A cleaning plan starts with a survey: area in m², zones, and frequencies. Here is the methodology — how you survey cleaning surfaces, select frequency according to INSTA 800 level, account for programming factors, and move from plan to tour plan and quotation. With a performance rate (m²/hour) you can calculate time and team size — but performance rate is always an estimate.
Introduction
A cleaning plan is based on a survey. You measure the area (m²), divide it into zones with different needs, set the frequency (how often each zone is to be cleaned) and use a productivity figure to convert area into time.
Measurement method step by step
- 011) Divide the building into room types — office, toilet, kitchen, corridor, meeting room, stairs etc. Rooms of the same type can be treated the same way.
- 022) Measure the area per room — as a starting point the floor area in m² (length × width). Also note rooms requiring special access or equipment.
- 033) Distinguish between floor area and cleaning surfaces — the surface that actually needs cleaning is not just the floor: furniture, contact surfaces, sanitation and glass count in the time consumption, even though they do not fill in m².
- 044) Assess furnishing degree/accessibility degree — a heavily furnished room takes longer per m² than an empty one, because you have to walk around things.
- 055) Note the dirt and use level — how heavily is the room used, and how much dirt accumulates (entrances, canteens and workshops are heavier than a quiet office).
| Field in the survey form | Notes |
|---|---|
| Room/zone (name/no.) | (to be filled in) |
| Room type | (office / toilet / kitchen / corridor / …) |
| Floor area (m²) | (to be filled in) |
| Floor type | (linoleum / vinyl / clinker / …) |
| Furnishing level | (low / medium / high) |
| Soil grade | (low / medium / high) |
| Desired quality level (INSTA 800) | (1–5) |
| Frequency | (times per week/month) |
How big are the buildings you clean?
The graph shows the large buildings in Denmark — those of at least 5,000 m² — by what they are used for. Notice how many are offices, schools and hospitals: that is where the big cleaning jobs and the big teams are. Measured on 06-10-2026 via Grundfast, there were 8,608 of them.
The graph counts buildings, not square metres. A hospital can consist of many buildings, and a single office building can be much larger than another.
Frequency: choose by quality level
An important point from DS/INSTA 800: the quality level drives the frequency — not the other way round. You agree how clean it should be (level 1–5), and then choose a frequency that can maintain that level. A high-traffic, high-level room needs more frequent cleaning to keep the standard; a little-used archive can manage with infrequent cleaning.
| Room type | Typical INSTA 800 level | Typical frequency (example — agreed concretely) |
|---|---|---|
| Toilet, heavily used | Loud | Daily or several times daily |
| Office, general use | Between | 1–5 times per week |
| Meeting room | Between | After use / a few times per week |
| Corridor/stairs | Between | Several times per week |
| Arkiv/depot | Low | Rarely (e.g. monthly) |
Programming factors
The output (how many m² per hour) depends on more than the area. When programming/scheduling a plan, adjustments are made for:
- 01Furnishing/fitting density — lots of furniture and items reduce performance.
- 02Dirt grade — the more dirt, the slower.
- 03Method — dry/damp flat mop is faster than bucket-and-cloth; pre-wetting saves time.
- 04Machines — a floor scrubber on large open areas significantly increases performance compared to manual mopping.
- 05Access and distances — transport between rooms, elevators and locking costs time that is not cleaning.
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