch on the granite sur face, i t i s best to get it addressed by a professional. It is also advisable t o k e e p h o t i t e m s a w a y f rom gran i te sur face. Also avoid placing citrus or alcohol products on the granite surface as they can etch

and dull the surface. As granite is a porous stone, it

is not right to let a stain on granite floor linger for long. The duration of the stains is an essential factor to be taken into account while undertaking removal of stains from granite floors. The longer the stain’s presence on the granite surface, more difficult it would be to remove it. It is also advisable to blot at the stain on granite surfaces, rather than rubbing it, as rubbing may lead to spreading of the stain. Powdered whiting product such as talc, and hydrogen peroxide, water, tape, a small bowl, plastic wrap, clean cloths or sponge, and micro fibre cloth are essential ingredients for cleaning stains from granite floors. Though granite floors are not as vulnerable to staining as marble floors, it is better not to use acidic liquids on them. Like marble floors, warm water and PH neutral soap are ideal cleaning solutions for granite floors.

One of the important measures you can initiate to prevent wear and tear of your marble and granite floors is to apply a neutral PH breathable sealer after you have installed the floors. This sealer will need to be reapplied regularly depending upon how much footfalls your floors have to actually withstand.

Sept-Oct ’1214

BUSINESS

If the disturbing happenings involving continued threats to our already fragi le environment from air, water and sound pollution; from scattered deposits of bio-

medical, municipal, industrial and electronic waste does make us wake up to the impending peril, the good news is that the trend of green buildings is gathering momentum across the globe. In fact, in this age of growing environment consciousness, which parallels the rapid devastation of our natural resources and environment, the importance and relevance of green buildings has

gained its due urgency. Environmentally friendly homes,

offices, hotels, and retail spaces have graduated from mere luxury or fashion statements. They are increasingly becoming necessities of our jeopardised times. What is more relevant is that this global trend has also permeated in to Indian business ethos or corporate culture, and is on its way to cement its presence in an enduring manner.

Like elsewhere in the planet, India too has woken up to the needs and benefits of sustainable architecture, but still there is a long way to go before this happening trend is to

become an established culture, at least in the Indian context. For example, the minimal usage of solar and wind power in Indian buildings and the appalling state of ventilation among majority of Indian homes and offices leave much to be desired.

The Green Benefits The construction, habitation and

the day-today usage of green buildings not only help us to contribute towards the cause of environment, which in itself deserves urgent attention. The green buildings also contribute towards lowering the operating costs, increasing marketability of

BuildingSustainable Edifices

By Swarnendu Biswas

15Sept-Oct ’12

BUSINESS

the buildings and giving an impetus to the owners’ image; corporate or otherwise.

Adherence to strict eco-friendly practices also facilitates the durability the building, and can give an impetus to the productivity of the workers or the people who use or inhabit the said property, as the possibility of their catching an ailment through indoor air pollution decreases markedly in an environment friendly building, than that of in a conventional building, on a average.

Though it may apparently seem a costly exercise, an eco-friendly building is cost-effective in its maintenance in the long run, as it saves important resources in the form of land, water and energy. Introduction of green technologies may require more initial investment than traditional technologies, but their day-to-day running is more cost-efficient than conventional technologies.

According to IGBC(Indian Green Building Council), besides a slew of intangible benefits, green homes can bring immediate tangible benefits in the way of energy savings ranging from 20 -30 percent, and water savings ranging from 30-50 percent over the non green buildings, from day one of their operations. Green buildings also generate less waste than conventional buildings through the use of efficient waste management strategies on site, and tend to generate less pollution; both during construction and in use.

World over, the construction industry is rightly viewed as a major consumer of our scarce and non renewable energy resources. In this context, it is worthwhile to point out that the use of raw materials comprising natural resources and non- renewable energy sources in the green buildings should ideally be based on the edifices of reduce, reuse and recycle, without compromising on the modern day standards of living.

Succinctly, besides facilitating to effectively address the menace of indoor air pollution by restoring and/or maintaining good indoor air quality, a green building should have resource efficiency, energy efficiency,

adequate water conser vat ion measures, and at the same time be economically feasible and affordable in its construction and day-to-day usage.

T h e E c o - f r i e n d l y Requirements

A green building should make extensive use of eco-friendly materials and products in its design. First of all, the green building users and also the would be green building users should avoid using volatile organic compounds, which can cause a wide array of symptoms ranging from headaches, eye irritation and chronic coughing, to fatigue, depression and even loss of memory. VOCs are both naturally occurring and synthetic, and they evaporate easily at room temperature. Over long periods of time, VOC vapours are gradually released into the air at room temperature. These vapours are not detectable by your human senses, but can affect the environment and human health. VOCs are numerous, varied, and somewhat omnipresent.

In a building, VOCs can be present especially in wood paneling, particleboard, carpets, paints, glues, finishes, solvents, and pesticides. They can also be found in building materials and furnishings, and office equipments such as copiers and printers. Installing an exhaust

system for radon gas; a gas with a sizeable potential of causing lung cancer, avoiding wood products which contain formaldehyde and sealing those which do, using low or no VOC interior paints, using of solvent-free finishes, and solvent-free construction adhesives are some of the effective measures that should be adopted by a building endeavouring to be environmentally friendly. The usage of terracotta floor tiles and fly ash bricks can also make an elegant statement towards green architecture.

The green buildings should also strive to optimally utilise the scarce resources of water, LPG, electricity, and also waste and other non-renewable resources, thereby minimising their wastage in the process. They should also endeavour to use renewable resources like wind energy and solar power wherever feasible and avoid the consumption of the renewable sources of energy wherever possible.

Wind power and solar power are two of the important renewable and cost-effective sources of energy, which deserve to attract wider acceptance among Indians. They are the energies of the future. Generating electricity through wind turbines or solar panels can uplift the eco-friendly credentials of a given property.

In India, unhealthy forms of

Sept-Oct ’1216

cooking have caused millions of deaths. Cooking with solar power can greatly check the indoor air pollution. However, we could fi nd that very few residential buildings, offi ces or hospitality properties in India employing such methods. Lamentably, still the usage of renewable and non polluting source of solar energy is far from being vogue in the country.

Green buildings should also have great ventilation facility. Absence of adequate ventilation, which is a rampant feature in the Indian homes and offices, is another important cause of indoor air pollution. Not only in rural India, but even in an apparently sleek office in a posh area of Mumbai or Delhi, indoor air pollution because of inadequate ventilation could be very much omnipresent. The maturation of the green building culture could hopefully address this challenge in the country.

L e a d i n g t h e G r e e n Movement

But despite the fact that solar cooking is yet to gain widespread recognition in Indian buildings, despite the fact that poor ventilation is still a predominant feature of many rural homes and also urban buildings in the country, the trend of eco-friendly architecture is also catching up in the country.

This again endorses the fact that India, where people live in several centuries simultaneously, is a land of astonishing contrasts. Today country’s green buildings encompass a wide variety of properties, which include corporate campuses, residential complexes, commercial complexes, hospitals, and hotels among others

The CII-Sohrab j i Godre j Green Business Centre, located in Hyderabad, is one of the revered institutions which have been instrumental in ushering the green building movement in India.

CII-Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Centre, which offers advisory services to the industry in the areas of green buildings, energy effi ciency, water management, environmental management, renewable energy, green business incubation and climate change activities, is housed in a green building which received the prestigious LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Platinum rating in 2003. This was the fi rst LEED Platinum rated green building outside of USA and the third in the world. It is the

first LEED Platinum rated green building in our country. The building is one of the 10 Centres of Excellences of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

Located in the HITEC City, a major technology township of Hyderabad, locally available materials and sustainable energy

sources have been extensively used in CII-Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Centre. The building

features adequate green spaces. Here local stone

and waste construction materials are

used for

external cladding. The building was conceived and designed for optimal usage of natural light for day-lighting, at the same time without getting undesired heat inside. Unwanted gain of heat is reduced through simple design principles like earth berming. Furthermore, heat gain through openings is also reduced through intelligent design of windows. There are roof gardens which play a major role in insulating the building.

In terms of usage of energy and water also the building sets exemplary trends to emulate. Solar energy is used to generate electricity that is used in the building. Rain water is recharged into the ground. The landscaped garden of the property is dotted with a variety of local plants and trees which require less water for irrigation. The garden has been designed in a way such that all rainwater is retained. At CII-Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Centre, all waste water is treated in a root zone treatment facility. The treated water is then used for fl ushing toilets and irrigating the garden.

IGBC (Indian Green Building Council), which is part of CII- Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Centre, is actively involved in promoting the green building concept in India. The council is represented by all stakeholders of construction industry comprising of corporate, government & nodal agencies, architects, product manufacturers, institutions, etc.

Indian Green Building Council Green Homes is the first rating programme developed in India, exclusively for the residential sector. It is based on accepted energy and environmental principles and strikes a balance between known established practices and emerging concepts. The system is designed to be comprehensive in scope, yet simple in operations.

IGBC continually works towards providing tools that facilitate the adoption of green building practices in India. The development of IGBC Green Townships Rating System is another important step in this direction.

The rating system is designed to

eco-friendly architecture is also catching up in the country.

of Hyderabad, locally available materials and sustainable energy

sources have been extensively used in CII-Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Centre. The building

features adequate green spaces. Here local stone

and waste construction materials are

used for

BUSINESS

17Sept-Oct ’12

address large developments and it is mandatory to include residential development as part of the township. Some typical examples of large scale developments are integrated townships, satellite cities, gated communities, campuses with multiple buildings, etc.

The Unique Players Among the players doing great

work in terms of spreading the eco-friendly message across post-modern architectural traditions of India, the name of TERI or The Energy and Resources Institute deserves special mention. TERI fulfills its mandate of sustainable development by advocating the concept of green buildings, which register minimal pressure on the environment. Embodying resource and energy-efficiency, the eco-friendly buildings created by TERI reflect sustainable implementation of green practices. TERI has also introduced GRIHA, a rating system to adjudge the ‘greenness’ of buildings, which has contributed to the popularity of the ongoing green building initiative across the country.

One of the famous eco-friendly bui ld ings f rom TERI i s the RETREAT, at Gurgaon. Spread across 38 hectare, RETREAT is a part of TERI’s Gual Pahari campus, located about 30 km south of Delhi, in the state of Haryana. This residential training facility for executives is designed to be self-sufficient, and independent of any external power supply. It consists of two semicircular blocks arranged one behind the other. The south block comprises the living quarters with twenty-four single-occupancy rooms and 6 suites and the north block comprises the conference centre with a large hall, a dining room, a lounge, recreational facilities, and a library.

At the RETREAT, twenty-four solar water-heating panels inclined at 70 degrees supply up to 2000 litres of hot water every day. Photovoltaic panels capture the Sun’s energy and recharge their batteries during the day. The energy generated by the panels is fed into a battery bank, which is the main source of power at the property at night. Firewood,

dried leaves and twigs, the stubble left in the field after a crop is harvested, and such other forms of biomass fuel the 50-kilowatt gasifier that is the source of power for the building during the day.

Effective insulation, shade provided by trees, and a network of underground earth air tunnels circulating cool subterranean air throughout the residential block ensure that the temperature at the RETREAT remains more or less even all year round; varying from 20 degree centigrade in winters to 28 degree centigrade in the dry summer, to 30 degree centigrade in the monsoon. The system has been strengthened by adding chillers for dehumidification and through provision of additional cooling during the monsoon.

Of course, TERI is not alone. There are now quite a few remarkable players giving the green building movement in India its desired momentum. Fostered by the motto to ‘Create, Care and Conserve,’ the Noida-based3C Company has quickly established itself as the leader of green building movement across Delhi NCR. It is the only company in the Asia Pacific to have three Platinum rated and four Gold rated LEED certified green buildings by IGBC (Indian Green Building Council), under the umbrella of USGBC (US Green Building Council). One of its most esteemed projects is the Green Boulevard, in Noida.

Green Boulevard is the world’s largest Platinum rated LEED certified green building from USGBC (United States Green Building Council) in Shell & Core Category. The building is a multi-tenant project that is based on the concept of creating a congenial campus like environment, where every tenant can share common areas, facilities and still retain their privacy.

The three towers o f th i s 9,52000 sq.ft. eco-friendly real estate development are staggered horizontally and vertically, giving each one visibility from the road. The shaded stilted landscape areas of the majestic building provide easy visual & physical connections, which

greatly contributes towards creating an interactive environment.

The towers are designed around shaded landscape courts with water bodies & plants, which facilitate to lower the ambient temperature. The building depth has been optimised to absorb daylight and to maximise views. From the second floor onwards one can find private areas or offices in this building.

All the exterior shading systems of Green Boulevard are designed to cut off the heat and get glare-free light. Pre-cooled fresh air; the heat recovery wheel and free cooling during fair weather further contribute towards energy conservation of the building. The inherent design principle of the Green Boulevard strives to balance environmental responsibility, energy efficiency, and resource efficiency, comfort of the occupant and community sensitivity.

Another of the many unique eco-friendly real estate creations of 3C Company is the construction of the Wipro Technologies building at Gurgaon, which happens to be a Platinum rated LEED certified green building by IGBC (under the umbrella of USGBC). The focus of the design element of the building is the inverted cone, strategically located at the cross junction of two roads to give visibility to the building. An important highlight of the building is an open to sky landscape courtyard that contributes in keeping the building cool during summers. All open office spaces look into the courtyard, thus these spaces have good access to daylight.

The courtyard acts as a light well, a microclimatic generator and a landscape element. All the office work areas at the Wipro Technologies building at Gurgaon are designed around this landscape court. Mutual shading of the courtyard walls keeps them cooler than the outside walls. Walls of the courtyard are painted in a light colour for diffused reflected light.

Some of the distinguishing eco-friendly features of Wipro Technologies building at Gurgaon include a reduced overall conductance for the envelops, terrace gardens, high-performance grass with optimum visual light transmittance,

BUSINESS

Sept-Oct ’1218 Sept-Oct ’1218

exterior light shelves and over hangs for all windows, efficient chillers, efficient lighting using lamps and ample daylight spaces with photo sensor controls.

Then take the case of T-Zed from Biodiversity Conservation India Ltd. (BCIL), in Whitefield, Bangalore. T-Zed combines the company’s emphasis on community values and its commitment to conservation. The residential project is spread across 5 acres, comprising 76 apartments and 15 villas.

This residential enclave employs green technologies; and its green campus is made of soil stabilised blocks. The residential campus has no water supply from outside, but has developed its own water resource through a network of shallow, open wells. T-Zed doesn’t have deep bore wells which endanger the reservoir of groundwater. What is more, the campus doesn’t have sewerage connection. All waste water is treated and reused for gardens in a way that such water eventually percolates into the open wells and thus completes the cycle of use, treatment and reuse.

Here it deserves a mention that since the last one-and-a-half decade, BCIL has built several communities, while emphasising on sustainability. Its communities have won several international awards for sustainability. BCIL strives to introduce innovations in providing sustainable solutions which lead to significant cost savings to its residents.

A recent offering by BCIL is the Zed Earth, which is shaping up to be a sprawling 20 acre residential enclave comprising 130 villas that is being developed about 20 km from the centre of Bangalore. The zero energy designs of the homes at Zed Earth are geared to offer the best of comfort, convenience and sustainability. These homes are built

to be naturally cool. The homes at Zed Earth, set in a verdant oasis of greenery, are built to avoid heat gains.

Roads at Zed Earth have been made using construction debris; a propriety technology that offers roads needing zero repairs for 15 years. Most of the electricity requirements of Zed Earth are catered by solar panels, and unused electricity is given back to the grid. At Zed Earth the water is recycled, bio-waste is composted, and clinical waste is being used in ‘scientific landfills’ within the enclave.

Rainwater harvesting is employed at the Zed Earth campus, which enables efficient reuse of water. The residential complex ‘grows’ its own water without the import of BWSSB water and doesn’t use bore wells. The complex is equipped with ground water recharge and retention systems. The low-flow fixtures at Zed Earth curtail the net water demand by as much as 30,000 liters a year.

Drip irrigation is used for the entire landscaping. Zed Earth campus also has taps endowed with aerators for reducing the unit quantity of water for a given pressure. Re-looping of treated waste water for flushing is also there at Zed Earth, as is effluent waste management with in-house tertiary waste water systems. These are only some of the plethora of major eco-friendly facilities awaiting the residents of Zed Earth.

Need of the Hour Today we need green homes and

offices not only for our environment but also to reduce operating costs. However, like all major movements of the world, the green building movement is also continually evolving with time. Innovative technologies are continually being developed and implemented to complement the conventional practices of creating greener structures.

According to the renowned environmentally friendly architect Chitra Vishwanath, the Managing Director of Biome Environmental Solutions Pvt. Ltd. “There is an urgent need to work at an architectural trend which appreciates our materials and climate, along with a good knowledge

of and respect towards them. This certainly is a challenging task and has to be taken most earnestly.”

The usage of waterless urinals, sensor taps, heat reflecting paints, etc. are only some of the other simple and popular environmentally-friendly measures that a building can adopt. But we do not always need trendy technologies to build a green home.

“We should work with low embodied energy materials; we should look at developing designs which are self sufficient with respect to their energy and water needs. We are at a stage wherein we can develop our indigenous and relevant technologies rather than going for a real estate product involving conventional western technologies,” affirmed Chitra.

The importance and relevance of green buildings is gaining currency in India, but we have to consider the philosophy of going green more holistically. We need to remember that simply construction of green buildings in an area where pollution is rampant wouldn’t make much of a difference to the surrounding environment at large.

In this case the role of Wipro in the construction of Wipro Technologies building at Gurgaon deserves special mention. While constructing this stately and eco-friendly building Wipro made a sincere endeavour to minimise the negative impact of building construction on its surrounding areas. Excavation has been done at a steep angle of 10 degrees to prevent soil erosion from vertical faces. Moreover, existing trees along the periphery have been retained to stabilise the soil and prevent soil erosion.

The green res identia l and commercial structures, green retail establishments, green hospitals or for that matter, green public utilities would have any enduring macro effect on the environment at large, only if they are supplemented by a facilitative eco-friendly infrastructure and support system in the surroundings and/or vicinity. This need has fostered the idea of green townships, which are already a welcome reality, with great potential to mushroom across the metropolitan landscape of India in the years to come. ■

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FEATURE

In these health conscious times, beauty is also assuming hygienic connotations. In this scenario, the beauty and wellness products laden with

baneful chemicals are likely to lose popularity among people in the years to come.

The growing trend towards health consciousness, coupled with the growing awareness about the possible pitfalls of conventional

chemical cosmetic care in the society has been creatively explored by some enlightened entrepreneurs like Shahnaz Husain; who has become a brand and an institution in herself, Vinita Jain of Biotique, and Vandana Luthra of VLCC. They have come up with innovative and healthy wellness products and treatments, and proved that beauty is much more than skin-deep but is about holistic physical and mental well-being.

Today, the infl uence of Ayurveda in the Indian cosmetics industry has become vogue, and merging of holistic hygiene and healthcare, and beauty is emerging as a signifi cant business reality.

The Herbal Revolution This healthy trend germinated

and eventually got coalesced from an herbal cure and care revolution, that was initiated way back in the early 1970s, by the herbal empress of the Indian beauty industry, Shahnaz Husain. Without her magnetic presence we would not have seen the mushrooming of Ayurvedic beauty business in our developing economy, for she stimulated this beautiful revolution into taking off more than four decades ago.

Shahnaz revived a long forgotten science of wellness and made it trendy by bolstering it with the latest research and technologies, and inspired the cottage beauty business of the country to become a global industry worth many thousands of crores, with potency to provide livelihoods to millions in the decades to come. More importantly, she

infused the aura of wellness and health in the business of beauty.

“It has been seen that natural organic ingredients are endowed with many benefi cial properties and they actually help to enhance the beauty and health of skin and hair. Another important advantage of theirs is that they have shown a lack of harmful side-effects. Synthetic preparations and chemical ingredients, on the other hand, can cause allergic and irritative reactions,” elaborated Shahnaz. She also warned that many of the synthetic beauty products can also cause a build-up of toxins in the system, over a period of time.

Induced to Change Though she studied the science

and aesthetics of beauty business from the leading institutions of the west such as Helena Rubinstein in London, Christine Valmy in New York, Swarzkopf in Germany, Lancome in Paris, and Lean of Copenhagen among others, but after this decade-long exposure to the western cosmetic care, she, like all true champions and visionary business leaders, made a surprising shift…a shift to Ayurveda.

It sounds amazing that after having such an impressive grounding in western tradition of cosmetic therapy and cosmetology, she preferred to return to the ancient herbal healing system of Ayurveda for tailoring unique and customised beauty and wellness solutions for a young and aspiring nation. She applied this Indian system of herbal healing to the modern day beauty

Sept-Oct ’1220

Beauty Healthy Beauty Healthy Making

By Swarnendu Biswas

Shahnaz Husain

21Sept-Oct ’12

FEATURE

industry and created history or rather Herstory in the process. Of course, before she began her enterprise, she had acquired enormous mastery over Ayurveda, which she believed could provide the right solutions in modern day cosmetic care.

“While training with Rubinstein in London, I came across instances of physical damage caused by the application of chemical treatments in beauty care. During my stint in Rubinstein, when I was dealing with skin disorders, I realised that a large number of problems were due to the absorption of synthetic cosmetics. In a way, those real life examples changed the course of my life’s mission and gave a new direction to my career. I became driven by the passion to fi nd a natural route towards beauty that was devoid of health risks,” explained Shahnaz. She looked towards nature, and found her answer.

Pioneering a Trend “I came back to India

and started my fi rst herbal salon in the verandah of my home in New Delhi, in 1971, in a very modest way. I rejected the existing salon treatments and devised my own. I also began to

formulate my own products using plant ingredients and natural substances, based on the Ayurvedic system. I adopted the concept of ‘herbal care and cure’, which was then a unique, path-breaking concept in the Indian beauty industry,” proclaimed the pioneer lady. Her fi rst range of products is known as Shahnaz Herbal, which was followed by other ranges.

“Since the early 70s, I began formulating my own products, by amalgamating the age-old herbal remedies with the latest techniques. Within no time, these products began attracting massive consumer interest,”

stated Shahnaz, while cast ing her usual ravishing smile.

The herbal beauty and wellness business of Shahnaz, which was started from a verandah, has now grown into a huge wellness empire, and has now spread throughout India and also across many other parts of the globe. Products from her group of companies have presence in more than 100 countries of the wor ld. Shahnaz ’s success speaks about the importance of health in the beauty industry among the people at large.

“We have become known, not only for our treatments

21Sept-Oct ’12

Beauty Healthy Making

and wellness business of Shahnaz, which was started from a verandah, has now grown into a huge wellness empire, and has now spread throughout India and also across many other parts of the globe. Products from her group of companies have presence in more than 100 countries of the wor ld. Shahnaz ’s success speaks about the importance of health in the beauty industry among the people at large.


to fi nd a natural route towards beauty that was devoid of health risks,” explained Shahnaz. She looked towards nature, and found her answer.



stated Shahnaz, while

towards beauty that was devoid of health risks,” explained Shahnaz. She looked towards nature, and found her answer.



and wellness business of Shahnaz, which was started from a verandah, has now grown into a huge wellness empire, and has now spread throughout India and also across many other parts of the globe. Products from her group of companies have presence in more than 100 countries of the wor ld. Shahnaz ’s success speaks about the importance of health in the beauty industry among the people at large.


Shahnaz Husain’s Platinum Range

SHALIFE PLUS

Sept-Oct ’1222

FEATURE

for general beauty care, but also for our therapeutic products and salon treatments for addressing problems like acne, hyper-pigmentation, scars, premature ageing, dandruff, hair damage, hair loss, etc. Our products are based on the Ayurvedic system and contain herbs, flowers and fruit extracts, essential oils and other natural substances,” Shahnaz pointed out while talking about the health quotient of her care and cure products.

Shahnaz is quite passionate about elucidating the hygiene value of herbs. “Herbs and natural ingredients contained in our products have powerful healing properties and many benefits for skin and hair care. In fact, they have definite protective, preventive and corrective actions. They also contain vitamins, minerals, enzymes and other valuable substances, which are imperative for the health of skin and hair,” explained the diva. The super successful visionary also informed me that some of the herbs have great health connotations, helping to improve the normal functions of the skin and scalp, including that of cell renewal.

The Reign of Herbal Queen

Founded on the principle of ‘Care and Cure’, today the Shahnaz Husain name has become an internationally renowned institution, not only for her beauty products but also for her specialised treatments of skin and hair problems. Today the Shahnaz Husain Group has over 375

products for skin, hair and body care. Apart from the legendary Shahnaz Herbal range, the group has ranges of products for precise needs, as well as those based on specific extracts, like Flower Power (of floral extracts), Neem Range, Honey Collection, Saffron Range, Himalayan Range, Sun Collection (sun-block products), among others.

The group has recently c o m e u p w i t h s o m e revolutionary products in modern skin-care, which include the 24 Carat Gold Range, Pearl Cream and

Mask, Oxygen Cream, Diamond Collection, the revolutionary Platinum Range, the Nano Sun Block products, among others. Her company’s astonishing success story is reflected through an integrated system of salon chain and its plethora of care and cure products. “Our Platinum Range is an extravagant and exciting development in skin science. Based on nano technology and cell recharge formula, it has stormed the international markets. We have recently launched Platinum Jasmine Moisture Mist, which is in spray form and is designed to recharge, revitalise and refresh the skin. It also replenishes the desired moisture level in the skin,” informed the innovator cum businesswoman.

Over the years, Shahnaz Husain has created an impressive range of proprietary treatments for skin, hair and body. Among her most popular specialised salon treatments are the premium facials which include Platinum Facial, Diamond Facial, Gold Facial, Pearl Facial, Oxygen Facial, Step by Step Aromatherapy Facial, and Flower and Fruit facials. Thermoherb Mask and Vegetable Peel are some of the other new-age treatments offered at her salon, which were also invented by Shahnaz.

“Colour Veda is one of our latest products. It has been specially developed to offer a natural solution to hair colour. This miraculous formulation doesn’t involve any possible damage that is caused by repeated use of chemical hair

colourants and dyes. It is a unique combination of traditional Ayurvedic ingredients that are known to impart a darker colour to the hair naturally,” stated the empress of herbal beauty. Colour Veda is devoid of chemicals, and beneficial ingredients like amla, brahmi, shikakai, bhringaraj, and manjeeshtha are among its constituents. “The formulation conceals grey hair most effectively and promotes healthy hair growth at the same time. The perfect blend of plant ingredients not only colours the hair, but also enhances its soft, natural beauty,” added Shahnaz.

Fostering Holistic Care and Cure

However, as discussed before, Shahnaz Husain Group’s ambit goes much beyond beauty and skin care; it has extended its indelible presence in the realm of holistic wellness and healthcare also.

Her company ’s astonishing success story is reflected through an integrated system of salon chain and its plethora of care and cure products. Today, Shahnaz Husain heads a chain of over 400 franchise salons in India and abroad, with outlets in prestigious stores and locations all over the world. Her franchise-based enterprise has helped in the worldwide extension of the Shahnaz Herbal clinics, popularising her formidable range of nearly 350 products.

Now thanks to this legendary innovator-entrepreneur, cancer patients can have something to rejoice. “An advanced therapeutic range called Chemoline has also been introduced to alleviate the side effects of chemotherapy and radiation on the skin and hair. We are also launching our Telomere products for skin care, which are based on the most advanced biotechnology discoveries of our time. It is the result of cutting-edge research on chromosomes, in an effort to slow down the ageing process,” proffered the superwoman of our times.

A Trend Shapes Up Though Shahnaz is the pioneer

in introducing Ayurveda and herbal beauty to the twentieth century Indian

Sept-Oct ’1222

Shahnaz Husain’s Gold Range

23Sept-Oct ’12

cosmetics industry but subsequently, a few other talented and enterprising entrepreneurs have subsequently made their successful presence in the realm of hygienic cosmetics, and together they are spearheading this healthy and holistic wellness trend in India.

Trained in bio-technology from Switzerland, Vinita Jain used her immense knowledge and great predilection towards bio-science to start Biotique in 1992, which over the next two decades contributed greatly to the potent culture of organic beauty, spreading across the nation. Biotique uses time-tested Ayurvedic ingredients blended with contemporary science and beauty treatment requirements. Today Biotique is synonymous with serious skin and hair care developed from Ayurveda. According to her, “Biotique is a combination of the 5,000-year-old science of Ayurveda with 21st century biotechnology.”

Vinita orchestrates a team of qualified Ayurvedic doctors, scientists and cosmetologists to create Biotique products. Biotique is renowned for its highly effective skin and hair care products that treat and preserve health, beauty and well-being.

Here it deserves a mention that Biotique’s ingredients are 100 percent vegetarian, environmentally friendly, biodegradable, dermatologist tested for safety, and are made to EEC and FDA standards; incorporating the principles of preventive medicine for everyday use. The products of Biotique comprise of 100 percent natural botanicals, and are devoid of chemicals and preservatives.. Even the packaging of Biotique’s products are eco-friendly and recyclable.

Vandana Luthra’s VLCC’ is another important player in the realm of healthy beauty. The secret of the success of VLCC’s beauty treatments is the careful balance of activity, hydration, nourishment and protection, which rebuilds the skin’s natural defenses from the inside — from the cell to the surface. VLCC has over 100 herbal/Ayurvedic products under its ambit of personal care.

The VLCC Personal Care Line consists of over 100 skin-care, hair-care and body-care products retailed from 10,000 outlets through over 150 distributors, providing solutions for

skin care, body firming and shaping, foot care, hair care, and pain relieving. All the Personal Care Line products of VLCC are herbal / Ayurvedic in nature and have been formulated to suit all skin and hair types.

These products are made from special blends of botanical extracts, nutrients and aromatic oils, which are unique and highly effective product formulae. For example, in VLCC’s Dandruff Control Conditioner, the anti bacterial property of rosemary oil protects against scalp infection, and mint leaf extracts soothe, condition and gives extra refreshment. Similarly in VLCC’s Hair Fall Repair Conditioner, another of the wellness conglomerate’s products under its Personal Care division, Hydrolysed keratin works on split ends, detangles and leaves hair lustrous & manageable. Furthermore, the combination of coconut and hibiscus extracts makes hair healthy and reduces hair fall effectively. These are great examples of what you can say as hygienic beauty.

The recently launched VLCC’s Organic Skin Brightening Facial Treatment applies 100 percent natural ingredients, and is without chemicals. This facial enrichment service primarily emphasises on pigmented, tanned and uneven skin for all skin types and age groups. The facial is endowed with natural beauty ingredients, comprising blackthorn, rosehip, cucumber and fibrous stonecrop. This facial treatment helps to discard dead cells, and reveal the new skin. The results of this facial treatment are also comparatively enduring, and are characterised by the absence of side affects.

No wonder, the legendary Shahnaz Husain is extremely elated on seeing the revolution started by her taking the shape of an enduring trend, over the decades. She is optimistic that the trend of Ayurvedic beauty care and cure has caught the imagination of a significant number of Indians. “There is a definite trend towards herbal beauty care in today’s India. In fact, this trend has fostered the growth of the beauty care business in the country. People are now much more aware of the benefits of natural care and also about the harm that can be caused by chemical beauty treatments,” opined Shahnaz. ■

Sept-Oct ’12

Sept-Oct ’1224

CLEANING

Steam and very high water temperature systems are likely to provide superior and economic cleaning. Through steam cleaning,

dirt, grime and mould get blasted out from dirty areas due to extremely high temperature and pressure. Following the blast, dirt is sucked into a powerful vacuum, in a holding tank.

People suffering from allergies and chemical sensitivities can also be greatly benefi ted by steam cleaning as it prevents triggering of these untoward symptoms.

Steam c leaning technology works effi ciently on tile, linoleum, carpets, bedding, windows, fabrics, bathrooms, kitchens, mirrors, grills, ovens, sealed hardwood fl oors and round the corner where grease, grime, mould, mildew and allergens tend to accumulate.

One can even use steam cleaning technology to remove wrinkles from clothing, strip wax fl oors and

wallpaper and degrease your automobi le

engine! Succinctly, one can clean

a n d sanitise the

premises in a hea l th ier

a n d m o r e

environmentally beneficial way by employing steam c leaning technology.

Steam cleaning is also economic as by employing this technology one doesn’t have to bear the cost of cleaning chemical agents. Steam cleaning not only decimates most bacteria, viruses, mildew and allergens such as E.coli, salmonella and dust mites that are exposed to it, but also helps control allergens in carpet and bedding.

Gathering SteamSteam cleaning facilitates to clean,

sanitise and deodorise a variety of surfaces and materials around the premises with ease, and involving no chemicals or detergents. Through steam cleaning one can clean those tough stains without exposing oneself and the environment to hazardous chemicals, as it doesn’t involve harmful chemicals and toxic odours in cleaning process. Neither does it leave any residue like chemical cleaners.

Moreover, after steam cleaning, the surfaces get dried up in seconds, thereby preventing mould and allergen growth, which can emerge from the soaked materials. The steam cleaning also makes cleaning a much less cumbersome process as it eliminates the use of mops

and buckets. Steam cleaning also cleans soap scum and mildew off the bathroom tile and shower doors.

A Wide RangeSteam cleaning is very effective

in cleaning fl oors. There are fl oor care steam cleaning systems, which can sanitise and clean bare fl oors with the power of steam. The multi-purpose hand-held steam cleaners can also sanitise and clean a variety of fl oor surfaces. They manage to eliminate most bacteria, viruses, mildew and allergens such as E.coli, salmonella and dust mites. They are environmentally safe and use plain tap water, but employ no hazardous chemicals and no toxic odours. They are mostly used for tile, vinyl, ceramic and sealed wood fl oors.

These are also used primarily to clean glass and mirrors, upholstery, appliances, countertops, charcoal grills, ovens, refrigerators and anywhere where mildew, scum or greasy dirt can collect and coalesce. With multi-purpose hand held steam cleaners, you can escape the hazardous ammonia or chlorine smell while cleaning windows, mirrors and bathroom tile.

Steam cleaning can be useful for cleaning of tiles as well. Steam cleaning machines are fantastic in removing soap scum, fi lm and grout.

Cleans Cleanly

wallpaper and degrease your automobi le

engine! Succinctly, one can clean

a hea l th ier a n d m o r e

Sept-Oct ’1224

25Sept-Oct ’12

CLEANING

For example, if a direct steam is used for grout, and towel steam for picking up scum from tile, the whole area could be cleaned within no time without any wet mess. Once the steam cleaning is used you should be able to wipe dirt off the surfaces. Some people who have used steam vapour c l e an ing machines use them to remove caulking as well as paint from the tiles.

Carpet CleaningSteam cleaning is also an effective

way to clean tiles and other surfaces, such as counters or carpets. Steam cleaning can ensure that you have nothing under the carpet, literally. By using steam cleaning carpet machines one can get the carpets thoroughly cleaned and free of unseemly items like oil or sticky soil and mud that your average vacuum cleaner cannot

get rid of. W h e t h e r y o u

decide to go with s t e a m v a p o u r c leaning ser vice o r d r y s t e a m cleaning service,

your carpet will benefi t greatly. In case your visiting gue s t s su f f e r

from asthma and al lergies, steam

cleaning equipment and steam cleaning

p r o c e s s w o u l d prove to be more

beneficial than any other method of

c leaning. The carpet should be steam cleaned

at least once in a month depending on the frequency of guests visiting and how often they walk over a particular carpet.

Steam Cleaning Features

Most steam cleaning machines operate on the principle where the water in a boiler tank gets heated up and escapes in ‘vapour’ like fashion, through the multi-powerful jets or hoses. The three common forms of steam cleaning machines are: vapour steam cleaning machine, dry steam cleaning machine, and the multipurpose steam cleaning equipment.

The typical steam cleaning machines have the fol lowing accessories: window squeegee, bristle ring nozzle, refi lling bottle or tank and curved detail nozzle. These features help to ensure that your steam cleaning is satisfactory. Some more expensive forms of steam cleaning machines may have quality stainless steel boilers, heavy wiring, more insulation, and may have the heating unit mounted inside the boiler. They are also likely to have more attachments and additional safety features than the comparatively low-end ones. ■

Cleans Cleanly

get rid of.

decide to go with s t e a m v a p o u r c leaning ser vice

cleaning equipment and steam cleaning

For example, if a direct steam is used for grout, and towel steam for picking up scum from tile, the whole area could be cleaned within no time without any wet mess. Once the steam cleaning is used you should be able to wipe dirt off the surfaces. Some people

as well as paint from

beneficial than any other method of

c leaning. The carpet should be steam cleaned

at least once in a month depending on the frequency of guests visiting and

Steam Cleaning Features

Vapour Action

Vapour steam cleaning differs significantly from the function of common carpet cleaners that

claim to steam clean, but are actually hot water extractors. These carpet cleaners utilise hot water of lower temperature, along with chemical detergents that saturate fabrics and leave them water soaked, requiring a significant amount of time to dry. Here it deserves a mention that fabrics that remain wet for long periods can contribute to accumulation of bacteria, mould and mildew growth and the proliferation of other allergens such as dust mites.

Vapour steam cleaners use a super-heated vapour that has minimal moisture content and will not saturate fabrics such as carpets and bedding. Surfaces cleaned with vapour steam cleaners dry quickly. Vapour steam cleaning machines produce higher temperatures than the boiling point of water by pressurising the steam. When the pressure of steam is increased, the temperature of the steam will also increase.

The pressurised high temperature dry vapours penetrate deep down into materials and surfaces to kill allergens such as dust mites, mould and fungi, as well as bacteria and viruses. The super-heated steam breaks down grease and grime to facilitate the tough cleaning jobs around the premises. This is done with the help of normal tap water and without costly toxic cleaning products, which usually end up polluting the indoor air and the environment.

Sept-Oct ’1226

LAUNDRY

Laundry is an essential feature of housekeeping and housekeeping i s an essential feature of

hospitality. Spic and span linen can contribute greatly towards the success of a hospitality property. This is especially true in this age when competition is married to guest satisfaction in a much more inextr icable way than before. However ensuring impeccable

cleanliness in laundry operations requires meticulous organisation, great dedication, together with professional expertise.

However, laundry is a scientific process which requires utmost care before its application on the material to be washed. There are various steps towards achieving perfect washing. First of all, scientific laundry operations entail sorting the clothes by colour, wash temperature

and fabric type. It is always prudent to take account of the fabric label, which may have specific washing instructions. Read the label on each garment carefully and follow the recommended drying procedures.

Set the load size, wash and rinse temperature dials on the washer. Allow the washer to fill with water before adding detergent and any laundry additives. Finally add the clothes. However, ensure that you are not overloading the washing machine. There should be enough room for clothes and detergent to move freely in the machine which would ensure the removal of stains and soil from the garments. For optimum results, remove clothes from the washing machine and dry the garments as soon as the wash cycle is completed.

In huge laundry operations, such as found in the hospitality industry, it is always desirable to first sort the laundry by colour. Segregate all the white articles in one pile, the light colors and pastels in another pile, and the bright and dark colours into

The

Laundry Operations

Right

27Sept-Oct ’12

a third. Now demarcate the dark pile into

two piles — one should be for colorfast items and the other for non-colorfast items. You have four piles in all. Now divide each of these four piles into three smaller piles each; depending upon their extent of dirt. On one pile there should be lightly soiled clothes, the other pile would have moderately soiled clothes, and the third pile would have highly soiled clothes. Eventually, you may end up with 12 piles of laundry.

However, this is no hard and fast rule in large scale laundry operations. You may have less than 12 piles of garments too by placing white and as well as light-coloured garments with similar degrees of soil into the same pile. You can also make a separate pile for delicate items that need to be hand-washed. It is also advisable to keep aside white synthetic fabrics, and wash them only with other white fabrics, and also to separate synthetics, blends, and permanent-press fabrics from natural fabrics.

After sorting is done one should undertake the actual laundry operations. The person or persons operating the laundry needs/need to know the basic constituent of each fabric to be cleaned and also the optimum way to clean it. Then only the said laundry operations would reap the desired customer satisfaction. Some of the garments may have permanently attached care labels, and for synthetic fabrics, these labels can be of great help in determining

exactly how one would remove stains on them. Of course, you cannot expect all the relevant information from clothes’ labels, and have to rely much on your laundry personnel’s experience and expertise.

For example, the fiberglass fabrics, which are wrinkle and soil-resistant, but are vulnerable to abrasion, should be hand washed with an all-purpose detergent. While washing fiberglass fabrics, rubber gloves should be worn to protect hands from fibers. Also one should drip-dry fiberglass articles; and not iron them.

There are singularities for different types of garments, as far as their laundry operations go. Take the case of polyester fabrics. Polyester-knit garments should be turned inside out prior to their washing so as to prevent snags. It is ideal to subject polyester garments to machine-wash in warm water, using an all-purpose detergent. If there is a necessity, chlorine bleach could be used. The use of fabric softener would reduce static electricity. It is also advisable to iron polyester fabrics at a moderate temperature setting.

If we think of the wash programme for cottons or heavily soiled, robust fabrics, we will require great mechanical action, with the strong chemical solution, for a long time, at very high temperatures. For example, a boil wash for cottons can be recommended.

Where grease or wax soils are concerned, a high temperature will be needed to dissolve them so that they can be held in the detergent solution. However, using hot water at the initial stage may make many stains permanent, especially the blood stains. For certain clothes, however, using cold water is only recommended.

Besides knowledge about varied range of fabrics, the time factor also needs to carefully considered while undertaking laundry operations. For example, in a cotton wash, the time taken to complete the main wash process is normally ten minutes more than other garments after the desired temperature is reached. In a modern washing machine, time is controlled by either a mechanical clock timer or a modern micro-processor, which can be updated with the latest programmes at any future date. ■

Sept-Oct ’1228

PEST MANAGEMENT

Pest Management By Gokul Bhagabati

With the growing concern for environment and hea l th a c r o s s t h e

globe, sustainable consumerism is no longer an unfamiliar concept. Instead it is a welcome reality, which is gaining currency with each passing day. This reality has been thankfully translated in to modern day pest management exercises too, in the form of green pest management.

According to the popular defi nition, g r e e n p e s t m a n a g e m e n t is a pest control

s t rateg y through usage of organic or plant-based materials or materials of natural

origin. However, this is a narrow definition.

Sometimes non organic substances are also used

in green pest management, as they too can be non-toxic. Broadly, usage of non-toxic substances for pest control that doesn’t have a polluting after effect or have a minimal poluting after effect can come under the ambit of green pest management.

Similarly, although the emphasis of green pest management is on the usage of pest control materials of natural origin, all natural pesticides do not naturally fi t into the GPM category. The process of applying the product is more important in green pest management and therefore enclosed insect bait stations may be termed ‘green’, despite having a synthetic active ingredient. Green pest management is \a potent means of eco-friendly pest management.

In green pest management, people should be equally focussed about the process of pest control, as they are on the outcome. Application of green pest management is attracting popularity in today ’s

agriculture. Green pest management or GPM, as it is popularly known, is gaining ground in other areas too. Environmental activists and governmental agencies across the globe have been promoting the use of green buildings at workplaces because of their role in sustainable development, and green pest management plays a very important role in the functioning of green buildings.

A building becomes a green building in real sense only through adherence to a sustained policy of reducing the usage of toxic substances in pest control, cleaning and other maintenance activities. Green buildings emphasise water conservation, energy effi ciency, the usage of recycled products, renewable energy sources and minimum usage of conventional pesticides, and minimal presence of moulds, insects and rodents.

However, despite its growing

The Age of Eco-friendly

29Sept-Oct ’12

PEST MANAGEMENT

popularity, in developing countries l ike India, GPM is adversely affected by widespread prevalence of unfounded myths. The first among them is that the green products are excessively costly. The fact of the matter, however, is that in GPM, the use of conventional pesticides or any toxic pest control product is minimised, and the cost varies according to the nature of the structure where GPM is to be introduced. Moreover, green pest management strategies also work with a long-term vision and therefore eventually help in cutting down cost by endowing a more permanent character to the pest management process.

Conventional v/s Green Green pest management is a

proactive mode of controlling pest which is signifi cantly different from the reactive mode of the conventional pest control method. With a focus on reducing the effects of toxic substances on environment and

health, proper GPM strategies should emphasise on scanning all naturally derived and synthetic pesticides before approving them for application.

A s a g a i n s t t h e r e a c t i v e conventional pest control methods, which focusses only on elimination or prevention of the pesticides, green pest management strategies work with the overall objective of reducing effects of toxic substances on the surrounding environment.

M a n y r e g a r d g r e e n p e s t management as the extension of integrated pest management (IPM), which entails several non-pesticide approaches to pest management such as exclusion, environmental changes and physical trapping.

Green pest management also stresses on reducing harmful substances such as Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), which include cleaning solvents, and infestations caused by birds, animals and insects.

Pest management strategies

have improved over the years with GPM being the latest development over the conventional integrated pest management strategies. It is a part of the new-age integrated pest management methods that are in vogue. In conventional pest control methods, parts of the building for pesticide application are demarcated.

Pe s t i c i d e i s a p p l i e d i n these areas frequently without properly monitoring its effects. The conventional integrated pest management strategies are considered better in terms of the method, but their outcome is also found to be not much different. Moreover, in conventional IPM, the

Pest Management

Sept-Oct ’1230

performance depends considerably on the concerned practitioner. However, clients can expect better performance in advanced IPM strategies.

C o m p r e h e n s i v e P e s t Control

GPM strategies inc lude a comprehensive process of inspection or identification of the pests, understanding its habits and biology, habitat modification to make it less attractive to the pests, monitoring pest presence, blocking entrance points for the pests, use of non chemical control measures, and appropriate and effective use of least hazardous chemicals.

GPM is considered the most advanced form of IPM where technicians are continually provided t r a in ing on common pe s t s , recent developments, sessions on diagnosing and correcting pest friendly conditions, effective use of new products and sealants, proper door sweep installations, and how to make the customers co-operate in the entire process. The trained professionals then inspect the building thoroughly, check new developments, and subsequently, report to the customer.

The GPM professionals spend considerable time in inspecting pest vulnerable areas and places where pest problems were earlier reported. The technicians also look for removing pest friendly conditions from the building in the future, by checking all the traps and taking necessary rectification measures.

The primary objective of the GPM professionals is to prevent pest related problems in the long-term. The technicians take up different measures for different types of pests.

If the building is infested by mice, green pest technicians should suggest exclusion as the solution rather than elimination. The technicians should look for missing door sweeps and complete the necessary installation. When the building is infested by cockroaches, the GPM professionals should conduct a detailed research on the nature of species, degree of threat and the direction of movement, and then the suspected harborages should be sealed after the necessary cleaning operations. The technicians should flush the harborages with compressed air and the escapees are eliminated with high-efficiency particulate air vacuum. The GPM technicians should also educate the customers about the necessary steps required to be taken in case of re-infestation.

In green pest management, pesticide is used after thorough research and only in unavoidable conditions. Moreover, the technicians evaluate the pesticides for their potential exposure and toxicity. They also get the required pesticides approved by the customers before applying. The use of GPM is especially encouraged in areas where the health of children is at stake.

Need of the Hour With the effects of climate

change becoming more evident to everyone, green products are increasingly being preferred by more and more government agencies and private organisations. The popularity of green pest management, despite its comparitively higher cost and the aura of skepticism surrounding it, which together is impeding its influence in the Indian market to some extent, is a reflection of

this trend. It has the potential of considerably reducing toxic substances in the environment. Therefore, those pest control companies who are willing to accept the challenges of the changing times need to eventually offer competitive green pest management strategies.

The GPM operators also need to do the needful to increase their mindshare and popularity. As most customers in India are still apprehensive of green products because of their initial cost, it would be prudent for GPM operators to run some educative advertisements about the long-term gain that the customers can reap from the application of green pest management strategies.

However, GPM operators must also realise that customers cannot be fooled by non-performing green pest control products for a long time. They should also remember that all organic products are not necessarily a panacea to the environment. Succinctly, the focus therefore should be on quality and performance apart from being environmentally sensitive.

For remaining competit ive in the market, GPM operators must be equipped with qualified technicians who are capable of conducting adequate research and offering the appropriate solutions to tackle a particular pest management problem. The solutions can range from door sweep installations, tree/shrub trimming, exclusion of products and services, repairs, clutter removal, gutter cleaning, construction/design review and such other green strategies. With the right attitude and adequate skills, the GPM operators may easily convert the perils of climate change into an eco-friendly opportunity to earn some green bucks.

The need of the hour is therefore to educate oneself about the prevalent GPM strategies. However, ask the relevant questions to the vendors and get the desired answers before employing a company claiming to be an expert in green pest management. GPM is on the way to becoming a trend, and in this journey it is subjected to rampant misuse by non-experts. So beware of them before signing the right vendor. ■

PEST MANAGEMENT

Sept-Oct ’1232

INDUSTRY

Mosquito Management in

By Ravi Chandra

Commercial Properties

Mosquitoes a re important vectors o f n u m e r o u s d i seases such a s m a l a r i a ,

yellow fever, fi lariasis, dengue and chikugunia. Besides their disease-carrying potential, mosquitoes can become nuisance pests. The biting mosquitoes can be terribly annoying to people working, camping or relaxing outdoors.

Approximately 3,000 species of mosquitoes exist throughout the world. Mosquitoes belong to the family Culicidae; they are characterised by having scales or ‘hairs’ on their wings as well as on their legs and on par t s o f their body. Their mouthparts consist

o f a

pair of palpi (sensory organs) and a long proboscis with which the female is able to pierce the skin of animals and suck blood.

The females of most mosquito species require a blood meal before they can produce a batch of eggs. Male mosquitoes do not feed on blood. They feed on nectar and plant juices. Males differ from females,

having very bushy antennae and palpi as long as their proboscis.

B r e e d i n g H a b i t a t s : Mosquitoes lay their eggs necessarily in water. An object

capable of retaining water for five or more days is a potential breeding

environment for some species of mosquitoes. The different water habitats where mosquitoes can breed can be: flowing streams (including drainage ditches), lake edges, swamps, natural containers (leaves of certain plants, tree holes), artificial containers (flower pots, construction depressions, thrown plastic cups, rubber tyres ), natural subterranean waters (holes dug by crabs, hoof prints.), and artificial subterranean waters (septic tanks, storm and sewage drains), etc.

Vectors: Mosquito species like Anopheles, Culex and Aedes are the most common species of mosquitoes with disease carrying potential. They can spread diseases like malaria, fi lariasis, dengue, chikugunia among others. The breeding source of these mosquitoes can be potable water, non potable / polluted water and artifi cial water sources depending on the species. These mosquitoes develop through four stages — egg, larvae, pupa and adult. Complete development from egg to adult usually

takes 10 to 14 days but varies according to the species and

the temperature. The e g g

33Sept-Oct ’12

stage requires water to hatch. The larval and pupal stages also require an aquatic environment. Once the congenial environment is present, the adult mosquito will emerge out.

Control / Management: Mosquito control is a challenge that is best handled by the community and public health agencies rather than by an individual because the breeding places of mosquitoes are often situated at considerable distances from the place of their annoyance. However, there are some methods that the experienced pest control operator can employ to reduce the mosquito menace. They are:

I. Prevention — The best method of control mechanism for mosquitoes

is their prevention. The age-old techniques of closing the windows and doors during the dawn and dusk are an excellent practice to prevent the entry of mosquitoes. Also screens like mesh wire gives seldom chance for mosquitoes to enter the premises.

Even in many commercial buildings with centralised AC facility, which

apparently have hardly any openings/ entry points for mosquitoes, there are areas like the main entrance of the automatic open doors, the corridors (backstairs areas) where the windows are opened for some fresh air or as an exhaust, the openings caused due to renovations, the exhaust openings in the kitchen / pantry areas if any, which can still cause the mosquitoes to enter inside the property. Prevention of the entry of mosquitoes from all these possible entry points needs to be addressed by the person or persons responsible for the management of the property concerned.

II. Larviciding (Control of Mosquito Larvae):— Larvae may breed wherever suitable water is available. Many a time it is not possible to eliminate this water source easily, and therefore larvicides should be used. The suitable larvicide to be used depends on the nature of the water body. Check the labels/ product literatures of these products for specific uses and dose rates. Rates vary according to specific environmental situations and water source. Oils also are used to decimate mosquito larvae. There are chemical larvicides, biological larvicides, and new generation insect growth regulator. But whatever larvicide is used, its efficacy, its environmental impact, other aquatic organism’s life and human safety needs to be kept in mind before deciding on any particular product to eliminate mosquito larvae.

However the larviciding measures done in the water source take care of only the mosquito larvae and not the eggs and the pupae already present in the water body. The advanced versions of the larviciding control are slowly moving from the chemicals to the biological larvicides and to the insect growth regulators as long-term effectiveness and the environmental f r iend ly measures are gaining prominence in the realm of modern day pest control measures.

III. Adulticiding (Control of mosquito adults):— Adulticide can be applied in a variety of ways: They are:

(i) Thermal Fogging: Here the insecticides are used with fuel oil and burnt to create a fog with the help of the thermal fogging machine. The fog is produced by heating fuel oil

Sept-Oct ’1234

in which the insecticide is diluted. Disadvantages of thermal fogging are the hazard of reduced visibility which makes people’s movement difficult, the cost of using fuel oil as a carrier, and most importantly, the pollution to the environment with the use of fuel oil. This method is now been almost entirely replaced by ULV application in many parts of the world as a better and safer alternative towards mosquito control.

(ii) U l t r a - l o w Vo l u m e Application (ULV): Here special machines are used with nozzles, which break up an undiluted insecticide into microscopic droplets. With ULV application very small amounts of chemical are used. Fuel oil is not burned and smoke is not seen coming out of the nozzle. Moreover, the effects of ULV treatment remain longer than that of the thermal fogging as the tiny droplets hover around in the atmosphere for a long time before getting dispersed. However, both thermal fogg ing and ULV application are very temporary in nature. They eliminate only those adult mosquitoes which pass through the fog, which eventually disperses.

(iii) Mist Blower and Spraying: This method places the insecticides on the foliage of trees, shrubs, tall grass, tree trunks and on the sides of structures where resting mosquitoes may contact it. Diluted amounts of pesticides are used, which will not harm the plants and trees but will give better results as far as elimination of mosquitoes is concerned, which often use the green cover for their shelter and harbourage.

(iv) IRS: The other common

method of mosquito control being used is the IRS viz indoor residual spraying where in the odourless, safe, non fumigant, non staining and environment-friendly formulations are mixed in water, are sprayed or

done with ULV in the indoor areas. This sort of spraying should be done on all the possible resting and hiding areas for mosquitoes on the property like walls, false cilelings, venation blinds, underneath the tables and chairs, underneath work stains, dark corner areas where the mosquitoes can rest, etc.. The insecticide will remain as a filmy coat on the sprayed surfaces. Once the solution dries and when the mosquitoes get in contact with insecticides, they will get killed. IRS will not ensure that there will not be entry of the mosquitoes inside the property. However, their timely application can ensure that the mosquitoes entered can be killed before causing any harm to the inmates or passing the disease as a

vector.The understanding between the

companies present in the commercial buildings and the treatment measures applied by the pest control companies hired by them needs to be clear and perfect regarding what are the endeavours to be done in terms of mosquito control measures and what are expected out from the same. More often than not the mosquito control measures are done for only a particular floor of the commercial building; omitting the other areas for whatever the reason. Such measures will only give partial results as there only the part process of the mosquito management system is being followed.

Mosquito control measures always gives better results with an integrated approach of the prevention, control measures and its source elimination.

Either of this in isolation always tend to provide partial results. All said and done, adhering to the best clean & hygiene practices also can keep the mosquito menace at a tolerable level but cannot stop the influx of mosquitoes in the premises as these pests have various sources of breeding and rapid urbanisation is only helping them in having additional habitats for their survival and breeding.

(The author i s S r. S e c t o r Manager —Integrated Pest Management, Diversey India Pvt. Ltd.)

INDUSTRY

35Sept-Oct ’12

For hotels and hospitals, cleanliness is an extremely essential requirement. Miraclean

plays an important role in facilitating hotels and hospitals to maintain high standards of hygiene. Kanak Raj, the Managing Director of Miraclean Tools Pvt. Ltd., informed that the cleaning tools vary from surface to surface. As far as hospitals are concerned, he stated that Miraclean followed a colour code for the dustbins where different types of wastes were disposed off. The excerpts of the interview with this seasoned housekeeping honcho follows:

How did you venture into this fi eld?

Well, I have been in this profession for a long time. I started the cleaning tools business in the Middle-East. I did business there for about eight years before migrating to Mumbai and thereafter I started manufacturing of professional cleaning tools and premium cleaning chemicals, from India. My eight years of international experience helped me in developing the latest products for the Indian market. Today, our company has over 100 innovative products, ranging from dry/wet mops to brushes, heavy duty wipers, dusters and scrubbers, special tools for cleaning glass, cleaning caddies, etc., which together can effectively cater to the needs of the Indian cleaning industry.

What is your take on the profusion of Chinese cleaning products invading our market?

There are several Chinese products available in the market but in my opinion they are unsuitable for Indian climate and the Indian properties. The cleaning products – both tools and chemicals— in order to be successful, should be specifi cally tailored for the Indian climate and properties. Our entire range of products is made specifi cally for the Indian market.

Do you also manufacture cleaning products and equipments for cleaning of public places like malls where the show windows have to be kept spotless?

Yes, we have squigee and several other equipments and chemicals to help clean every nook and cranny of these places. Our antibacterial cleaners enable to remove fungus. Besides, we also conduct classes in collaboration with the American Institute of Cleaning Technology — the great institute for janitors. This one month full time course teaches candidates on how to clean a property in a professional manner.

What are the challenges of cleaning of show windows and/or glass facades?

When you are cleaning huge show windows or glass façades you have to start from the top. Application of proper chemicals must also be inculcated among the cleaners. You have to be careful while cleaning walls and pictures.

How do you market your products? Are they available off the shelves?

Our business is generated by word-of-mouth. Our satisfied customers are, to a large extent, responsible for our increasing business. We mainly supply to corporates, banking sector and facility management companies throughout India. Our clients are spread from Delhi to Chennai. We have the capacity to execute orders all over the country.

How do you rate your company in the competitive cleaning segment of the country?

I may state that our company is one of the leading companies in professional cleaning tools and cleaning chemicals, in the realm of Indian cleaning industry. Our employees are guided by the vision to be the ‘best in operation and ethics.’

Does your company also export its products?

Yes, we do so. Besides serving the length and breadth of the country we have also been exporting our products to the Middle-East, since 2003. The edifi ce of our company’s growth over the last 12 years is a deep understanding of economic factors and customer requirements, and the ability to translate them into customer-friendly offerings through cutting-edge R&D. I may add that we are equally focussed on environment-friendly technologies pertaining to cleaning chemicals.

What are your future plans?The company will continue to focus

on all aspects of the cleaning industry. In the area of R&D, the company proposes various activities in the near future. They are the up gradation of technologies to improve the quality of our chemicals and equipments, and the development of ‘One Tool’ for dust control, sweep, scrub, polish and mop. We expect this product to be available in the market by as early as January 2013. We are also developing an ‘All Polish’ — a water-based polish suitable for wood, mica, plastic, hard surface and steel. Work is already in progress for this unique chemical, which will act as a water proof lamination. The formulation is being done in collaboration with Omnova Solutions, United Kingdom.

Enabling Cleaning Solutions By Ashok Malkani

PROFILE

35Sept-Oct ’12

Sept-Oct ’1236

HYGIENE

As humans, we all like cleanliness and we feel comfortable and good in clean surroundings.

Whether it is home, neighbourhood, office or public places, cleanliness is one aspect which is not only cherished, but also necessary. However, c leanliness is more necessary in a hospital than in any of these places. In fact, cleanliness is a matter of life and death in hospitals.

Unlike any other property, a hospital admits patients with different infections, of which a few are likely to be contagious. It is the moral responsibility of hospital authorities to make maximum efforts towards restoring these patients to a state of health.

Prevention for Cure The first step towards such an

effort is to eliminate or minimise the possibility of emergence of infections through hospital itself, amongst its patients, their accompanying attendants, and among the healthcare providers. “Any infection so cont rac ted may prolong the patients’ hospital stay, increase morbidity and mortality and put unnecessary burden on valuable resources. Maintaining good cleanliness and hygiene practices can definitely reduce, if not eliminate such a

menace,” explained Dr.VK Kapur, Additional Director, Medical Services, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi. In this regard, impeccable hospital hygiene is of paramount importance.

“Maintenance of exacting standards of cleanliness and hygiene in hospitals not only greatly facilitates patients ’ safety from gett ing infections in hospitals; it is equally important for the hospital employees’ safety; and for prevention of cross-

infections from patients to patients, and from patients to visitors. Also aesthetically, a clean place appeals to the eye and gives a positive feeling to patients as well as the visitors,” agreed Dr. Swati Makashir, D e p u t y M e d i c a l Superintendent, Batra Hospital & Medical

Research Centre, New Delhi.

Hygienic Measures However, maintaining spic

and span cleanliness & hygiene in hospitals is far from being an easy task. A hospital is expected to have dozens of departments with hundreds of patients, attendants and visitors trooping in and out of its premises. Maintaining cleanliness & hygiene in a hospital is indeed a daunting task, with a possibility of infection lurking here and there.

“Hospitals have various critical and non-critical care areas where protocols vary. However, in general, cleanliness & hygiene at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital is maintained by regular cleaning of surfaces and air with appropriate disinfectants, observing universal precautions including hand hygiene guidelines, implementing bio-medical waste management p r a c t i c e s , and

Hospital

Dr. VK Kapur

Sept-Oct ’1236

By Kanishka Gupta

37Sept-Oct ’12

HYGIENE

undertaking comprehensive pest control measures,” proffered Dr. Kapur. “Cleanliness and hygiene is maintained in different parts of Batra Hospital & Medical Research Centre

by daily and meticulous mopping, washing, scrubbing, vacuuming and decontamination,” added Dr. Swati.

At Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, terminal cleaning (a cleaning method employed in healthcare environments to check the spread of infections), of all surfaces including walls, floors and beds (including mattresses) is done with proper disinfectants. Air cleaning by fogging the operation theaters and rooms where infected cases are being admitted, is being done. Moreover, proper air-conditioning ensures the maintenance of clean rooms and other critical care areas. “Drinkable water, even if it is RO treated, is being regularly tested from certified labs. Kitchen cleanliness and food handling at our hospital is at par with the best practices and protocols at every step of the food chain, which also includes regular health check of food handlers,” elaborated Dr. Kapur.

“At the Batra Hospital & Medical Research Centre, clean rooms are maintained by daily mopping and scrubbing; clean air is maintained by regular air sampling and frequent air changes in rooms and ICUs as per protocols; clean water is ensured by sampling, testing and through culture done at regular intervals as per protocol. Furthermore, at the Batra Hospital, cleaning of beds is done every day by using appropriate disinfectants, and food and kitchen cleanliness & hygiene is maintained

by regular food sampling and health check-ups of healthcare workers,” informed Dr. Swati.

Hospitals use a variety of simple and sophisticated equipments for

different cleaning requirements. Wringer trolleys, foggers, wet mops, vacuum cleaners, robots for cleaning air-conditioning ducts, sprayers, air curtains, electronic fly killers, good air-conditioning systems, motorised scrub machine (for perimeter of the hospital) are a few of the equipments being used for different types of cleaning exercises at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi. Scrubbing machines, vacuum cleaners, auto scrubbers, dust control mops and brushes of different varieties are used at the Batra Hospital & Medical Research Centre.

O u t s o u r c i n g a n d Frequency

In this age of outsourcing of housekeeping services, hospitals too are not left behind. While some aspects of cleaning are done in-house some other aspects are outsourced. This saves on cost and manpower. “However, at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, there is no difference in the standard of any aspect of cleaning practices irrespective of the fact that whether it is done by in-house employees or outsourced staff. It is a collective responsibility under the heads of departments of different faculties of housekeeping and sanitation and there is a lot of flexibility in allocating duties and responsibilities amongst Class

III and Class IV staff as per the management principles,” asserted Dr. Kapur. “At the Batra Hospital & Medical Research Centre, however, all the cleaning is done in-house,” pointed out Dr. Swati.

Since hospitals have a large influx and outgo of visitors and patients on a daily basis, cleaning too needs to be done quite frequently. “Frequency of cleaning schedule is different for different areas of the hospital. For example, it is at least twice per shift and SOS (as required) in wards/rooms and corridors, cleaning after every non-infective surgery/procedure in operation theatres/diagnostic areas (for example Cath lab, ERCP room, IVF lab, etc), carbolisation and fogging after every infected case/procedure and after every consultation slot in OPDs, etc.,” explained Dr. Kapur.

He informed that the cleaning operations at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital are supervised by housekeeping supervisors, administrators and nursing supervisors dedicated for that area. “The frequency of cleaning schedule at the Batra Hospital & Medical Research Centre is decided by the hospital infection control in-charge and protocol is set for each area, like rooms, ICUs, OTs, Cath Labs, etc. The adherence to the schedule is supervised by the housekeeping department, sanitary supervisors and hospital infection control nurses. They in turn report to housekeeping in-charge who submits the report to the hospital infection control department and the hospital administration department,” concluded Dr. Swati.

However, these two above-mentioned case studies hardly give any indication of the appalling state of hygiene in healthcare in the majority of our hospitals, where it is not unnatural to see people coming for cure and getting infected with fresh diseases instead, simply because of lack of adherence to even basic hygienic measures. This calls for urgent attention by the states as well as corporates. It is about time we as a society place due priority on hospital hygiene, for without prevention, cure eventually loses its meaning and sanctity. ■

37Sept-Oct ’12

Sept-Oct ’1238

PRODUCT PREVIEW

Th e i n f o r m a t i o n p u b l i s h e d i n t h i s s e c t i o n i s a s p e r t h e d e t a i l s f u r n i s h e d b y t h e r e s p e c t i v e m a n u f a c t u r e r / d i s t r i b u t o r. I n a n y c a s e , i t d o e s n o t r e p r e s e n t t h e v i e w s o f Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd.

Wet/ Dry Vacuum CleanerAman Cleaning has introduced a new range of world class wet/ dry vacuum cleaners.The model SS 40E is a wet/dry vacuum cleaner having SS body waste container

mounted on trolley to make it easy to carry and easy to vacate the vessel.

The product has a powerful 1400W vacuum motor; creates a very good suction

power of 245 mbar, which allows you to suck the loose dust and water, etc. The tank capacity is 40 ltrs which also allows you to use this machine for longer hours without emptying the container. Its wheels are covered with special rubber so

as to leave no marking on the floors. The wide range of models are available for catering to different needs of clients.

Aman Cleaning Equipments P Ltd.Email: [email protected]

Satol Range of Cleaning AgentsSatol Chemicals, a manufacturer of specialty chemicals in the field of industrial cleaning, has introduced an array of cleaning products at affordable cost.

Satol Perfumed Liquid Hand Wash is ready to use and effective in hygiene and sanitation of hands, leaving behind a pleasant fragrance and moisture. The product is also promoted as environment-friendly.

Satol Toilet Bowl Cleaner is specially formulated to remove yellow lime-scale deposits and stubborn stains. It leaves toilet bowls and urinals clean. It has appropriate viscosity for adhesion to vertical/ sloped surfaces.

Satol Glass Cleaner is a concentrated cleaner for all types of glasses and mirrors. It is meant for regular cleaning of windows, glass displays, cases and mirrors. This glass cleaner from Satol is packed concentrated for economy of use.

Satol Floor Cleaner is an effective cleaning and disinfection product for all surfaces. It can be used for both wet moping as well as scrubbing with machine. With surfactant-based chemistry, the product is effective towards soil removal.

Satol Multipurpose Cleaner Concentrate is effective for cleaning of kitchen utensils, glassware, appliances, floors and oily surfaces.

Satol-DS is specially formulated for the most difficult jobs of de-scaling and de-rusting. It is capable of removing scales originating from minerals, rust and other metal oxides from small parts.

Satol Supreme (multipurpose paste cleaner) product is designed to remove any old and hard stains from any surface, resulting from oil and dirt, with fast action. It can be used directly on surfaces for fast and easy application.

Satol [email protected]

Chambermaid TrolleysWith its world class cleaning chemicals —Wizard, Floor Polish System, Multipurpose Cleaners, etc. and with a backup of excellent tools & accessories offered at affordable prices, Quartz Home Care is an important player in the housekeeping segment. Its Chamber Maid Trolleys are ideal for use in hotels, hospitals, hostels, airports & nursing homes. They are attractively designed yet are very tough, and are available in various sizes to meet varied requirements. Each Chamber Maid Trolley has a huge storage capacity and can handle 8-10 rooms. It can store soiled linen, fresh linen, amenities, & trash. The night cover makes the trolley safe and one cannot view the contents. Furthermore, a unique braking system makes the product safe.

Quartz Home Care (I) Pvt. [email protected]

Ushering Superior Cleansing Grand Chemical Works is the producer of Gainda brand phenyl, a name which has a formidable reputation in the phenyl market. Gainda is a superior quality concentrated phenyl brand that is based on cresol oil and certified

with ISI:1061. It has no adverse effects on health and environment as well. Moreover, it is easy to use and economical too. No wonder, most of the hospitals, offices, hotels and restaurants, educational institutions in India, and Railways, and also millions of Indian homes are regularly using Gainda phenyle. The company has introduced a whole range of disinfectant fluids, which include packing options ranging from 450ml bottle pack to 1 litre and 5 litres of printed tin pack, and up to 20 litres of printed drum of Gainda brand among others. Over the years, the company has

diversified into various other products like Cleanzer, naphthalene balls. Its white ant repellants are now being marketed in most parts of the country.

Grand Chemical [email protected]

39Sept-Oct ’12

A D V E R T I S E R S I N D E X

AMAN CLEANING EQUIPMENTS PVT. LTD. ......................29

APPLIANCES EMPORIUM ......................27

ATLANTIC PASTE & GLUE CO., INC. ......................05

BORGHI BRUSH MACHINERY PVT. LTD. ......................21

DIVERSEY INDIA PVT. LTD. ......................01

GRAND CHEMICAL WORKS ......................25

KARCHER CLEANING SYSTEM PVT. LTD. ......................BC

MIRACLEAN TOOLS (P) LIMITED ......................31

NAVIN POLYCON ......................08

NUTECH JETTING EQUIPMENTS INDIA PVT. LTD. ......................GF

* BC - BACK COVER * GF-GATE FOLD * FIC - FRONT INSIDE COVER * BIC - BACK INSIDE COVER

COMPANY PAGE NO. COMPANY PAGE NO.

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITYBUSINESS OPPORTUNITY

PEST CONTROL (INDIA) PVT. LTD. ......................09

QUARTZ HOME CARE (I) PVT. LTD. ......................04

ROOTS MULTICLEAN LTD. ......................19

SIDDHARTH IMPEX ......................33

SNOOZER BEDDING LTD. ......................FIC

SUPESHINE LAUNDRY SYSTEMS PVT. LTD. ......................07

UNIQUE TRADING COMPANY ......................21

VEDIC AROMA LAB ......................39

WALSONS FACILITY SOLUTIONS PVT. LTD. ......................BIC

PRODUCT PREVIEW ......................38

Sept-Oct ’1240 Sept-Oct ’12

How important in your opinion is housekeeping to hospitality?

Housekeeping plays an important role in hospitality. The standards of housekeeping and their implementation greatly contribute towards the reputation of the hotel.

What is the culture of housekeeping operations at your hotel?

The housekeeping is not only about cleaning. At our hotel it is all about guest interaction together with comprehensive cleaning exercises. The housekeeping team at our hotel doesn’t miss any opportunity to interact with our guests and to ensure that the guests are having a comfortable stay. Our housekeeping team is also eager to know about its guests’ likes, dislikes and makes maximum efforts to tend to their

special requests, if any.

W h a t a r e t h e n e w t r e n d s i n housekeeping?

P l e a s e

c o m m e n t o n t h e l a t e s t housekeeping scenario in India

Room cleaning in pairs, which provides better quality and effi ciency, use of the enzyme chemicals, which makes cleaning process more effective and less time consuming, and encouraging the green cleaning endeavours are some of the new trends in the housekeeping sector.

Though housekeeping operations are far from being easy, please name any one tool which has made the housekeeping operations comparatively easier?

Microfi ber cloths are fantastic tools for making dusting process much easier.

Housekeeping entails rigorous training. How much of an emphasis does your hotel place on this?

Training is the key to success and we pay lot of attention to the training process. We believe training is a continuous process, and hence special training needs are identifi ed and organised to keep our colleagues updated and well informed about the new trends and developments in the fi eld of housekeeping.

How does India compare with the international scenario with regards to housekeeping?

I fi nd that international market offers a better variety of resources in terms of eco-friendly chemicals and cleaning systems.

What elements you take into account to recruit staff in your housekeeping department?

Integrity is the prime criteria in the selection, which can be determined while interacting with the candidate. Hard working and self-motivated employee with a can do attitude is another important look out in the selection process.

What is the role of housekeeping staff in the context of security?

Housekeeping plays a vital role in hotel security. We live the saying that housekeeping is the eyes and ears of the hotel.

Any other input you would like to give in the context of housekeeping in your hotel?

The housekeeping operations in our hotel are very much focused on the environment. The garbage removed from each guest room are segregated and the leftover water in the drinking water bottles from guest rooms are collected and used for irrigation purpose.

What are the challenges you have to face in your day-to-day job responsibilities?

The recruitment of skilled employees and the paucity of available resources such as cleaning products and supplies in the market, as compared to the international market, are work challenges.

What do you like about your job?

I am passionate about housekeeping. I like to handle challenging situations, which make me develop myself further.

Finally, what is it that you would like to change about your job?

I would like to work more extensively with eco-friendly chemicals such as enzyme cleaners (which are biodegradable, non-toxic cleaning agents) and twister pads.



P l e a s e


40



P l e a s e

Sept-Oct ’1240

By Sharmila Chand

INTERVIEW

What elements you take into account to recruit staff in your housekeeping department?

selection, which can be determined while interacting with the candidate. Hard working and self-motivated employee with a can do attitude is another important look out in the selection process.

What is the role of housekeeping staff in the context of security?

hotel security. We live the saying that

Abdul Majid, the Housekeeping Manager at Radisson Blu Plaza Hyderabad Banjara Hills, is an energetic, innovative and talented housekeeping professional with an exceptional track record. He has 12 years of experience in housekeeping, at

various five-star properties. His functional strengths are spread across diverse areas of operations, some of which include performance management, staff recruitment and development, staff training and performance appraisals, time and task management, customer focus and complaint handling, expense management among others. Attention to details and excellent communication skills are among his professional strengths. “My strong leadership and management skills keep me motivated and demonstrate my ability to further motivate and develop the staff for professional advancement,” said Majid. The excerpts of the interview with this seasoned professional are given below:

Documents

Clean & Hygiene Review