EFCI conference sheds light on future of cleaning industry

The theme of the event, which took place in Brussels, was Cleaning and Facility Services: Shaping the Industry of the Future.

The conference coincided with the relaunch of the federation, bringing together representatives from the European Institutions, EFCI’s stakeholders and experts from the cleaning industry.

The programme centred around four roundtable discussions:

• An Industry in Evolution, during which EFCI’s trend report ‘The Cleaning industry in Europe 1995-2016’ was presented and analysed

• Innovating in a Labour-Intensive Industry, during which social aspects of digitalisation and CSR were discussed

• An Innovative Value Chain, when policymakers, industry representatives and clients presented their visions on where to put the accent on innovation

• C for Circular Economy, where an MEP, the European Commission and industry representatives explained how facility services can better integrate in the circular economy and how can it provide business value.

The basis for the day's discussion was the EFCI's new trend report The European Cleaning Industry 1995-2016. 

This statistical report builds on historical EFCI’s surveys and presents evolution in the sector from different angles. The cleaning industry experienced significant growth over the last 20 years with a turnover tripled to €107 billion and employment increase of 80 per cent, currently employing nearly four million people. The report includes relevant comparisons at national level, based on the most recent data available in Eurostat.

EFCI director Isabel Yglesias concluded the conference by highlighting the quality of the interventions and that the main issues raised coincided with EFCI’s political priorities for the new European legislative mandate: the need for high quality procurement and for a level playing field to ensure that the sector continues its growth and develops all its potential, the development of a skills and training agenda for the sector; and the support through adequate legislation for the sectors to totally integrate the circular economy.

To read EFCI's new trend report please click here