A Clean, Welcoming Workplace All Day Long

What can I say about day porter service? Wow!!! So when I first started cleaning back in the late 80’s  my very first job was as a day porter of a YMCA in California. I quickly understood what my job was, not so much to clean in depth but to make sure what areas needed that kind of cleaning but staying on top of appearance, making sure the toilets are clean and ready to use, the sinks are clean as well as the mirrors but that the counters are not full of puddles of water.

I also knew the “bright work” which is that all the faucets and levers are free of water marks. 

This particular facility had a gym and a pool so the lockers that went to the pool were areas that needed to be free of water to avoid accidents and to make sure whoever used these areas would have a pleasant experience. The trashcans could not be overflowing throughout the facility and the racquetball courts needed to be dust moped before lunch, we usually got a lot of people taking their lunch hour to exercise. 

Now as a day porter we have to be attentive to whatever is happening that day from important meetings to children touring the facility to stay responsive to those patterns so at Gamma we usually work very closely with our contacts to stay on top of special events and guests as well as VIP meetings. 

In the breakrooms we usually make sure all coffee pots are cleaned when empty and tables and chairs are free of crumbs, if large amounts of food are left over after lunch we usually have a process agreed upon before to make sure to save the food in the refrigerator or toss it. After lunch all trashcans must be cleared to avoid smells and or gnats. 

So a day porter has a set “wireframe schedule” to stay on top of all areas of the facility; however, this schedule changes if there are changes to the day to day operation of the building.

Sometimes we are provided with a week’s worth of weekly meetings to make sure to have these conference rooms ready and to clean them right after the meeting so they are ready for the next.

A day porter is also in charge of policing the perimeter of the building for debris, trash and or any issues that have to be informed to our contact. The trash enclosures are areas that a day porter keeps clean, since at night visibility can be an issue, the day porter keeps these enclosures tidy and notifies us if there is any need to have an extra trash pickup schedule when we have overflowing bins.

During the day also restocking restrooms is part of the schedule this way when the night comes, the crew can focus on scrubbing fixtures, sweeping and mopping floors and scrubbing showers when needed since there is no traffic at night. If anything needs to be mopped during the day, we address it immediately using a wet floor sign to make sure people are walking around and aware of potential slippery areas. This could happen when it rains and guests walk into the facility dripping wet and the lobby areas have to be tended to. 

So I would say a day porter makes sure to keep the image of your facility in the best shape possible, and at Gamma we have done this job for years and have your best interest in mind at all times.