Cleaning robot productivity: advertised m²/h versus a full shift
A figure in m²/h needs a definition of both area and time. Does area include repeated passes? Does time include charging, water service, travel and corrections? Without those answers, two brochures can appear comparable while describing different tasks.
Three measures answer different questions
| Measure | Working formula | Question answered |
|---|---|---|
| Active cleaning productivity | Area / active cleaning time | How fast is the cleaning operation itself? |
| Complete-task productivity | Accepted area / elapsed task time | Will the job fit the available window? |
| Human workload | Servicing and intervention minutes / accepted area | How much work remains with the team? |
ET1 and CC1 product pages advertise different efficiency ranges. Use them to prepare a trial, not as measured capacity for your building. The formulas below are our operational comparison method.
An example with 1,800 m² accepted as clean
In an illustrative trial, 1,800 m² meets the acceptance standard. Active cleaning takes three hours; the complete task, including interruptions, takes 4.5 hours. Staff spend 30 minutes assisting or servicing. The results are 600 m²/h while actively cleaning, 400 m²/h over the complete task and 16.7 staff minutes per 1,000 m². Each number is valid, but describes something different.
If the app records a second pass over 300 m², do not add it to unique accepted area. Otherwise slower rework can misleadingly improve reported productivity.
Build a time log
Use one clock and record start, cleaning, waiting, water servicing, charging, manual corrections and completion. Label overlapping activities. Ten minutes of staff work during charging adds labour, but does not necessarily add another ten minutes to elapsed task time.
Building area is not available cleaning area
Separate occupied and excluded spaces and areas requiring another cleaning method. If a 2,500 m² building contains 1,600 m² of corridors and rooms assigned to the robot, plan around that 1,600 m². Do not describe the remainder as work transferred from staff.
Test a shift, not the best ten minutes
Repeat the task with normal pedestrian activity and after a normal working day. Separate trained operation from commissioning. Record the spread of completion times and the reason for the worst result. An average without failed missions can conceal a scheduling problem.
A purchase criterion: the robot completes the required area to the agreed standard within the available window and with acceptable staff effort. Use that result to determine fleet size and deployment economics.
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Sources and scope
Documentation checked on 11 September 2026. Worked examples and worksheets are RoboMorrow editorial work, not results from hands-on device tests we performed.