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Clarke BOOSTs Productivity for Orangemen 

August 08, 2006 - Clarke Helps Syracuse University Implement
Effecient and Effective Cleaning Worth of National Champions

The Following Appeared in CM/Cleaning & Maintenance,
June 2006

Clarke BOOSTs Productivity for Orangemen
by Gretchen Roufs

The beautiful and busy facilities at Syracuse University, a private
university in western New York, see traffic from over 18,000
students and 4,800 faculty and staff members.

These buildings contain many diverse spaces, including classrooms, laboratories, offices, auditoriums, libraries, and lounges.Dan Welker, custodial supervisor for the University’s West Zone, has the challenge of overseeing the care of granite and marble floors in a number of buildings, including 50,000-square-foot Eggers Hall, the 50,000-square-foot Heroy Geology Building, and the 80,000-square-foot Physics Building. Two of these buildings have uneven granite floors, and one has terrazzo marble floors,” said Welker. Labor and chemical costs, training, and machine maintenance were all on Welker’s list of challenges that were recently solved by the new Clarke BOOST™ (Battery Operated Orbital Scrubber Technology).

How do the floors at Syracuse University look since they’ve started using the BOOST machines? Welker gave the BOOST an excellent review, confirming Clarke’s research showing that it cleans floors up to six times more effectively than raditional disc scrubbers do. “The condition of the floors is better than what we were getting with the oldstyle machines,” said Welker. “We bought one BOOST machine for the Physics Building. The technology worked so well that we bought two more machines for the other buildings.”

The industry’s first rectangular pad orbital scrubber, the BOOST’s pad provides consistent contact across the cleaning path and features an orbital motion that spins at 2,250 RPM. These orbits attack the dirt from multiple directions, and hold the cleaning solution in the full length of the pad, compared to traditional rotary scrubbers that sling water away from a round pad. With old conventional disc scrubbers, the folks at Syracuse University had to spend extra time cleaning the corners and edges of the floors.

“The puddles in the corners and cleaning solution that got sprayed on the walls were especially troublesome,” said Welker. The Clarke BOOST eliminated overspray problems with its unique rectangular floor pad, which allows for close-edge cleaning. Using a traditional disc scrubber, workers had to make a lot of “dump and fill” trips. With the BOOST, workers spend 50 to 70 percent less time emptying the recovery tank and refilling the solution tank. The BOOST’s handy controls are another labor-reducing attribute.

“Our workers can adjust the machine speed easily with the conveniently-located controls,” Welker remarked. He said they were pleasantly surprised with the Boost’s maneuverability, especially around corners. With the Clarke BOOST technology, about 50 to 70 percent less chemicals and water are used. The other noticeable chemical advantage, according to Welker, is that you use your own chemicals — compared with other machines that require proprietary on-board soap systems. Welker said the reduction of labor and materials are not the only attributes that Clarke’s BOOST brings to the Syracuse University campus. “It’s easy to put the pads on the machine, and training is very simple,” said Welker.

Pad life with the BOOST is extended by about 40 percent. Fewer pads are used because the orbital motion requires less pad pressure to achieve the desired results. This also helps reduce environmental impact, while motors and battery pack are used more efficiently, yielding anincreased run time of up to 25 percent compared to traditional disk scrubbers.

he Syracuse University maintenance workers really like the new BOOST technology, according to Welker. “It’s made their life so much easier,” he said. “The new machine doesn’t use as much water as a conventional machine, so the floors don’t get as wet.” He also said that it’s easier to clean up the machine itself after a floor job is completed.