Corona pandemic: First steps towards normality
Disinfector Marcell Engel: “Experienced a lot of touching things!”
Frankfurt, April 23, 2020. After weeks of near standstill in the economy and public life, the federal government has decided on the first easing of restrictions. In the first step, shops with an area of up to 800 square meters will open their doors. Of course, under strict hygiene regulations. Marcell Engel, managing director of the Frankfurt company Akut SOS Clean GmbH, and his team have been working almost around the clock since the beginning of the corona pandemic. He answers questions about what he experienced, gives tips on hygiene and explains his assessment of the situation.
How have you and your teams experienced the past few weeks?
"They were extremely strenuous and were only possible thanks to the incredible team spirit of my people. 12 to 14 hours of work per day was the rule. For us, this meant almost 100 percent corona disinfection. Without the commitment of our employees, this would have been unthinkable. Managers and experts sometimes stayed at the property, for example at nursing homes, where the residents were evacuated in between. In order to quickly allow them to return to their usual environment, we sometimes worked there overnight."
How often were you deployed?
"If I take into account all orders, even the smaller ones - these include vehicle disinfection, then we processed over 5,000 orders in March alone. In addition, there are international consultations in over 100 cases. This mainly concerns other European countries with large-scale disinfection and consulting services. This shows the extent to which my employees and I were deployed."
In which areas were you most frequently asked?
"Mass transport such as planes and trains play a large part. In addition, of course, public institutions such as hospitals and retirement homes. There are also commercial enterprises such as international offices as well as transport and trade. The international freight forwarding companies, which ensure the important supply chains, played an important role here. The challenges that the drivers faced were reported in the media. A special feature was the driver change. In order to avoid the risk of infection in the driver's cab, they had to be disinfected when the vehicle was handed over. We have a short-term solution for this Drive-in disinfection was designed so that the relieving driver could continue his journey in the driver's cab without any worries.”
What touched you the most?
"A lot has touched me in these weeks. Sometimes it was the small situations in which it was noticeable that social contacts were missing. I notice how difficult it is not to hug dear people like before, or to pat an employee on the shoulder or give them a hug.
What I also find depressing is the lack of protective means. It doesn't matter whether protective suits, masks or disinfectants. We have received hundreds of emails from people who are simply looking for advice. We then developed a separate Corona guide on our website to give practical tips. This was gratefully accepted.
Small and medium-sized companies that are suffering economically or are even on the verge of collapse are close to my heart. These are often healthy regional companies, sometimes family businesses in the second, third or fourth generation, which have been significantly affected by the Corona crisis. They have responsibility for employees and their families and I often experience how much they suffer because they have to send their workforce on short-time work and do not know what the crisis situation will do in the future. In addition to our professional disinfection services, the human component plays a major role for us. We listen to our customers' concerns and needs. Some of us have long-standing business relationships. So of course we are very touched by their sometimes precarious situations.”
Do you have any ideas about how you can support your customers in the event of further easing, for example in the area of restaurants and hotels?
"Yes, this is a point that we have thought about a lot within the company. We have developed a so-called hygiene star for this purpose. Because we believe that in these times it is important not always to just react, but to act. Aside from our well-known services, we will soon be offering an online course in which all restaurant operators, hoteliers and of course all other business people will learn how to make their locations germ- and virus-free for guests and customers. This also applies to rooms with customer traffic and workplaces Employees receive the star as a certificate, which is a guarantee of the highest hygiene standards. At the same time, we enable immediate action by giving each participant a 2 liter container of surface disinfectant and a package of FFP2 masks. We want to ensure that companies can offer their customers and employees optimum safety.
They have experience in dealing with pandemics and have already been deployed more intensively during Ebola. What challenges do you see in the near and further future?
"My experience is that people only react when the child has fallen into the well. I would like to see faster international cooperation in the future. This is the only way to prevent the worst in an emergency. In my opinion, this includes working in an international centralized manner and constantly optimizing it. Incidentally, Akut SOS Clean developed a master plan with teams of experts a long time ago. Such a plan - closely adapted to the respective challenge such as the current coronavirus by international teams of specialists - would be a significant contribution to the global containment of such disasters. In addition includes a rapid and open exchange of information at international level.”
What practical tips do you give people in the current situation to help them cope in their domestic and private lives?
"As before, wash your hands thoroughly when you come home. Please pay particular attention to the little ones. Because practice early. Clean all surfaces that are constantly touched, such as handles and switches. Of course, also large surfaces such as worktops, doors and cupboards. This also applies later, when further relaxations take place and visitors come. And even if it is difficult, keep your distance. In my opinion, the so-called "social distancing" will be with us for a long time.
What is still close to my heart is “thinking positively”. Personally, I am happy that the infection curve has currently flattened significantly and am optimistic about the future. The inner attitude is always important. Anyone who then eats a conscious, vitamin-rich diet and gets physical exercise as much as possible will have a healthy basis to get through the current situation well.”
About Akut SOS Clean GmbH
Akut SOS Clean GmbH was founded in 1994. Over the years, Marcell Engel has continuously expanded his company's range of services. Today, the core competencies include all areas of rapid and professional disinfection, cleaning and decontamination. The spectrum ranges from disaster control in the event of an epidemic/pandemic to the disposal of toxic substances such as cyanide and ricin to the disinfection of mass transport and buildings.
The specialist company also works in the area of cleaning any dirt, contamination and odor nuisance. For example, water and fire damage, hoarder apartments, corpse finds, crime scene cleaning, graffiti, commercial kitchens and much more. Akut SOS currently offers over 50 services in the areas of hygiene, disinfection and pest control. The clients include authorities, the military, industrial, commercial and commercial companies as well as private individuals, throughout Germany and abroad. Marcell Engel is also involved in research and science.