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The cleaning and hygiene industry deserves to be celebrated
3rd of June 2016 Article by Dr Ilham Kadri
Dr Ilham Kadri, president of the Diversey Care division at Sealed Air, writes her latest blog for ECJ. Here she discusses the importance of acknowledging success at awards ceremonies, whilst also explaining why winning isn't everything, but wanting to win is.
In my role at Diversey Care, it has become commonplace for me to attend various award ceremonies across the globe which recognise the great work which has occurred in the cleaning and hygiene industry. Although it is thrilling when a product which I have been involved in wins, I am not only appreciative of the award. I am proud that we are just one of many outstanding companies who are part of a large wheel of innovation in an industry working to enhance its reputation.
Earlier this month I attended the annual ISSA/INTERCLEAN trade show in Amsterdam, an event where top innovations from around the world are celebrated. We were delighted to win two awards for Diversey Care's Augmented Reality: Suma Revoflow, at the event, although what personally made me happiest was that this year, there were more nominations in the innovation category than ever before at 110.
The entries came from far and wide, and I hope that the number and variety of entries is even higher for the next ISSA/INTERCLEAN show in 2018.
In my time so far in the cleaning and hygiene sector, I have worked to ensure that I have aided in the production and development of world-class innovations to win awards. More importantly, I have worked tirelessly to ensure that individuals within the dynamic and innovative cleaning industry are celebrated.
I have in part done this by orchestrating relationships with award ceremonies such as the European Cleaning & Hygiene Awards, in which Diversey Care is the lead sponsor. Awards such as this give recognition to the thousands of engineers, designers, researchers and developers who work behind the scenes to ensure a product or solution is the best it can be.
Diversey Care chose to sponsor the European Cleaning & Hygiene Awards as it is the first pan-European awards program which recognises standards of excellence at all levels in the cleaning industry - from lower to higher level and everything in between. This award show doesn't simply celebrate successful products. It also acknowledges those who are working to improve employee policies and client relationships, drive up standards and promote sustainability.
The cleaning and hygiene industry is often criticised for its lack of sustainable initiatives, when in fact, the industry is awash with eco-friendly solutions. Improving the reputation of the cleaning industry and demonstrating its dedication to sustainability is something which I have long advocated for. That is why each year I attend the European Hotel Managers Association's general meeting and present our award, the EHMA Sustainability Award by Diversey Care to a deserving hotel manager.
These award ceremonies provide a platform to not only show how well a certain company or product has performed in the last year, but it is in fact a marker of how an industry is performing on the whole. If the multiplicity and variability of award ceremonies for the cleaning industry in the last year are anything to go by, then the cleaning industry has a lot to celebrate, so let's ensure that together, we strive to make this continue.
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