Team Clean Earns Cleaning Industry Green Building Certification
HONOLULU — In July, Honolulu-based Team Clean, Inc. became the first professional cleaning company in the State of Hawaii to be awarded Cleaning Industry Management Standard (CIMS) Green Building (GB) certification by the ISSA, the worldwide cleaning industry association. CIMS is the universally accepted standard for quality in the cleaning industry.
Team Clean is now certified to help clients across Oahu to green their operations overall. In addition, Team Clean can support local facilities, such as hotels and resorts, in their efforts to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) designation for the Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance (LEED-EBOM) Green Building Rating System.
“The attainment of Green Building certification reflects the commitment that each and every one of us at Team Clean has to operational excellence and sustainability — especially our dedication to preserving our natural island environment,” said Brian Keala Benz, CEH, IEHA Hawaii Chapter member and President of Team Clean, Inc. “I am extremely proud of all of our team members who, working together, were the first to achieve Green Building certification in Hawaii.”
Introduced in October 2009, CIMS-GB focuses on the delivery of sustainable cleaning services. As a fully-certified CIMS GB professional cleaning company, Team Clean will not only help local facilities to achieve LEED-EBOM points while giving all clients peace-of-mind that their processes are both green and highly-effective. CIMS-GB was developed with sustainability in mind. Criteria for this designation are based on the sustainable cleaning requirements of LEED-EBOM. Emphasis is placed on Team Clean’s efforts to conserve resources, including cleaning materials, water, energy and transportation used during the cleaning process.
In addition, a minimum of 60 percent (by purchase cost) of the cleaning products provided by Team Clean and used in a GB-compliant building must meet applicable Green Seal® or Environmental Choice certification criteria or meet the requirements under the U.S. EPA's Design for the Environment Program. Across the cleaning process, importance is placed on waste reduction and recycling.
As part of the certification process, an independent, accredited assessor conducted on-site reviews of Team Clean’s systems, processes, and documentation. The assessor also visited randomly selected Team Clean customers to ensure that the organization’s activities are consistent with its documented systems and processes.
