HOUSEKEEPING DEPARTMENT (ХОЗЯЙСТВЕННАЯ СЛУЖБА)
The housekeeping department is very under-appreciated but very important. In fact, it plays a major
role in the public's impression of a hotel. Housekeepers keep the hotel and its guest rooms clean;
they change bed linens, make the bed, provide fresh towels. They clean bathrooms, remove dishes
and food that a guest may have left in the room, vacuum carpets, polish mirrors, empty ashtrays,
empty wastepaper basket, brush curtains, wipe table tops, replace bulbs and generally make sure
the hotel is pleasant, neat, and sanitary so that guests will feel comfortable. Housekeepers
(sometimes called Maids, although there are some male housekeepers) work very hard and often do
not receive a big salary, but without them, the hotel would not be successful.
ИНФОРМАЦИЯ ОБ ОТДЕЛЕ HOUSEKEEPING:
Основные сайты
http://www.city-of-hotels.com/165/hotel-services-business/housekeeping-department-en.html
http://www.hospitality-school.com/
Housekeeping Department
Cleaning services or housekeeping department is responsible for the cleanness
and order in the hotel. The housekeeping department personnel include maids, chief
of housekeeping department, supervisors and senior maids. Housekeeping department, as well
as the front-office, works in the round-the-clock mode with 3 shifts. Depending on the hotel
status, room cleaning can be performed once or several times a day. The higher the <<star>>
rank of the hotel, the more frequent a room cleaning is.
Housekeeping department – is one of the strictly regulated hotel services. Each positton
has its own well-defined instructions. An average duration of cleaning of the room, where
a guest lives, is about half of an hour. Cleaning of an unoccupied standard room should
take less than 7 minutes. During the shift maid tides 15 rooms in average.
Supervisor or senior maids check the quality with the periodicity established by the
internal order of the hotel.
Housekeeping department is responsible for the procurement and quality of detergents
and household chemicals that are used in hotel cleaning services. Housekeeping
department is also in charge of developing safety rules for use of certain disinfectants
and household chemicals.
Hotel cleanness – is a concept that is perceived in different countries in different ways.
Major hotel brands, which during many years have mastered cleaning technologies, are
an excellent example to follow. In the hotels of Marriot chain or Four Season dust in the
rooms in 5 hours after cleaning is considered to be a violation. Scrupulousness in the
matter of cleanness – is a hallmark of hotels in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
In the modern hotels cleaning of rooms and restaurants is often charged to the third-party
companies. Typically, such practice is used by small hotels on the threshold of the high
season. However, there were some cases, when even huge hotels used the cleaning
services.
Besides cleanness housekeeping department is also responsible for the comfort in the
room. Among the hotel staff you can now meet florists, flavor specialists and even more
exotic professions. Not long ago, hotels in New York began to employ «sleep
managers». Their responsibility – is to check the comfort of mattresses, bedding quality
and the softness of pillows.
Housekeeping department – is a <<spine>> of the hotel. In many ways thanks to it hotel
get its regular customers. Following the English proverb << Cleanliness is next to
godliness >> many global hotel corporations are investing millions of dollars into the
optimization of hotel cleaning process.
What is Turndown Service:
Turndown service in hotel industry is a process when hotel staffs prepare guest room
warm and inviting for sleeping. Generally 4 star or more exclusive hotels provide this service
automatically, others provide this service upon request from guest or automatically for VIP
guests or suit room guests. Turndown service is also known as evening service which is
generally performed between 6 PM and 9 PM.Some most common turndown service
activities are:
Closing of draperies
Turning Lights
Playing Soft music
Corner folding of bedspread away from pillow
Keep chocolates, or mints, fruit, or some other items on the bed.
Hotel Turndown Service Procedure (SOP - standard operating procedure, or SOP,)
www.hospitality-school.com/hotel-turndown-service-procedure-sop 3/9
Generally guests expectation is “I like to have my room prepared when coming home, this
gives me the feeling that the hotel takes care of me. It saves me time in turning down the
bedspread and closing the blinds”. To fulfill guest’s desire following procedures need to be
done:
(1) Preparation:
Prepare maid’s basket/trolley with linen and amenities:
Linen:
Pillow cases
Duvet cover
Bed sheets
Amenities:
Shower gel
Shampoo
Conditioner
Lotion
Shower cap box
Sanitary Bag box
Toothbrush an past box
Comb Razor and shaving cream
Fill the ice container with ice cubes from the ice machine where applicable
(2) Enter into Guest Room:
If you are sure that there is no guest in the room even in that case must follow standard
procedure.
(3) Provide Turn Down Service:
If the guest is inside, greet guest and say, “ Madame/Sir, I am xxx from Housekeeping,
sorry to disturb you, may I turn down your bed?”.
Collect all used glass/cup and exchange with glasses from the pantry.
Do not wash glasses in front of guest.
Empty the rubbish bin.
Turn down the bed by:
Fold and store bed runner or bed spread and cushions inside the closet.
Lift corner of quilt near the telephone and fold the corner into a triangle.
Straighten and place pillow neatly on the bed. Ensure pillow case opening is facing
inwards.
Place breakfast menu card on the folded quilt at an angle.
Place GSTS card on the breakfast menu if the guest is checking out the next day.
Place turndown gift on the center of the pillow
Place foot mat in front of the bed together with a pair of slippers
Close day and night curtains. Ensure that they are properly closed and there is no
gap.
Bathroom:
Tidy up the bathroom.
Close the shower curtain half way and place bath mat on the floor in front of the
bathtub
Replace all used amenities.
Return to the guest room to ensure nothing has been missed out. Leave the bedside table
light on as well as soft TV music or as per your hotel standard.
(4) Leave the Guest Room:
If guest is in the room, say: “My name is ……, if you need any assistance, please do not
hesitate to contact me, Good night, Madam/Sir, have a pleasant evening.”. Fill up the
Turndown report, time in and out, number of guest and other remarks.
(5) DND (Do Not Disturb) Issue:
Известный афоризм: cleanliness is next to godliness
Перевод: чистоплотность сродни праведности; чистота - залог благочестия
Эквивалент в русском языке: чистота – лучшая красота
Пример:
The mother told her children that cleanliness is next to godliness when she asked them to clean their
rooms.
Мать сказала детям, что чистота – залог благочестия, когда попросила их прибраться в своих
комнатах.
Do not disturb sign
Do not disturb sign
http://en.academic.ru/dic.nsf/enwiki/11507347
Common Do not disturb sign of a hotel
A do not disturb sign is a sign placed on a door, either hanging on the doorknob or in some
other manner, that lets others know not to enter.
One common place where do not disturb signs are used is in hotels , where guests can place
these signs on the door in order to inform staff, including housekeeping to respect their
privacy.[1] Some hotels also provide "make up room" signs giving the opposite instructions.
Do not disturb signs are recommended to those who keep valuables in their rooms in order to
deter possible thieves.[2]