Professional Warehouse Cleaning in Ireland
Warehouse cleaning is the scheduled and reactive cleaning of logistics, distribution and storage facilities — covering floors, pallet racking, mezzanine levels, loading docks, yards, welfare areas and overhead structures — delivered safely around live forklift traffic and stock.
Optus Glean delivers warehouse cleaning to 3PL providers, distribution centres, e-commerce fulfilment operators, cold-store operators, food-grade warehousing and pharmaceutical wholesalers across all 26 counties of Ireland. We bring industrial-grade equipment, SafePass-certified operatives, and the compliance documentation required by HACCP, GDP, IFS, BRC and ISO-aligned quality systems. We operate 24/7, with the majority of our warehouse work delivered at weekends, overnight or during planned shutdowns.
Warehouse Cleaning Scope
A complete warehouse cleaning specification covers every functional zone of the building, not just the main floor. Our standard warehouse cleaning scope includes:
- Loading docks and bay doors — floor degreasing, dock leveller cleaning, hot-water pressure washing of external approach aprons, seal and curtain wipe-down
- Pallet racking — beam tops, upright uprights, rack frames, wire decking, picking faces, and racking labels
- Mezzanine floors — pick-module levels, stair treads, balustrades, and underside structural steel
- Main pallet aisles and cross-aisles — ride-on scrubber-dryer floor cleaning, forklift tyre-mark removal, line-marking refresh
- Narrow-aisle (VNA) zones — walk-behind scrubber work, manual detailing where ride-on access is restricted
- Production and value-add aisles — pick-and-pack, kitting, shrink-wrap stations, conveyor undersides
- Offices, meeting rooms and reception — integrated into daily/weekly schedules
- Washrooms, canteens and break rooms — daily sanitisation, consumables restocking, deep cleans on rotation
- External yards — sweeping, pressure washing, gully and drain clearance
- High-level structures — roof trusses, sprinkler pipework, lighting arrays, cable trays, ducting and HVAC grilles
Logistics Sector Coverage
Ireland's logistics corridor — Dublin 12/15/22, the M1 Drogheda belt, Naas, Newbridge, Ballymun, Ringaskiddy and Shannon — hosts a dense cluster of warehousing serving global brands. Irish 3PLs and bonded sites store and distribute product for household names including Amazon, IKEA, JYSK, Kuehne+Nagel, DSV, DHL and CEVA Logistics. Optus Glean is built to service these environments.
Our sector coverage includes:
- Third-party logistics (3PL) providers — multi-client sites where cleaning documentation feeds into each client's audit pack
- Distribution centres (DCs) — retail, grocery and wholesale RDCs with high forklift volumes
- E-commerce fulfilment centres — pick-and-pack, returns processing, conveyor and mezzanine-heavy environments
- Cold storage and chilled warehousing — below-zero and 0–4°C environments, food-safe sanitisers, condensate and drain management
- Food-grade warehousing — ambient and temperature-controlled, operated under HACCP and IFS/BRC audit regimes
- Pharmaceutical storage and wholesale — GDP-aligned cleaning, quarantined zones, controlled-drug cages
- Bonded and customs warehouses — Revenue-controlled environments requiring supervised access
- Cross-dock and transport hubs — rapid-turnover facilities where cleaning must fit between inbound and outbound waves
Equipment Deployed
The right equipment is the difference between a warehouse that looks clean and one that is clean. Optus Glean deploys the following equipment on warehouse contracts:
Ride-On Scrubber-Dryers
For main pallet aisles, cross-aisles and open floor areas. Our ride-on machines clean 3,000 to 5,000 square metres per hour, scrubbing, chemical-treating and drying in a single pass. A 15,000m² pallet-racked warehouse floor can be fully scrubbed in a single weekend shutdown window.
Walk-Behind Scrubber-Dryers
For narrow-aisle (VNA) racking, under-conveyor zones, pick-module mezzanine floors and areas where ride-on access is blocked by stock or fixed equipment.
Scissor Lifts, Cherry Pickers and MEWPs (15–20m Reach)
For high-level racking tops, beam cleaning, sprinkler pipework, lighting replacement access, roof truss cleaning and mezzanine underside work. Every MEWP operator is IPAF-trained and insured. For reach over 15 metres we specify articulated boom lifts or telescopic platforms up to 20 metres.
HEPA Industrial Vacuums
Critical for high-level dust removal without re-dispersing contamination into stocked areas. Essential for food-grade warehousing, pharma storage and any site with allergen, silica or combustible-dust risk. HEPA capture means airborne fines are removed at source, not re-circulated.
Hot-Water Pressure Washers
For loading dock aprons, yard concrete, bin stores and external pressure washing. Hot water at up to 250 bar removes diesel, hydraulic oil, grease and organic residue that cold water simply relocates.
Warehouse-Grade Degreasers
Alkaline degreasers for forklift tyre marks and mineral-oil contamination, citrus-based solvents for light oil and adhesive residue, enzyme cleaners for food residue in chilled warehousing, and caustic products only where justified by a documented HSA-aligned COSHH assessment. All chemistry is declared in advance and traceable by batch number.
Health & Safety in Operational Warehouses
A warehouse is one of the higher-risk environments in which cleaning takes place. Forklift (FLT) traffic, racking collapse risk, pedestrian segregation, working at height and dust loading all demand a safety system designed around the site — not imported from an office contract. Every Optus Glean warehouse mobilisation is governed by:
- Forklift/FLT coexistence plan — traffic-route exclusion during cleaning, cone-and-barrier systems, banksmen/traffic marshals where required
- High-traffic zone protocols — dock aprons, inbound/outbound staging, pedestrian walkways, and crossing points
- Racking access procedures — never climb racking, MEWP only, empty-rack working wherever structurally feasible
- SafePass certification — all operatives carry valid SafePass cards
- Manual handling, working-at-height and MEWP training — documented and refreshed on schedule
- COSHH assessments for every chemical, made available to your site safety officer
- Site-specific induction before first access, covering emergency procedures, assembly points, first-aiders and isolation protocols
- RAMS (risk assessments and method statements) issued in advance of every task, signed off by your safety officer
All work is carried out in line with the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, the (General Application) Regulations 2007, and HSA guidance on forklift and workplace-transport operations.
Specialist Warehouse Services
Out-of-Hours and Shutdown Cleans
The most valuable warehouse cleaning happens when the warehouse is not running. Out-of-hours shutdown cleans — weekends, bank holidays, or the first 72 hours of a stock-count window — let us mobilise ride-on scrubbers, scissor lifts and high-level crews without interfering with picking or loading.
Pallet Sanitation and Stock-Adjacent Cleaning
Chep, Euro and one-way pallets accumulate organic residue, dust and moisture. We provide pallet sanitation runs — damp-wipe or spray sanitising with food-safe products — as part of pre-audit preparation for food-grade and pharma facilities.
Spill Response
Hydraulic oil from forklifts, diesel from yard tractors, chemical leaks from damaged palletised stock, and refrigerant or glycol spills from chilled zones. On-call response within hours: spill kits deployed, bunded and absorbed, cleaned to substrate, and contaminated absorbents routed to licensed waste.
Dust Suppression and Remediation
Flour-dust warehouses, timber storage, agri-feed hubs and any facility with silica-bearing material require controlled dust management. We deploy HEPA-filtered vacuums, water-mist suppression where electrically safe, and respirators specified by a site-specific COSHH assessment. Combustible-dust zones are cleaned only after documented consultation with your site engineer.
Silica, COSHH and Bird-Droppings Remediation
Respirable crystalline silica (RCS) from pallet grit, masonry offcuts and abrasive residue is a recognised occupational-health risk. Our COSHH regime follows the standard hierarchy — eliminate, substitute, engineer, administer, PPE — with every chemical carrying an SDS, dilution rate and measured contact time. We also remediate bird droppings and pest fouling from roof voids and racking tops under RPE, capture waste for controlled disposal, and can consolidate ongoing bird-proofing with a licensed pest partner under a single contract.
Sector-Specific Compliance
Warehouse cleaning is not a generic service. The documentation, chemistry and method vary by sector, and the auditor sees the cleaning records as part of the facility's overall quality system.
HACCP for Food-Grade Warehousing
Food-grade warehousing — ambient, chilled and frozen — is governed by HACCP principles. Cleaning is a critical prerequisite programme (PRP) feeding the HACCP plan. We deliver documented cleaning schedules, food-safe sanitisers, colour-coded equipment to prevent cross-contamination, and environmental-monitoring swab support. Guidance is published by haccp.ie and the FSAI.
GDP (Good Distribution Practice) for Pharmaceutical 3PLs
Pharmaceutical wholesalers and 3PLs holding a Wholesale Distribution Authorisation operate under EU GDP (Good Distribution Practice). Cleaning is part of the facility's documented quality system. We align chemical selection, batch-traceability records, and cleaning frequency with your Responsible Person's requirements, and cooperate with HPRA inspection readiness.
IFS and BRC/BRCGS Audit-Ready
Food-grade 3PLs operating under IFS Logistics or BRCGS Storage and Distribution standards require evidence-based cleaning regimes. Our documentation — cleaning schedules, chemical SDS pack, operative training matrix, RAMS — is structured to drop directly into your audit pack.
Quality Standards in Active Pursuit
Optus Glean is in active pursuit of ISO 9001 (Quality), ISO 14001 (Environment) and ISO 45001 (Occupational Health & Safety) certification, and operates to those standards in advance of formal audit. We are also progressing Safe-T-Cert health-and-safety accreditation and BICSc operative training alignment, with our cleaning quality scored against EN 13549 cleaning-quality principles. Standards-setting bodies include NSAI for Irish standards and BICSc for professional cleaning training.
The Case for Consolidation — One Contract for Cleaning, Waste and Pest
A warehouse is a single risk environment. Managing it through three separate suppliers — cleaner, waste contractor, pest-control provider — fragments that risk. Audits find gaps between scopes, cleaners walk past overflowing compactors, and procurement chases three invoices and three sets of insurance certificates.
Optus Glean consolidates warehouse cleaning, waste-stream management and pest coordination under a single facility contract. One contact, one set of RAMS, one documentation pack, one audit trail, one invoice. The cost is typically 10–20% below the sum of three separate suppliers, and the compliance picture tightens materially — particularly valuable for 3PL operators running multi-client sites where each client demands their own audit evidence.
Warehouse Cleaning Pricing in Ireland
Warehouse cleaning is priced by square metre for floor work, by hour for high-level and specialist tasks, and by facility for full shutdown cleans. Indicative 2026 pricing:
| Service | Typical Pricing | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ride-on floor scrubbing | €0.50 – €2.00/m² | Depends on soiling, floor type, and access |
| Full shutdown deep clean | €2.00 – €5.00/m² | Floors, racking, high-level, welfare, yard |
| High-level racking/beam cleaning | €35 – €65/hour | MEWP access, IPAF-certified operators |
| Loading bay/dock pressure wash | €150 – €400/bay | Hot water, degreasing included |
| Ongoing contract (weekly scrub) | From €500/week | Floors + welfare + offices |
| Spill response callout | €250 – €750/incident | 24/7 mobilisation, disposal included |
All pricing is exclusive of VAT. Multi-site and multi-year contracts attract volume discounts. Every quote is fixed-price following a free site survey.
Related Services for Warehouse Operators
Warehouse cleaning integrates with several of our other services to deliver a single facility solution:
- Industrial Cleaning — factories, production lines, and manufacturing facilities
- Industrial Floor Cleaning — ride-on scrubbing, stripping, sealing, anti-slip coatings
- Pressure Washing — external yards, dock aprons, car parks and building exteriors
- Washroom Services — welfare consumables, hygiene and sanitary waste
- Food Processing Cleaning — HACCP-compliant food production environments
- Pharmaceutical Cleaning — GMP-aligned pharma storage and support
- Dublin Logistics — Park West, Grange Castle, Baldonnell, Dublin Port, Northwest Business Park
- Kildare Logistics — Naas Enterprise Park, Newbridge, M7 corridor
- Meath Logistics — M1 corridor, Ashbourne Business Park, Navan Enterprise Park
Frequently Asked Questions About Warehouse Cleaning
How much does warehouse cleaning cost in Ireland per square metre?
Floor scrubbing typically costs €0.50 to €2.00/m². Full shutdown deep cleans run €2.00 to €5.00/m². Fixed-price quote after a free site survey.
How often should a warehouse be deep cleaned?
Weekly or fortnightly floor scrubbing, monthly welfare cleaning, and a full deep clean of racking, beams, mezzanine and overhead structures every three to six months. Food-grade and pharma 3PLs typically require monthly high-level cleans for HACCP and GDP audit readiness.
What equipment do you use to clean a pallet-racked warehouse?
Ride-on scrubber-dryers for main aisles, walk-behind scrubbers for VNA zones, HEPA industrial vacuums for high-level dust, alkaline and citrus-based degreasers for forklift tyre marks, and scissor lifts, cherry pickers and MEWPs with 15–20m reach for beam, racking top and lighting cleans.
Can you clean around live racking without removing stock?
Yes — to a documented method statement with exclusion zones, dust suppression, drop-sheeting of pallets below working heights, and coordination with your stock controller. For pharma, food-grade and electronics warehousing we recommend shutdown cleans to fully protect product.
Do you work weekends, nights, and shutdown windows?
Yes. Optus Glean operates 24/7, 365 days a year. Deep cleans and high-level racking work are delivered at weekends, bank holidays or planned shutdowns. Routine scrubbing runs at shift changeovers or overnight.
Are your cleaners trained in FLT/forklift traffic zone safety?
Every operative holds SafePass and receives site-specific induction covering forklift traffic routes, pedestrian segregation, PPE, racking-collapse risk and emergency procedures. Supervisors manage exclusion zones and permit-to-work alongside your warehouse manager, under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 and HSA guidance.
Can you clean to GDP (Good Distribution Practice) standard for pharma 3PLs?
Yes. We align cleaning with EU GDP requirements — controlled schedules, chemical traceability, batch records of sanitisers, environmental-monitoring support — coordinated with your Responsible Person so cleaning is built into your GDP self-inspection and audit trail.
How do you clean high-level racking, beams, and mezzanine floors?
MEWP access (scissor lifts and cherry pickers) to 15–20m, HEPA-filtered vacuums to capture dust at source, and pole-based tools where MEWP access is restricted. Mezzanine floors are scrubbed with walk-behind machines. All work is covered by a working-at-height risk assessment in line with EN 13549 cleaning-quality principles.
Do you handle bird droppings, pest contamination and dust remediation?
Yes — guano removal from racking tops and roof voids, pest-fouling clean-up, and dust-suppression for silica, flour, timber and agri-dust loadings. COSHH-assessed with RPE where airborne dust is a factor. Ongoing bird-proofing is consolidated with a licensed pest partner under a single contract.
Are you insured for work inside warehouses, and what cover do you carry?
€6.5M Public Liability and €13M Employer's Liability. Certificates are provided to your safety officer before mobilisation. Named-insured, additional-insured and waiver-of-subrogation endorsements arranged with our broker at no additional cost.