Under the government’s roadmap out of lockdown for England, April 12 will see the nation move into Step Two of the plans, with additional premises allowed to reopen providing they adhere to social distancing rules.
Businesses allowed to recommence operations from Monday include personal care premises such as hairdressers, beauty and nail salons; indoor leisure facilities such as gyms and spas; public buildings such as libraries and community centres; and outdoor hospitality, zoos, theme parks, drive-in cinemas and drive-in performances events.
The return of outdoor hospitality is a significant boost to a sector that has been stricken by the global health crisis, and businesses can look forward to resuming outdoor service without the requirement for a substantial meal to be served alongside alcohol and no curfew in place.
Yet, after a long period of being switched off, businesses resuming operations from April 12 and restarting their commercial kitchen equipment may find that their facilities require some maintenance work before once more operating to their maximum potential.
To this end, commercial catering, electrical and refrigeration engineers Total QSR have released a helpful guide for hospitality business serving food and drink who will be reopening their doors, to ensure that their catering equipment is running efficiently.
1. Firstly, clean and sanitise everything before anything else! Equipment, surfaces, walls and floors must all be thoroughly clean. It is recommended that one uses cleaners and sanitisers that are suitable for the surfaces being cleaned.
2. Should any business owner have any concerns about gas appliances ahead of reopening, a gas safe engineer should be contacted. They will be able to carry out tests to determine if the gas equipment is working properly and can advise on any maintenance required.
3. For any electrical appliances, business owners should check that PAT tests are in date, and check for any damage to supply cables before reconnecting electrical appliances. If any appliances are not working, check the power supply and appliance are both switched. If there are any issues after these checks, an engineer should be consulted.
4. Business owners preparing for reopening should treat all equipment as if it were new. Follow the user manual, run through the start-up procedure, do a dry run, then start it up and run the machine. If something is not working properly, an engineer should be called.
5. Refrigeration: after cleaning, turn on and check that it reaches the correct temperature before loading.
6. Water: for any appliances using water, such as beverage systems, one should run water through the system to flush out any standing water. The system must then be thoroughly cleaned before using.
7. Warewashers/dishwashers should be given a run through on empty before being used.
8. With any appliances such as cupboards, business owners should check for any presence of dust, insects and/or pests and act accordingly if any such issue is found.
For any businesses experiencing any issues with the above points, Total QSR is a company that is well-placed to assist with engineers available nationwide. The firm is also able to help with any commercial equipment sales queries, as well as installation, servicing, repair, consultancy, project management, and Health and Safety compliance.
