VIEWPOINT SCHOOL AND THE CURTIS SCHOOL OF CALIFORNIA TRANSITION TO GREEN CLEANING PRODUCTS:
The Viewpoint School and The Curtis School, both located outside of Los Angeles, CA, have formed a partnership with Unisource's local office in Sherman Oaks, CA. These privately-run educational institutions initially started their Green transition as an experimental process. After their testing and trial processes yielded positive results and they experienced a noticeable improvement in cleanliness, indoor air quality, and employee support, their Green experiment became a reality. Both Viewpoint and Curtis schools are currently using Johnson Wax Professional Green Seal® — certified cleaning chemicals including: Crew®, Alpha HP™, Stride®, Glance®, and will soon begin using a floor stripper and finish. The schools further demonstrated their commitment to Green cleaning by installing additional 3M™ Matting at door entrances to prevent tracking of dry soil throughout the building.
Viewpoint and Curtis schools — who joined with Unisource in 2005 and 2006 respectively — continue to look for ways to expand their environmental conversion to Green cleaning products. Both schools have purchased high-efficient vacuum backpacks for daily vacuuming. To provide instruction, Unisource brought in trainers to each school and taught employees how to safely wear the vacuums and use support belts, in order to reduce lower back and abdominal injuries. The initial reaction to the vacuums was positive, but employees almost immediately noted that the backpacks filled up too quickly. The reality was that these environmentally-friendly vacuum backpacks were filling up more quickly because they were more efficient than the previous equipment and simply did a better job of collecting all of the particles that the old vacuums had missed.
Practicing overall sustainability is important for maintaining and establishing a "Healthy School," and both Viewpoint and Curtis schools are well on their way to becoming Green. Administrators, staff and students on both campuses are continuing to increase their awareness and the role they play to help the environment by promoting the use of Green products throughout their facilities. As first responders, the maintenance team has also noted that the conversion to Green products has improved indoor air quality, and that, "every one has noticed the Green difference."
As far as cost savings, both schools will initially see approximately 15 percent annual savings compared to their former cleaning systems, and as time goes on, there will continue to be additional monetary benefits. Employees, staff and students at Viewpoint and Curtis schools have come to the realization that the right way to clean is by using Green Seal® — certified products because they are efficient, effective and environmentally-friendly.
