(Baltimore, MD – June 22, 2020) – As an extension of its “Clean Space Commitment”,the Baltimore Convention Center signs on for certification through the GBAC STARTM accreditation program, the gold standard for prepared facilities. The Baltimore Convention Center will be the first of more than 200 Baltimore City facilities including attractions, other meeting venues, hotels, and more to begin the accreditation process, led by Visit Baltimore. The GBAC STAR program (a division of ISSA the Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association) implements the most stringent protocols for cleaning, disinfection and infectious disease prevention.
Through accreditation in this program, the Baltimore Convention Center will implement best practices to prepare for, respond to, and to recover from outbreaks and pandemics. The GBAC STAR™ helps facilities to establish these protocols and procedures, offers expert-led training and assesses a facility’s individual readiness for bio-risk situations.
“At the Baltimore Convention Center we are taking every step necessary to ensure that our facility is prepared to provide a safe, clean, and comfortable environment for events to take place.We are also committed to ensuring that our staff and business partners experience the same environment when they come to work inside our facility every day. This way we know that their focus is on providing an unmatched level of customer service to our guests.” Peggy Daidakis, Executive Director—Baltimore Convention Center.
The Baltimore Convention Center’s “Clean Space Commitment” is a five pillar promise to clients, staff, and business partners that the facility is using best practices and implementing on-going training and education for the safety, health, and cleanliness of the building. In conjunction with the Clean Space Commitment, the Baltimore Convention Center has a Certified Professional Trainer (C.P.T.) on staff, who received training through ISSA’s Clean Management Institute.The Center has begun training over 60 employees through ISSA’s Custodial Technician Training Program.Currently over 20 employees have received their Certified Custodial Technician Basic Certification and the remaining employees should be certified in the coming weeks, prior to re-opening.
To achieve GBAC STAR™ accreditation, facilities must demonstrate compliance with the program’s 20 core elements, which range from standard operating procedures and risk assessment strategies to personal protective equipment and emergency preparedness and response measures. Learn more about GBAC STAR accreditation at www.gbac.org.
About the Baltimore Convention Center
The Baltimore Convention Center is the premier location in the Mid-Atlantic for organizations to host conventions, meeting, luncheons and other activities large and small. The four level Center boasts seven exhibition halls providing a total of 300,000 square feet, 50 meeting rooms with a total of 85,000 square feet and the largest ballroom in the state of Maryland, totaling over 36,000 square feet. The Center is conveniently located off of Interstates 83 and 295 in the revitalized downtown area and is surrounded by several major hotels and tourist attractions all within walking distance. For more information visit www.bccenter.org
About GBAC, a Division of ISSA
Composed of international leaders in the field of microbial-pathogenic threat analysis, mitigation, response and recovery, the Global Biorisk Advisory Council (GBAC), a Division of ISSA, provides training, guidance, accreditation, certification, crisis management assistance and leadership to government, commercial and private entities looking to mitigate, quickly address and/or recover from biological threats and real-time crises. The organization’s services include biorisk management program assessment and training, Forensic Restoration® response and remediation, the GBAC STAR™ facility accreditation program, training and certification of individuals and consulting for building owners and facility managers. For more information, visit www.gbac.org.
About ISSA
With more than 9,300 members—including distributors, manufacturers, manufacturer representatives, wholesalers, building service contractors, in-house service providers, residential cleaners and associated service members—ISSA is the world’s leading trade association for the cleaning industry. The association is committed to changing the way the world views cleaning by providing its members with the business tools they need to promote cleaning as an investment in human health, the environment and an improved bottom line. Headquartered in Northbrook, Ill., USA, the association has regional offices in Mainz, Germany; Whitby, Canada; Parramatta, Australia; Seoul, South Korea; and Shanghai, China. For more information about ISSA, visit www.issa.com or call 800-225-4772 (North America) or 847-982-0800.