Skip to Content

Salem VAMC puts auto floor scrubbers to use

Jorge Markin, Third Shift Team Lead, sets the map option for a T380 AMR Autonomous floor scrubbing machine in Bldg. 74
Jorge Markin, Third Shift Team Lead, sets the map option for a T380 AMR Autonomous floor scrubbing machine in Bldg. 74. The machines operate independently, cleaning more than 10,000 square feet per hour, and free EMS staff to maximize high-value tasks such as keeping high-touch areas disinfected.
By Rosaire Bushey, Public Affairs Officer

In July the service received the first of three Tennant T380 AMR Autonomous floor scrubbing machines.

With more than 1.2 million square feet of space spread throughout 68 buildings, the men and women of the Environmental Management Service have more than enough to do, so when a technology comes along that can help, it has a positive impact throughout the Salem VA Medical Center.

In July the service received the first of three Tennant T380 AMR Autonomous floor scrubbing machines. The large blue vehicles can autonomously clean about 33,000 square feet on each four-hour battery charge using a built in 20-gallon solution tank and a 20-gallon recovery tank for dirty water. The machines also feature an ‘eco mode’ that uses up to 70% less water than traditional cleaning, and coupled with the system’s squeegee and vacuum systems, decreases the amount of time floors take to dry, making them safer for everyone.

“On average it takes one person an hour to clean up to 2,500 square feet,” said Jorge Markin, Housekeeping Aid Team Leader. “When the medical facility has a high scope of work and a lot of sanitation is required, the square footage can drop below 2000 square feet per hour to do the job properly. So ultimately, the AMRs are about four times more efficient than a single employee on that particular task.”

Despite their initial cost of just over $74,000 each, the machines pay for themselves quickly.

“Over the seven-year expected lifespan of the machines, we estimate that we’ll save about $91,000 per year over that time period vs. the cost of three full time employees.”

The AMRs as good as they are, however, were not purchased to replace employees, but rather to supplement the current EMS workforce.

“The AMRs are great, but they are limited to a single purpose – cleaning floors,” said Naymon Mack, Chief of EMS. “By freeing up our people from the never-ending task of floor cleaning, it allows us to assign them to high value tasks such as room cleaning and keeping high-touch areas disinfected. These tasks ultimately help prevent delays in patient care and improve the health care experience of our Veterans.”