Modern offices in Singapore are designed in a way to spur close collaborations and to socialise, in order to build trust and strong bonds among colleagues. For that reason, social spaces in workplaces have become increasingly significant as we lounge, work, play, and spend the majority of our Mondays to Fridays (possibly more than 40 hours a week) in an enclosed office. However, the overlooked truth is that – in an office environment, the chances are that these shared spaces are not cleansed and scoured as frequently as you may think.
From the moment you step into your office, you have already come into contact with millions of germs and bacteria that are not visible by the naked eye, lingering on surfaces that we have always reckoned clean.
It is probably worth noting that the cleanliness of your office is directly correlated to the comfort of it, not forgetting that it will affect every individual’s productivity and well-being too. For this reason, we think that it is about time that offices should pay attention to these overlooked germs haven that is urging for the employment of office cleaning services right away. In this article, we magnify the 6 filthiest items in your office you would never have guessed.
1. Door Handles
Lo and behold, the first surface that you would ever come into contact with when pacing into your office is already classified as one of the filthiest spots around. However, this is not narrowed down to merely the door handles of your main entrance. Think – the door handles of your fridges and microwaves. Yes, they are no exception.
As high-touch items, it is probably no surprise that the door handles harbour plenty of germs. When you store your food away or reheat your lunch, you’d probably not give it a second thought. But really, you are unconsciously touching a surface where an ineffable number of germs and bacteria lodge.
2. Keyboards
Yikes! Indisputable pieces of evidence have proven time and again that your toilets are not the germiest spots in your office – it is your keyboards that actually top the charts! For you, office ladies and gentleman, the keyboard is the one item that you come into contact with most frequently throughout the day. When the crumbs from your food fell into the cracks between and under your keys, along with the little droplets from someone’s cough or sneeze in the mix, your keyboards have never looked more inviting for germs to assemble.
3. Printers and Photocopy Machines
Communal devices like photocopy machines and printers are one of the many items that are overlooked during your weekly or monthly cleaning session. But when everyone scuffles to get their paperwork done with the aid of these machines, their panels and touchpads transform into the ultimate breeding ground for germs and bacteria. Researches have shown that on average, the photocopy machines are swamping with 1.2 billion Colony-Forming Units (CFUs) per square inch. Well, if left unchecked during the cleaning routine, your co-workers are probably never looking at these machines the same way again.
4. Desks
For sure, the desks are not getting away from the list, especially in offices where the “eating at desk” culture is adopted. When you rest your arms on the desk, you probably don’t know that a frenzy bacteria party is taking place concurrently. Once again, as compared to the infamous toilet seat, your desks monstrously house 400 times more germs.
5. Switches
Just like the door handles, the switches where your co-workers and yourself come into contact with daily is one of the overlooked items where germs manifest. While fingers get there all the time, the truth is, your sanitiser probably never really visit the switches. Well, unfortunately, they serve as germ-ridden hideaways, and they can get pretty grimy, without anyone realising it, all year long.
6. Communal Mugs
The main issue in communal mugs lies in how they are being cleaned. More often than not, your co-workers simply run the mug under running water or occasionally scrub them with the communal sponges lying around. However, these sponges that are rarely changed doesn’t make your mug any cleaner. In fact, they are the key culprit that pass the germs, along with some traces of faecal matter, from mug to mug.
You can certainly prevent your communal mugs from getting any filthier by ditching the unpleasant communal sponges and start cleaning them right.
So… What’s Next?
Now that you are aware of all the germ-ridden hotspots, it is time to take action by stepping up your cleaning protocols, possibly with the help of professional office cleaning services in Singapore. When you engage office cleaning services in Singapore, the well-trained cleaning team will employ a comprehensive array of cleaning materials, leaving your office as spotless as it can ever get. Proactive cleaning routines can be extremely time-consuming and not forgetting, full of hassles too. But if you can leave all these in the good hands of a cleaning company, why not?