The Optus Glean promise: predictability
Three pillars. Three commitments. No exceptions.
Predictable cost. One fixed monthly fee, set against a defined scope and an annual indexed review. No variable hours. No surprise invoices. No padded callout charges. Budgeted once, paid by Direct Debit, reviewed once a year.
Predictable presence. The site is cleaned every day it is meant to be cleaned. A named primary cleaner is rostered to your contract, supported by a named relief who is already vetted, inducted, and trained on the same colour-coded system and IPC standard. The schedule does not depend on whether one person is available on one day.
Predictable freedom. A single point of accountability. One contract. One named manager. One number to call. Cleaning is no longer a problem the office has to manage — it is a service that runs.
Why cleaning in Dublin is structurally hard to get right
Most cleaning provision in Ireland — including in healthcare-adjacent settings — is delivered by a workforce that is structurally part-time and casual. A significant proportion of operatives across the sector also work as healthcare assistants in nursing homes, residential care, and acute hospitals. Cleaning shifts are typically taken when healthcare shifts are not available, and released when they are. This pattern is consistent with CSO labour data on accommodation, food, and administrative-support employment, and it is the underlying reason that buyers across Ireland encounter inconsistency from agencies they have contracted in good faith.
The pattern is reinforced by two background pressures specific to Dublin. Housing affordability limits the catchment for any role paying at or near the minimum wage. The Contract Cleaning Employment Regulation Order rate of €14.80 per hour for 2026, set under the Labour Court's sectoral employment framework, sits close enough to flexible care-sector pay that operatives drift toward whichever shift pays slightly more on the day. Both pressures pull cleaning staff away from contracted shifts and toward casual healthcare work.
The result, from the buyer's perspective, is the experience most practice managers, facilities leads, and procurement officers in Dublin describe: a clean that is half-completed when the contracted cleaner is available, missed entirely when they are not, and accompanied by recurring conversations with the agency about cover that may or may not arrive.
This is the structural problem Optus Glean is built to solve. Our operatives are fully PAYE-employed with guaranteed weekly hours, paid leave, and pension contributions under Irish auto-enrolment. They are paid above the ERO floor deliberately — because the structural reliability of the service depends on the cleaner choosing to remain in the role rather than rotating through casual healthcare shifts. A named primary cleaner is assigned to your site, supported by a named relief, both Garda-vetted and trained to Optus Glean's documented HIQA-aligned IPC standard.
Commercial Window Cleaning Across Dublin
Dublin's skyline has transformed in the past decade. The Docklands now bristles with glass-clad office towers and residential buildings up to 22 storeys. George's Quay, Capital Dock, the Exo building, and the Montevetro tower all need regular high-rise window cleaning. Meanwhile, Grafton Street's retail shopfronts, Georgian sash windows on Fitzwilliam Square, and suburban office parks in Sandyford and Citywest all need their glass kept pristine.
Optus Glean provides commercial window cleaning across all of County Dublin — from ground-floor shopfronts to the tallest buildings in the Docklands. We use the right access method for every building: water-fed pole for low and mid-rise, rope access for high-rise, and MEWPs where ground conditions allow. All work is fully insured, risk-assessed, and delivered by trained, Garda vetted operatives.
Access Methods
Water-Fed Pole Systems
Our primary method for buildings up to 4–5 storeys (approximately 18–20 metres). Telescopic carbon fibre poles fed with purified, deionised water from our van-mounted filtration systems. The pure water dissolves dirt and minerals on contact and dries spot-free without squeegeeing. This method is safe (operatives stay on the ground), efficient (no setup time for ladders or platforms), and cost-effective. It is the standard method for Dublin office parks, schools, apartment blocks, and retail premises.
Rope Access (Industrial Abseiling)
For buildings above 5 storeys where no building maintenance unit (BMU) is installed, IRATA-certified rope access technicians abseil from the roof to clean windows. Rope access is fast to set up (no scaffolding or cherry picker required), minimises disruption at ground level, and can reach areas inaccessible to other methods. We use rope access for Docklands towers, George's Quay, Capital Dock, and high-rise buildings across Dublin city centre.
Mobile Elevating Work Platforms (MEWPs)
Cherry pickers, scissor lifts, and truck-mounted platforms provide stable access for buildings up to 6 storeys where ground conditions are suitable. All MEWP operators hold IPAF certification. MEWPs are particularly useful for buildings with complex facades, recessed windows, or areas where rope access anchor points are not available. We manage road closures and Dublin City Council permits where needed for MEWP operations on public streets.
Traditional and Specialist Methods
For heritage buildings, listed structures, and properties with original sash windows or stained glass, we use traditional hand-cleaning methods. Specialist squeegee technique, appropriate cleaning solutions, and careful handling protect historic glazing, lead came, and original paintwork. Our heritage window teams work on protected structures across Georgian Dublin including Fitzwilliam Square, Merrion Square, Harcourt Street, and Parnell Square.
Dublin Window Cleaning by Building Type
High-Rise Office Towers
The Docklands and city centre have seen a wave of tall building completions. Properties including Capital Dock (23 storeys), the Exo Building, No. 1 Ballsbridge, and multiple IFSC buildings need regular external cleaning schedules. We work with building management companies and property agents to deliver quarterly or bi-monthly cleaning programmes that keep these landmark buildings looking their best.
Retail Shopfronts
Grafton Street, Henry Street, Wicklow Street, and Dublin's other prime retail streets need spotless shopfronts. We provide early-morning cleaning (5am–7am) before shops open, covering glass, doors, frames, canopies, and signage. Fortnightly or weekly schedules are typical for high-footfall retail locations. We also clean retail in Dundrum Town Centre, Blanchardstown Centre, Liffey Valley, and Jervis Centre.
Office Parks
Sandyford Business Park, Citywest, Park West, and Blanchardstown Corporate Park have hundreds of office buildings typically 2–5 storeys high. Water-fed pole cleaning is the standard method, and we schedule these cleans monthly or every 6 weeks, often on Saturdays to avoid disruption.
Hotels
Dublin hotels in Temple Bar, Ballsbridge, and the Airport corridor need regular window cleaning for both guest-facing external windows and internal public areas. We coordinate with housekeeping schedules to clean internal windows during room servicing and external windows on a monthly cycle.
Window Cleaning Pricing in Dublin
| Method | Price Range |
|---|---|
| Water-fed pole (per window) | €3 – €8 |
| Rope access (per window) | €8 – €20 |
| MEWP / cherry picker (per day) | €500 – €2,000 |
| Shopfront (per visit) | €15 – €40 |
| Internal windows (per pane) | €2 – €5 |
How Optus Glean handles staff shortages
Every Optus Glean contract is staffed on a redundancy model rather than a single-person model. A named primary cleaner is assigned to the site at contract start. A named relief is assigned alongside them. Both are PAYE-employed by Optus Glean, both are Garda-vetted, both are inducted on the site's specific layout, access protocols, and colour-coded equipment system, and both are trained to the same documented HIQA-aligned IPC standard. Substitution is built into the contract from the first day, not arranged on the day cover is needed.
Sick day cover. When the primary cleaner is unable to work, the named relief is deployed. The office site contact is notified by 06:30 on the morning of the absence by SMS or email, with the name of the relief who is attending. The relief follows the same task list, uses the same equipment, and finishes within the same window. The standard of clean is unchanged because the relief was prepared for this scenario before the absence happened.
Annual leave cover. Annual leave is rostered weeks in advance and the relief is scheduled to cover the full leave period. The office is informed at the start of the leave period — not on the morning leave begins. This is the same model used in clinical rota management: known absences are pre-staffed, not improvised.
Long-term cover. If the primary cleaner is absent for more than two weeks (extended illness, parental leave, bereavement leave), cover is drawn from the wider trained bench rather than relying on the single named relief. The office is kept informed of the cover plan, the named individuals involved, and the expected duration. Continuity of standard is maintained because every operative on the bench is trained to the same documented standard.
Permanent reassignment. If the primary cleaner moves to a new permanent role within Optus Glean — promotion, relocation, retirement — the relief is promoted to primary on a planned timetable, a new relief is trained on the site, and both are introduced to the office before the handover takes effect. There is no day on which the office discovers, after the fact, that their cleaner has changed.
Substitution is Optus Glean's operational problem, not the office's risk to absorb. The buyer pays a fixed monthly fee for a defined scope to be delivered, every day it is meant to be delivered. The mechanism by which we deliver it — primary, relief, bench, retraining — is our cost to manage and our risk to carry.
Health and Safety
Window cleaning at height is one of the highest-risk activities in the cleaning industry. Optus Glean maintains the highest safety standards for all Dublin window cleaning work:
- IRATA Level 3 rope access technicians for all high-rise work
- IPAF certified operators for all MEWP work
- Working at height risk assessments for every building
- Method statements reviewed and approved before work begins
- Weather monitoring — work suspended in winds above 25 mph or during electrical storms
- Ground-level exclusion zones and signage during overhead work
- Dublin City Council road closure permits arranged where required
Frequently asked questions
How much does office cleaning cost in Ireland in 2026?
A corporate office is priced as a fixed monthly fee per site (or per floor, for multi-tenant buildings), tied to a defined scope and frequency. The Contract Cleaning ERO 2026 sets a €14.80/hour labour floor across the sector, but reputable providers quote the contract — multi-year term, annual indexed review, single monthly Direct Debit — not the hour. Pre-opening reset windows and out-of-hours deep cleans are inside the fee.
What standards apply to office cleaning in Ireland?
The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 obliges the employer to maintain a safe workplace, supported by the General Application Regulations 2007. The cleaning programme should produce a documented audit trail — chemical SDS, signed-off task records, training register — that supports the office manager's safety statement and ESG reporting on supply-chain labour standards.
Why is cleaning consistency such a problem in Irish office buildings?
Most Irish cleaning provision is delivered by part-time or casual operatives, frequently subcontracted from one agency to another without disclosure, often paid at or near the ERO floor with no continuity to the site. The result is a different cleaner most weeks, no real quality baseline across floors, and tenant complaints that surface six months into a 36-month contract.
What does ESG-aligned cleaning supply actually mean?
ESG-aligned cleaning means the labour in your supply chain is documented and lawful: PAYE-employed staff (not casual), paid above the Contract Cleaning ERO €14.80/hour floor, with paid leave and PRSI/pension contributions. It also means the chemical regime has SDS on file, waste streams are tracked under the Waste Management Acts, and the provider can answer a tenant or auditor question on day one. ESG is not a sticker — it is auditable supply-chain integrity.
What's the difference between PAYE and casual cleaning contracts in corporate?
A PAYE-employed cleaner is on payroll with the company that signs the contract, paid above the Contract Cleaning ERO floor, with paid leave and pension. A casual or self-employed operative is none of those things — and is often subcontracted in via a labour agency the buyer never signed with. PAYE staffing is the only model that supports a named primary cleaner per floor with continuity, and the only one that survives an ESG supply-chain audit.
How do I evaluate a cleaning provider for a multi-floor office?
Three checks. One: are the operatives PAYE-employed by the company that signs the contract, or subcontracted? Ask for a written commitment, not a tagline. Two: who is the named primary cleaner and named relief per floor or zone? Three: can the provider produce a transparent reporting pack — daily/weekly logs, audit scores, tenant feedback — that ties scope to evidence?
What should be in a cleaning contract for a corporate office?
Scope and frequencies per zone (workstations, meeting rooms, washrooms, kitchens, lift lobbies, reception), pre-opening reset window, named primary cleaner and named relief, the chemical regime with SDS, ESG and supply-chain confirmations, fixed monthly fee, annual indexed review, transparent KPIs and reporting, and a clean exit clause. No per-hour pricing. No undisclosed subcontracting.
How often should an office be professionally cleaned?
A typical corporate office runs a daily out-of-hours core clean (workstations, washrooms, kitchens, communal areas), a pre-opening morning reset where occupancy is heavy, weekly periodic tasks (high-level dusting, glass), and quarterly or six-monthly deep cleans (carpets, soft furnishings, fabric). In Dublin, multi-tenant buildings often add a midday washroom check and lift-lobby reset.
Related Cleaning Services in Dublin
Office Cleaning Dublin
Bundle window cleaning with your Dublin office contract.
Pressure Washing Dublin
Building facades, canopies, and signage cleaning.
Post-Construction Cleaning Dublin
Post-build window cleaning for new Dublin developments.
Last reviewed: 2026-05-06