FACILITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Abstract: The facility management system automatically generates information that is used to manage both a facility and the staff employed at the facility, with a high degree of integration and cross-correlation among the diverse attributes of the facility and services provided therein by the professional staff employed at the facility. The facility management system implements a multi-dimensional relational database to support the service delivery functions within a facility as well as the management of the physical plant that comprises the facility. The system identifies of all of the components of the facility, including structure architecture, components, contents and personal possessions of the residents and identifies all work that is to be done by the staff as well as by contractors. The work is defined in terms of Tasks that are linked to physical attributes of the facility as well as to staff to produce Task Sheets that are integrated coherent descriptions of Tasks that are assigned to Staff. The linking enables the efficient definition of Tasks in terms of physical locale, timeliness, elimination of redundancy of operation, minimization of work effort, thereby rendering the effecting of these Tasks economical. Each of the modules of the facility management system forges an information link with other information modules in the system to address the key issues of Who, What, Where, When to thereby enable the definition of the Tasks.

Description: FACILITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM Field of the Invention This invention relates to systems for the automated generation of information that is used to manage both a facility and the services that are provided by the staff employed at the facility, with a high degree of integration and cross-correlation among the diverse attributes of the facility, the professional staff employed at the facility staff and the services provided therein by the staff. Problem It is a problem in the operation of a facility to efficiently manage the physical plant of the facility and also obtain the most efficient use of the staff that is employed at the facility. There are numerous computer programs that address segments of this problem and provide narrowly focused solutions to particularly common problems. Examples of such programs are the class of household budget accounting programs that function to replicate the user's checkbook and provide a report generation capability based upon the checkbook data to thereby enable the user to track expenses and implement a household budget. There are also inventory programs that enable a user to document the contents and physical plant specifics of a particular household. There are also employee management programs that enable the user to input employee data and implement the payroll and performance review functions. However, each of these programs addresses only a single focused aspect of the management of a facility or its staff. There are significant voids in the field of facility and services managementthat are not addressed by any program. In addition, most of these programs are directed to an individual household of family members, with the program being run by one of the family members. This field is therefore devoid of a system that can provide the automated generation of information that is used to manage both a facility and the services that are provided by the staff employed at the facility, with a high degree of integration and cross-correlation among the diverse attributes of the facility and services provided therein by the professional staff employed at the facility. This is especially problematic in the field of professional services, such as the operation of managed care facilities, estate household management, and the like. Solution The above-described problems are solved and a technical advance achieved by the present system (termed "facility management system" herein) for the automated generation of information that is used to manage both a facility and the staff employed at the facility, with a high degree of integration and cross-correlation among the diverse attributes of the facility and services provided therein by the professional staff employed at the facility. The present facility management system implements a multi-dimensional relational database to support the service delivery functions within a facility as well as the management of the physical plant that comprises the facility. The preferred embodiment described herein is that of estate household management, wherein a professional staff is provided to operate an estate facility for a set of owners who may or may not reside full-time in the facility. The facility management system provides the capability to measure service expectations in both time and execution details while setting up the service delivery by means of the database capability contained therein. One module of the facility management system provides for the identification of all of the components of the facility, including structure location, architecture, components, contents and personal possessions of the residents. This capability is termed "Household Inventory Module." Another module comprises the People Module that provides the identification of all of the people who are associated with the facility, including residents, guests, visitors, staff, contractors and the like. This component enables the entry of individual-specific data that provides an in-depth definition of the individual, their characteristics that are relevant to the facility management and the provision of the services. The facility management system uses these modules, as well as others, to identify all work that is to be done by the staff as well as by contractors. The work is defined in terms of Tasks that are linked to physical attributes of the facility as well as to staff to produce Task Sheets that are integrated coherent descriptions of Tasks that are assigned to Staff. The linking enables the efficient definition of Tasks in terms of physical locale, timeliness, elimination of redundancy of operation, minimization of work effort, thereby rendering the effecting of these Tasks economical. Each of the modules of the present facility management system forges an information link with other information modules in the system and the data contained therein to address the key issues of Who, What, Where, When to thereby enable the definition of the Tasks. The provision of personal service in an estate management environment is an art form that far transcends the ordinary definition of "housekeeping" as it is commonly used. In particular, this requires a service relationship between the Household Manager and the principals of the family. The service relationship comprises a high level of communication and understanding of the intimate personal needs of the residents and guests to enable the Household Manager to provide the organization, technical knowledge, professionalism and discretion to the provision of the desired services. Brief Description of the Drawings Figure 1 illustrates in block diagram form the basic architecture of a typical computer system that is used to implement the present facility management system; Figure 2 illustrates in block diagram form the overall system architecture of the present facility management system, including the various operational modules incorporated therein; Figure 3 illustrates in block diagram form the conceptual architecture of the multi-dimensional database of the present facility management system; Figure 4 illustrates in block diagram form an example of on level of the hierarchical database of the present facility management system as embodied in the definition of the zones of the facility; Figure 5 illustrates in block diagram form an example of the hierarchical nature of database the present facility management system as embodied in the definition of a particular zone of the facility and its contents; Figure 6 illustrates a portion of the data entry displays of the present facility management system that defines a particular furnishing that is located in the facility; Figure7 illustrates a portion of the data entry displays of the present facility management system that defines a particular resident of the facility; Figures 8A, 8B illustrate a portion of the data entry displays of the present facility management system that defines the preferences of a particular resident of the facility; Figures 9 - 12 illustrate typical output reports that can be produced by the present facility management system. Detailed Description Figure 1 illustrates in block diagram form the basic architecture of a typical computer system that is used to implement the present facility management system. Figure 1 and the following discussion are intended to provide a brief, general description of a suitable computing environment in which the invention may be implemented. Although not required, the invention will be described in the general context of computer-executable instructions, such as program modules, being executed by a personal computer. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the invention may be practiced with other computer system configurations, including hand-held devices, multi-processor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, network PCS, minicomputers, mainframe computers, and the like. The invention may also be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located in both local and remote memory storage devices. With reference to Figure 1 , an exemplary system for implementing the invention includes a general purpose computing device in the form of a conventional personal computer 120, including a processing unit 121 , a system memory 122, and a system bus 123 that couples various system components including the system memory to the processing unit 121. The system bus 123 may be any of several types of bus structures including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, and a local bus using any of a variety of bus architectures. The system memory includes read only memory (ROM) 124 and random access memory (RAM) 125. A basic input/output system 126 (BIOS), containing the basic routines that helps to transfer information between elements within the personal computer 120, such as during start-up, is stored in ROM 124. The personal computer 120 further includes a hard disk drive 127 for reading from and writing to a hard disk, not shown, a magnetic disk drive 128 for reading from or writing to a removable magnetic disk 129, and an optical disk drive 130 for reading from or writing to a removable optical disk 131 such as a CD ROM or other optical media. The hard disk drive 127, magnetic disk drive 128, and optical disk drive 130 are connected to the system bus 123 by a hard disk drive interface 132, a magnetic disk drive interface 133, and an optical drive interface 134, respectively. The drives and their associated computer-readable media provide nonvolatile storage of computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules and other data for the personal computer 120. Although the exemplary environment described herein employs a hard disk, a removable magnetic disk 129 and a removable optical disk 131 , it should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that other types of computer readable media which can store data that is accessible by a computer, such as magnetic cassettes, flash memory cards, digital video disks, Bernoulli cartridge, random access memories (RAMs), read only memories (ROM), and the like, may also be used in the exemplary operating environment. A number of program modules may be stored on the hard disk, magnetic disk 129, optical disk 131 , ROM 124 or RAM 125, including an operating system 135, one or more application programs 136, other program modules 137, and program data 138. A user may enter commands and information into the personal computer 120 through input devices such as a keyboard 140 and pointing device 142. Other input devices (not shown) may include a microphone, joystick, game pad, satellite dish, scanner, or the like. These and other input devices are often connected to the processing unit 121 through a serial port interface 146 that is coupled to the system bus, but may be connected by other interfaces, such as a parallel port, game port or a universal serial bus (USB). A monitor 147 or other type of display device is also connected to the system bus 123 via an interface, such as a video adapter 148. In addition to the monitor, personal computers typically include other peripheral output devices (not shown), such as speakers and printers. The personal computer 120 may operate in a networked environment using logical connections to one or more remote computers, such as a remote computer 149. The remote computer 149 may be another personal computer, a server, a router, a network PC, a peer device or other common network node, and typically includes many or all of the elements described above relative to the personal computer 120, although only a memory storage device 150 has been illustrated in Figure 1. The logical connections depicted in Figure 1 include a local area network (LAN) 151 and a wide area network (WAN) 152. Such networking environments are commonplace in offices, enterprise-wide computer networks, intranets and the Internet. When used in a LAN networking environment, the personal computer 120 is connected to the local network 151 through a network interface or adapter 153. When used in a WAN networking environment, the personal computer 120 typically includes a modem 154 or other means for establishing communications over the wide area network 152, such as the Internet. The modem 154, which may be internal or external, is connected to the system bus 123 via the serial port interface 146. In a networked environment, program modules depicted relative to the personal computer 120, or portions thereof, may be stored in the remote memory storage device. It will be appreciated that the network connections shown are exemplary and other means of establishing a communications link between the computers may be used. Architecture of the Facilities Management System Figure 2 illustrates in block diagram form the overall system architecture of the present facility management system 200, including the various operational modules incorporated therein. There are numerous partitions of the facility management system 200 that can be implemented, and the present embodiment represents a preferred implementation of this system. The implementation details described herein are for the purpose of illustration of the concepts, and are not intended to limit the applicability of these concepts to other implementations of this system. For example, the facility described in this application is an estate household, although the present facility management system 200 can be used for a managed care facility, furnished temporary executive residence apartment, rehabilitation facility, or other facility where the resident's occupation is of sufficient duration and requires sufficient attention to detail to warrant the use of the facility management system. The basic facility management system 200 is embodied as a database management system with the applicable report generation capability. The basic facility management modules comprise an Environment Module 201 that contains a plurality of components, each of which addresses a particular cross-section of the environment. For example, the Household Inventory Module 202 comprises a definition of the facility, its physical plant and contents. The People Module 203 comprises a definition of the various individuals that are impacted by the operation of the facility management system 200. The People Module 203 is subdivided into two components: Residents 213 and Staff 223. The Residents Component 213 comprises a definition of all of the residents, family members, visitors, guests while the Staff Component 223 comprises a definition of the staff, contractors, and the like. The attributes of each individual or company defined in the People Module 203 are cross- linked to other members identified in the People Module 203 and the various other Modules of the facility management system 200 as described below. The Events Module 204 comprises a definition of the various activities that occur in and about the facility. The Supplies Module 205 comprises a definition of the various consumables that are stored in the facility and used therein to provide the desired services and to maintain the facility. The Standards Module 206 comprises a characterization of the level of service provided for the various tasks that are defined by the facility management system. The Standards Module 206 is cross-linked to numerous other modules in the facility management system 200 to thereby define a level of service desired for each of the individuals identified in the Residents Component 213, for each of the events identified in the Events Module 204, as well as the level of maintenance provided for the facility, physical plant and contents defined in the Household Inventory Module 202. Thus, the data input by a user to define the entirety of the environment is used by the second system module, the Services Module 207 of the facility management system 200, to create a set of data representative of the tasks that are required to be performed by the Staff to provide the services desired by the residents, to support the defined events and to maintain the facility. The defined tasks are then processed by a third basic module of the facility management system, the Scheduling Module 209, to create and output to the household manager a schedule of tasks on a per-staff member basis as well as to define the supplies required. The Supplies Module 205 can optionally include an inventory tracking and consumable exhaustion prediction capability to thereby automatically identify the supplies required and the time that these supplies would need to be replenished. In this regard, there is typically also included another basic module, termed the Education Module 208, that comprises a resource source that defines the particulars of the various levels of service that are selected by the user as well as instructional information that is available to facilitate the execution of the various defined tasks. While the various modules noted above are characterized as discrete elements, in implementation they are typically data structures maintained in a relational database. The present characterizations are for the purpose of illustrating the multidimensional nature of the data cross-correlating and the complex nature of the couplings between the various data to provide a volume and granularity of information that is unavailable in known systems. This complexity and integration enables the facility management system 200 to define a level of service and degree of attention to detail that enables the staff to provide sophisticated and personalized service commensurate with the highest standards that are defined for household service (in this embodiment). System Paradigm A first step in the development of the service relationship between the staff and the residents is the creation of a baseline definition of the environment. This is accomplished by the use of a hierarchical multi-dimensional database structure, as shown in conceptual block diagram form in Figure 3, that enables the userto populate each tier of the hierarchical multi-dimensional database structure with data relevant to that tier. In particular, the first tier of this module comprises a definition of the environment, which comprises the physical facility itself (Physical Property), its Geographic Location, the residents of the facility (People), Expenses, Analysis, and Other. These categories are illustrated in Table A below, and further exemplified by Details of each category and Examples of the type of data used to populate this database. This Table A demonstrates in a manner the exhaustive nature of the considerations that are processed by the present facility management system. In particular, the multi-dimensional nature of the database is evidenced in the various "views" of the facility that are provided on this first level, with the various major categories each comprising a separate, yet integrated set of information that must be considered in the management of the facility and the provision of the desired services. TABLE A The second tier of this database expands the tree of the database to a finer level of data granularity and comprises the next level of detail for a particular category. For the purpose of illustrating this concept, the Physical Property category is described herein, which second level is embodied in the Household Inventory Module of the present facility management system. The Level 1 data typically required for the Physical Property category is a technical description of the facility, such as address, legal description, and the like. The next successive granularity of detail is provided in Level 2 in terms of Zones contained in the facility, as shown in Figure 4. This use of the Zone concept enables the user to define a volumetric segmentation of the facility into a plurality of juxtaposed segments that in combination define the totality of the facility. Each Zone represents a collection of rooms of the facility with their associated physical plant and contents. As can be seen from Figure 4, each Zone typically comprises a plurality of rooms and/or passageways between rooms and/or adjacent outdoor areas. The selection of a locale for inclusion into a Zone is typically effected by the household manager and is based upon a number of factors, including but not limited to: community of interest (such as a plurality of bedrooms), physical proximity, served by a minimum number of staff members, requires common service/supplies, coordinated scheduling of service, pattern of activity of residents. Thus, for example, Zone 2 comprises a plurality of sleeping rooms and the adjoining hallways and stairs. The servicing of this Zone requires the repetitive execution of a set of tasks, thereby simplifying the provisioning of the staff who execute these tasks and avoiding the inefficiencies occasioned by the execution of unrelated services. The Zones are typically defined in terms of volumetric segments of the facility since the adjoining areas in a facility generally have similar or complementary functions. However, the term "volumetric segmentation" as used herein encompasses the inclusion of spatially disjunct areas or the residence in the Zone. For example, a studio over a garage may be serviced along with an office in the main building of the residence, even though these two areas are not adjoining, but the schedule of the residents and/or the type of services required may override the efficiencies provided by physical proximity. The residence is therefore divided into a plurality of Zones, each of which comprises a definition of a volumetric segment of the residence, whether or not comprising adjoining locales, with the sum of the Zones defining the entirety of the facility. Figure 5 illustrates in block diagram form an example of one level of the hierarchical database of the present facility management system as embodied in the definition of a particular zone of the facility and its contents. In particular, Zone 2 is defined in Level 3 as comprising one or more Rooms and/or Hallways. As can be seen in the Figure 3, the Zone 2 comprises Sleeping Rooms, Hallway 2, Stairs 2, Hall Bathroom 1. Each of these entries itself is defined with further granularity. For example, Sleeping Rooms comprise: Master Bedroom, Guest Bedroom 1 , Guest Bedroom 2. The Master Bedroom itself comprises: Furniture, Equipment, Bathroom, Closet. The Closet itself comprises a plurality of contents, such as: Clothes, Sports Equipment. Clothes comprise: suits, shoes, ties, pants, etc. Thus, the Household Inventory comprises a detailed inventory of not only the physical architecture and physical plant of the facility but also all of its contents, with a specific definition of all of the content specifics that are required to manage these contents and their use by both the staff and the residents. The present facility management system therefore enables the definition of the inventory in terms of the inventory comprises a description of the entity, a location of the entity in the household and any additional information relating to the entity that is necessary for its management and servicing. Data Entry Example for a Zone Figure 6 illustrates a portion of the data entry displays of the present facility management system that defines a particular furnishing that is located in the facility. The inventory is defined in terms of a Parent/Child relationship as selected by the user, and a simple example of the definition of the contents of a locale is illustrated in Figure 6. In particular, the data entry screen provides a plurality of data fields into which the user inputs the data required to define the furnishing. A category field is provided to enable the item to be defined it terms of a user definable class, such as: furniture, paintings, china, appliances, clothes, and the like. The user can also input data relating to the object's "Cost," "Use," Date of acquisition" and present location. The present location can either be on loan outside the facility, as noted by the "External Reference," Off-Site," "Date Out," "Expected Return Date," and "Where Loaned" fields. Alternatively, the furnishing is located in the facility and can be located under "Blueprint ID" which defines a physical location of the object in the facility. The object can be further defined in terms of "Dimensions H W L" and the "Material Composition" which denotes special care instructions. Thus, the data input by a user relating to an object that is located within the facility provides sufficient information to the facility management system to enable the proper management of the object. Data Entry Example for People Figure7 illustrates a portion of the data entry displays of the present facility management system that defines a particular resident of the facility while Figures 8A, 8B illustrate a portion of the data entry displays of the present facility management system that defines the preferences of a particular resident of the facility. These data entry fields enable the user to provide the information that reflects the subtleties necessary for the provision of personalized professional service. The data represents an exhaustive definition of the personal needs and desires of the residents and also integrates the management of the resident's medical and routine facility oriented financial needs, such as insurance, security, utilities and the like. The personal preferences section of the data input provides a temporal characteristic field for the resident's personal preferences, so that the temporal coordination of the services can be closely tied to the preferences and events. Services Module Once the environment is defined, the Services Module 207 analyzes the data that is stored in the Household Inventory Module 202 and the People Module 203 (with reference to the service level defined in the Standards Module 206) to produce a definition of the Task Reports that identify the multitude of work projects such as cleaning and maintenance schedules for the facility, including both the building and grounds. The Standards Module 206 identifiers a cooking style and favorite menus, clothing favorites and style of care, entertaining styles and favorites, style of security expected and schedules, style of transportation and schedules, child care expectations and favorites, elder care requirements and staff daily schedules "Day in the Life" duty roster. This entails both daily and weekly tasks and provides a mechanism to enable communication between the Household Manager and the Employer. It enables the Services Module 207 to define the daily pattern of activity of each staff member and thru the integration and correlation with the data stored in the various database modules of the system comprise a definition of a highly efficient and economical manner of operating the facility and providing the level of service custom defined for the particular residents of the facility. Daily Graces Daily Graces comprise the daily routine tasks that provide the underlying daily structure and set the level of service provided. These include such things as making the beds, feeding and walking pets, mail retrieval and processing, and the like. An example of the type of Daily Graces report that is produced by the scheduling module 209 of the facility management system is illustrated in both Figures 9 and 10. These typical reports comprise a definition of the task, its locale in the Zones, the time interval in which the task is to be performed as well as a data entry field to denote the completion of the defined task. This report when output, provides the Household Manager with a checklist to oversee the tasks of the staff on a broad perspective basis. The Daily Graces enable the completion of many tasks, some of which are easily overlooked. The use of the Daily Graces report enables the staff to address every task, to record the execution of these tasks and to update this list based upon daily activities to thereby operate the facility with an attention to detail unavailable without the use of the present facility management system. Figures 11 and 12 illustrate typical output reports that can be produced by the present facility management system with regard to a particular zone (Zone 2 in Figure 11 ) and with regard to the entire facility on a more global basis. Thus, the Zone 2 example show how the daily tasks are supplemented with a set of tasks that represent a level higher on the hierarchy of tasks. These "Weekly Cleaning" tasks are defined in terms of temporal trigger, completion notation and a characterization of the tasks on a Zone basis in general terms as well as an implementation specific notation that assists the staff in executing the task with the proper attention to detail. These weekly tasks represent periodic tasks that need to be scheduled on a regular basis but are not required to be performed daily. The use of the report of Figure 11 enables all tasks to be addressed in due course without failure. In addition, a yet higher level set of tasks is defined in Figure 12 which represents a facility-wide set of tasks that need to be scheduled on a regular basis but are not required to be performed daily or weekly. As with the list shown in Figure 11 , these tasks are to be addressed in due course without failure. Ballet of Service Ballet of Service comprises a component contained within the Events Module that defines the entertainment styles of the residents. The Ballet of Service provides a highly choreographed definition of the entertainment service that is desired by the residents and that is customized for the particular tastes of both the residents and their visitors and guests. The paradigm used is that of a theatrical production where the room is the stage, the visitors/guests are the audience, the props are the furnishings placed in the room, such as china, silverware, linen, etc, and the entertainers comprise the residents with a supporting cast of the staff. Without requiring the intimate involvement of the residents, the Ballet of Service addresses all of these factors in detail based upon the Household Inventory, Services, Personal Preferences as well as an embedded definition of a selected theme or variant of service that is programed into the system. The facility management system can implement a predictive system, since it has the capability to record the history of the facility and its operation, with the inclusion of feedback to identify the successes and failures in the provision of service. The facility management system can therefore correlate past events with planned activities to adaptively define the tasks based upon feedback. The predictive capability can be effected by the provision in the Services Module 207 of an element to provide the neuromorphic processing of data, such as an expert system, fuzzy logic, neural network. This predictive capability further enhances the utility of the facility management system. Education Module The facility management system 200 can optionally include an education or resource module 208 that provides a definition of the service to be performed. In particular, the variety of services and the diversity of manners of implementing these services represents a challenge to the Household Manager and the staff. There are numerous tasks that require special skills or must be executed in a manner that is unique to the facility. The teaching of these details to the staff is generally time consuming, difficult to ensure that the instructions are followed and error prone. The "institutionalization" of these task details is accomplished by The Education Module which contains a library of data relating to all aspects of facility management and the provision of services. For example, Appendix A attached hereto represents a small portion of this data relating to "Cleaning Tips and Responsibilities" that is available to the staff in the execution of these tasks. Other topics are embodied in The Education Module. Guest Visit Example Returning to the conceptual diagram of Figure 3, the example of a visit to the facility by the parents of one of the residents can be used to illustrate a partial view of the analyses and data cross-correlation that takes place in the facility management system 200. The visit is an "event" 204 and comprises a series of activities, such as breakfast, lunch, dinner, shopping trip. Each of the activities can be subdivided into a number of components, such as breakfast, which comprises a gathering of a number of guests and residents 213 (scheduling) and the provision of food: juices, coffee (type), hot food, cold food, fruits, bakery products. Each of these items is correlated with personal preferences and the schedule of the various participants. The personal preferences and food type must also be cross referenced with the supplies 205 to ensure that the preferences can be satisfied with the supplies on hand, or additional purchases can be made in time for the event. The food element itself must be cross referenced with the cook and whomever purchases the supplies ("driver") to address the details of the materials needed to provide the desired service of breakfast. Furthermore, any specialty items on the agenda for breakfast can be cross referenced with the education module 208 to provide data regarding the proper provision of the requested service. As noted above, the standards module 206 is linked to the various other modules to address the proper level of implementation of each of the services that are defined in the tasks output from the facility management system 200. For example, the breakfast can be casual on the patio, or formal in the dining room with china and crystal place settings, or some other configuration somewhere between these two degrees of formality. The services module 206 modulates the operation of the other modules in that it selects a certain defined measure of service expectation in terms of time and execution, and adjusts the selection of the output from each level of the other modules to correspond to the defined service expectation. The combination of these cross referenced outputs is used to define and orchestrate the service delivery. Summary The present facility management system implements a multi-dimensional relational database to support the service delivery functions within a facility as well as the management of the physical plant that comprises the facility. The linking among the various modules provided by the relational database enables the efficient definition of Tasks in terms of physical locale, timeliness, elimination of redundancy of operation, minimization of work effort, thereby rendering the effecting of these Tasks economical. Each of the modules of the present facility management system forges an information link with other information modules in the system and the data contained therein to address the key issues of Who, What, Where, When to thereby enable the definition of the Tasks. Cleaning Tips and Responsibilities Clutter Clutter has been aptly defined as the things that are worth saving but haven't been put away, deposited on top of things that are not worth saving but haven't been thrown away, which have settled next to things you aren't sure what to do with. As such, clutter is the bane of the house cleaner. To get control of the clutter, familiarize yourself with the latest in shelves, closet organizers, caddies, stackables, storage boxes and cabinets, shoe holders, tool boxes, key racks, laundry baskets, calendars and drawer organizers. Organizing has become big business and there are many resources to draw from. Have a place for everything and put things away in their proper place each day. Clean out magazines and periodicals on a regular basis. Always place plastic bags in trash receptacles. Have clothes closets maintained and cleaned out at each season. If your employers save everything, have well-labeled storage boxes that can be used to save but not take up space in the living parts of the home. Contact your local charity for pickup to rid the household of no longer wanted items. The Junk Drawer Almost every household ends up having a "junk drawer" with everything that meets the above definition of clutter being put in it. Even in this conglomeration of items, order can exist. Compartmentalize the drawer so that each item has a well-defined, well-confined place. For instance, put all the sewing items in one compartment; tools, nails, screws in another; pens and pencils in another; and coupons in another. Of course, put any paper work in a file drawer and arrange it alphabetically. The Utility Closet Another area that harbors clutter is the utility closet. Use the same idea here: classify items into groups. Hang everything you can on the wall; a pocketed shoe bag or shelves for cleaning items, spray cans, and vacuum attachments is a good example. Place shelves in the utility closet and store items in plastic containers or in the new designer boxes with labels. Visit the many companies specifically making organizational products for cleaning equipment. Dusting Recent studies indicate that allergies, hay fever and other health problems are aggravated by the tons of dust that enter our homes each year. Therefore, dusting should be systemized and be a daily task. When dusting, place things back exactly where you find them. They were placed there for a reason. Gently test objects before removing them from the table for dusting, to see if they are fragile. The best duster is the small round brush of the vacuum because it actually sucks the dust up into a bag rather than just moving it around. When using a dust cloth, a light touch is essential to protect the finish of furniture. Do not flick the dust cloth, because some surfaces, like hard plastics, have an attraction to light dust particles. Use a slightly dampened dust cloth to reduce the static. You can use an ostrich feather duster for picture frames, hard to reach shelves, books, and knickknacks. The feathers will hold the dust. Tap duster to side of shoe to shake dust onto the floor. However, remember that most items that are maintained by a feather duster on a regular basis should be dusted with a cloth occasionally. A feadier duster also works beautifully for those special areas and good art objects. Cloth gloves are used for those very special porcelain objects. When dusting, always start at the top of a room or an object. Use a Webster for high spots. Do not slide objects as they may scratch surfaces. Move furniture that needs to be dusted behind and under. Use detail brush (small paint brush) around knobs, handles and hardware on appliances, fixtures, folds of lamp shades and woodwork. Use damp rag with cleaner for fingerprints and smudges on switch plates and door jams, phones blender buttons, and vents. Use a feather duster for dried flowers and delicates, window treatments, lamp shades, bulbs, tops of books, behind books and under knickknacks. Also use for doorjambs, panels, tops and backs, legs of furniture, plugs and electrical outlets, plants, shutters, blinds and ledges unless they have not been regularly cleaned and need to be dusted with a slightly damp cloth. Use a duster for floorboards and wainscoting. Glass clean mirrors and picture frames/tops, spray into rag only, not onto the picture frame or glass. Steady pictures before cleaning. Care of Wood Furniture Wood furniture can be a collector's antique or a newly made piece. Woods range from solid hardwoods covered by polyurethane to soft, porous woods with waxed surfaces. If the piece is a new purchase, read all the literature that accompanied your purchase for any special care instructions. Keep in mind the following: Wood is subject to damage from extremes in temperature and humidity. Prolonged exposure to extreme dampness can cause swelling or warping. Direct sunlight or heat from a nearby heat vent may crack or discolor the surface. Heat causes white marks that can be removed. A certain amount of sheen can be achieved simply by rubbing with a soft clean cloth (not a dust cloth!). Apply a bit of pressure after dusting or when wiping something dry. When a surface has been waxed, dry buffing will often restore the polished look. A three-stage procedure is used to polish fine furniture. First the product is applied; second, it is wiped off; and finally, the surface is rubbed to achieve a gleam. For the very best shine, use plenty of clean rags. Rub polish into the surface, change rags, and rub it off again. Use small circular motions when polishing all furniture. Change rags as often as needed. To achieve your final polish and gleam, use a soft rag (preferably a chamois), apply a considerable amount of pressure, and follow the grain. Today's multi-step finishes act like armor against moisture, as long as spills are quickly wiped up. Standing condensation from a glass, though, can leave an ugly ring on the finish. The most common offenders are nail polish and nail polish remover, medicines, perfumes, and alcoholic beverages. Blot up these types of spills immediately. If a protective wax coating has been applied, it is unlikely that permanent damage has been done. Keep coasters handy for prevention. Never use an aerosol spray polish or anything with sflicone in it. These products produce an instant shine, but some objections to them include: The solvent comes out with such force that it can damage polished surfaces; They do not fill in the cracks or surface blemishes; They can make the surface dangerously slippery; When sprayed frequently, the surface can acquire a slight milky look. Caring for Floors Wood floors require regular attention with a broom or vacuum, and possibly periodic applications of paste wax. Sometimes wood floors are coated with polyurethane vamish which makes them very easy to care for until the varnish wears away in heavy traffic areas; then the whole floor has to be refinished. Always sweep or vacuum loose dirt from floors before washing. Start at the edges and work inward towards the door. Wash with a Shu-mop, with industrial pail and wringer. Always wring mop before applying to floor, rinse frequently. Know the type of finish before applying wax. If polyurethane coated it needs only a damp mop with white vinegar and water solution. To maintain a no-wax hardwood floor between cleaning, spray a very small amount of the product Endust on a dust mop and systematically dust the floor. For cleaning a polyurethane varnished floor, use warm water and vinegar. Then dry the floor with absorbent cloth. For unfinished hardwood floors, use Murphy's Soap and then buff. This cleans and protects. Be sure you know what kind of floor you are cleaning because Murphy's will make a sealed floor sticky. No-wax flooring is simple to keep up, but it needs frequent sweeping to protect the shiny surface. Use an ammonia water solution to clean surface ("hands and knees" is still the best method). Eventually, a no-wax floor will wear down, but do not wax until absolutely necessary. Follow mopping with a cold- water rinse to which has been added a splash of regular polish. This will extend the life of the shine. Glazed Tile is cleaned by utilizing a damp mop. Vinyl Floors are cleaned by using a damp mop using floor dressing to renew the shine. Be sure to use only ' products recommended by the manufacturer of the tile so that the warranty on the floor will stay in effect Never flood with water so that water can seep through crevices and warp the under floor. Use a wring mop, industrial pail and wringer. Always rinse frequently and wring before applying on the floor. If very dirty, use a floor scrubber with a mop handle to scrub the floors from a standing position, or get down on your knees (use safety pads) and use a scrub brush, bucket and "old-fashioned elbow grease." Again, do not flood the area with water. Flagstone - Fieldstone - Quarry - Terra Cotta are all are very porous and must be sealed to avoid stains. Clean with water and a mild detergent. Cork - wax with paste wax and buff. Marble Marble is probably the most misunderstood floor surface that we encounter. Much of die confusion arises because people just do not know that much about marble. A marble myth is that marble is a forever floor that resists wear and requires very little maintenance. Marble is a common name for calcite or metamorphosed limestone. Marble is also used as a trade name by many quarrymen and builders for almost any compressed limestone that can be cut or polished. True marble was not originally chosen as a building stone because of hardness, but for its inherent beauty and ability to be cut and polished. On a hardness scale for rock which measures 1 as the softest and 10 as the hardest, true marble ranks at a 3 and some trade marbles at 2.5. This means they can be scratched easily with a knife. By comparison granite is rated in the area of 5.5 to 6.0 and slate at 6.0 to 6.5. Marble is a porous stone. It can absorb both water and oil. Polishing the surface reduces the porosity but does not completely seal the surface. The susceptibility of marble to acid attack means the surface can be dissolved or de-lustered by many materials. Items that can cause appreciable damage to marble are soft drinks, wine, citrus juices, vinegar, rust removers, acid tile and grout cleaners, photographic chemicals, vomit, urine, and many foods. The porosity of marble will allow it to be stained by tar, asphalt, grease, oil, and many other materials. The worst places to use marble are on coffee tables, end tables, bars, entrance ways and floors. What can be done to protect the marble from this type of damage? To protect the substantial investment made in marble floors, the surface can be protected m three ways: Use mats or runners, though when used the beauty of the floor is hidden. Using a permanent seal is a strong method of protection. The initial cost is low and follow-up maintenance is low. However, several problems are associated with a permanent seal. The seal will show a traffic pattern in a short period and is not easily repairable. Some discoloration of the marble may occur as the seal ages. The process of removing the permanent seal is very costly and time consuming. The use of paint removers and strong chemicals is required. When working on polished marble, wire brushes or steel wool cannot be used for fear of scratching or dulling the surface. Use a modified tile floor maintenance program. In our estimation, this is die safest and most practical program for polished or honed marble. It allows repairs to the finish and gloss to be done quickly and easily. Some cautions must be taken when dealing with polished marble versus tile floors. The product used for stripping should not be very strongly alkaline. High solvent content strippers such as the 'no rinse' products are good for this use. The pads used for stripping should be the brown type. The sealer used should be the pure acrylic sealer with mild cationic functionality which gives it good adhesion to the marble surface. The restorer should be of comparable hardness to the finish to reduce scuffing. Only neutral type cleaners should be used on the finish or the marble itself. A polished marble floor can be beautiful and enduring, but only with the proper care. Vacuuming There are many different vacuums in the market place. As a general guideline, the vacuum does not have to be heavy to be effective. Vacuums are upright, canister, hand-held or household installed. Have the appropriate vacuum on each floor and for each use and stowed in functional places so house cleaners do not waste energy and injure backs on carrying them up and down stairs. Maintain them on an every six month basis by having them cleaned, belts and cords checked and motors serviced. Change vacuum bags often. "Do I dust or vacuum first" has been misunderstood for years. Vacuuming does indeed stir dust particles up from the floor and rugs. Some family members may be allergic to dust. They should not be in the home when vacuuming takes place. If you have dusted first and then vacuumed, you will find that several hours later, you have dust on your tables depending upon how often you vacuum and if your vacuum is in good working order. If you vacuum first and then dust, you will find foot prints on your rug and dust! The solution is to dust daily. Many households want vacuuming patterns left on the carpet from vacuuming. This is accomplished by vacuuming in straight or curved lines as one would mow a lawn, back and forth artfully. Carpet Cleaning Today's carpet fibers are usually nylon, acrylic, polyurethane, and wool. When washing a carpet, test first for color fastness; save carpet scraps for this purpose and also for patching. Clean new carpet only when it looks dirty. Carpet cleaning companies may be your best solution. Most carpets are treated with Scotch guard. You should only shampoo four times in the life of the carpet. A dry carpet cleaning method is best. When choosing a carpet cleaning contractor, ask for references and check them. Small bums in carpet can be snipped out by snipping the tops of the fibers if the burns are not too deep. A spotting solvent or denatured alcohol is needed to spot clean grease and other tough stains. Many other stains can be treated with a solution of a mild detergent and cool water. BLOT, do not scrub (scrubbing destroys the fibers). Use a white towel. This enables you to see if the spot is coming up. Frequent vacuuming is the best thing you can do for a carpet. Use an upright with beater bar and brush. Vacuum the nap up and work slowly to allow the machine to get the deep down dirt. Work a small area at a time and make 10 to 15 sweeps before moving on to the next. Difficult stains are best dealt with by a carpet expert. If it is an emergency, use: Pet stains: use white vinegar and water if still wet, or special pet spot products designated for such soiling Wine: attend to as quickly as possible with club soda Blood: cold water or club soda Good oriental rugs should be washed by a professional. Vacuum, being careful of the tassels. It is preferable that you comb the tassels with an appropriate tool. Wall Coverings Test a patch of the wall with a cleaner. Make sure the covering does not pull away from the wall, that colors do not fade or run, and that the texture does not change. Diluted dish washing liquid is preferable for washable wallpapers; other detergents are just too strong. Vinyl and plastic-coated surfaces withstand stronger cleaning agents and will tolerate some scrubbing. Wood Paneling The most important rule for paneling is that water should be used very sparingly and only when necessary. When you must use it, wash small areas at a time and dry immediately. Paste wax and Murphy's soap are both recommended depending upon the finish. Bathrooms Both dry cleaning and wet cleaning are performed in baths. Begin by dusting the bathroom like other rooms, then glass clean tops of sinks, counters, toilet tank, don't forget the base. Look for hair around the tub and sink. Use a detail brush on all toilet, sink and tub hardware. Catch the top of medicine cabinets, light fixtures, back of the bathroom door, and piping under the sink. Clean and polish all soap dishes and soap dispensers. Wipe perfume bottles, hair spray bottles and jars on all of the counter tops. Clean the bathroom scales. Replace towels as needed, replenish all paper products and be sure there are spares under the sink or in appropriately designated drawers. The wet cleaning includes spraying the tile and tub and shower areas. Let the spray settle and soak. Use a soft cotton diaper cloth to wipe up hair around sinks, tubs and toilets. Sprinkle or spray scour into toilet bowels and use toilet brush or wipe as needed. Be sure to wear rubber gloves. In showers or large baths, always work your way down. Different parts of the country have difficult cleaning challenges including mold and mildew. Test surfaces and appropriate solvents with manufacturer recommendations. Bathrooms have tile, marble and crystal surfaces that require special care. If shower door tracks are hard to reach, spray and then use a screwdriver with a rag wrapped around it and slide it through. Construction Cleanup It takes twice as long to clean an empty room than it does to clean a room that is filled with furniture and cleaned regularly. In an empty room that has undergone re-construction or repairs, every inch of surface including walls, floors, closets and shelf must be wiped clean. Make every effort to have construction areas sealed off from the rest of the home. When possible, bring in a cleaning crew to complete a construction clean up. It is very difficult work.

Claims: What is Claimed: 1. A system for generating reports to guide the provision of facility management services by a service staff for a facility that is occupied by at least one resident comprising: inventory means for storing data defined in a hierarchical data structure that catalogues a physical layout of said facility as well as its contents; means for storing data defining personal preferences of said at least one resident; means for defining a series of tasks to be performed by said service staff in said facility; means for correlating related data entries in said inventory means, said database means and said means for defining to create a schedule of execution of said tasks; and means for displaying said schedule of execution of said tasks. 2. The system of claim 1 wherein said inventory means comprises: multi-dimensional relational database that defines contents of said facility in terms of parent-child description of an element as well as a location in a level of said multi-dimensional relational database. 3. The system of claim 1 wherein said inventory means comprises: means for defining a segmentation of the facility into a plurality of juxtaposed volumetric segments that in combination define the totality of the facility. 4. The system of claim 3 wherein said inventory means further comprises: means for defining a population of locales in each of said volumetric segments. 5. The system of claim 4 wherein said inventory means further comprises means for defining a plurality of elements, each of which is described in terms of a particular location within a locale within a volumetric segment. 6. The system of claim 1 wherein said means for storing data comprises: means for characterizing a plurality of levels of service, each of which specifically recites particulars of implementation of a defined service; and means for selecting a one of said plurality of levels of service. 7. The system of claim 6 wherein said means for correlating comprises: relational database means for processing said related data entries in said inventory means, said database means and said means for defining, as a function of said selected one of said plurality of levels of service. 8. A method of operating a system for generating reports to guide the provision of facility management services by a service staff for a facility that is occupied by at least one resident comprising the steps of: storing inventory data, defined in a hierarchical data structure that catalogues a physical layout of said facility as well as its contents, in a memory; storing data in said memory defining personal preferences of said at least one resident; defining a series of tasks to be performed by said service staff in said facility; correlating related data entries, placed in said memory by said step of storing inventory data, storing data defining personal preferences and created by said step of defining, to create a schedule of execution of said tasks; and displaying said schedule of execution of said tasks. 9. The method of operating a system of claim 8 wherein said step of storing inventory data comprises: operating a multi-dimensional relational database that defines contents of said facility in terms of parent-child description of an element as well as a location in a level of said multi-dimensional relational database. 10. The method of operating a system of claim 8 wherein said step of storing inventory data comprises: defining a segmentation of the facility into a plurality of juxtaposed volumetric segments that in combination define the totality of the facility. 11. The method of operating a system of claim 10 wherein said step of storing inventory data further comprises: defining a population of locales in each of said volumetric segments. 12. The method of operating a system of claim 11 wherein said step of storing inventory data further comprises defining a plurality of elements, each of which is described in terms of a particular location within a locale within a volumetric segment. 13. The method of operating a system of claim 8 wherein said step of storing data comprises: characterizing a plurality of levels of service, each of which specifically recites particulars of implementation of a defined service; and selecting a one of said plurality of levels of service. 14. The method of operating a system of claim 13 wherein said step of correlating comprises: processing, using a relational database, said related data entries in said inventory means, said database means and said means for defining, as a function of said selected one of said plurality of levels of service.

Inventors: STARKEY MARY, STARKEY, MARY
Applicants: STARKEY INTERNATIONAL
Application year: 1999
Main classification: G06F17
IPC codes: G06F17, G06Q99