Pointr And TRAX Analytics Join Forces To Launch Smart Cleaning Operations At Airports

As global travel resumes, cleanliness has become an important factor for airports around the globe. Restroom cleanliness not only impacts passenger satisfaction, but also dwell time and spending. According to a survey by Honeywell International Inc, 60% of Americans consider hygiene the single most important factor when choosing a travel partner, with more than 42% saying they are concerned about using airport lavatories. Facility managers have to take these concerns and factors into account as airports start the arduous journey to recovery following the global pandemic. 

To address the pressing need for improved custodial service delivery in airports, indoor positioning and navigation industry leader Pointr have partnered with facility management software company TRAX Analytics to improve and accelerate real-time cleaning operations at airports around the country. 

TRAX Analytics previously launched a Quality Management System called Clean + Inspect which utilizes mobile applications and Bluetooth Low Energy beacons that require custodial staff to check lists throughout the day as tasks are completed and provides real-time alerts for areas in need of service. However, the app could not take the location of cleaning staff, spillages or areas in need of cleaning into account due to the natural limitations of indoor location technology. In large and complex environments like airports, distance can significantly hamper service delivery. By partnering with Pointr, TRAX Analytics was able to leverage Pointr’s highly accurate indoor location and digital mapping capabilities to improve the speed and effectiveness of custodial operations. 

“The average airport comprises 100,000 square feet and multiple floors,” says Patrick Trevino, VP of Sales and Marketing of TRAX Analytics. “Dispatching the nearest available custodial crew to the area that needs immediate attention is often easier said than done, unless you know where your custodial staff are located at any given moment. Pointr’s indoor location SDK was able to enhance our existing mobile application and enable us to optimize cleaning routes by helping us accurately track and locate cleaning carts in real-time on a digital map.” 

By adding Pointr’s software agnostic SDK to their existing solution, TRAX Analytics’ Clean + Inspect is now able to: 

• View a live location of cleaning carts on a map in real-time, at any given time, and assign staff to nearby areas that require their attention;  
• Establish when workers enter or leave a geofenced area (e.g. restrooms) to effectively monitor cleaning operations;
• Dispatch staff to the right location through turn-by-turn directions (similar to GPS in outdoor locations); 
• Dynamically generate cleaning paths and improve efficiencies by tracking areas that have already been cleaned; 
• View occupancy and route analytics to predict how often specific zones need to be cleaned based on usage. 

Combining the existing app with Pointr’s powerful indoor navigation and location capabilities has already dramatically improved the speed of service delivery, and hygiene, in airports utilizing the Clean + Inspect application. 

The solution is already live in 32 airports across the United States with plans to expand even further throughout the year.