An airport is often the first introduction to the country. A good airport would signal a new India, committed to join the ranks of modern industrialised nations,” said Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh during the inaugural address. Making a committed effort to maintain the cleaning standards at all times is one of the major impediments for India’s progress. Keeping the T3 clean is a challenge for everyone associated with it. In fact, the cleaning and maintenance of T3 began much before it commenced operations. Three years back, when this project began, multiple contractors were working simultaneously to complete the Terminal within the stipulated time of 39 months. At the time when the floors were being laid, the lighting connections being fitted, the elevator shafts being designed… the cleaning had begun. For the first time many of the construction contractors found it impossible to continue working without cleaning the surface area they were working on. Parallel construction on a single site is a modern development which ensues completion of time-bound projects. Debris and blocks of wet cement made their way into the various systems being installed, forcing the contractors to constantly clean the area. This was where an industrial vacuum cleaner came to their rescue and for the first time construction contractors found the necessity to clean and also use a cleaning machine at the project stage. The use of vacuum cleaners for purposes other than housekeeping and industrial has opened up new markets for cleaning equipment. Many of the equipment bought at the time of construction are now being shifted for use at other projects or are being used for maintenance at T3.
Said Venkateswarlu Kota, Manager-Purchase, Siemens Ltd, New Delhi, “Given the 39 month-time frame and parallel construction, the debris and dust generated at the site made it imperative to constantly clean our area of operations intermittently. Siemens has installed the seven-kilometre long in-line conveyor belt. We were at work, so were the other civil contractors and the dust generated constantly tampered our operations. The area surrounding the conveyor belt could still be cleaned using simple cleaning tools but the dust accumulating on the belt area needed appropriate cleaning. It was then that a Dulevo representative offered us the industrial vacuum cleaner which was useful in removing all sorts of construction debris.”
Initially, Siemens purchased two machines and found them very useful. Thereafter, as the work progressed, they procured two more. Siemens has also been given the contract to maintain the conveyor belt for the next five years. “Since we had already experienced the unrelenting performance of the cleaning machine at the time of construction, we have confidently bought another 10 machines for maintaining the conveyor belt at T3. We found Dulevo machine quite economical. “Apart from the quality, the availability of the machine was instant and did not have lead time between the order placement and delivery. If we wanted it as early as tomorrow, it would be delivered to us.” The machines were purchased from one of the distributors of Dulevo India, Kruger & Brentt, New Delhi.
“We have not outsourced the maintenance of the conveyor belts as yet. We identified few of our workers, who were at work during the installation, for the maintenance operations. Dulevo provided the necessary training to operate the machine. Even though, there could be discrepancies in the handling of these machines by our workers as they are not from the cleaning or maintenance field, it is important that our own people maintain our installations,” says Venkateswarlu. Setting another record at T3 is ThyssenKrupp Elevators that has installed around 77 elevators, 93 travellators and 39 escalators (few of which are yet to be commissioned). “Yes, we too required cleaning equipment at the project stage and post maintenance,” said M P Gunjkar, Deputy General Manager-Field Operations, North Zone, ThyssenKrupp Elevator (India), the and Project Head at T3. Usually the conveyor transport devices like elevators, escalators or moving staircase and walking machines or travellators are installed post construction.
In the case of T3, the installation of the systems began even before the entire building was erected. Hence, there was much dust all around which required constant cleaning. “We had to engage in both manual and mechanised cleaning using a heavy duty industrial vacuum cleaner. We bought the Dulevo machine to clean the controller, machines, car tops, shafts… everywhere.” The main criteria of selecting these machines were its capacity to pick up even wet cement droppings falling into the pit. “We looked at the wattage, the suction capacity and even the motor. In fact, this machine has a double motor. At that time we did not have time to look for an even higher capacity machine and worked with whatever was available. We looked for vacuum cleaners through Google search. The Dulevo machine works on 2700 watts and we had bought seven of them at the project stage and now it will also be used to maintain our machines. Around three or four will be retained here for maintenance while the rest will be moved out to other airport sites. At present, our men have been trained by the equipment supplier to operate the industrial vacs and they are also doing the maintenance.”
This is the first airport project of ThyssenKrupp where industrial vacuum cleaners are being used to keep the project site clean. “In the future too in such projects we would be looking at using cleaning machines. Earlier, we used blowers but it is not possible to do so at T3, as it will spread the dust all over and with most of the areas being carpeted, industrial vacs are ideal.”
“For travellator cleaning, we have purchased specialised machines from Karcher that will clean the pallets and the steps. Out of the four, we have received one which is already in operation at T3 and it is satisfactory. They have provided us the chemicals to do away with stains. We are procuring Diversey R3, R7 and other chemicals for cleaning the railing and other areas. Besides, cleaning agents we are also using telescopic tools for cleaning. The elevators installed at T3 are state-of-the-art eight tonne hydraulic lifts, one of the few such installations, in India. Similarly, the 180-metre travellator is the longest in Asia in any premises. It takes three minutes and 20 seconds to go from one end to another.
“Cleaning equipment has come in handy and had speeded up our cleaning processes, especially with the time constraint we had for commissioning. Cleaning has always been bothering us and this time the industrial vacs and escalator cleaning machines have eased up our job. We will be handing over the cleaning machines to the service provider who would be doing the cleaning part.”
Apart from direct purchase of industrial vacuum cleaners for project cleaning by GMR, Forbes Pro machines like RS501 vacuum ride on sweeper, CS110 ride on sweeper, CS70 ride on compact sweeper; high pressure cleaning machines and GS-83 industrial vacuum cleaner have been deployed at T3.
Another major record created at T3 is the service contract being awarded to multiple agencies. Five service contractors – All Services Under One Roof, A2Z Infrastructure, Lion Services, Impressions and Updater Services besides Appletree which will be maintaining the façade. While Sonia Gandhi asked during the inauguration of T3 ‘Can we keep it clean?’, Dr Manmohan Singh said, the new Terminal which has brought together several service providers will prove their capacity to coordinate across agencies… and work as a united team.
The Terminal 3 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport that went on stream in July has opened up the floodgates for the Indian Cleaning Industry. While the infrastructure itself has established new global benchmarks in India, the massive structure spread over 5.4 million sqft has created immense opportunities for the cleaning industry too.
The sixth largest terminal in the world, constructed in 39 months makes it one of the fastest built terminals in aviation history. It has a capacity to handle passenger traffic of 34 million per annum and 650 flights a day. The new terminal building comprises a range of world class features and facilities designed to provide enhanced passenger comfort and convenience. The glass high roof ‘canyon’ corridor connects the domestic and international wings of the integrated terminal. The most modern terminal, T3 boasts of advanced five-level in-line Baggage Handling System with a capacity to handle 12,800 bags per hour and 6.4km of conveyor belts; nine-level building featuring 78 aerobridges; longest travellator or walkway of 118m and more than 65 elevators; almost 20,000sqm of retail area; mall; 100-room facility for transit passengers; 25,000sqm office space; multi-level car parking with a capacity of 4300 cars and surface parking for 2,200 car; around 300 toilets; eight-lane approach road; 70 acres of landscaping outside the terminal and so on… All of these need to be cleaned and maintained regularly.
Road Cleaning
The beautiful landscaping and clean surroundings on the approach roads leading to T3 give a world class feel as one drives through to the international airport. These approach roads are maintained by Lion Services.
Lion Services has been associated with the airport in all three areas – air side, building and the land side. Responsible for the maintenance of the approach roads to T3, Subhash Soni, General Manager, says it’s a demanding job. This long stretch is also a convenient place to park vehicles. “People park at a short distance from the airport building and tend to litter that place. Until people learn to park at the right place and not litter anywhere, regular cleaning & maintenance is essential to retain the beauty of these roads.” Lion Services is maintaining not just the roads, but also the water bodies, signages, the footpaths and the infrastructure. Since these are high speed roads, cleaning machines have to be deployed. “We have over 100 people engaged in cleaning. We are also looking at bringing in better technology for better results. We have five sweeping machines running in T1, T2 and T3 besides high pressure jet for doing the storm water draining, streetscape furniture, bus stops and footpaths.
“The sweeping machines run at a slow pace 24/7 amid fast moving vehicles. We are planning to put traffic indicators and manage traffic on these roads for undeterred operations of cleaning and smooth flow of vehicles.
“We are also running a patrol van in order to assist any breakdowns or accidents or guide people who have lost their way on these roads. Being a landside operator, we feel it our duty to be of assistance. We not only want to do what is expected of us but much more than that.”
In the last couple of months, there have been two accidents on these roads. A timely help could go a long way in assisting the victims or in directing the road traffic. Similarly, the high pressure truck mounted jet machines deployed by us for cleaning are of a much higher capacity than required. “In case there is flooding or a choke, our suction machine could assist in clearing it up.” This high pressure jetting-cum-suction machine of TPS can do high pressure washing, suction and line clean-up too. “As part of our role in spreading awareness, we want to discourage people from throwing plastic bottle and bags into the storm water drains. These tend to choke the bell mouth. We will be putting up picturesque messages at the bell mouth to make people understand. Besides, we will also be clearing it periodically.”
The experience of working with T3 is like giving an examination that one has to pass every day – three shifts per day for 365 days. It’s very tough property to maintain with auditing being done each day or rather each moment. Every passenger’s satisfaction matters, says Soni.
Apron Cleaning
After the approach roads, the most critical areas to be maintained at an airport are the apron and runway. The pavement consists of taxiways, runways, parking bays, aerobridges and the baggage make-up & break-up areas. All these together form the apron in an airport. “Simply put apron cleaning basically involves cleaning of the floor surface of the pavement besides cleaning of the perimeter or service roads running along the pavement,” explains Atif Ansari, Regional Manager-Operations, A.L.L. Services Under 1 Roof (I) Pvt Ltd. The apron area of T1, T2 and T3 at the IGIA, Delhi, is being maintained by All Services.
Oil spills are a common sight in the pavement area which needs to be constantly monitored. Such spills should be controlled and treated instantly. “The moment oil spillage is spotted it has to be removed, as it could be a fire hazard. We use various methods to stop it from spreading, like putting sawdust, soaking pads or using Spiral (Diversey) or Wizzard (Roots Multiclean Ltd) chemicals to loosen the hardness of the oil on the rough floor. Thereafter, the spot needs to be scrubbed, cleaned and treated with chemicals. We have around seven mechanical sweeping machines of Schmidt, supplied by Manmachine India; TPS Infrastructure Ltd, Delhi; and Yantai (a Chinese machine purchased at the 2009 Clean India Pulire Show in Mumbai).” It is necessary to have machines with bigger suction capacity, given the time restriction. “Machines with at least five cubic metre suction capacity, are good. This is because we get to clean the bay in about an hour or two. Cleaning the entire surface within the stipulated time is a challenge. High capacity machines speed up the cleaning. We are also in the process of procuring more sweepers with increased suction power.”
Besides oil spillage, the clearing of the FOD (foreign object damage) is equally critical. Sweeping machines designed for airport cleaning have magnetic suction power which is required to clear objects like FODs. “These machines have side and front brushes with good suction power and are ideal.”
About 300 staff, including 16 supervisors and several operators, work in three shifts to clean 16 lakh sqm area. “Besides, sweeping machines, we also have four scrubber-driers for the baggage make-up and break-up area and floor areas; four Dulevo industrial vacuum cleaners and four high pressure jet diesel-operated machines of Inventa for cleaning of bays. The jet machine comes with the option of both hot and cold water.
“At all the three terminals, T1, T2 and T3, we work on a rotation by cleaning up about three aerobridges, three bays and baggage area per day, besides doing spot cleaning as per requirement and deep cleaning as per schedule. T3 is equipped with accessories like water supply outlets and power connections which help save time.”
Inside the terminal
The most challenging aspect for the service providers is to maintain the terminals after the main cleaning job. “Keeping the high traffic areas – the main foyer, the outside veranda, forecourt, piers – departure and arrival, check-in areas, security hold area, bus lounges, baggage area, toilets, retail space, office area and the apron till the passenger boarding area at Terminal 1A, 1D and 1C – cleaning is a major task, especially when things are thrown around or left behind indifferently,” says Lovkesh Bajaj, GM-Operations of Impressions Services Pvt Ltd.
“Removing chewing gum off the floor is a tough job. It has to be identified and scarped out manually. Usually, clearing of paper litter or chewing gum involves manual cleaning.” Impressions has around 350 staff, including 28 supervisors, working in three shifts in T1 alone.
“Even though the quantum of work at T3, where Impressions is handling the departure area and the piers, is much higher, they are well prepared to handle the challenge. “We have training, briefing and one-to-one discussions with the staff which improve the workers’ understanding about hygiene and instils in them a sense of cleanliness.”
The staff also attends the training programme at the Diversey Knowledge Centre and receives briefing from the DIAL staff. “We have made small teams of seven to eight workers under a supervisor who shares both, professional and personal relationship with the workers. Understanding the ‘Why’ factor is most important.”
For Impressions, it has been a learning experience from 1B to 1D and now to T3 in the last three years. “We always experiment with various methods of cleaning to attain the best results. We have introduced at the airports Dulevo’s Technovap machine that are mostly used in hospitals. The chemicals used are from Diversey India; glass cleaning tools and corner brushes are from Unger; some tools are of Partek, Delhi, and the French made hydraulic ladder for cleaning surfaces at a height are supplied by Madras Tools at 1D. Similarly, we are using microfibre tools and latest equipment like scrubber-driers, vacuums, high speed burnishes, single discs, scooter mops, sweepers and walk-behinds. In T1, we are using around 50 machines which are mostly Dulevo and in T3 of the 45 machines around 30 machines are Taski.” Another critical and most visited area is the toilet. There are 27 toilets in 1D, eight in 1C and nine in 1A that are maintained by Impressions. Lovkesh Bajaj says, “Every washroom has an operative and in times of heavy usage there are two. Apart from cleaning up the toilet or sanitizing it after every use, it is equally tough to keep the vanity area clean and dry. Every minute people are walking in and out of the toilet. We use R1chemical and steam cleaning systems like Technovap or Osprey from Dynamic Cleaning, the UK. These systems generate steam at 195oC. Besides, we also have the foam-generating touch-free systems of Santoemma, Italy, supplied by Dulevo India.”
The experience of working with T3 is like giving an examination that one has to pass every day – three shifts per day for 365 days. It’s very tough property to maintain with auditing being done each day or rather each moment. Every passenger’s satisfaction matters, says Soni.
Facade cleaning
Classic atriums, long stretch of glass façade, glass corridors, glass roofing, glass curtain walls, the canyon area, high pillars… are all part of the T3 structure and needs regular maintenance. Any glass above 10m is maintained by Appletree Building Maintenance Pvt Ltd at T3.
Facade cleaning is a challenging job as it involves working at heights, says Sandra Malhotra, Head-Project (Team Façade), T3. “We use various equipment and trained operators; some of the equipment have been provided by GMR. The T3 façade is equipped with articulated cradle system for cleaning the outside glass curtains. We have dedicated equipment provided by GMR – Dino 180, a European machine supplied by Cradle Runways for cleaning the PTB. It’s an aerial platform used for cleaning the pillars or grids in the arrival area. We are also using our scissor lifts for cleaning other areas inside the terminal.” Machines like Falcon and associated systems like articulated cradle, the two-man cradle, gantry system, etc., are being used in this project. A well-designed structure, there are provisions made to access the outside of the building through the emergency routes to use the façade cleaning systems. All the air-conditioned areas like the ticketing islands or the canopy, are cleaned six times a year. “T3, being a vast and a regulated air-conditioned area, the dust levels are not high. Once we do a round of cleaning, we proceed to the domestic area and then come back to the international section. We work in a continuous cycle. It would take about 20 days to a month to do a pier with around seven boys on job. We have terminal manager taking rounds to ensure standards.”
There are areas that are testing when it comes to working at heights. “Like the glass corridor at the terminal. Some of the workers once up there get this feeling of being suspended as there is nothing below them. Hence, in façade cleaning, unlike other housekeeping task, it is important to take the likes and dislikes of the workers into consideration. We engage such workers who are comfortable working at that height. We have around 60 workers at T3 and a lot of them are new. Many of them, who joined enthusiastically at first, have found working at a certain height difficult and opted out. Hence, the turn over is much higher and we have engaged staff in excess.” Special operators work on the machines. Appletree has four trained operators and are planning to engage more. “Usually they learn on job and training is an on going process,” says Sandra.
Every season has its own demands. The summer months, when it is dusty and windy, are difficult. “It is tough for the workers to hang out in the sun, as it is very dehydrating.” Rains and winters are a little comfortable but when it is windy and drizzling, dust stains are left behind on the glass which needs to be cleaned. Besides regular cleaning, Appletree does a lot of spot cleaning using de-scalers and cleaning chemicals from Diversey. “The quality of water plays an important role in the cleaning of façade. We are using treated water in order to ensure no water stains or streaks are left behind. The window wiper tool absorbs water and chemicals like R3 or descalers and use the squeegee help to clean the glass surface and dry respectively. At times we use special scrapper which does not scratch the glass. Most of the tools are from Unger.”
Surface cleaning
Right from the entrance of the terminal, the floors and the walls up to a height of 10ft, including the retail space and the office areas, are maintained by A2Z Infrastructure Ltd. Having worked with T1, T2 and now with T3, Amrita A, Head-Quality T3, A2Z Infra Services, is well aware of the requirements of a high traffic area. “The arrival is divided into the domestic and the international piers. Around 15 lakh sqft is cleaned and maintained by us.” A2Z has deployed more than 45 cleaning machines, including Forbes Pro and Dulevo, various tools of Partek & Gala and Diversey chemicals for cleaning only in the arrival area. “Cleaning as such is difficult only when people do not understand what they are doing. It is essential the operator or the janitor understands what he or she is doing and why cleaning is being done. If I am to tell a worker don’t scrub a particular area, he is not going to understand. He has to be told why he cannot use a particular machine or tool for a particular floor. In the same way he has also to be told why a particular chemical has to be used on a particular surface and how it works, only then will he be able to perform correctly.
The reasoning is important. “Besides training, we have groomed our workers and also instilled in them a feeling of being a part of the maintenance process. Maintaining this place which is a gateway to India should become a part of their way of thinking and operating. An operator or janitor will then not work just for the sake of working but will work to ensure that the place is clean. Such thoughts invoke performance.”
Toilets too need constant cleaning in high traffic areas. “We are maintaining Blue Collar Washrooms in the international pier (IP) and domestic pier (DP) and apron areas for the loaders and other workers. At one end we have seven male, seven female and four unisex washrooms and at the other end we have eight male, eight female and four unisex washrooms besides five handicapped washrooms. All washrooms are manned 24/7. These toilets need constant spring cleaning on a daily schedule while deep cleaning, which requires at least 45 minutes, is done depending on the flight schedule. Apart from the Santoemma foam cleaning machine we also use single discs to scrub the toilet floors.” Maintenance of carpeted floor in the mezzanine floor at both the domestic and international end is tough too. Every day cleaning at the international end is done with the broad 70cm Taski vacuum cleaner. All together A2Z has deployed five machines to clean this 80,000sqft carpeted area.
These machines include two foam generators, two walk-behind vacuum cleaners and one carpet scrubbing machine. Carpet cleaning in itself is a challenging job. It becomes all the more taxing in an airport as there could be spillage of soft drinks or water, food or anything requiring immediate spot cleaning. Many a time, it may not be possible to do spot cleaning immediately making it a difficult task.
“This is the most prestigious project that one can associate with,” sums up Amrita.
Toilet cleaning
T3 is also equipped with a large number of toilets, more than 300, in the entire premises. Around 250 toilets at the terminal are cleaned and maintained by Updater Services Pvt Ltd. “This is one of the largest projects and we have ensured that the cleaning operations are rendered up to the mark,” says S Marriappan, Operations Head, Delhi.
“We have created a replica of a toilet similar to the one at T3 at our training centre set up close to the airport,” says Marriappan. Training is most essential for the success of any operation. “Unless the workers are given to understand what they are doing, why they are doing and how they have to do it, the end result will not be conducive, how much ever mechanised or modern the cleaning processes may have been implemented. Soon after we were given the contract, we set up a special training centre, identified staff and began training them. Each and every janitor deployed at T3 has gone through the training. This empowers them to deliver what is expected of them round the clock.” With Korean tiles and Roca fittings in the toilets, adopting the right kind of cleaning modes and methods is necessary. Around 30 supervisors working in three shifts monitor, guide janitors and schedule the cleaning operations. “For example, the deep/spring cleaning of toilets in the domestic flight area can be taken up during the night as it is a lean period.”
Hence, the cleaning schedule depends on the feasibility and the necessity. “Accordingly, we have deployed machines and chemicals. We use the Dulevo foam machine besides other tools and Taski range of chemicals for toilet cleaning. We have multiple machines to cater to any eventuality. In short, with the right technology, schedule, supervision, training and support we want to make every user of the toilet comfortable.”
