The Science of Disinfection: Best Practices and Latest Technologies for Schools

In the wake of recent glob­al health events, the impor­tance of thor­ough and effec­tive dis­in­fec­tion ser­vices, espe­cial­ly in edu­ca­tion­al set­tings, has nev­er been more appar­ent. The Budd Group has exten­sive exper­tise in facil­i­ty main­te­nance and dis­in­fec­tion, stand­ing at the fore­front of imple­ment­ing best prac­tices and embrac­ing the lat­est tech­nolo­gies in the fight against pathogens. Here are some tips for imple­ment­ing effec­tive dis­in­fec­tion strate­gies and ensur­ing the safe­ty of your cam­pus’ staff, stu­dents, and visitors.

What to Know About Dis­in­fect­ing a School

Impor­tance of Effec­tive Disinfection

Effec­tive dis­in­fec­tion with­in schools is cru­cial for main­tain­ing a healthy envi­ron­ment con­ducive to learn­ing and devel­op­ment. It sup­ports the phys­i­cal health and safe­ty of the school com­mu­ni­ty and plays a sig­nif­i­cant role in main­te­nance impact and com­pli­ance with health reg­u­la­tions. A thor­ough­ly dis­in­fect­ed cam­pus could sig­nif­i­cant­ly boost your edu­ca­tion­al insti­tu­tion’s reputation.

The Budd Group under­stands that com­pre­hen­sive dis­in­fec­tion goes beyond basic clean­ing, address­ing vis­i­ble sur­faces and areas more sus­cep­ti­ble to har­bor­ing germs.

Best Prac­tices in Dis­in­fec­tion

Adopt­ing best-prac­tice dis­in­fec­tion meth­ods requires cre­at­ing com­pre­hen­sive plans that include rou­tine clean­ing sched­ules, tar­get­ed dis­in­fec­tion of high-touch areas, and the inte­gra­tion of effec­tive clean­ing agents.

The Budd Group empha­sizes the impor­tance of a tai­lored approach with every method of dis­in­fec­tion, rec­og­niz­ing that each edu­ca­tion­al facil­i­ty has unique needs. By com­bin­ing tra­di­tion­al meth­ods with inno­v­a­tive solu­tions, our team can help ensure that dis­in­fec­tion is both thor­ough and effi­cient, min­i­miz­ing the spread of ill­ness­es. Our CDC-com­­pli­ant dis­in­fec­tion meth­ods are cut­ting-edge, includ­ing the appli­ca­tion of an antimi­cro­bial bar­ri­er applied to high touch-point areas and ver­i­fied by an ATP meter, as well as reme­di­a­tion dis­in­fec­tion and cleaning.

Lat­est Tech­nolo­gies in Disinfection

What are the new meth­ods of dis­in­fec­tion? The advent of new tech­nolo­gies, such as UV‑C light­ing and elec­tro­sta­t­ic sprayers, has rev­o­lu­tion­ized the approach to dis­in­fec­tion. UV‑C light­ing offers a non-chem­i­cal means of dis­in­fect­ing sur­faces and air, while elec­tro­sta­t­ic sprayers ensure a more uni­form appli­ca­tion of dis­in­fec­tants, even in hard-to-reach areas. 

The Budd Group stays on the cut­ting edge by incor­po­rat­ing these inno­va­tions into our ser­vices, offer­ing schools advanced solu­tions for main­tain­ing clean­li­ness and health. Our mist­ing and elec­tro­sta­t­ic spray dis­in­fec­tion uses cir­cu­lat­ing mist­ing and fog­ging devices to clean and pro­tect hard-to-reach, fre­quent­ly touched sur­faces with envi­ron­men­tal­ly safe dis­in­fect­ing sprays. And dis­in­fect­ing for COVID-19 is pos­si­ble with our ultra­vi­o­let (UV‑C) light, bar­ri­er tech­nol­o­gy, or an antimi­cro­bial shield.

Com­mon Chal­lenges and Con­sid­er­a­tions Regard­ing Dis­in­fec­tion for Schools

Despite their best efforts, schools face sev­er­al chal­lenges in main­tain­ing effec­tive dis­in­fec­tion, includ­ing bal­anc­ing costs and ensur­ing com­pre­hen­sive cov­er­age with­out dis­rupt­ing the edu­ca­tion­al process. Here are some com­mon chal­lenges and con­sid­er­a­tions to keep in mind when imple­ment­ing dis­in­fec­tion pro­to­cols in schools:

1. Cost-Effec­tive­ness: Schools often have lim­it­ed bud­gets, mak­ing it impor­tant to find cost-effec­tive ways to dis­in­fect the entire facil­i­ty. This can be achieved by using mul­ti-pur­pose prod­ucts that are effec­tive against a wide range of virus­es and bac­te­ria, or invest­ing in long-last­ing pro­tec­tive coat­ings that require less fre­quent applications.
2. Fre­quen­cy of Use: With chil­dren con­stant­ly mov­ing around and touch­ing var­i­ous sur­faces, schools need to imple­ment dis­in­fec­tion rou­tines that can be done mul­ti­ple times through­out the day with­out caus­ing disruptions.
3. Safe­ty: When choos­ing dis­in­fec­tants, it is impor­tant to con­sid­er their safe­ty for use in a school set­ting. Some chem­i­cals may cause irri­ta­tion or aller­gic reac­tions in chil­dren or staff, so it is cru­cial to select prod­ucts that are non-tox­ic and gen­tle on the skin.
4. Prop­er Appli­ca­tion: In order for a dis­in­fec­tant to be effec­tive, it must be applied cor­rect­ly. This means fol­low­ing instruc­tions on the prod­uct label and allow­ing enough con­tact time for the dis­in­fec­tant to work before wip­ing it off. It may also be help­ful to train staff on prop­er appli­ca­tion tech­niques to ensure thor­ough cov­er­age of all surfaces.
5. Tar­get­ing High-Touch Areas: While it’s impor­tant to dis­in­fect all areas of a school, cer­tain high-touch areas should receive extra atten­tion. These can include door han­dles, light switch­es, desks and tables, and bath­room sur­faces. Reg­u­lar­ly dis­in­fect­ing these areas can help pre­vent the spread of germs and keep stu­dents and staff healthy.
6. Using Per­son­al Pro­tec­tive Equip­ment (PPE): When han­dling dis­in­fec­tants, it’s impor­tant to wear per­son­al pro­tec­tive equip­ment such as gloves and gog­gles to pro­tect your­self from harsh chem­i­cals. In addi­tion, make sure to prop­er­ly dis­pose of any used PPE accord­ing to the prod­uct label instructions.
7. Prop­er Stor­age: Dis­in­fec­tants should always be stored in a cool, dry place out of reach of chil­dren. It’s also impor­tant to store them away from heat sources, as high tem­per­a­tures can reduce their effec­tive­ness. Make sure to check the expi­ra­tion date on your dis­in­fec­tant prod­ucts and replace them when necessary.

The Budd Group address­es these chal­lenges by offer­ing scal­able solu­tions tai­lored to fit each facility’s bud­get and spe­cif­ic needs so that schools do not have to com­pro­mise on safe­ty or qual­i­ty. And we take safe­ty seri­ous­ly — all of our tech­ni­cians are high­ly trained and will come to every job wear­ing PPE (per­son­al pro­tec­tive equipment). 

Future Trends in Disinfection

Look­ing ahead, The Budd Group is explor­ing emerg­ing trends and inno­va­tions in dis­in­fect­ing clean­ing ser­vices, from the devel­op­ment of safer, more effec­tive dis­in­fec­tants to auto­mat­ed clean­ing sys­tems. Our team’s ded­i­ca­tion to stay­ing at the cut­ting edge posi­tions us as a leader in the field, ready to adapt and imple­ment the most effec­tive and effi­cient dis­in­fec­tion meth­ods available.

Keep Your Cam­pus­es Safe With Dis­in­fec­tion Ser­vices From The Budd Group

The sci­ence of dis­in­fec­tion in edu­ca­tion­al set­tings has evolved rapid­ly, dri­ven by the need for safer and more effec­tive solu­tions. When vet­ting dis­in­fec­tion com­pa­nies, keep in mind that The Budd Group is at the van­guard of this evo­lu­tion, offer­ing com­pre­hen­sive dis­in­fec­tion ser­vices that uti­lize the best prac­tices and lat­est tech­nolo­gies. By choos­ing The Budd Group as their dis­in­fec­tion ser­vice provider, schools can ensure their facil­i­ties are clean and safe for employ­ees, guests, and students. 

Get ahead of larg­er issues with The Budd Group’s com­pre­hen­sive ser­vices, and see why we can han­dle all main­te­nance needs, from dis­in­fec­tion to land­scap­ing, ensur­ing a healthy envi­ron­ment for the entire school community.

We’ve been serv­ing clients across sec­tors — includ­ing pub­lic, pri­vate, and col­lege edu­ca­tion — through­out the South­east Unit­ed States for over 60 years. Dis­cov­er why The Budd Group is the trust­ed part­ner for all facil­i­ty main­te­nance needs and keep your edu­ca­tion­al insti­tu­tion at its best. Con­tact us today to dis­cuss your facility’s needs and how we can best solve them.