The Cleaning Industry Research Institute (CIRI) is a unique organization among the worldwide professional cleaning, facilities and building maintenance, jan-san and disaster restoration industries. CIRI is an independent, not-for-profit, educational, science and research organization known and widely respected for its unbiased approach to matters of cleaning science, cleaning for health, disaster restoration sciences, indoor environmental quality, and hygiene. 

CIRI’s newly updated Science Advisory Council (SAC) consists of a virtual who’s who of leading scientists and researchers serving the cleaning and disaster restoration industries. CIRI is pleased to introduce:

Steven M. Spivak, Ph.D. is the SAC chair. Dr. Spivak has served in this role since 2008. He succeeded Dr. Michael Berry who conceived and founded the council.

Dr. Spivak has served the cleaning and restoration industries for more than three decades. He is an Emeritus Professor with the Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland where he served more than 30 years as teacher-educator, researcher, student advisor and mentor. Simultaneously, Spivak served as consultant and technical advisor to the Restoration Industry Association (RIA and its predecessor, ASCR International). This encompassed all matters of science and technology for textiles and materials science, including evaluating products and processes for professional cleaning, cleaning science and health; publishing a monthly column in RIA’s award-winning Cleaning & Restoration magazine; and other projects and papers arising from cleaning and periodic maintenance of interior finish materials.

Eugene C. Cole, Dr.PH. is Director of Research for LRC Indoor Testing & Research, Cary, NC; and formerly Professor of Environmental Health Sciences at Brigham Young University, Provo, UT. Dr. Cole’s research focuses on the ecology of indoor environments, with special emphasis on identification and reduction of pollutant reservoirs and sources, bioaerosols, human exposure assessment and control, product evaluation, cleaning and restoration, mold and sewage remediation, and biocides. He has been a contributor to multiple editions of the IICRC S500 Water Damage Restoration Standard and the IICRC S520 Mold Remediation Standard. He holds both a Master of Science degree in Public Health Microbiology, and a Doctor of Public Health degree in Biohazard Science & Occupational Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Additionally, Dr. Cole is a Fellow of the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA).

Richard Shaughnessy, Ph.D. Dr. is a world-renowned expert in indoor air quality (IAQ) and the Director of the Indoor Air Quality Research Program at the University of Tulsa. Dr. Shaughnessy is internationally recognized in air quality, environmental quality, and measurement systems in buildings and facilities. He is an officer with ISIAQ for their triennial international research conference on indoor air quality, with environmental quality measurement and health. He maintains many global research collaborations, especially with researchers in Finland and Scandinavia.

Greg Whiteley, Ph.D. is a specialist in cleaning science, hygiene, disinfection, and mitigating Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI). Dr. Whiteley is chairman of Whiteley Corporation, a formulator and distributor of infection control and disinfection products and processes, and also an Adjunct Fellow in the School of Medicine at Western Sydney University in Australia. He is the Collaboration Partner Study Director for an iMCRC Grant with the School of Medicine at Sydney University, which is investigating novel solutions for biofilm mediated infections and other forms of biofilm contamination and remediation. This is especially critical in hospital ICUs as an antagonist against HAIs.

Ralph Moon, Ph.D. is a principal with GHD Services, Inc. and manages the Building Sciences Group within the Forensic Engineering Department of GHD. Dr. Moon’s research interests are varied and address questions that arise during insurance loss investigations. He frequently publishes both scientific and technical articles of interest to the insurance and remediation communities. He received his undergraduate degree from Western Michigan University and Masters and Ph.D. from the University of South Florida.

John Richter, MSME graduated from the University of Dayton with Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Mechanical Engineering. He entered the cleaning industry in 2006 when he joined Kaivac, Inc. as Technical Director. At Kaivac, Mr. Richter conducted scientific studies and research in the areas of cleaning effectiveness with respect to various cleaning methods using ATP measurements, bacteria counts, and tribometry. In 2014, he accepted a position as Clinical Faculty Member with the Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering Department at Miami University in Oxford, OH. In addition to teaching multiple engineering classes, he also is an active engineering consultant in the cleaning industry.