Clever dosing is kind to the environment. Effective immediately, the innovative Switch System is available to customers of Tana-Chemie GmbH, the Professional Division of Werner & Mertz. With the motto “It’s time to switch,“ the Mainz specialists for professional cleaning once again focus on convenient use and the circular economy. Switch is the next step toward a sustainable future in professional building cleaning.
At the core of the Switch System are ultra-concentrated formulations in practical, economical packaging intelligently designed to minimise resource consumption and reduce CO2 emissions. Every Switch bottle is equipped with a dosing cap that dispenses exactly the amount of cleaning agent needed for each use. When the bottle is empty, it can be refilled easily with the material-conserving, recyclable refill pouch.
“In our new Switch System with ultra-concentrated products, smart dosing bottle and refill pouch of a monomaterial, we combine all components of a high-performance and circular solution,” says Thomas Ulbricht, Managing Director of the Professional Division of Werner & Mertz GmbH. “Switch stands not only for efficiency and safety, but also for responsible handling of our environment. Once again we show that user-friendly, economical products go hand-in-hand with sustainability in professional building cleaning too.”
Convincingly effective for the entire industry, not just for niche markets
The Switch System covers a wide variety of application areas. For example, there’s TANET uniSwitch for surface cleaning, TAWIP vioSwitch for floor cleaning and maintenance, SANET inoSwitch for sanitary cleaning and GREASE topSwitch for kitchen cleaning.
With each of its three components, the new Switch System reaches its clearly stated aim of combining practical use with ecological features.
Ultra-concentrated formulations It takes only 5 millilitres of concentrate in 4 litres of water to achieve efficient cleaning action. It is possible to produce 800 litres of cleaning solution with a single Switch dosing bottle. The high yield has practical advantages for cleaning companies as they significantly reduce the costs for storage of cleaning product inventory and actively contribute to resource conservation. Furthermore, formulations in the Switch System bear the EU-Ecolabel.
Bottle with dosing cap Users benefit from the integrated dosing cap in several ways. The intermediate step of measuring the product is eliminated and the risk of overdosing or making direct contact with the concentrated cleaning agent is minimised. In addition, no extra expense is incurred for separate dosing accessories. The screw top guarantees simple opening and closing. Bottle and cap are made completely of recycled PP and PE plastic (post-consumer recyclate) and are fully recyclable.
Refill pouch In the Switch System the dosing bottle can always be refilled 1:1 with the pouch. The especially cost-efficient pouch, compared to an empty 1-litre bottle, reduces packaging volume by 85 percent. The lightweight, space-saving pouches reduce the amount of plastic used by 65 percent. As they are made of a monomaterial, the pouches are completely recyclable. The respected Cradle-to-Cradle Institute has certified the pouch’s circularity with the Gold standard.
Sustainability: The facts speak for themselves.
Because the formulations and packaging of the new Switch System consistently follow circular economy principles, users have enormous potential for environmental and climate protection and resource conservation. The numbers speak for themselves. By changing to the new Switch system, a company that uses 10,000 litres of cleaning agents per year can avoid 39 tonnes of CO2 emissions, 12 tons of crude oil and three tons of plastic.
Even before the market launch, the Switch System was nominated for the coveted Purus Innovation Award in the Cleaning Products category. The award honors innovative performance in the cleaning industry and recognizes products, tools and systems that impress with high application quality and outstanding overall design.
“We are proud to have developed a product system that advances the circular economy and resource conservation without compromising on performance and quality,“ says Torsten Haas, Packaging Developer at Werner & Mertz. “Switch is forward-looking both functionally and ecologically. We are convinced this is how the green future of the cleaning industry can and must look like.”
Going to the wellness area is something particularly relaxing during the cold season. Guests not only treat themselves to a well-deserved period of relaxation in a cozy ambience in or by the pool, but they also strengthen their immune system in the sauna, for example. Naturally, expectations of hygiene are high. But how can wooden floorings in wet areas be cleaned and maintained without damaging the material and sacrificing perfect hygiene?
The challenge lies in the fact that all wood floorings have a limited resistance to standing moisture. This sensitivity is extremely pronounced in some woods, while other woods react only moderately to contact with water. With the high entry of water in wet areas, surface damage can occur, despite optimal cleaning and care.
The choice of material is crucial
Wood is a popular renewable material in the wellness area, which, in addition to a cozy appearance, also spreads foot warmth and a pleasant barefoot feeling. It is not only used in sauna facilities, but also as flooring. In order to maintain its longevity, various influencing factors must be taken into account.
The most commonly used is teak or bangkirai. The final treatment with oil, which is unfortunately being used more and more frequently, does not offer enough protection for long-term value retention. Damage to wooden floorings in wet rooms can be avoided if possible causes are taken into account when selecting materials. There are woods that can easily absorb moisture. However, even with such types of wood, superficial changes in color and structure are to be expected, which often become noticeable as rough, gray areas (mold spots). Various cleaning methods, agents and frequency must be coordinated depending on the material, type of installation and final treatment. Anyone who is renovating or building a new building should select suitable materials for use in wet rooms (see information box). The floor should be protected early on, ideally before the wet area is put into operation, with a care dispersion (see expert tip) to make cleaning and maintaining its value easier.
It is often sufficient to clean wooden floorings dry with appropriate dust-binding products. Wet cleaning is necessary to remove adhering dirt. It is important to take care that little water enters the surface. Standing moisture should remain under no circumstances. Wet cleaning can cause damage to the wood flooring, despite professional execution. Wood is a natural product and therefore does not have homogeneous properties like e.g. elastic coverings made of PVC or rubber. As a result, it is always possible that punctual changes occur on the surface of the wood flooring in wet areas. Woods that are considered waterproof and have an intact surface coating are most suitable here.
Cleaning of painted wooden flooring in wet areas
Even with the most suitable type of wood with (intact) painted surfaces, it must be remembered that they are not 100% waterproof. Wood works – especially in environments with changing humidity and temperatures. In humid environments, wood surfaces absorb moisture and swell, then in dry conditions they release this moisture and shrink. This causes the surface to be repeatedly stretched and compressed, and this causes a coating that is actually impermeable to water to develop fine cracks and crevices, through which water can then penetrate the covering. This effect is intensified by the use of aqueous surfactant solutions (cleaning agents, washing and shower creams, etc.), which have the effect of improving the capillarity of water and the water then penetrates into these finest cracks and crevices. Moisture then spreads in the wood and destroys the surrounding wood. Such damage becomes visible as so-called mildew stains (gray discoloration of the wood fibers). If mildew stains are left untreated for a long time, they can no longer be removed, despite extensive sanding. In this case, the only option is often to replace the affected areas. Nevertheless, lacquering offers good protection against penetrating moisture. It is recommended that lacquered wood surfaces should also be treated again with a care dispersion, thus improving the service life and durability
Waxed wood flooring is largely water resistant. A well-waxed wooden flooring has the highest water resistance in the short term. However, incoming moisture and dirt often cause damage to the surface, which turns white. With appropriate measures (polishing, cleaning), the floor can be restored to perfect condition. Wax surfaces are particularly susceptible to surfactants and alkaline agents. These gradually wear away the care film layer or cause emulsification of the wax. Therefore, cleaning with surfactant-free cleaners (Tanet karacho) is recommended.
A major disadvantage of waxed surfaces, however, is that they can become slippery over time and then require basic cleaning with solvent-based cleaners (usually based on petroleum ether). This always leads to enormous odor nuisances, which are only reluctantly accepted in wellness or spa areas. Water-based emulsion waxes are not suitable for wet areas due to the emulsifiers they contain, as even a small amount of water causes them to re-emulsify, which leads to rapid destruction of the care film layer.
Cleaning oiled wooden flooring in wet areas
A particularly popular type of surface treatment today is oiling wooden floors. For this, drying oils are used, which leave a relatively thin layer of care film. Oiled floors require the most maintenance. Depending on the load, oiled coverings should be re-oiled up to once a week according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Since this involves enormous effort each time, practice usually looks different. If a floor is newly oiled, the room must be cleared out and the covering must be thoroughly cleaned. After application, the care film must dry for up to 24 hours, depending on the care product used. The surface may not be walked on during this time. Added to this is the high contamination of the room air with solvents. In order not to have to go to this great expense, oiled floors are often just cleaned (e.g. with an all-purpose cleaner), which in the long term leads to a graying of the surface. The better solution is cleaning with a surfactant-free cleaner or cleaning and care, for which a soap-based cleaner should then be used. Regular use of a soap cleaner extends the time until the next oiling.
When disinfection of the wooden floor is necessary
Wooden floorings installed in bathing areas are not suitable for disinfectant cleaning. This applies to all wooden coverings, although lacquered coverings “cope” with this better than waxed or oiled ones. However, all public pools, including wellness or spa areas with attached bathing areas, are subject to the instructions of the health authorities. They can request that in order to achieve sufficient hygiene, all areas walked on barefoot must be disinfected.
In order to achieve sufficient surface disinfection, it is necessary that the agent used remains on the surface for a certain period of time (5, 15, 30, 60 minutes exposure time in accordance with the Biocide Product Directive) and dries off automatically. The area may not be used until it has dried. To achieve sufficient effectiveness, the entire area to be treated must be wetted with disinfectant cleaner and allowed to dry independently. Rubbing dry after disinfection is not permitted. This often results in damage to the wood due to the standing moisture and the biocides used. In addition, the means used must meet special requirements. These should e.g. be effective against human papilloma viruses (abbreviated HPV) to prevent the transmission of wart viruses. Products based on oxygen releasers (e.g. Apesin AP 100 plus) are particularly suitable, as they do not leave any strong residue on the wood surface. However, if used over a long period of time, these lead to a brightening of the wooden surface, as this type of product always has a bleaching effect.
Expert tip
1. Cleaning and maintenance begins after laying
To ensure optimal preservation of a wooden flooring, it is necessary to carry out a combination of cleaning and care activities right from the start. This begins immediately after installation. Wet areas should be provided with a suitable wood care system (e.g. Timber easy).
• Surface becomes more water-repellent
• Joints are closed more tightly / more homogeneous surface
2. Moisture protection in maintenance cleaning
In general, as little residue as possible should remain on the surfaces of the sauna. Surfactants reduce the surface tension of the water and thus increase the creeping properties (capillarity) of the water. In order to prevent exactly this moisture penetration of the wood, a surfactant-free cleaner such as Tanet karacho should be chosen for maintenance cleaning. This prevents water from penetrating fine crevices or capillaries and causing mildew stains.
Suitable scrubber dryers clean wooden flooring safely and efficiently.
Cleaning with a soap-based cleaner before regular maintenance cleaning is recommended for protection.
A soap based cleaner for maintenance cleaning helps to maintain protection continuously, as a water-repellent care film is created that closes the pores but does not hinder the breathability of the coverings.
Occasional polishing thickens the care film and improves the appearance and durability.
If it is only possible to clean manually, products with impregnating properties (e.g. Timber lamitan) offer another chance to protect wooden coverings from the damaging effects of water.
Basically, maintenance of typically installed woods with soap-based cleaner achieves the most beautiful results and long value retention. If the recommended cleaning and care measures are followed, wooden coverings in wet areas can also be kept in excellent condition for a long time. Thus, the visit to the wellness area can be enjoyed to the fullest with a good feeling.
Tana-Chemie is presenting its next innovation at the CMS Trade Fair in Berlin. With SANET extreme, the most powerful sustainable sanitary high-performance cleaner, Green Care Professional is setting new standards in sanitary cleaning. “We are proud of the achievements in our own development department. We were able to set a milestone in combining performance and sustainability with SANET extreme. Awarded the EU Ecolabel, we are not only comparably strong to one of the strongest non-sustainable competitor products in lime solution, but also outperform it in lime soap removal. Tests show we are almost twice as fast,” reports Bianca Nerowski, Head of Product Management Tana-Chemie.
Highest cleaning performance
Its unique formulation based on methanesulfonic acid and lactic acid enables highest cleaning performance and yet SANET extreme is completely biodegradable.
The performance tests conducted by an independent institute confirm internal results: SANET extreme has been proven to achieve the best limescale dissolution values. It even performs significantly better than sustainable competitor products. Of course, the sanitary high-performance cleaner is EU Ecolabel certified.
SANET extreme effortlessly and extremely quickly removes all typical soiling and incrustations in the sanitary area, such as lime soap residues, urine scale, cosmetic residues or rust. The fact that SANET extreme works faster against lime soap than competitive products on the market has also been proven by an independent institute. The effective and residue-free removal of mineral and organic soiling achieves a natural easy-to-clean effect, with water consistently beading off sanitary objects, fittings and surfaces. The sanitary surfaces shine without reworking.
Sustainable and value-preserving
Thanks to its gentle formulation, SANET extreme helps to preserve the value of typical sanitary fixtures such as chrome fittings, ceramic tiles and porcelain objects. Sustainably designed, 58% of the organic carbon in SANET extreme comes from plant-based, regenerative sources.
With SANET extreme, the innovative sanitary high-performance cleaner and descaler, Green Care Professional once again proves that sustainability and maximum cleaning power are not a contradiction in terms.
Contemporary solutions for two current problems in professional cleaning will be presented by Green Care Professional at the CMS 2023, the leading international trade for cleaning and hygiene, on 19.-22. September in Berlin.
The SWITCH packaging system, which is nominated for the Purus Innovation Award, stands for highly concentrated formulations for cleaning buildings and kitchens and creates a solution for safe and correct dosing while taking sustainability and economy into account at the same time!
Another highlight is SANET extreme. A sustainable high-performance sanitary cleaner!
Find out what’s behind Switch at the exciting live demonstrations! Experts from application technology and development answer questions, impart knowledge about the application, demonstrate performance and shed light on development processes. Exciting topics related to sustainable and high-performance cleaning await you in Hall 4.2, Stand 214
Sodexo Austria, with 3,900 employees, offers services to improve the quality of life. In the fields of building cleaning, catering and fully integrated facilities management, Sodexo in Austria is among the largest service providers in the market.
For Managing Director Michael Freitag of Sodexo Service Solutions Austria GmbH, sustainability plays an especially important role as it is firmly embedded in the company’s culture and DNA.
„… In Werner & Mertz Professional Vertriebs GmbH, we have found a partner that shares our values and helps us to achieve our sustainability goals.“
Michael Freitag Managing Director, Sodexo Service Solutions Austria GmbH
“We are committed to acting with sustainability in mind at all times. With our Better Tomorrow Plan, we pursue ambitious goals for CO2 reduction, ESG reporting and EU Taxonomy. Other topics such as CSR, diversity and equal treatment are also important to us”, says Freitag.
“As a company, we have to take responsibility and have the right partner at our side”, he says. “In Werner & Mertz Professional Vertriebs GmbH, we have found a partner that shares our values and helps us to achieve our sustainability goals.”
Sodexo knows that the subject of sustainability is becoming ever more important. Requests for bids from healthcare providers and hospitals want cleaning and care products that are suitable for sustainable procurement and have the relevant certificates as proof.
„The resources that we conserve by using Green Care Professional products can be documented and calculated.“
Martin Roscher Regional Manager Healthcare Lower Austria and Vienna, Sodexo Service Solutions Austria GmbH
“The resources that we conserve by using Green Care Professional products can be documented and calculated”, says Martin Roscher, Regional Manager Healthcare Lower Austria and Vienna, at Sodexo. “With the Green Care Performance Calculator, the avoidance of CO2, plastic and crude oil can be verified and transparently identified for our sites. The resource savings certificate makes our sustainability goals visible, measurable and traceable.“
The high-performance, integrally sustainable products from the Green Care Professional brand are manufactured exclusively in the EMAS-certified factories in Germany and Hallein, Austria, in compliance with the highest quality standards.
Sodexo appreciates the sustainable products and something more. “We have excellent cooperation with Werner & Mertz Professional Vertriebs GmbH and its experts on site”, says Roscher. “They support us in our everyday work, with training, for example. They come to us in the buildings we clean and instruct our employees in the proper handling of the cleaning products. That helps us enormously.”
Sustainability is not a trend, but a necessary step in protecting the environment and contributing to a better future for upcoming generations.
About Sodexo
Founded in Marseille in 1996 by Pierre Bellon, Sodexo today is the world’s leader in services that improve the quality of everyday life for everyone. Nearly 422,000 employees serve 100 million people in 53 countries daily. Sodexo has more than 30 years of experience in the Austrian market. Sodexo Service Solutions Austria GmbH employs about 3,900 in Austria whose service mentality delights almost 475,000 people every day in some 1,400 businesses, including commercial operations, government agencies and healthcare facilities.
Mainz cleaning products company advocates tax on plastic
Politicians meet medium-sized company: Steffi Lemke, Federal Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection, and Katrin Eder, Rhineland-Palatinate Minister for Climate Protection, Environment, Energy and Mobility, made a joint visit to the headquarters of Werner & Mertz in Mainz on 18 July. Reinhard Schneider, owner of the manufacturing company of ecological detergents and cleaning products, presented a status report on the Recyclate Initiative. In 2012 Schneider founded the initiative in which cooperative partners along the value chain actively pursue and promote high-quality mechanical recycling of used plastic from household waste collections like the Yellow Bag.
To date, more than 740 million bottles of 100 percent post-consumer recyclate have been manufactured in Mainz and filled with Frosch and Green Care Professional brand products. The initiative’s most recent success is the new spray head whose mechanical components are made from recyclate. The refill pouch of a monomaterial also makes an important contribution to cutting down on packaging and to promoting high-quality mechanical recycling.
From left: Federal Minister for the Environment Steffi Lemke, Werner & Mertz owner Reinhard Schneider and Rhineland-Palatinate Environment Minister Katrin Eder. Copyright Photo: Werner & Mertz / Mathias Sporn
Working toward a circular economy for plastics
In a discussion with the ministers, Schneider emphasized how important it is to continue advocating and advancing high-quality mechanical recycling of plastic packaging. Plans that attempt to equate chemical recycling with mechanical recycling pose a danger for packaging recyclers. For one thing, the low price of virgin plastic prevents a true transformation in the market. “For a level playing field, the use of climate-damaging new plastic has to be taxed. That can happen by converting the EU recycling fee into a tax on new goods and by cancelling the subsidy for the manufacturing of virgin plastic,” said Schneider. Then the use of recycled plastic would pay off and lead to greater investment in high-quality mechanical recycling.
Expand the circular economy to protect the environment and climate
“Strengthening the circular economy is indispensable for environmental and climate protection reasons. Progress can be made by developing the fee charged for non-recycled packaging waste and paid to Brussels in such a way that it encourages manufacturers to come up with reusable packaging solutions, produce recyclable packaging and use plastic recyclate for the production of new packaging,” said Rhineland-Palatinate Minister Eder. “Werner & Mertz is a pioneer in this field. That’s why we talked with the company about ways to make the plastic tax sustainable.”
The ministers could get an idea of the family-owned company’s integrally sustainable way of working on a tour of the modern Production Center and the in-house packaging production of partner ALPLA on the Werner & Mertz premises.
From left: Federal Minister Steffi Lemke, Werner & Mertz owner Reinhard Schneider, State Minister Katrin Eder, and Timothy Glaz, Head of Corporate Affairs at Werner & Mertz. Copyright Photo: Werner & Mertz / Mathias Sporn
Our hands are our most important working tools. Especially in summer, hands are stressed by the heat. Added to this is the prolonged contact of the skin with water, cleaning chemicals or protective gloves, as well as frequent washing and disinfecting. Dryness, irritation, cracks can be the consequences. Here are important steps for healthy hand hygiene.
Before starting work, wash your hands and apply a skin protection cream. In this way, skin protection cream helps to prevent or alleviate skin damage. The application of a skin protection cream serves as protection against aqueous working substances. It is recommended to use products with moisturizing and nourishing ingredients. It is important to ensure that the skin protection cream is well absorbed.
As soon as the hands start to sweat or swell, it is advisable to change the protective gloves and let the used gloves dry.
Hand care cream helps the skin to regenerate and calm down. Therefore, it is recommended to apply it after work.
When choosing the right skin protection and care cream, preference should be given to products that contain natural and nourishing ingredients, such as LAVAMANI care and LAVAMANI protect:
Beeswax: Helps prevent inflammation
Bisabolol: An anti-inflammatory active ingredient derived from the oil of chamomile.
Hamemelis: Has an anti-inflammatory and anti-irritant effect
Coconut oil: Supports rapid absorption of the cream
When washing hands, it is advisable to use products that take sustainability aspects into account, such as the LAVAMANI hand wash lotions and soaps from Green Care Professional:
Dermatologically tested
Moisturising properties protect the skin from drying out
Mild to the skin with skin neutral pH
EU Ecolabel and Cradle to Cradle ® certified
Free from parabens, alkalis, microplastics
Hypoallergenic hand soap with care effect. With a subtle floral fragrance. Free from dye.
Hand washing lotion with a pleasant almond scent. Free of soap.
Handwash lotion without dye and fragrances. Suitable for use in the food sector.
Tip: To ensure the disinfection effect, hands should be dried thoroughly before hand disinfection, especially the fingers and finger interdigital spaces.
Saubermacher Outsourcing GmbH relies on Green Care Professional products from the cleaning products manufacturer Werner & Mertz Professional.
Erika Marko, Commercial Managaing Director at Saubermacher Outsourcing GmbH, has been responsible for the entire Facility Services business in Austria since the company’s founding. Today more than 350 staff members are employeed and an area equal to more than 5000 square kilometers is cleaned every year.
Where cleaning and hygiene products are concerned, Ms. Marko has put her trust in Werner & Mertz Professional Vertriebs GmbH from the very start. Sustainability is in the DNA of Saubermacher Outsourcing whose parent company, Saubermacher Dienstleistungs GmbH, is the world’s most sustainable waste management company, according to a GRESB rating.
“What we do today determines how the world looks tomorrow.“
In the cooperation with Werner & Mertz, Ms. Marko appreciates the problem-solving skills of the sales rep responsible for her and his understanding of the needs and requirements of her building managers. Besides the sustainability factors, she says the innovations from Werner & Mertz are so important because they give her, as a customer, an advantage over the competition.
Particularly in the tendering business, environmental issues are being prioritized, says Ms. Marko, especially with regard to cleaning products. Saubermacher Outsourcing works according to its own guideline, which explicitly points to the use of sustainable Green Care Professional products. The Green Care Performance Calculator Certificate (for resource saving) from Werner & Mertz Professional serves as proof the the company’s environmental awareness. The certificate shows how much CO2, plastic and crude oil Saubermacher Outsourcing has avoided to date by using Green Care Professional products. It also estimates future savings in the buildings involved in the tender – for an environment that’s worth living in.
For Saubermacher Outsourcing, the Quick & Easy system is a top favorite for cost monitoring. Thanks to simple use and low dosing, the system keeps operations within budget. The dosing systems for the different cleaning areas, such as kitchen or laundry, also contribute positively to cost reduction.
Erika Marko is impressed by the outstanding cleaning performance and efficiency of Green Care products.
Saubermacher Outsourcing is a wholly owned subsidiary of Saubermacher Dienstleistung GmbH. The parent company is the most sustainable waste management company in the world (GRESB rating). Founded by Hans and Margret Roth in 1979, the company now employs a workforce of 3,600 in seven countries.
Saubermacher Outsourcing GmbH operates in the three areas of Internal Logistics, Operational Waste Management and Facility Services.
Erika Marko, Commercial Managing Director, is responsible for Facility Services. With more than 800 employees, the company operates in four countries.
The hotel industry is recovering from the pandemic and is enjoying rising bookings. But the guests bring higher expectations with them: They want to travel more sustainably – and this does not only apply to the younger generation of guests. And that’s a good thing. We show how housekeeping can solve the current challenges of sustainability, hygiene, well-being, cost-effectiveness and a shortage of skilled workers.
8 tips for sustainable hotels
With a holistically sustainable hygiene concept, hotel and gastronomy experts can not only work more sustainably, but also combine the high demands of guests in terms of hygiene, well-being and sustainability. We show here how cleaning can be made simple and more sustainable and what advantages this brings.
In the entire hotel sector, the cleaning result has the highest priority and does not allow any compromises. The modern designed, sustainable cleaning agents of Green Care Professional can do even more.
Based on the principle of the circular economy, Green Care is developed in such a way that the
materials used are safe for people and nature. The ingredients can be returned to the biological cycle, i.e. to nature. The same applies to the packaging: The materials are made of recycled material and can be recycled again and returned to the next product cycle. In this way, no new waste is created, the circle is closed.
The plus for the guest: Sustainable cleaning agents contribute to the well-being of guests who suffer from allergies.
The use of products without fragrances and dyes helps to improve the indoor air and avoid possible headaches or discomfort. The cleaning quality is not affected, because fragrances and dyes have no cleaning effect.
If one pays attention to dermatologically tested products when selecting detergents, the hotel and work laundry is more skin-friendly.
2. Recycling and waste prevention in the hotel
Waste is not just about jam. How hotel businesses should handle their waste is regulated by law. But the simple guiding principle of “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” can easily reduce costly storage and packaging waste disposal:
Reduce: Producing as little packaging waste as possible is easier on the environment and also on your wallet. Concentrates can be diluted with water on site. Especially concentrates in bag-in-box systems are the ideal solution to reduce plastic volume, waste and transport emissions are saved.
Reuse: Producing as little packaging waste as possible is easier on the environment and also on your wallet. Concentrates can be diluted with water on site. Especially concentrates in bag-in-box systems are the ideal solution to reduce plastic volume, waste and transport emissions are saved.
Reuse: Look for packaging with a refill concept: Voluminous packaging can be reused with refill packs, which are often offered with much smaller outer packaging.
Recycle: Just as in the household sector, waste in hotels is separated and collected for recycling. In order for packaging to be recycled through the collection system, care should be taken when selecting cleaning products to ensure that their packaging is recyclable. Sustainable packaging is made of 100% recycled material and can also be recycled again.
A sustainable hygiene concept leaves no area untouched: whether kitchen, laundry, dining room or room, thinking holistically pays off. For each area there are different ways to act in the interests of guests and the environment.
Wast towels and bed linen less after consultation with the guest
Wash with sustainable washing systems and detergents
Also consider mops, wipes, tablecloths and workwear
Prevent overdosing: Dosing systems help ensure correct dosing and ensure consistent quality of cleaning results
Dermatologically tested powder and liquid detergents
Green Care Professional offers comprehensive systems for sustainable laundry hygiene.
4. Communicate environmental protection
Sustainability is becoming increasingly important in all areas of life, including the selection of restaurants, hotels and leisure activities. An openly communicated sustainability strategy brings competitive advantages. Transparent and credible communication with the guest is important. This is how to score points in the ratings and filter criteria for sustainable hotels, which increasingly ask about environmental friendliness (e.g., hotels.com, expedia.com).
Eco-labels certify compliance with sustainable solutions for washing and cleaning in the hotel industry. The partnership with the globally recognized Green Key seal is a guarantee for strict sustainability management and sustainability training for staff and suppliers.
Confident employees are the hallmark of the hotel and are in direct contact with the guest..
In times of a shortage of skilled workers, it is also important for employers to be sustainable for their staff. Thanks to harmless ingredients and well thought-out application concepts, Green Care products are safe for housekeeping. Training measures also make an employer more attractive. Training courses on the subject of cleaning, sustainability and employee safety offer many opportunities for this, e.g. in the form of e-learning offers (green-care-academy.com).
Minimalist furnishings for a clean look are currently in vogue. The advantages are impressive: fewer decorative elements that are used in a targeted manner give the guest more peace and appear tidier. Easy-to-clean materials that can be wiped clean reduce cleaning time. This saves time-consuming additional cleaning. Time and costs in daily cleaning are reduced.
7. Correct cleaning frequency and value preservation
Thoughful maintenance cleaning saves housekeeping from time-consuming and costly basic or special cleaning that may require stronger chemicals.
A customized cleaning and hygiene plan for each hotel area specifies which surfaces are cleaned and maintained at which intervals with which agent in the appropriate dosage. The advantages:
Correct dosing and use of the right products prevent material damage. Fewer resources are needed for renovations – and refurbishments.
Surfaces are protected, cared for and last longer.
Regular cleaning and care contributes to the hygienic well-being of guests and is visually appealing.
8. Customized disinfection
The pandemic has shown: Disinfection is important just in case. However, a normal cleaning agent is often sufficient. Fitness equipment, for example, can also be cleaned with a normal all-purpose cleaner. This is gentle on the material. It is important to use the right cleaner or disinfectant at the right frequency for the purpose and material..
With a reliable partner, many of these tips can be implemented quickly and easily. Pay attention to transparent communication and well-known certificates for the products as well as the company. Ask critical questions to identify greenwashing. For more info, visit: green-care-professional.com. With a few small changes, you can pave the way for more sustainability in your hotel and restaurant and inspire your guests!
In a spring-like atmosphere, braised leg of lamb with beans wrapped in bacon or roast hare attract guests to restaurants at Easter time. These culinary delights can be a real challenge when it comes to keeping the filled dining room and kitchen in a hygienic condition. But how can a perfect festive table be presented while also keeping costs low and protecting the environment?
A beautiful table for guests – and the environment
At the first glance at the restaurant table, the guest gets a sense of how hygienic and qualitative work is done. Strict hygiene regulations apply in the catering industry, plates, cutlery, glasses and other containers that come into direct contact with the guest’s order must always be spotless before use. With the choice of the right dishwashing concept, shiny glasses and dishes as well as impeccable cutlery are no problem – not even for the environment.
Sustainable cleaners and rinse aids offer the ideal solution for removing stubborn organic, greasy and oily soiling. They are based on renewable and biodegradable raw materials and do not contain harmful ingredients such as NTA, EDTA and phosphate. High concentrates save storage capacity and packaging. It is important that the cleaners are matched to the water hardness present in order to achieve optimum results.
For a perfectly clean kitchen area
Tools, surfaces, floors in the kitchen area always require perfect hygiene. How can all contaminated surfaces and machines be kept clean quickly, safely and sustainably? A degreasing kitchen cleaner quickly removes both oil- and grease-containing soiling and stubborn encrustations, especially in the stove and grill area, from all waterproof and alkali-resistant surfaces. Sustainable formulations for use in the food sector on work surfaces or floors are based mainly on renewable, plant-based ingredients, such as sugar-based surfactants or foam-inhibiting soaps made from coconut ingredients.
For example, ready-to-use cleaners are ideal for cleaning kitchen surfaces. Here are some selection criteria:
Immediately ready for use, they allow direct application without intermediate steps in a few seconds – without the risk of incorrect dosing.
They contain no fragrances and the foam application keeps aerosol formation to a minimum, so the air quality is not affected.
Cradle to Cradle and EU Ecolabel certificates are a guarantee for environmentally friendly product quality.
Keeping contact surfaces clean
In the guest area, countless contact surfaces and objects are touched intensively and frequently by both guests and staff: Tables, chairs, armrests, menus, spice grinders, door handles, light switches, etc. They require cleaning at regular intervals or even after each use. With little effort, these surfaces can be treated, for example, with a ready-to-use foam cleaner such as Tanet interior Quick & Easy. The advantage here is that the formation of aerosols in the air is avoided. Easy to handle due to the integrated exact dosage, costly overdosing is prevented, thus enabling low application costs. Ideally designed for mobile and ergonomic use, Tanet interior Quick & Easy is also Cradle to Cradle® and EU Ecolabel certified – safe for the guest, the user and the environment.
No fears of stains
In addition to tableware and cutlery, tablecloths and napkins are another important indicator of cleanliness. Cleaning restaurant linens should by no means sacrifice sustainability either. For effortless removal of greasy, protein-based soiling and food residues, pretreatment before washing with a ready-to-use stain remover is recommended. Material and environmentally friendly, Solus multi is mainly based on renewable raw material sources and is free of bleaching additives and optical brighteners. It also supports the washing action of the detergent.
Sustainably designed powder detergents are ideal for cleaning restaurant laundry and offer several advantages.
Natural enzymes deliver bright white linens and effortlessly remove even heavily encrusted food residues such as grease, protein, blood, etc. from as low as 30°C.
They are based on biodegradable, even plant-based surfactants and complexing agents, which allows effective washing of all textiles and effortlessly removes all types of stains such as wine, tea, coffee or lipstick.
They do not contain microplastics, EDTA, NTA, phosphate and chlorine-containing compounds. EDTA and chlorine-containing compounds massively pollute the environment and are hardly biodegradable. .
The comprehensive range of Green Care Professional offers suitable products for all challenges in the kitchen and guest room. Sustainability is achieved without compromising performance, thanks to modern formulations. For a green spring in both senses of the word.
More powerful, more economical, and more sustainable. The updated formulation of TANET SR 13, optimized for sustainability, shows: performance and sustainability work hand in hand! TANET SR 13 is now available as Green Care Professional and has not only been awarded the EU Ecolabel, but also scores highly in terms of economy and performance.
Economy as a plus in the tender Public sector tenders increasingly call for sustainable products, especially alcohol cleaners. With its optimized dosage, TANET SR 13 is a hot candidate for winning tenders and is particularly economical to use in maintenance cleaning. The EU Ecolabel and the bottle made of 100 % recycled plastic underline the sustainability of the product..
Dosage halved and still improved performance The perfect combination of surfactants and alcohol ensure optimum cleaning performance with easy distribution of cleaning solution. With fast streak-free drying and gloss retention, TANET SR 13 is equally suitable for floors and surfaces. The fresh fragrance rounds off the cleaning.
When developing laundry detergents and fabric softeners, the focus is usually on cleaning performance and the effect on the fibres and shaping of textiles. For some years now, environmental properties have additionally gained in importance, as this topic increasingly concerns the public and more and more people are interested in reducing their ecological footprint.
The ideal product, however, should master another challenge: it should be skin-compatible and cause neither skin irritations nor allergic reactions. The cooperation with Dermatest GmbH, an independent dermatological institute for testing the safety and skin compatibility of industrial products, marks Tana-Chemie’s pioneering role. The sustainable detergents and fabric softeners of the Green Care Professional brand have been successfully tested and have been awarded the Dermatest seal for proven skin compatibility.
The Dermetest seal of approval is a scientific label for independently tested products which come into contact with the skin. Products which are labelled with this seal have proven their safety in terms of exposure time and site of application in patch tests. Exceptional safety when it comes to your skin!
Our skin is only a few millimetres thick. And yet it protects us from many dangerous environmental influences and performs vital functions for the body. It prevents the penetration of pathogens, fungi and moisture, houses nerve fibres, immune defence cells, touch receptors, blood and lymph vessels, stores energy and serves as a heat insulator. It also plays a significant role in our well-being. Daily contact with hundreds of substances, liquids and surfaces poses a great challenge and danger to the skin. Textiles, and thus also the detergents and fabric softeners used, are in particularly long-term and extensive contact with our skin on a daily basis. Additional friction can also irritate the skin. Therefore, the skin compatibility of these products is particularly important.
In order to meet this demand for its products, Tana-Chemie had the skin compatibility and safety of the Green Care Professional detergents and fabric softeners tested by Dermatest GmbH. Epicutaneous tests of the use concentrations according to the application instructions were carried out on volunteers under dermatological control. These tests follow internationally recognised guidelines*:
At least 30 test persons are selected for each test
Male and female test subjects are included regardless of the subsequent target group of the product
All test persons are older than 18 years
By selecting certain skin types, e.g. sensitive or atopic skin, the tolerance for certain products and skin types can be tested
The one-time contact in the context of a test is intensified in comparison to the later application in order to achieve a meaningful result
For testing, the test products are applied in a suitable concentration to a self-adhesive patch and stuck on under occlusive (closed) conditions for 24h. The occlusive conditions under the patch intensify the contact of the skin with the product, which increases the significance of the result. The assessment of possible skin reactions is carried out according to the recommendations of ISO 10993-23:2021 (Section 8, Annex E).
Since the course of the reactions provides information about the type of reaction (allergic or irritant), three readings are the quality standard at Dermatest. The first assessment takes place 30 to 60 minutes after removal of the patch, a second and third reading takes place 24 and 48 hours after the first reading.
Only when the product has successfully passed this test is the Dermatest seal and the rating “dermatologically tested” awarded.
The detergents and fabric softeners in the Green Care Professional line have successfully passed the tests and have thus been awarded the Dermatest seal and are thus proven to be skin-friendly and safe to use.
* (10993-23:2021, Section 8 and Annex E (Irritation testing of medical devices on human skin), the guideline of the German Dermatological Society (DDG) and the German Society for Allergology and Clinical Immunology (DGAKI) on “Performance of the epicutaneous test with contact allergens” (AWMF guideline register).
Dermatest protects your skin. Since 1978. The independent dermatological institute tests all substances and items that come into contact with the skin for safety and skin compatibility and awards safe products with the Dermatest seal. The effectiveness of cosmetics is also independently checked at Dermatest. A large team of scientists from dermatology, allergology, food chemistry and biology ensures scientific competence and accuracy. Many tests are carried out with the help of volunteers, some of whom have been working with Dermatest for years. All tests take place under medical supervision and in accordance with international guidelines. Since 2009, Dermatest’s quality management system has been certified according to DIN EN ISO 9001 and audited by TÜV Rheinland.
