Data Center Cleaning in Greater Des Moines: What Facility Managers Need to Know

The data center boom is coming to Greater Des Moines—and it's coming fast.

With major facilities already operational in the metro area and significant expansion planned for Norwalk and surrounding communities, Iowa is positioning itself as a strategic hub for data infrastructure. Meta's massive presence in the region has proven what forward-thinking companies already knew: Des Moines offers the power capacity, connectivity, climate advantages, and business environment that data centers need.

But here's what most people don't think about when they picture rows of server racks and cooling systems: cleanliness isn't optional in a data center. It's mission-critical.

The wrong dust particle in the wrong place can cause equipment failure. A cleaning crew that doesn't understand contamination protocols can introduce problems that cascade into downtime costing hundreds of thousands of dollars per hour. And the generic commercial cleaning company that does a fine job with your office building? They're completely unequipped for the specialized requirements of data center environments.

If you're a facility manager responsible for a data center in Des Moines, Norwalk, or anywhere in the metro area, here's what you need to know about cleaning these facilities properly—and why it matters more than you might think.

Why Data Centers Are Different (And Why Generic Cleaning Fails)

Walk into a typical office building with a cleaning crew, and they can generally figure out what needs to be done. Vacuum the floors, empty the trash, clean the restrooms, wipe down surfaces. Basic janitorial skills translate pretty well across standard commercial environments.

Data centers are not standard commercial environments.

Contamination Control Isn't a Suggestion—It's Essential

The air quality standards in a data center would make a hospital look casual by comparison. We're talking about environments where particulate contamination measured in microns matters. Zinc whiskers from legacy infrastructure. Dust accumulation on cooling systems. Debris that interferes with airflow management.

These aren't aesthetic concerns. They're operational risks.

According to industry research, contamination is a leading cause of unplanned downtime in data centers. A single particle of conductive dust bridging two contact points can cause a short circuit. Accumulated debris in cooling systems reduces efficiency, driving up energy costs and potentially causing thermal events.

Your standard commercial cleaning crew—the ones who do a perfectly acceptable job cleaning the lobby of an office building—have zero training in contamination control protocols. They don't know what zinc whiskers are. They don't understand raised floor plenum environments. They've never been briefed on the difference between contamination zones.

Raised Floor Environments Require Specialized Knowledge

Many data centers use raised floor systems for efficient cable management and airflow. That raised floor creates a plenum that's critical for cooling performance—and it's also a collection point for contamination that regular cleaning completely misses.

Cleaning crews that don't understand data center infrastructure will clean the visible floor surface and consider the job done. Meanwhile, debris accumulates in the plenum, restricting airflow, reducing cooling efficiency, and creating contamination risks that won't be discovered until there's a problem.

Proper data center cleaning requires understanding how air flows through the facility, where contamination accumulates, why certain areas need more frequent attention, and how to access and clean infrastructure without disrupting operations or damaging equipment.

Compliance and Documentation Standards Are Non-Negotiable

Data centers operate under strict compliance frameworks: SSAE 18, ISO 27001, HIPAA (for healthcare data), PCI DSS (for payment processing), and various other regulatory requirements depending on the data being processed.

Your cleaning contractor isn't just "cleaning up." They're part of your compliance documentation. Every service needs to be logged, tracked, and auditable. The cleaning protocols themselves may need to meet specific standards outlined in your compliance framework.

A residential cleaning company or generic commercial janitorial service doesn't have systems for this kind of documentation. They're not thinking about compliance. They don't understand that "we cleaned it" isn't sufficient—you need documented proof that cleaning occurred, met specific standards, and followed approved protocols.

What Proper Data Center Cleaning Actually Involves

So what does specialized data center cleaning look like? Here's what facility managers should be looking for when evaluating potential cleaning contractors.

HEPA-Filtered Vacuums Are Mandatory, Not Optional

Standard commercial vacuums recirculate particles back into the air. That's fine for a typical office. It's completely unacceptable in a data center environment.

Every vacuum used in a data center should have HEPA filtration that captures 99.97% of particles 0.3 microns or larger. This prevents the vacuum itself from becoming a contamination source that redistributes particles throughout the facility.

Ask your potential cleaning contractor: "What type of vacuums do you use in data centers?" If the answer isn't "HEPA-filtered vacuums specifically rated for cleanroom or data center use," you're talking to someone who doesn't understand the environment.

Raised Floor and Plenum Cleaning Must Be Part of the Protocol

Surface-level floor cleaning is step one. But proper data center maintenance requires regular raised floor and plenum cleaning to prevent contamination buildup that affects cooling performance and air quality.

This means:

• Removing floor tiles to access the plenum
• HEPA-vacuuming the plenum space and subfloor
• Inspecting for debris, damaged cables, or other issues
• Documenting findings and cleaning activities
• Replacing tiles properly to maintain airflow management

This isn't something you do during regular nightly cleaning. It's typically a quarterly or semi-annual deep clean that requires coordination with your operations team and potentially planned maintenance windows.

Hot Aisle/Cold Aisle Awareness and Contamination Zones

Modern data centers use hot aisle/cold aisle configurations to maximize cooling efficiency. Cleaning crews need to understand how this works so they don't disrupt airflow management or introduce contamination in ways that compromise cooling performance.

Different areas of the facility have different contamination risks and cleaning requirements:

• White space (where servers are located) requires the highest standards
• Gray space (support infrastructure) still requires careful contamination control
• Office and break areas can use more standard cleaning protocols
• Loading docks and entry points need special attention as contamination entry vectors

A cleaning crew that doesn't understand these distinctions will treat your entire facility like a standard office building. That's a problem.

Low-Lint Materials and Proper Cleaning Agents

Even the cleaning materials themselves matter. Standard microfiber cloths can generate lint. Regular cleaning chemicals may leave residues or contain components that shouldn't be introduced to electronic environments.

Data center cleaning requires:

• Low-lint or lint-free cleaning materials
• Approved cleaning agents that don't leave conductive residues
• Anti-static protocols where appropriate
• Proper disposal of cleaning materials to prevent contamination reintroduction

Again, these aren't things a standard commercial cleaning company thinks about. They use whatever works for office buildings and retail spaces. That's fine for those environments. It's not fine for yours.

Coordination with Operations and Scheduled Maintenance

Data centers run 24/7/365. Your cleaning schedule needs to work around operational requirements, not the other way around.

This means:

• Cleaning schedules that accommodate your change control windows
• Coordination with your operations team for any work requiring equipment access
• Understanding which areas can be cleaned during production hours and which require maintenance windows
• Flexibility for urgent cleaning needs after installations, decommissions, or incidents

Your cleaning contractor needs to understand that in a data center, unplanned downtime measured in minutes can cost more than their entire annual contract. They need to work within your operational framework, not expect you to work around their schedule.

The Norwalk Data Center Expansion and What It Means for Cleaning Services

Norwalk—just 20 minutes south of Des Moines—is emerging as a significant data center location. The combination of available land, robust power infrastructure, favorable economics, and proximity to the Des Moines metro makes it an attractive location for facilities that need space to scale.

For facility managers planning or operating data centers in the Norwalk area, this means finding cleaning contractors who understand specialized data center requirements and can service locations throughout the southern metro area.

The challenge is that many commercial cleaning companies are Des Moines-focused and treat Norwalk as "too far" for regular service. Meanwhile, local Norwalk companies may not have experience with data center-specific protocols.

You need a contractor with:

• Geographic coverage that includes Norwalk without treating it as a specialty trip
• Specialized training in data center cleaning protocols
• Flexibility to scale services as your facility grows
• Accountability through direct access to ownership, not layers of management

This is where working with an established Des Moines metro company that serves the entire region—including Norwalk, West Des Moines, Ankeny, and beyond—makes strategic sense. You get specialized expertise combined with reliable service throughout the metro area.

Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Data Center Cleaning Contractor

Don't trust a cleaning company just because they claim they "do data centers." Here are the specific questions facility managers should ask:

1. "What specialized training does your team have in data center cleaning?"

Look for specific answers about contamination control, raised floor cleaning, and industry-specific protocols. Generic answers about "attention to detail" or "thorough cleaning" are red flags.

2. "What type of vacuums and cleaning equipment do you use in data centers?"

The answer should include "HEPA-filtered" and specific equipment rated for cleanroom or data center environments. If they use the same equipment they use in office buildings, walk away.

3. "How do you handle raised floor plenum cleaning?"

They should have a specific protocol that includes accessing the plenum, HEPA vacuuming, inspection, documentation, and proper tile replacement. If they look confused, they're not qualified.

4. "What's your process for documenting cleaning activities for compliance purposes?"

You need detailed documentation: what was cleaned, when, by whom, and to what standard. Generic "we cleaned your facility" invoices don't cut it.

5. "How do you handle coordination with our operations team and scheduled maintenance windows?"

The answer should demonstrate they understand 24/7 operations and the need for flexibility, coordination, and adherence to your change control processes.

6. "Can you provide references from other data center clients?"

If they don't have data center experience, they'll struggle to answer this. You want contractors who have actually cleaned production data center environments, not just office space in a building that happens to have a server room.

Why Construction Cleaning Experience Matters for New Data Centers

If you're involved in a new data center build in Norwalk or elsewhere in the metro, construction cleaning is its own specialized challenge.

Post-construction cleaning in a data center isn't like post-construction cleaning in a standard commercial building. The standards are higher, the contamination risks are greater, and the margin for error is basically zero.

You need contractors who understand:

• How to achieve data center-ready cleanliness standards, not just "construction clean"
• The timeline pressures of commissioning and going live
• Coordination with other trades still on site
• The difference between rough clean, final clean, and white-glove handover

Rodan Cleaning's construction cleaning services have been serving Des Moines area projects since 1998, including work with major construction companies on complex commercial facilities. That experience translates directly to the specialized requirements of preparing a data center for commissioning.

When you're investing millions in a data center build, the last thing you want is contamination introduced during the final cleaning phase that causes problems during commissioning or early operations. Using a contractor with construction cleaning experience specific to high-standards facilities makes that risk manageable.

The Cost of Getting Data Center Cleaning Wrong

Let's talk about what happens when facility managers try to save money by using generic commercial cleaning in a data center environment.

Scenario 1: Contamination-Related Downtime

A cleaning crew using standard (non-HEPA) vacuums redistributes conductive dust particles throughout the white space. Three weeks later, you have intermittent failures on multiple servers. The investigation reveals contamination-related shorts. You're facing unplanned downtime, emergency repairs, potential data loss, and angry clients.

Downtime cost in a typical enterprise data center: $5,000-$9,000 per minute. Even a brief incident quickly exceeds what you would have paid for proper specialized cleaning for an entire year.

Scenario 2: Failed Compliance Audit

Your SOC 2 audit includes a review of environmental controls and cleaning documentation. The auditor asks for detailed cleaning logs and protocols. You realize your contractor has been treating your data center like any other office building and can't provide the required documentation.

Now you're facing a qualified audit opinion, potential loss of certifications, and clients questioning whether they should keep their data with you. The reputational damage and business impact far exceeds the cost difference between generic and specialized cleaning.

Scenario 3: Cooling Efficiency Degradation

Nobody's cleaning the raised floor plenum because your contractor doesn't understand it exists. Over 18 months, debris accumulation restricts airflow. Your cooling systems have to work harder. Energy costs creep up. Eventually you have a thermal event that forces emergency shutdowns.

The immediate cost is the downtime and repairs. The ongoing cost is reduced equipment lifespan and elevated energy consumption until you finally address the contamination issue properly.

These aren't hypothetical scenarios. They're the predictable outcomes of treating data center cleaning like it's the same as cleaning an office building.

What to Expect from a Qualified Data Center Cleaning Provider

So what does good look like? Here's what you should expect when working with a contractor who actually understands data center environments:

Initial Assessment and Custom Protocol Development

They should walk your facility, understand your specific environment and requirements, and develop a cleaning protocol customized to your needs. Not a generic "here's our data center cleaning package" but actual custom planning.

Detailed Scheduling That Respects Your Operations

They work around your schedule, not the other way around. Cleaning happens during approved windows. Any work requiring equipment access or extended time in white space gets coordinated with your ops team well in advance.

Documented Training and Screened Personnel

Everyone who enters your facility should be background-checked and trained on data center protocols. You should be able to see documentation of that training. The same familiar faces should be handling your facility, not a rotating cast of whoever showed up that night.

Regular Communication and Quality Reporting

You get audit reports showing what was cleaned, to what standard, and any issues discovered. You're not guessing whether the work got done—you have documented evidence.

Responsive Problem Solving with Direct Access to Decision Makers

When you need something addressed, you talk to someone who can actually make decisions, not navigate through layers of management hoping your message eventually reaches someone with authority.

This is the difference between a generic commercial cleaning company that says "sure, we can clean your data center" and a professional contractor who actually understands what that means.

Why Rodan Cleaning Is Positioned for Data Center Work

Rodan Cleaning hasn't specifically branded itself as "the data center cleaning company." But the systems, standards, and culture that make them successful in other specialized environments translate directly to data center requirements.

Audit-Verified Quality Systems

Every Rodan client gets monthly audits where an internal auditor inspects the work and generates detailed reports. Scores typically run 95-96%, with specific documentation of what was done well and areas for improvement.

That's the kind of quality management system and documentation capability that data center environments require. It's not something they're building from scratch for data center clients—it's how they operate for every client, from medical facilities to financial institutions.

Training Culture Through Cleaning University

Every Rodan cleaner goes through their Cleaning University program covering protocols, materials, equipment, and standards. This training infrastructure makes it possible to add specialized protocols for data center environments and ensure every team member understands the requirements.

Companies that don't invest in training can't add specialized capabilities. Companies that already have training infrastructure can adapt it to new requirements. That's the difference.

Direct Owner Accountability

When you're responsible for a mission-critical data center, you can't afford to deal with layers of management and phone tag when something needs to be addressed. At Rodan, you get owner Zach Vander Ploeg's direct contact information from day one.

Something needs to be addressed? You're texting or calling someone who can actually make decisions and solve problems immediately. Not submitting a ticket and hoping someone gets back to you.

25+ Years of Specialized Environment Experience

Since 1998, Rodan has been cleaning environments where standards matter: medical facilities with infection control requirements, financial institutions where security and professionalism are non-negotiable, construction sites where timelines are aggressive and expectations are exact.

That experience with high-standards, specialized environments means they understand what it takes to meet rigorous requirements consistently. Data center cleaning fits naturally into that expertise.

Geographic Coverage Throughout the Metro, Including Norwalk

Rodan serves the entire Des Moines metro area: Des Moines, West Des Moines, Ankeny, Johnston, Urbandale, Waukee, and yes—Norwalk. That means data center operators in any of these locations get the same reliable service without being treated as "too far" or "specialty locations."

Getting Started: What Data Center Facility Managers Should Do Next

If you're responsible for data center cleaning in the Greater Des Moines area, here's your action plan:

If you're planning a new facility: Start the conversation with potential cleaning contractors early in the design phase. Cleaning requirements should be part of your commissioning planning, not an afterthought three weeks before go-live.

If you have an operational facility with generic cleaning: Schedule an assessment with a contractor who understands data center requirements. Compare what you're getting now against what you should be getting. The difference is probably significant.

If you're expanding or adding capabilities: Make sure your cleaning protocol scales with your infrastructure. What worked for your initial deployment may need enhancement as you add capacity.

For any situation: Start with a conversation. Schedule a free cleaning assessment where you can walk your facility with someone who understands specialized commercial environments, discuss your specific requirements, and see what proper data center cleaning protocols look like.

The Bottom Line for Des Moines Data Center Managers

Data centers are complex, expensive, mission-critical facilities where everything matters. Cooling, power, connectivity, security—and yes, cleanliness.

You can't treat data center cleaning like it's the same as cleaning an office building. The contamination risks are different. The compliance requirements are different. The consequences of getting it wrong are orders of magnitude more serious.

The good news is that contractors with the right systems, training culture, quality management, and accountability structure can meet data center requirements—even if they're not exclusively focused on data centers.

For facility managers in Des Moines, West Des Moines, Norwalk, and throughout the metro area, finding a contractor who combines specialized capability with local accountability and proven performance in high-standards environments is entirely possible.

You just have to know what questions to ask and what standards to expect.

Ready to discuss your data center cleaning requirements? Contact Rodan Cleaning at (515) 276-1618 or schedule your facility assessment.

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