Glossary
Key terms from cleaning and building maintenance, briefly explained.
From CAFM to performance value, FTE percent and maintenance planning: the key terms used in cleaning calculation, caretaking and tendering, with a pointer to the matching feature in easyCAFM.
- CAFM
- Computer-Aided Facility Management. Software that supports the administration, calculation and planning of buildings. Read more: What is CAFM software? In easyCAFM: all modules at a glance.
- Facility Management (FM)
- The discipline of operating and maintaining properties: cleaning, servicing, areas, costs. CAFM is the digital tool for it.
- Cleaning calculation
- The systematic calculation of cleaning needs from area, performance value and interval, objective instead of estimated. The result is annual hours, FTE percent and costs per room, building and property. Read more: Cleaning calculation explained. In easyCAFM: module Cleaning calculation.
- Workforce calculation
- The conversion of calculated cleaning and caretaking effort into staffing needs, expressed in FTE percent. toolsuisse AG has been determining workloads with this method for over 20 years. Read more: Workforce calculation. In easyCAFM: module Workloads & allocation.
- Performance value
- The area that can be cleaned per hour for a given activity and floor covering. The basic figure of every calculation. The differences are large: an open corridor with linoleum can be cleaned several times faster than a WC facility with many fixtures.
- Standard value
- A standardised performance value derived from many measured objects and applied equally to all properties. Unlike one person's empirical value, it is transferable and verifiable. easyCAFM calculates with standard values from over 17,000 calculations. In easyCAFM: module Cleaning calculation.
- Interval
- The frequency of a cleaning: daily, several times a week, weekly, seasonally or annually. The interval multiplies the effort directly and is set per room type.
- Operating weeks
- The number of weeks per year in which cleaning actually takes place. A school has around 39 operating weeks, a care home 52. They affect the annual effort directly and are often forgotten in estimates.
- Annual hours
- The total effort of an area or property per year in hours: area divided by performance value, times cleanings per week, times operating weeks. Annual hours are the basis for workloads and costs.
- FTE percent
- The annual effort in hours divided by the net annual working time of a full-time position (usually 1,750 to 1,900 hours), times 100. 3,250 annual hours at 1,840 hours correspond to around 177 FTE percent. Read more: Calculating caretaker FTE percent. In easyCAFM: module Workloads & allocation.
- Workload / workloads
- The cleaning and caretaking effort translated into FTE percent and distributed to teams and people. In easyCAFM: module Workloads & allocation.
- Cleaning area
- The floor area actually to be cleaned per room, as opposed to gross or floor area. Walls, technical rooms and unused areas do not count. Read more: Area recording as the basis. In easyCAFM: module Objects & areas.
- Floor covering
- Linoleum, PVC, parquet, tiles, natural stone, carpet or concrete. The covering determines the cleaning method and performance value and is therefore recorded per area. Read more: Area types and floor coverings.
- Room type
- Classroom, office, corridor, toilet, changing room, hall, resident's room. The room type determines which tasks arise besides the floor. It thus also determines the performance value and interval.
- Routine cleaning
- The regular, recurring everyday cleaning. It accounts for the largest share of ongoing effort. Read more: The cleaning types compared.
- Interim cleaning
- A refresh of heavily used areas between routine and deep cleaning, for example during school holidays or after events.
- Deep cleaning
- Thorough deep cleaning at long intervals, usually once or twice a year, often with machines and floor coating. Read more: The cleaning types compared.
- Special cleaning
- Non-regular cleaning such as windows, blinds, lights or cleaning after construction work and events. It is calculated separately and often forgotten in budgets.
- Caretaking
- The operation of a property by the caretaker: cleaning, ancillary work, outdoor areas including winter service, technical maintenance, locking service and lettings. The workload is the sum of these blocks. Read more: Calculating caretaker FTE percent. In easyCAFM: modules Workloads & allocation and Tasks & notifications.
- Ancillary work
- Work that arises alongside the actual cleaning: disposing of waste, restocking consumables, moving furniture, minor repairs. It is recorded separately per building or floor, for example when cleaning is outsourced but ancillary work stays in-house.
- Outdoor areas
- Lawns, planted areas, paths, squares and car parks of a property. They have their own performance values per area type and task (mowing, sweeping, leaves, winter service). In easyCAFM: module Objects & areas.
- Maintenance planning
- The forward-looking planning of recurring maintenance work to prevent damage and preserve value. More on this: Maintenance planning for public buildings. In easyCAFM: module Route & annual planning.
- Route planning
- Planning who looks after which objects on which days on which route, including weekly and annual plans. In easyCAFM: module Route & annual planning.
- Cleaning concept
- The documented approach for a property: which areas, how often, with which method, by whom, at what cost. The basis for budget, workload and tender. Read more: Creating a cleaning concept.
- Specifications
- The complete description of the cleaning services to be provided per area: room type, covering, task, interval, quality. It is the basis of every tender and makes quotes comparable. Read more: Tendering cleaning services. In easyCAFM: module Quotes & reports.
- tender
- The procedure by which public authorities award cleaning services. With objective specifications, bids become comparable and the award justifiable. Read more: Tendering cleaning as a municipality.
- Quote
- The calculated bid of a cleaning company, ideally based on the same standard values as the client's specifications. In easyCAFM: module Quotes & reports.
- Asset inventory
- The structured recording of all buildings, floors, rooms and outdoor areas, the basis for everything else. Read more: Area recording as the basis. In easyCAFM: module Objects & areas.
- Defect report
- The report of a defect or damage by the caretaker, users or cleaning staff, with photo, location and urgency, tracked as a task. In easyCAFM: module Tasks & notifications.
- Multi-tenancy
- The ability of software to manage several clients or organisations separately and securely in one system, for example several municipalities or the customers of a cleaning company.
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