ECJ EUROPEAN Cleaning Journal

Anna Garbagna in Italy brings news from the first general meeting of a new industry association.

The first general meeting of Confindustria Servizi Hygiene, Cleaning & Facility Services, Labour Safety Solutions took place in Rome in the presence of current Confindustria president Vincenzo Boccia. This was the debut of the new organisation which groups the companies of the service sector comprising over 44,000 potential company members with a potential turnover of over €25 billion.

Boccia explained that “it is not a simple companies trade union, but a social actor with a strong identity representing a bridge between the interests of  companies and the country”.

The meeting was chaired by Lorenzo Mattioli, its first president. The project has been described as “strategic” and to be addressed as “an innovative design”. Starting from these bases and thanks to the current president Boccia, who is a confirmed supporter,  ANIP-Confindustria, ANID, ASSOSISTEMA and UNIFerr have started on a path which begins with the well established need to give more importance to the issues expressed by the member companies, in order to offer solutions aimed at improving the representation and the image of the whole sector.

“Confindustria Servizi Hygiene, Cleaning & Facility Services, Labour Safety Solutions,” added Mattioli, “represents more than half a million operatives: a dimension which will surely have a new and important significance with regards to Institutions, policy makers and stakeholders - allowing us to aspire to provide more leadership in our country’s economy and market. We are the companies devoted to citizens’ welfare, the care of cities, workplaces, schools and hospitals; we are the companies that make the country modern and safe and we commit to raise awareness of the service sector for companies, community and people”.

Hygiene in hospitality

Talking about hygiene in the hospitality sector is of vital importance because hospitality venues are often the first not to comply with the simple rules of cleaning.

This topic was discussed during Host (at Fiera Milano), the exhibition dedicated to the Ho.Re.Ca sector, where manufacturers’ association Afidamp was present with a stand, which provided a meeting point for the sector’s professionals.

The association also took part in a meeting at Spazio APCI – Association of Italian Professional Chefs -  where it had a dialogue with chefs and restaurateurs, emphasising  how often a clean kitchen or dining hall hide pitfalls and scopes for improvement. Regarding this issue, Afidamp is committed to create new and updated information materials, which included the ‘Manual for Cleaning in Hospitality and Manifesto for Cleaning of Toilets’, produced with Codacons and Confcommercio.

These are practical tools for maintaining all the places used for food preservation, storage and preparation to the best possible standards, as well as food halls and other public areas. The training of operatives by means of courses and education remains crucial: a clean venue will always attract a higher number of customers.