Training and actually working together
As a Production Manager in Valio's Riihimäki facility, Minna Laatikainen considers it important that the staff of the facility is well trained and have a good grasp of matters related to hygiene and cleanliness.
In 2016, some 150 persons from the facility's production and facility services units participated in cleaning training courses organised by Kiilto.
The participants included facility managers and specialists. The training sessions offered not only actual concrete information on the safe cleaning of devices and equipment, but also background knowledge on choosing the right cleaning chemicals for the right purpose.
- The practical support provided by Kiilto has been valuable to us. Since our co-operation got under way our knowledge of hygiene has improved significantly and both our end users and specialists have received a lot of support. Kiilto's contact persons want to work with us to ensure that things are done the right way around here, says Laatikainen.
Co-operation with Kiilto means working together in a very concrete sense.
Over the course of the past year, Kiilto's experts have been a frequent sight at Valio's Riihimäki facility, sometimes even making weekly appearances. The production staff is also familiar with the two or three Kiilto people who visit the facility most often and often go to them with questions and feedback concerning cleaning and cleaning products.
- Co-operation with Kiilto means working together in a very real, concrete sense. We have a clearly defined worksheet for each meeting.
- Our own Kiilto representative visits us regularly and works together with our staff in the field. The representative also trains our staff in the use of low-pressure pressure washers and distributes useful information on the safe use of cleaning chemicals, for example, Laatikainen explains.
Kiilto understands the significance of testing
- When changing cleaning agents, the new agents must be thoroughly tested so that we can be sure of their effectiveness. Kiilto's representatives conduct a lot of testing and improve their products to be more versatile in different CIP cleaning applications, for example.
The end users of the products play a very crucial role when the functionality of Kiilto products is assessed with regard to the processes at the Riihimäki facility. They are regularly asked about their user experiences, which yields valuable insights to support product development. We go through the feedback together with Kiilto's contact persons and react to the points that need development. Production Manager Minna Laatikainen has also been very pleased with Kiilto's communications.
- Because we have a lot of staff we must always ensure that everyone is aware of the testing schedules of cleaning agents. Changes must always occur in a manner that ensures work safety and takes into account how the change actually affects our operations.
This requires good planning, scheduling and co-operation. Kiilto and our own contact persons have succeeded well in this task: everyone knows when the tests are coming, what is being tested and on what machinery. The tests are monitored on-site by both a specialist from Kiilto and our own people – this results in a lot of valuable comments and direct feedback from the end users.
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