Large areas call for new machine dimensions


13.12.2021

Thalhammer GmbH cleans properties in the Munich region, including a renowned university. Find out how this can now be done much more efficiently with a special new ride-on scrubber-dryer, what makes the smart entrepreneur behind Thalhammer GmbH tick and what innovative process he uses for the safe cleaning of kindergartens in this report.

“All good?” – a question often asked in small talk. Mustafa Yalcinkaya has made it his slogan. The Managing Director of Munich-based industrial cleaning firm Thalhammer GmbH uses the phrase to highlight his broad range of services and high quality standards. His master business in the building cleaning trade offers all kinds of services ranging from industrial cleaning to green area maintenance and crime scene cleaning. Mustafa Yalcinkaya bought the company eight years ago and breathed new life into it with his creativity, innovation and inventiveness. This is clearly visible on the company website, where team members are shown with blue and white stripes painted on their faces: “In some cultures, stripes painted on the face show the outside world that you belong to a tribe. At Thalhammer, we all belong to the same family and we support each other to ensure that we all do our jobs do the best of our abilities. The blue and white stripes also symbolise our bond with Bavaria,” explains the Managing Director.

The son of immigrants writes his own success story
Mustafa Yalcinkaya is the son of Turkish immigrants. His father died when we was five years old, and his family’s financial situation became difficult. His mother worked as a cleaner, and he would join her after school to help out wherever he could. With the abolition of the compulsory master craftsman’s diploma in Germany and price dumping in the cleaning industry, his mother lost her job. Barely of age, but full of drive, the young Mustafa summarily founded his own cleaning company and hired his mother as a cleaner. In addition to office work, he took care of more complex cleaning assignments. “What fascinates me about cleaning is how much you can achieve in a short space of time. A room can appear completely different after just a few hours of cleaning,” says Mustafa Yalcinkaya, expressing his enthusiasm for the cleaning profession. A lot has happened since. Mustafa Yalcinkaya’s motto is: “If you want to sell something, you need to know about it – especially if you are the Managing Director.” And he definitely does know about his product, as his training as a master building cleaner, crime scene cleaner, state-certified disinfection specialist and expert impressively attests.

Inconspicuous cleaning machines are in high demand
Mustafa Yalcinkaya has been buying his cleaning machines from Swiss manufacturer Wetrok for years. “Wetrok machines are durable, easy to use and require little maintenance. Should a problem arise, Wetrok is there immediately with a spare part, a courtesy machine or advice. Wetrok is second to none when it comes to machine and service quality,” says the managing director, explaining his attachment to the Swiss cleaning product manufacturer. Design is another aspect that should not be underestimated: “My customers appreciate the Wetrok machines because their slim design and understated colours are so inconspicuous. If they happen to be left standing in the corridor for a while, it doesn’t bother anyone. This is not the case with machines from other manufacturers,” says Mustafa Yalcinkaya, summing up the positive customer feedback he has received.

Efficient floor cleaning in a university
Thalhammer GmbH cleans many a prestigious property in the Munich region. Examples include research institutes, scientific and zoological collections and a renowned university. The university educates more than 50,000 students per semester in 18 faculties spread across 14 locations in the centre of Munich. The Thalhammer team is in charge of keeping some of these buildings clean. Always open to innovation, Mustafa Yalcinkaya recently purchased a new floor cleaning machine: the Drivematic Deluxe from Wetrok. “We have more and more properties with large areas and are increasingly under pressure when it comes to costs. This means that we have to cover greater areas in less time. The Drivematic Deluxe is ideal for this,” says the Managing Director, explaining his motives. The Thalhammer team cleans an impressive 38,500 square metres there. The imposing ride-on scrubber-dryer Drivematic Deluxe is perfect for this task: its working width of 102 centimetres, operating time of up to four hours and the 200-litre fresh water tank allow for more efficient cleaning than ever before. The floors at the university campuses vary just as much as the disciplines of study: you can find everything from linoleum to marble and mosaic tiles, and all of these floor coverings can be cleaned with the powerful machine.

Time-saving aids make all the difference
Francesco Marra is one of the staff members who use the machine on a daily basis. The building coordinator appreciates the ride-on scrubber-dryer’s ease of use and safety features, as well as the extras on board. Since cleaning takes place both during the day and in the evening, at times up to 300 students are in the building at the same time as the scrubber-dryer. Collisions are easily avoided, however, thanks to the Deluxe’s orange safety warning light and bright LED front light, which can both be seen from afar. What makes the machine truly luxurious, however, are three smart extra features that make Francesco Marra and his team’s work far more convenient: a side brush, a spray gun and a suction nozzle. “The side brush cleans right up to the edges, so I don’t have to assign an extra person to clean the edges. The spray gun, meanwhile allows us to remove any dried-up food residue in the hallways or coarse dirt from corners, and the suction nozzle is ideal for removing cobwebs from under the lockers. All of this can be done in a single pass, as these tools are all directly integrated in the machine,” he says enthusiastically. The Thalhammer crew are unanimous in their view that cleaning large areas could not be simpler or more efficient.

Plans for further use in warehouses/storage facilities
The university is just the beginning. Mustafa Yalcinkaya is already planning to purchase more models of this large machine for cleaning industrial areas and warehouses. “The fact that the machine can master inclines of up to 20 percent is especially useful for warehouses. This will save us a lot of time in multi-storey buildings,” says Mustafa Yalcinkaya, looking optimistically to the future.

Networked machines allow for a proactive response
How much time did the Drivematic Deluxe spend cleaning on 3 November? When is it next scheduled for servicing? If Mustafa Yalcinkaya wants an answer to these or other questions, he consults his fleet management system. All his cleaning machines are connected and registered to the Wetrok Connect software. It takes just a few clicks on his tablet or smartphone to get a full overview of his fleet. On request, he can disclose the effective operating hours to his customers and check whether the machines were used by his employees for the agreed upon services in the correct time window and for the specified duration. What Mustafa Yalcinkaya appreciates the most is the improved responsiveness: “The fleet management system shows if a machine is not operating properly. This enables me to proactively inform the customer in the event of a breakdown, and to arrange a replacement machine or stand-in immediately,” he reports enthusiastically. He also appreciates the control function and transparency: “The software shows me whether or not my staff members have fulfilled the specified operating hours according to the catalogue of services. If an employee in a property decides to leave out the entrance area or to use a mop instead of the machine, I would be informed,” reveals the managing director.

Safe cleaning in kindergartens thanks to a new method
Alongside universities and industrial premises, Thalhammer GmbH also cleans around 70 kindergartens in the Munich area. Safe cleaning is essential here. Mustafa Yalcinkaya and his team have therefore said goodbye to liquid detergents for cleaning the floors of these sensitive properties. They rely on an innovative and still relatively unknown method: dry cleaning granulate (Wetrok Granufloor). The advantage is that the granulate comes in individual, pre-dosed sachets: a scrubber-dryer tank filled with 10 litres of water requires exactly one sachet of granulate. «Unlike liquid detergents, the granulate is safely packaged in sachets, meaning that there is no risk of leakage and no dosing equipment or open cleaning products are left standing around. This enables us to avoid many sources of danger for children,” reports Mustafa Yalcinkaya, who himself has a kindergarten-age daughter. The granulate is a safe solution for the staff as well. The dry form produces no fumes and the perforated sachet reliably prevent the chemicals from coming into contact with the staff members’ eyes. The cleaning granulate is also highly biodegradable. For Mustafa Yalcinkaya, the granulate is also worthwhile from a business point of view: “Incorrect dosing costs industrial cleaning companies a great deal each year. These are unnecessary costs that we can completely eliminate thanks to the pre-dosed granulate,» explains the intelligent entrepreneur.

No risk of slipping thanks to reverse suction
However, the concept of safety does not stop with the cleaning chemicals. In kindergartens, Thalhammer GmbH relies exclusively on Wetrok’s Discomatic Bolero scrubber-dryer. Why? The machine is capable of reverse suction. As a result there is no risk of slipping on wet floors and not a single drop of the cleaning solution remains on the ground, not even under furniture. This allows children to play safely and carefree.

Mustafa Yalcinkaya does not believe in going backwards in any other sense of the word, though. The innovative entrepreneur knows only one direction: forward. As we walk around the university, he politely excuses himself a number of times to take the calls from employees, for whom he is available at all times. The blue and white stripes on their faces have long since been washed off, but the team’s dedication and sense of community are more present than ever. Mustafa Yalcinkaya is a hands-on type of person. He is a man who feels that (cleaning) problems are there to be solved: quickly, simply and with the big picture in mind. Considering this attitude, it is little wonder that at the end of the day his loyal customers all agree wholeheartedly: «All good!»


 

“What fascinates me about cleaning is how much you can achieve in a short space of time. A room can appear completely different after just a few hours of cleaning.”

Mustafa Yalcinkaya
Managing Director of Thalhammer GmbH