What does industrial cleaning cover?
Industrial cleaning covers the parts of a working site that a normal cleaning contract doesn’t reach. That can be overhead steelwork, tanks and pits, production areas, plant rooms and the outside of the building. Most jobs combine several of these.
| Part of the site | What gets cleaned | Find out more |
|---|---|---|
| Production areas | Walls, floors, surfaces around machinery and the steelwork above | Warehouse and factory cleaning |
| Warehouses | Racking tops, roof steelwork, lighting and loading bays | High level cleaning |
| Tanks, pits and ducts | Enclosed spaces, cleaned under a confined space plan | Confined space cleaning |
| Cold stores | Chilled and frozen rooms, and the plant on their walls and ceilings | Cold store cleaning |
| Floors | Degreasing, recoating and line marking | Factory floor painting |
| Roofs and exteriors | Gutters, roof lights, walls and yards | Gutter cleaning |
| Contaminated areas | Bird droppings, chemical residues and spills | Pigeon guano removal |
How is it different from commercial cleaning?
The difference is in the risks and the planning, more than the building.
| Commercial cleaning | Industrial cleaning | |
|---|---|---|
| Typical work | Offices, shops and shared areas | Factories, warehouses, plant and yards |
| What’s removed | Everyday dirt and waste | Oil, grease, dust, residues and contamination |
| Frequency | Daily or weekly | Often planned shutdowns or a set number of times a year |
| Access | Usually from the floor | Often at height or in enclosed spaces |
| Paperwork | Usually a simple cleaning schedule | Risk assessments, method statements and permits |
| Kit | Hand tools and floor machines | MEWPs, industrial vacuums and specialist chemicals |
Plenty of sites need both, with day-to-day cleaning handled by one team and a periodic deep clean by a specialist.
Why does it matter?
The first reason is the law. The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 say every workplace must be kept sufficiently clean, and that waste shouldn’t be allowed to build up unless it’s in suitable containers.
There are practical reasons too:
- Safety: oil and dust on floors can lead to slips, and a build-up on overhead surfaces can fall on people and products.
- Product quality: food, pharmaceutical and electronics sites may have to meet strict hygiene requirements.
- Audits: customers, insurers and certification bodies often expect to see evidence of cleaning.
- Equipment: dust and grime can make plant work harder and cause it to wear faster.
- Buildings: blocked gutters and dirty roof lights can lead to leaks and poor light.
What are the main risks?
HSE lists slips and trips, skin disease, back pain and work at height among the common risks in cleaning. On an industrial site, you can usually add:
- Hazardous substances: the COSHH Regulations cover cleaning chemicals, as well as dust and biological agents.
- Machinery: equipment has to be isolated so it can’t start up during cleaning.
- Fragile roofs: HSE says all roofs should be treated as fragile until a competent person has confirmed they aren’t.
- Confined spaces: these need their own plan, with a safe system of work and a rescue plan.
- Moving vehicles: forklifts and lorries often need to be kept apart from the cleaning crew.
How is an industrial clean planned?
- Site survey: the contractor looks at what needs cleaning, how it’s reached and any hazards.
- Timing: the work is fitted around production, at night, at a weekend or during a shutdown.
- Paperwork: you get risk assessments and method statements, and the crew completes your site inductions.
- Zoning: the site is split into areas and cleaned in order, so one problem doesn’t hold up everything else.
- Protection: machinery and stock are covered or moved, and areas below high level work are fenced off.
- Waste: it’s removed, with waste transfer notes for your records.
- Sign-off: you walk the site with the contractor and agree any follow-up.
How often should a factory or warehouse be deep cleaned?
There’s no set legal frequency, because the law says “sufficiently clean” rather than giving a number. It depends on what the site does, how quickly dirt builds up and what your auditors, customers or insurers expect. Many sites plan a deep clean around an annual shutdown, with more regular visits for high-risk areas.
What should you look for in a contractor?
- Risk assessments and method statements written for your site, not a template
- Trained, carded operatives, such as IPAF for MEWPs
- Recognised accreditations, such as SafeContractor and Constructionline
- A registered waste carrier, which you can check on the public register
- Insurance that covers the work being done
- The ability to work around your production
- Test areas and records, such as before-and-after photos
Locus Services cleans factories, warehouses and other industrial sites, 24 hours a day. Read more about our industrial cleaning services.