The reinforced sanitary standards and the distancing that will be imposed in the months to come to force the professionals of the hotel industry and restoration to reinvent their trade, in order to reassure the consumer’s satisfaction and prevention. Also, the profession faces a major challenge of how to ensure the health security of its customers and employees? Here are some tips to share.

Cleaning the premises; water, gas or electricity distribution networks; ventilation, aeration, air conditioning, and heating systems; fire safety system; maintenance and verification of technical equipment; facilities for the reception of employees. So many points to take into account when restarting buildings after an unscheduled downtime.

The advice given is mainly intended for companies in the tertiary sector.

Cleaning the premises
Before the closure of the premises, only viruses that could have been deposited by a carrier could be present on the surfaces. Given the lifespan of COVID in the environment and the fact that it does not multiply there, the few viruses present will have been naturally destroyed after confinement.

Before the opening of the premises, a large cleaning is necessary. The premises occupied by a few people during the closure will have been regularly cleaned and could be included in this deep cleaning campaign.

What is required to clean the premises?
To clean surfaces, it will be necessary to use products containing a surfactant (lipid solubilizer) present in soaps, degreasers, detergents, and stain removers. In addition to its surface degreasing activity, the surfactant can also degrade the lipids of the envelope of the coronavirus and thus inactivate it. These cleaning products can, therefore, be used for the daily maintenance of the premises after the return of staff.

When the risk assessment recommends it, a disinfection service can be carried out in addition to cleaning. Disinfection targeting COVID is carried out with a product meeting the veridical standard or with other products such as bleach at the veridical concentration of 0.1% active chlorine.

In general, the micro-organisms present on the surfaces should not be suspended in the air (do not use a high-pressure water jet, do not shake the rags, etc.), but use wipes pre-soaked or to soak with the product of your choice, squeegees ... The carpets can be dusted using a vacuum cleaner fitted with a HEPA filter (High-efficiency particulate air. Filter retaining microorganisms from the exhaust air by the vacuum cleaner).

Measures must also be taken to protect cleaning personnel from the chemical risks associated with cleaning and disinfecting products. If moldy surfaces are identified (water damage, forgotten food, etc.), after eliminating the source of contamination (repair of the leak, elimination of waste, etc.), the surfaces should be cleaned and then disinfected with a product.

Depending on the situation, a specific action to combat pests (insects, rodents, etc.) should be considered. When people re-occupy the premises, it will be necessary to clean more regularly the parts affected by many people (door handles, elevator buttons, ramp, etc.). This requires reviewing with the help of a disinfection service.