Application
This unit of competency specifies the outcomes required to assess the type and condition of hard floor surfaces, determine the nature and extent of damage, remove pre-existing floor sealant, and replace it with a new protective coating using selected chemicals and techniques.
The unit supports cleaners who work alone or in teams. It applies in a range of commercial and residential work sites.
No licensing, legislative, regulatory, or certification requirements apply to this unit of competency at the time of endorsement.
Elements and Performance Criteria
Elements describe the essential outcomes. | Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element. Where bold italicised text is used, further information is detailed in the range of conditions. | ||
1. | Plan and prepare to restore hard floor surface. | 1.1. | Work instructions are obtained, and type of hard floorsurface and surface coating are identified. |
1.2. | Work site hazards are assessed and risks controlled according to company, legislative, and health and safety requirements. | ||
1.3. | Restoration techniques are selected according to company requirements. | ||
1.4. | Equipment is selected according to job requirements, checked for serviceability, and faults are rectified or reported before starting work. | ||
1.5. | Required cleaning chemicals are selected and prepared. | ||
1.6. | Personal protective equipment (PPE) is sourced and used according to manufacturer specifications, and health and safety and company requirements. | ||
1.7. | Signs and barricades are selected and installed according to health and safety, and company requirements. | ||
2. | Remove existing surface coating from hard floor. | 2.1. | Furniture and fittings are removed to allow cleaning tasks to be performed. |
2.2. | Wet and dry embedded soil types are removed and disposed of according to company requirements. | ||
2.3. | Existing surface coating is sanded or stripped off hard floor using chemicals and equipment that are selected and prepared according to manufacturer specifications. | ||
2.4. | Chemical residue is rinsed off hard floor and liquid waste is disposed of according to manufacturer recommendations and environmental requirements. | ||
3. | Seal exposed hard floor surface. | 3.1. | Exposed floor is checked to be dry and clean of all chemical residue, and loose soil and debris are dry vacuumed. |
3.2. | Sealant is applied to hard floor surface using correct application techniques and equipment according to manufacturer specifications and health and safety requirements. | ||
3.3. | Sealant is allowed to dwell according to manufacturer recommendations. | ||
3.4. | Additional coats of sealant are applied according to manufacturer and client recommendations. | ||
4. | Tidy work site. | 4.1. | Furniture and fittings are returned to original position according to job requirements. |
4.2. | Signs and barricades are removed according to health and safety, and company requirements. | ||
5. | Clean and safety check equipment, and store equipment and chemicals. | 5.1. | Equipment and PPE are cleaned, safety checked and stored according to manufacturer specifications and environmental, health and safety, and company requirements. |
5.2. | Unused chemicals are stored or disposed of according to manufacturer specifications, and health and safety and company requirements. |
Evidence of Performance
A person demonstrating competency in this unit must satisfy the requirements of the elements, performance criteria, foundation skills and range of conditions of this unit.
The person must also restore:
three of the following hard floor surfaces:
brick
concrete
cork
granite
parquetry
pavers
quarry tiles
rubber
slate
terrazzo
vinyl
two different timber floor surfaces.
In doing the above work, the person must:
identify site hazards and control risks before commencing the task
identify type and condition of hard floor surface techniques required for the task
correctly and safely handle waste, including contaminated materials.
Evidence of Knowledge
A person demonstrating competency in this unit must demonstrate knowledge of:
types and characteristics of different hard floor surfaces and restoration methods for:
non-slip
porous or non-porous
sealed or unsealed
smooth or textured
environmental requirements relating to restoring hard floor surfaces, including:
clean-up, containment and isolation procedures
emergency chemical spill control measures
environmental protection agency requirements relating to restoring hard floor surfaces
hazardous materials handling
use of low-energy cleaning methods
use of low-moisture cleaning methods
use of low water-use equipment and water-efficient cleaning methods
use of non-chemical cleaning methods
processes for safely handling and disposing of waste, including:
chemicals past their expiry date
obsolete equipment
packaging
sweeping detritus
used containers
used or contaminated personal protective equipment (PPE)
used or unused chemicals
range, type and characteristics of timber floor sealants:
oil modified products
water-based acrylic
water-based urethane
key requirements of legislation and regulations relating to restoring hard floor surfaces, including:
chemical controls
chemical registers and manifests
environmental protection
industrial equipment certificates of competency or licences
health and safety legislation and regulations
safe handling techniques for working with hazardous chemicals, including:
emergency chemical spill control measures
routes of entry and potential symptoms of exposure to chemicals
safe methods for diluting chemicals
working according to safety data sheets (SDS)
types and uses of different scrubbing machine pads:
white
red
green
blue
techniques for identifying type of existing sealant on floors
techniques for applying sealants to different hard floor types
types and application of different signs and barricades to be installed prior to cleaning, including:
physical barriers and restraints erected to restrict access to site
signs complying with legislative requirements and Australian standards warning of danger or adverse conditions, including:
cleaning in progress
hazardous chemicals in use or present in work area
types, characteristics and application methods of cleaning chemicals and equipment used in restoring hard floor surfaces.
Assessment Conditions
The following must be present and available to learners during assessment activities:
equipment:
as listed in the range of conditions
PPE as listed in the range of conditions
materials:
cleaning chemicals as listed in the range of conditions
specifications:
equipment operating manuals
product labels
SDS
safety instructions
physical conditions:
work site or venue with hard floor surfaces as listed in the performance evidence
relationships with team members and supervisor:
work may be conducted alone or as part of a team.
Timeframe:
as specified by the task.
Assessor requirements
As a minimum, assessors must satisfy the assessor requirements in the Standards for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) current at the time of assessment.
Foundation Skills
This section describes the language, literacy, numeracy and employment skills essential to performance in this unit but not explicit in the performance criteria. | |
Skill | Performance feature |
Learning skills to: | apply prior knowledge of techniques to strip and seal different hard floor surfaces. |
Numeracy skills to: | dilute and mix chemicals required for cleaning tasks using whole numbers and routine fractions. |
Oral communication skills to: | ask questions of clients and others to confirm work requirements and identify existing hard floor sealant type respond clearly and concisely to client questions. |
Reading skills to: | interpret safety instructions in a range of texts, including: chemical labels equipment operating manuals safety data sheets (SDS). |
Writing skills to: | document and report equipment faults. |
Planning and organising skills to: | develop and work to a sequenced plan of tasks with attention to timelines. |
Range Statement
This section specifies work environments and conditions that may affect performance. Essential operating conditions that may be present (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) are included. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. | |
Type of hard floor surface must include at least three of the following: | brick concrete cork granite parquetry pavers quarry tiles rubber slate terrazzo timber vinyl. |
Hazards that must be assessed include: | biological and environmental contaminants chemical exposure via absorption, ingestion and inhalation chemical reactivity dust and fibre particulates electrical environmental allergens explosions fatigue fire manual handling noise poor ventilation slips, trips and falls syringes and sharps working in confined spaces. |
Health and safety requirements must include: | access to communication devices when working alone compliance with Safe Work Australia regulations and guidelines electrical equipment test and tag compliance emergency response procedures environmental controls hazard signs and barricades health and safety induction and refresher training manual handling techniques processes for safely dispensing chemicals risk assessment procedures, including: hazardous chemicals register hierarchy of control job safety analyses (JSA) for low-risk situations safe work method statements (SWMS) for high-risk situations incident reporting SDS selection and use of required PPE storage and maintenance of equipment according to manufacturer specifications use of first aid according to SDS information. |
Equipment must include at least two of the following: | anti-static dusters buckets cleaning cloths cleaning trolleys drop sheets dust mops flat mops with extension pole fringe dusters lamb’s wool applicators sponges vacuum cleaners. |
Cleaning chemicals must include at least one of the following: | glass cleaners solvent cleaners surfactants water. |
Personal protective equipment must include at least two of the following: | eye protection gloves masks safety shoes. |
Sectors
Cleaning operations