Dry quat powders and pellets offer a convenient solution for sanitizing footwear. Simply sprinkle or pour the powder onto a mat at the entrance of a production area, allowing employees to walk through and coat the bottoms of their shoes with sanitizing powder. However, determining the correct amount of dry quat powder needed for effective sanitation can be challenging, leading to potential overuse and increased costs. Additionally, there may be safety concerns as the powder can be tracked throughout the facility, including into ready-to-eat (RTE) areas. It is crucial to fully grasp the true cost of using dry quat sanitizers in your facility.
Dry Quat Sanitizers Use Rates and Requirements
Dry quat sanitizers are meant to be used by placing the sanitizers in a mat or mats by entry points in a facility. It is difficult to determine how much sanitizer is needed for proper sanitization of employees footwear. The above image from popular dry quat producer, Sterilex, shows three levels of coverage. Our team of hygiene experts see the right most example most commonly in food processing facilities, while this is excellent for ensuring proper coverage of employees footwear the cost can exorbitant. If you want to learn more about the cost of dry quat sanitizers, please contact us for more information!
Cost Examples of Dry Quat Sanitizers in Food Production Facilities
Meritech has done cost analysis of the average cost of shoe covers in production facilities of a variety of sizes. These examples were created using the assumption of a production facility working 7 days a week and full coverage of dry quat sanitizers used. Several popular competitor's products were used for a price reference: Sterilex Dry Quat - Applied to Floor Mat and Hand Soap.
Example #1: Hygiene Program Cost of a Facility with 1 Dry Quat Sanitizer Mat
In this example, the facility has 1 dry quat sanitizer mat and is currently using a standard hand soap. Based on usage and costs, their current hygiene program would cost roughly $18,000 per year. Switching to Meritech and installing a CleanTech® EVO One with Sole Clean Enhancement would cost $14,850 in the first year to cover the cost of the new equipment, but every consecutive year would only cost $4,005 in materials. This indicates a first year savings of $3,193 followed by consecutive year savings of more than $14,000. This is significant cost savings by switching to Meritech's Automated Hygiene versus the current program.
Example #2: Hygiene Program Cost of a Facility with 5 Dry Quat Sanitizer Mats
In this example, the facility is larger, they are using the same standard hand soap and the 5 dry quat sanitizer mats for their hygiene program. Their projected expense for this hygiene program is roughly $80,000 per year. Switching to a CleanTech® EVO Three with Sole Clean Enhancement for this hygiene program would have an upfront cost of roughly $40,000 and then the following year price would be $12,000. This is a first year saving of 50% and the following years the production facility could stand to save up to 85% of the cost of the current hygiene program!
Example #3: Hygiene Program Cost of a Facility with 10 Dry Quat Sanitizer Mat
This is the largest example that we have created, with a facility using 10 dry quat sanitizers and a standard hygiene program of hand soap. This current hygiene program is expected to cost this facility nearly $160,000 dollars per year. By switching to three CleanTech® EVO Three with Sole Clean Enhancement, the facility stands to save nearly $80,000 the first year (this savings is lower than following years to cover the cost of the new equipment) and over $130,000 per following year. The cost savings are huge when switching from dry quat sanitizers to dry footwear sanitization from Meritech.
Looking at it from a cost standpoint, it's clear that dry quat sanitizers bring about unforeseen expenses. Solely considering the financial impact, they prove to be a less favorable option for food production facilitie.. Interested in getting your own personalized cost savings quote from a hygiene expert for your facility?
