It’s hard buying hygiene consumables for aged care. On the one hand, you want your colleagues to have the safest face masks, gloves, and cleaning chemicals. On the other, budget limitations are a hard reality in the aged care industry, and it’s your job to make savings for your facility.
You’ve got two conflicting needs:
- Management need to reduce operating costs
- Staff members need better quality product
How do you solve for one problem without compromising the other?
One approach is to better understand what total cost involves.
Understanding the True Cost of Cleaning Chemicals
Costs are deceptive, hiding below the surface.
Saving on unit cost may not give you better value for money. There’s more to a product’s total cost than its price.
Our experience in aged care facilities has shown us the components of total cost. There are three main categories:
- Product – including features and product quality. Not all are made equal.
- Setup – how well the facility is set up to enable efficient usage
- Practices – how efficiently the product is used
There’s a lot to cover, from factors of product cost to the practices and setup that affect usage.
Today, we’ll focus on Product Effectiveness – how active ingredients can affect the total cost of chemicals.
How to Determine Product Effectiveness
Let’s take the example of automatic dishwasher detergent.
Table 1: Cost comparison of Product X and Product Y
| Product | Bottle Size (L) | Price Per Bottle | Price per Litre |
| Product X | 5 | $52.15 | $10.43 |
| Product Y | 20 | $125.70 | $6.29 |
By this analysis, the cheaper option is Product Y, with 20L of detergent at $6.29 per litre.
There’s one key feature missing from Table 1 – the levels of active ingredient.
In both cleaning chemicals, the active ingredient is sodium hydroxide (NaOH).
Sodium hydroxide breaks down the proteins and fats on dishes and cutlery. It determines the effectiveness of the chemical.
Table 2: Levels of NaOH in Product X and Product Y, and adjusted costs*.
| Product | Bottle Size (L) | Level of NaOH | Amount of NaOH (L) | Price Per Bottle | Cost per Litre, adjusted for NaOH |
| Product X | 5 | 60% | 3 | $52.15 | $17.38 |
| Product Y | 20 | 20% | 4 | $125.70 | $31.43 |
Product X has a triple concentrate of sodium hydroxide, delivering approximately 3 litres. Meanwhile, Product Y has only 4 litres of active ingredient in 20 litres of chemical.
Our formula divides the bottle price by this estimated amount of sodium hydroxide. This shows that the cost per litre is nearly twice as much in Product Y, due to the lower concentrate.
Also, Product Y’s lower level of sodium hydroxide will influence usage.
An automatic dishwasher will dispense more chemical to compensate for the reduced effectiveness.
Make Purchasing Decisions Based on True Cost
Even if you buy hygiene products in bulk, this example of the automatic dishwashing liquid shows how long term costs can blow out unexpectedly. The lower level of sodium hydroxide translates to quicker usage. More chemicals need to be used to compensate for the reduced effectiveness.
This means shorter buying cycles, more product purchased and a higher annual cost. Over time, using the seemingly cheaper product costs much more. Quality matters. It works better and saves you more in the long run.
When evaluating and comparing chemicals, look at things like active ingredients to help calculate the true cost and product effectiveness. Whether you’re looking at detergent or other hygiene consumables, remember that product quality is also important for infection control and cleanliness.
Reduce Chemical Costs with Tailored Aged Care Procurement
In case you’ve been skimming, there’s more to the cost of a chemical than list price.
You should dig below the surface to ensure you are comparing apples with apples. Look beyond the initial price tag and consider the overall long term value.
An accurate chemical comparison will include active ingredient ratios, uncovering any usage costs.
*All details are estimated.
This article is the first of a series on the total cost of hygiene consumables.
