Content about Laundry

CHEMICALS SUPPLY: MARLENE WILLIAMS, ANDERSON CHEMICAL CO., LITCHFIELD, MINN.

We have chosen to address three common stubborn stains that can best be managed with procedure, machine programs and chemistry. We will outline procedures important to all stain removal and then address specifics for each stain category.

In all cases, it is important to either pre-treat the stain, or begin the laundering process, as soon as possible after staining. The sooner that stains are removed from the fabric, the less aggressive the program required for removal and the greater the possibility for success.

With a few exceptions, it is important to treat stain removal with the warmest temperature appropriate for the fabric and color blends. Chemical activity increases with elevated temperature and stain removal is generally enhanced with higher temperatures. Exceptions to the “higher the better” are situations involving color fading/bleeding, fabric shrinking, protein or blood “setting,” or exceeding temperatures recommended for enzyme products.           

Medicinal Stains — There are a number of medicinal preparations that can be irreversibly set with chlorine bleach if not thoroughly removed prior to bleach process. Chlorhexidine gluconate and iodine preparations must be thoroughly rinsed prior to standard wash cycles. Education of healthcare staff regarding possibility of irreversible staining, vigilance by laundry staff for particular laundry categories, and possible replacements of non-staining materials can provide solutions. Salves and skin-protection preparations compounded with oils may need special attention and are best removed with selective surfactant products.

Food Stains — Food stains are common to healthcare and hospitality linens. Conventional chemistry with increased alkali and detergent usually provides satisfactory results for greasy soils. Protein stains can be removed with a bleach program step if fabric dyes are compatible. There are a number of enzyme detergents and enzyme presoak products that provide good removal of protein and/or greasy stains if soak time is available. Be sure to match specific enzyme product to type of food stain.

Athletic Uniforms — School and professional athletic colors have never been selected for laundry compatibility! Before beginning any aggressive stain-removal program, make sure that both uniform materials of construction and colors can withstand temperatures and chemistry chosen. Always consult manufacturer’s care tags. Temperature and chlorine bleach are two often-exceeded treatments that can do irreversible damage to fabric finish, fading/bleeding of incompatible colors, and overall irreversible color deposition. There are also a small number of hazardous chemistries that are used to strip dyes and field marking colors. These should be avoided by using an enzyme presoak program if team schedules allow.

It is important to identify impact-generated (helmet and plastic padding) stains that are a result of fabric and protective gear colors being physically transferred into the opposing team’s uniform fabric. Impact transfer is usually an irreversible situation.

COMMERCIAL LAUNDRY: TOM GILDRED, EMERALD TEXTILES, SAN DIEGO, CALIF.

From the perspective of an industrial healthcare linen services provider, the most stubborn stains regularly encountered include bodily fluids, metal and rust stains, tape residue and finally medicinal chemical stains.

We address these difficult stains through a multi-tiered approach, designed to address each particular type of stain. Time, temperature, chemical action and mechanical action are the keys to effective stain removal, and can be adjusted as each case requires. 

As a first step, we work closely with our chemical company to create the proper formulation, or “chemical cocktail,” to remove specific types of stains. Heavily stained linens are identified during soil sort and separated for special treatment.

After the appropriate treatment has been determined, we pre-wash the heavily stained items to remove the first level of soil in our heavy-duty single-batch washers. Hand inspection is employed throughout the process to determine what the next steps are, as well as to ensure quality control. A stringent quality-control program ensures that we effectively launder items until the stains are eradicated.

Because of the intense nature of healthcare laundry stains, there are instances in which items are destroyed in the process of stain removal and those pieces are placed in our linen recycling program. By continually evolving our processes, and working with our chemical vendor, we successfully remove a large number of stains.

TEXTILES: TOM LANGDON, ENCOMPASS GROUP, MCDONOUGH, GA.

Not having had much experience with this topic, I sought the advice of a few long-time laundry professionals. What I found was a little surprising. While most agreed about which substances were the most difficult to treat and remove, their approaches to accomplish this task were completely different.

One approach is stain avoidance. The process starts with sorting the soiled linen from least stained to most stained, or light, medium or heavy soil. By isolating the dirtiest linen, the launderer reduces the chance of contaminating the rest. They also sort by soil factor (whether the stains are protein- or oil-based), as this will determine what wash formula should be used to process the linen. Using this approach, most of the cleaner linen can run through the normal process and be cleaned satisfactorily. They then save the “blood load” to be processed at the end of the shift when the wash formula, along with temperature and process time, can be adjusted.

On the other end of the spectrum is the “one wash” method. Using this approach, the laundry does not segregate its linen because it has optimized its process and system to yield the best overall cleaning results. Of course, if an item that is obviously heavily soiled turns up, they would not process it, preferring instead to rag it out. As stains are the enemy of efficiency, this method works to minimize their disruption on the process.

Stains, after all, are a big problem. Some operators advise that they incur more loss due to stains than to wearing out product through processing. Up to three times more product is “ragged out” because of stains than from actually being worn out.

Regardless of the approach, most operators agree that, in the healthcare setting, Hibiclens, or chlorhexidine gluconate/isopropanol, is the toughest stain to get out. This antiseptic liquid is applied directly to a patient’s skin at the incision site prior to surgery. Its normal state is a clear pink liquid. After being transferred to a textile article and exposed to chlorine bleach during processing, it turns orange-brown and is a difficult stain to remove.

The products themselves play a part in the challenge of dealing with stains. Results from my research rank incontinence products, patient apparel and bath items as the products that experience the most stains. Fabric type is also a factor in stain resistance and stain removal.

Due to advances in finishing chemistry and applications, polyester-rich products actually fare better than cotton-rich items, even though in its natural state polyester has an affinity for oil. These predominantly synthetic-rich products also last longer, which is a plus when exposing them to additional mechanical action and stronger wash formulas that can accelerate the breakdown of cotton-rich fabrics.

Stain treatments are changing. Historically, stain-release treatments were based on C8 fluorocarbon chemistry that has been identified as being harmful to the environment and bio-accumulative. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has requested a voluntary elimination of this chemistry by 2015; manufacturers of these products have been working toward alternatives since 2000. As with most developments, the alternative technologies are more expensive to produce. Some estimates predict as much as a double-digit increase in the cost of stain removal with the new technology as compared to current options.

Regardless of which method you use to process your tough stains, one thing is clear. Stains are here to stay and will become more challenging to treat as the demands for environmentally friendly chemistry becomes the norm.

Check back tomorrow for Part 2!

ROANOKE, Va. — A surefire way to improve the bottom line of your business or department is to increase the life of your linen. Increasing the number of quality servings you get from each piece of linen will dramatically decrease your cost of operation.

I recommend that the first step to increasing your linen life is to review each linen item with end-users to make sure that it is the proper item for the intended use.

If a bath blanket is being used as a lift sheet, excessive tears will develop. Are bath blankets or thermal blankets being used in place of mattress pads? Linen users find creative ways to use our linen and unless we engage in regular discussions with them, we will be unaware of just how our items are being used.

Bargain patient gowns usually do not have the sweep and coverage necessary to properly maintain a patient’s modesty. Ambulatory patients often use two patient gowns—one covering the front and the other covering the back—to make up for this shortfall. By purchasing a larger patient gown that provides greater coverage, you can decrease uses of the item by 30-35% and thereby increase its effective life.

I also recommend that you meet with your chemical vendor and review your wash formulas to make sure you are obtaining proper levels of cleanliness without excessively washing the linen.

Mechanical action and chemical action cause most fabric degradation. Wash each classification in such a manner to keep rewash below 3% of total volume produced. Some laundries sort all heavily soiled linen together and give it a special wash. High levels of alkalinity attack the cotton fiber and the finish on reusable barrier linen as well as the soil. One key to longer linen life is to reduce the alkaline concentration of the wash formula. Using enzyme detergents instead of traditional detergents can be an effective alternative.

Management should review the procedures for determining the proper size of each wash load. Overloading will cause poor quality wash and excessive stains. I have seen laundries that maintained excellent written procedures for weighing loads but their daily practice did not mirror what was on the page.

Carefully review all damaged linen to see if a pattern of abuse or product failure is evident. Once a trend is discovered, corrective action can be taken to adjust product quality or construction or to provide in-service education for personnel working in use areas.

We recently had a problem with small holes appearing in the barrier backing of our incontinent pads. We were unsure of the source but wanted to first eliminate the laundry. While brainstorming the problems, we figured that it could be happening in one of a number of locations: the soil-sort belt, tunnel washers, tunnel press, tunnel dryers, or one of the small-piece folders.

We determined to test our system by using brand-new pads. Our first step was to avoid the sorting belt and put the new pads directly into a sling. We ran a load through our No. 1 tunnel, its press and one of its dryers. The test load contained a number of damaged pads. We also ran a load through our No. 2 tunnel, press and one of its dryers and did not find any damaged pads.

We then ran a load through the No. 1 tunnel and press. Upon inspection, again we found damaged pads. Finally, we ran pads through the No. 1 tunnel and bypassed the press. This procedure still resulted in a number of pads being damaged. (It is interesting that we have not noticed damage to any other linen items going through this tunnel.)

Our short-term solution was to move all the incontinent pads from the No. 1 tunnel, where they had always been processed, to the No. 2 tunnel. This required us to make other changes in our pick lists to balance out the demand for the tunnel dryers. After a visual inspection of the interior of No. 1 tunnel, we found several possible causes for the linen damage. Today, we are still running pads through the other tunnel.

Check all dryers to make sure they are operating correctly. Excessive heat can damage linen and cause it to have a harsh hand. Inspect door seals and interior air-deflection blades to make sure everything is working properly. Dryers with poor seals that allow room air to enter the dryer without going through the burner area can cause artificially low outlet-temperature readings. These readings will cause the linen to be subjected to higher-than-programmed temperatures.

Thermal fluid ironers should not be operated at temperatures above 375 F. Ironing at higher temperatures will result in the loss of size stability in polyester fibers. Once the heat-set polyester fiber is no longer size-stable, the laundry will experience higher-than-normal shrinkage. I have seen contour sheets that started at 88 inches in length shrink to 76 inches. Resist the temptation to iron at higher temperatures to increase productivity, because you’ll be creating linen shrinkage problems.

These ideas do not represent an all-inclusive list, but they give you a good starting point. Determining ways to extend linen life is a never-ending task but one well worth the time and effort.

ST. JOSEPH, Mich. — Worldwide Laundry Inc., Miami, was recently recognized with the On-Premises Laundry (OPL) Excellence Award during the Maytag® Commercial Laundry 54th Annual Meeting in Marco Island, Fla.

The honor acknowledges the distributor’s effective and efficient service to its OPL customers.

“Worldwide Laundry consistently delivers exceptional results by responding to customers’ inquiries in less than 24 hours, through its strategic direct-marketing efforts and by fostering relationships within the OPL market,” says Bob English, general manager of global commercial laundry at Whirlpool Corp.

“Our reputation as an efficient and dependable distributor is a top priority for us,” says Marco Giancola, vice president at Worldwide Laundry. “Maytag® Commercial Laundry manufactures top-of-the-line products with industry-leading warranties, which help meet and exceed customer expectations daily.”

Worldwide Laundry is a full-service laundry equipment, parts and supplies company with 40 years of combined experience in the distribution of on-premise, coin laundry, and drycleaning equipment at competitive prices worldwide.

Marco and Chuck Giancola and Robert Gonzalez were on hand to receive the award for Worldwide Laundry. Also present at the awards dinner was Fritz Maytag, great-grandson of founder Fred Maytag.

CHEMICALS SUPPLY: MARLENE WILLIAMS, ANDERSON CHEMICAL CO., LITCHFIELD, MINN.

This well-designed question recognizes that optimization of laundry programs and procedures, as well as incorporating new technology options, can facilitate a laundry manager’s efforts to improve energy efficiency and water conservation. From the chemical supplier’s standpoint, there are two major sources of help available today.

First, technology (proprietary software) to analyze a laundry operation is a strong tool for chemical representatives and laundry managers. A knowledgeable chemical representative can provide valuable assistance with this type of computer analysis, improving not only energy efficiency and water consumption but also creating savings in all areas of program expense.

Secondly, a knowledgeable review of laundry facilities with improved practices and procedures can provide major economies for no additional cost. John White, an industry expert with 35 years of laundry experience, offers a number of valuable tactics:

1. Work with a knowledgeable chemical supplies representative; this should be your starting point. Experienced reps can help you because they work with many different operators and will be able to give you ideas for savings, ideas that are working for others.
2. If you’re still using “old school” washing techniques (180-degree water, lots of alkali and bleach, long cycles, lots of rinsing, etc.), be aware that chemistry has dramatically changed. Talk to your rep about low-temperature washing. Consider enzyme washing, allowing for lower wash and bleaching temperatures. Your supplier should be bringing these innovations to you for your consideration.
3. Replace one rinse step in all your cycles with a medium-speed extract. This will save one high-fill for every load of laundry you process, and, over time, can result in thousands of gallons of water—much of it hot—saved.
4. Understand the relationship between pH and temperature in the bleach bath. A good rep will be able to set your cycles up to bleach in much lower temperatures by lowering the pH of the bleach bath.
5. Lower your water levels 1 inch when washing/bleaching, and 2 inches when rinsing. All water levels are adjustable, and the good reps know how to do this. One inch less water in the wash step will not make any difference in quality, but due to the shape of the wash wheel, will save you up to 30% of the hot water you would otherwise use in a typical wash step (same for bleach step and 2 inches on rinse steps).
6. Focus on sorting laundry by soil load and staining. Unsorted linens must be washed according to the worst pieces. If unsorted, every load becomes a costly heavy-soil load.
7. Program cycles so that your final rinse temperature is between 115 and 120 degrees (typically it is much lower). This means that the linens will be pre-heated (but not too hot to handle) when they go into the dryer. This will save about five minutes of dryer time/energy per load.
8. Don’t under-load washers or overload dryers. Weigh loads and follow the manufacturer’s recommendations.
9. Airflow is far more critical than temperature when it comes to dryer time. Clean lint screens after every load, and periodically have dryer vents professionally cleaned. Lint can easily clog dryer vents and choke off 80% or more of your airflow.
10. Finally, most dryers can be retrofitted with flue sensors that will shut the dryer down when the load is dry, saving on energy and fabric damage.

EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURING: KIM SHADY, LAUNDRYLUX CORP, NEW YORK, N.Y.

From the perspective of smaller OPL facilities, more new equipment applications have become available in the past several years than have been introduced in the past decade. I’ll break these energy savings into three categories: electricity, natural gas, and water.

Electricity — The amount of electricity used to operate an OPL washer or dryer may be less than 2 cents per load. There is very little reward for making improvements to electricity use. Evaluating cycle times in the washer could be one area for savings. Washers with higher extraction rates (G-force) can reduce drying times for more savings.

Natural Gas — Assuming natural gas is your heat source for a dryer, ironer or water heater, this is your largest utility cost. To evaluate areas to trim costs, start with your water heater/boiler. There have been many improvements in efficiency, so is your unit outdated? Could reducing water temperature by 5 or 10 degrees make a difference on an annual basis?

The traditional 75-pound dryer in small OPL facilities has gone through significant energy updates in the past few years. Several companies have slashed gas consumption by 20% through new, energy-efficient axial airflow designs that do not sacrifice drying time. This may be the biggest gain for energy efficiency in the past five years.

Also, the extraction rate has a major role in reducing dryer gas use. Upgrading from 100 to 300 G-force can cut drying time by 25-30%, along with similar amounts of natural gas.

Residual moisture controls are gaining popularity to save time and natural gas in the dryer. No longer does the drying time have to be input by hand. Residual moisture controls automate the process, while preventing the dryer from running past the point where linens are dry.

Large laundries have long understood the energy benefits of ironing vs. drying sheets. When ironing sheets properly, the amount of energy used to remove a pound of water is less than the amount a dryer would use to do the same. With new OPL ironers requiring just one person to feed, fold and stack, there can be energy savings, labor savings and huge improvements in quality.

Water — OPL washers are using newer digital technology to measure water levels, providing more precise control for each fill. This also allows the programmer to experiment with finding the optimum water levels and acceptable cleanliness quality. This experiment could bring surprising results in lower water use. Some washers are smart enough to adjust water levels based upon the linen load size, while at the same time adjusting chemical dosing to keep the ratio to water accurate.

Other water savings may be found with ozone systems. Ozone has proven to reduce water consumption and significantly reduce the need for hot water.

UNIFORMS/WORKWEAR MANUFACTURING: STEVE KALLENBACH, AMERICAN DAWN, LOS ANGELES, CALIF.

This is the central question surrounding one of the most important dynamics of the decade: “green” reusable textiles and related processing. My responses will relate mostly to energy and costs that directly impact textile-processing costs.

Energy — Over the past 15 years, our industry has reduced energy costs by more than 40% through the use of heat reclaimers, direct-fire water heaters, continuous batch washers (vs. washer-extractors vs. modular washer and extractor units), high-efficiency gas dryers (vs. steam dryers), as well as energy-friendly textiles.

Additionally, chemical companies and plant managers have worked together to find balanced formulations that assist in energy efficiency. An example of this might be in extraction. Once a washer-extractor achieves extraction speed, it is much more efficient to extract the textile a bit longer, if it reduces dryer time (gas usage) while still protecting textile life.

In some cases, textiles have been built to withstand more energy-efficient processing. In others (example: Signature table linen), fabric has been developed to wash cleaner at lower temperatures, thereby lowering energy costs and even processing time. The most recent textile improvement impacting energy efficiency is microfiber fabrics. They take much less time to dry, thereby reducing gas and electricity costs.

Laundry managers need to follow the best in class: 1) know the industry standards, 2) know your own plant’s performance, and 3) engage with your chemical and textile vendors to continually improve efficiency.

Water — Just like energy, our industry has reduced water usage by more than 40% through the use of water reclamation systems and better chemical formulations, soil sorting (to control the amount of rewash) and textiles.

Water reclamation systems reuse some of the last flushes of a formula as the first flush of the next load. Chemical formulation is a key to water efficiency. We put our chemical suppliers in the delicate position of keeping costs down while keeping our textiles clean. Many times, this balance is off, and some plants have a tendency to “over wash” certain textiles. Additionally, some textiles simply clean better, due to raw-material quality, fiber content, weave, topical soil release, etc.

Managers can discuss these issues with their textile and chemical suppliers, in order to choose the right product for the job. Just like energy efficiency, water conservation and efficiency should first be measured against the known industry standards, and managers should engage with their related suppliers to improve both formulation and textiles.

Technology — In all areas of conservation, support technology has improved drastically over the past 20 years. Retrofitting machinery to allow constant monitoring of efficiencies is now available, and the return on investment is sensible in most cases. Additionally, the industry has developed a number of major software packages that can assist managers in monitoring and managing their plant efficiencies.

Maintenance — Aside from education on standards and available efficiencies, the maintenance of equipment and support technology is more important now than ever before.

Plant maintenance managers of yesteryear were measured on downtime of equipment related to production flow. While this will remain the platform for production flow efficiency, maintenance of the future will center more around equipment efficiencies, simply because they can now be monitored constantly.

For instance, in the past, if a drainpipe were open and leaking profusely, it might not be caught and your maintenance department might not focus on it because the equipment was running. In the future, the equipment must not only run, it must run efficiently, because a rightly upgraded and retrofitted wash machine will be able to “broadcast” the presence of an open/leaking drain to plant management.

Textiles — Great plant managers take a more active role in monitoring textile placement as it relates to efficiency, not only in wear-life (life-cycle) costing but also in choosing the right textile for the job.

A simple example of this is allowing a diesel engine mechanic to wear a lightly colored shirt. This textile choice leads to heavy-soil formulation and rewash. Enough of this textile misuse and plant efficiency is impacted.

Other plants overbuy cotton toweling, putting premium textiles into accounts that simply don’t return them. Because these products are typically heavier in content, the plant washes fewer of them per load, thereby lowering both energy and water efficiencies. In some cases, it’s better to put a standard-quality product into an account that needs just that.

ORLANDO, Fla. — Developer Orange Lake Resorts, which operates seven Holiday Inn Club Vacations® resort destinations, has taken steps to minimize its carbon footprint by introducing a new $1.4 million Milnor tunnel system that will save 15 million gallons of water per year.

For nearly 30 years, Orange Lake Resorts operated the laundry facility for its flagship Orlando resort using three 600-pound washer extractors and six 200-pound dryers. The facility processed 1,800 pounds per hour (using 3 gallons of water per pound), completing a day’s work of 28,800 pounds over two shifts.

While Milnor’s PulseFlow Technology—which employs enhanced, intermittent counterflow and RecircONE® pump arrangement that continuously circulates water in the first module—was gaining momentum and praise, Orange Lake’s laundry and facilities leadership teams decided that it was time to make a change.  

“Orange Lake has an eye on the staff’s overall environment and on improvements in efficiencies and expenditures,” says Bill Bell of Steiner-Atlantic, Milnor’s local distributor for the Orlando area, “so we were thrilled that they committed to the corporate investment of introducing this modern equipment from the best in the industry.”

Orange Lake’s new equipment consists of a PulseFlow CBW® washer (150-pound capacity per module), a 40-bar single-stage press and four pass-through dryers. The equipment is capable of processing 4,000 pounds of laundry per hour, using only 0.3-0.4 gallons of fresh water per pound, with a day’s work of 30,000 pounds finishing in just one shift. 

Lower utility and water consumption isn’t the only benefit associated with the new tunnel system. The CBW’s four-compartment loading conveyor improves labor conditions, Milnor says, because the soiled goods require less handling by staff.

Once sorted, the goods are loaded on the conveyor to be discharged in the tunnel’s load chute. After the wash, goods are automatically discharged to the press, which removes excess moisture. After extraction, an automatic shuttle transports each “cake” to a waiting dryer.

In the days before there was a tunnel, Orange Lake staff would have to sort by goods type, manually load soiled goods in the washers, then manually unload and transport the now-heavier damp goods to the dryers/flatwork aisle.

Aside from the tunnel’s ergonomic benefits over large open-pocket washers, its process times are shorter and the quality of linens and towels is enhanced, extending linen life. Additionally, Orange Lake has doubled its hourly production, eliminating the need for a costly second shift.

The Orlando resort, with 2,478 villas and an average of 511,853 annual guests, processes 8 million pounds of laundry per year. Its new equipment enables the company to grow its laundry operation and process up to approximately 10.5 million pounds per year.

ATLANTA — The Clean Executive Committee has selected Global Experience Specialists (GES) to serve as the official services contractor for the 2013 Clean Show in New Orleans.

Three companies submitted proposals for the June 2013 show. “GES did our show in New Orleans in 2009 and did a great job,” says John Riddle, president of Riddle & Associates, the Clean Show’s management company. “We look forward to working with them again in 2013.”

Chicago hosted the first Clean Show in 1977. United Exposition Service Co. was the official services contractor for that event and subsequent shows. GES purchased United in 1993, and the Las Vegas-based company has continued its partnership with the Clean Show for many shows since.

GES produces 3,000 exhibitions and events annually.

The Clean Show—officially titled the World Educational Congress for Laundering and Drycleaning—attracts people across all segments of the textile care industry, from single-owner, coin-operated laundry and drycleaning establishments to giant industrial and institutional laundries and textile rental companies.

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Laundry parts and equipment supplier Talley Machinery Corp. has acquired laundry equipment manufacturer Norman Control, Cary, Ill. Talley will manufacture the line of Norman Control equipment, parts and accessories at Talley’s state-of-the-art Greensboro facility, the company reports.

Hydraulic lift tables, lighted inspection tables and pneumatic cart dumpers are among the laundry machines to be featured, while the associated replacement parts and accessories are stocked and ready for quick delivery.

Recognized for its expertise in machining high-quality replacement parts for varied laundry equipment and in remanufacturing flatwork ironers, Talley has gradually expanded its range of products and services since joining the Tingue family of companies to include extractor press membranes, ironer drive conversions and several other machinery upgrades.

“The Norman Control laundry machines have been well known for their quality workmanship and dependable operation for a long, long time,” says Randy Vansparrentak, Talley Machinery vice president. “Yet it’s their safety and ergonomic benefits that are drawing increasing interest from the laundry industry and that’s what most attracted us to the acquisition.”

FAIRWAY, Kan. — In an effort to shed light on what hospitals want from their laundry providers (and, in doing so, provide intelligence to help providers meet healthcare client needs and expectations in 2012), a 360-degree review on the subject was in order.

In addition to interviews with environmental service (EVS) managers and nurses at a dozen hospitals across the country, about two dozen laundry operators were surveyed and interviewed.

While the nature of this review is anecdotal (i.e., not a scientific study), the feedback gathered resonates true.

What Laundry Operators Think They Want

Based on a survey of operators representing all sizes and types of laundry operations, they say hospitals want (in order of importance):

• On-time delivery and sufficient inventory
• Responsiveness to client needs and requests
• Good-quality products
• Competitive prices
• HLAC accreditation

While operators ranked HLAC accreditation low as a customer priority, most agree this is changing as more and more laundries become accredited.

The primary complaints received from clients are (in order of frequency):

• Costs too high
• Stains and tears on items
• Insufficient inventory
• Poor quality
• Lost or missing goods

There were many operator complaints about clients not taking the time to communicate needs, to understand pricing issues, or to participate in inventory control and loss programs.

Of those surveyed, 71% provide service on a rental basis, with the remaining 29% providing a combination of rental and customer-owned goods (COG). Ninety-three percent of all respondents provide clients education on linen use and control; 86% provide inventory management programs.

What Hospital EVS Managers Say

While some EVS managers might not rank having its laundry HLAC-accredited top of the list, it is a must-have criteria for others. “Our laundry provides excellent service and works closely with me and my administrator on any issues that arise,” says Kent Miller, CHESP, director of environmental services for Jackson Hospital & Clinic in Montgomery, Ala.

“I believe a healthcare laundry should be HLAC-accredited,” adds Miller, who is also president of the Association of the Healthcare Environment (AHE), an HLAC founder. “My laundry provider is accredited, and they made sure I received a copy of the accreditation certificate.”

When asked how their laundry provider could improve its service, EVS managers say they need:

• Better-quality goods/fewer stains
• Better communication on product changes and service options
• Help in enforcing appropriate linen usage among staff/controlling losses
• Training programs for staff in each unit (along with spot audits)

When asked what their laundry provider does right, EVS managers stated:

• On-time delivery
• Responsive to requests
• Good fill rates

Overall, the EVS managers interviewed were happy with their laundry providers. Those happiest with their service have a close relationship with a customer service representative from the laundry.

But one issue remains difficult to resolve.

“I have great laundry service, but the biggest gripe I get from staff is about stains on linen, especially on our knit sheets,” says Wes Thiss, CHESP, EVS director at St. Mary’s Hospital in Richmond, Va. “I realize that part of the stain issue is our fault. The iodine cleanser commonly used in hospitals stains terribly. But the perception among staff is that if there is a stain, it’s not clean.”

The Nursing Perspective

Nurses want the linen they need right now. “If it has hair or a stain on it, we put it straight in the soil bin,” says RN Copp.

In general, nurses say they need:

• Clean linen without stains, tears or holes
• Patient gowns with snaps that work
• An adequate supply of items
• A better understanding of their needs (listen to what they say and follow through!)
• An appointed hospital linen liaison or advocate for each unit

A survey taken of 42 nurses during a Practice Greenhealth webinar¹ in February 2011 revealed that 40% rated their laundry service as “good,” 30% rated it as “fair,” 20% rated it as “poor,” and only 10% rated their laundry service as “great.”

“In my 17 years as an RN and administrator, I have observed that most linen services do a decent job,” says Brenda Willis, RN, Tonganoxie, Kan. “But if there is no one appointed on the unit floor to oversee linen use and advocate on behalf of the laundry, there are more problems and greater linen losses.”

One nurse noted that staff hated getting patient gowns with snaps that didn’t snap. Because the perception was that gowns with broken snaps kept being returned to them, nurses started throwing them away.

“The most common mistake operators make in serving hospitals is not communicating sufficiently with hospital staff,” says Deborah Lark, COO of Portland Hospital Services Corp., Portland, Ore. “It’s critical to communicate with and educate end-users about linen and the laundry operation.

“Unless we educate the end-user, there is a tendency for clients to take linen for granted. Hospital staff can wind up making assumptions about the laundry operation that result in unrealistic expectations.”

The Challenge — Will You Meet It In 2012?

Does your laundry operation have customer service reps that regularly visit with the client contact and floor staff?

Do you provide training for staff on appropriate linen usage?

Do you insist that each hospital unit have an appointed linen advocate?

The successful execution of these tactics can make the difference between happy customers and your profitability in 2012.

But Thiss acknowledges that it’s hard to get nurses to participate in any type of linen committee. “We need help getting our nurses to want to participate in training and committee work.”

“The most important thing hospital staff can do is be open-minded and willing to form quality and linen committees that can then set realistic goals and par levels,” says Kelly Jefferson, vice president of customer support services for Reino Linen Service, Gibsonburg, Ohio. “We also need to coax staff to talk openly about fill rates and returns.

“Until you have a true relationship and partnership established between the laundry and end-users, there will always be questions of fill rates, quality, costs and customer satisfaction.”

Click here for Part 1.

Textile/Uniform Rental: David Dersheimer, SITEX Corp.

There are certainly differences in what commercial or rental plants may choose or use for equipment and procedures when compared to institution-based laundries and their respective facilities.

Generally, the volume and product mix of a rental or commercial facility tends to fluctuate more than an institutional facility’s does.

Rental facilities tend to make equipment and process decisions based on current mix and volume plus projected growth. They have smaller load quantities in varying item mixes. The soil levels in rental plants also tend to range broadly from light to heavy.

Institutional laundries have a more consistent volume and less variance in soil classifications. And there is typically less variation in soil levels and volumes in a healthcare, nursing home or hotel laundry.

But I’m not sure you could define differences in laundries based only on these two categories or generalities. You might need to ask a few questions, such as:

• What is the item mix, and how many different sort classes/soil levels are there?
• What is the facility’s planned growth? Is there anticipated growth in one segment or area? If so, how will that impact the volume and mix?
• How would product mix affect equipment decisions?
• Is the wash operation running batches or smaller, varying loads, or loads of similar volume and sort class? Does the facility need single or convention machines, or would a continuous batch washer be a better choice?
• If flatwork finishing, is volume or flexibility needed? For large pieces, does the facility need a sheet feeder, table linen feeder, or a machine that can do both? Is an ironer needed to handle napkins and pillowcases?

Differences between any two laundries, whether commercial or institutional, can be quite distinct. One needs to assess current mix, planned growth, and output expectations to determine individual needs.

Consulting Services: Ron Evans, RJ Evans and Associates

There are several procedural differences between industrial rental laundries and institutional laundries. Growth, greater competition, incomparable number of products processed, and profit are the driving and dividing forces.

Since most rental laundries have hundreds if not thousands of customers, their processing practices must be much more flexible and expanded than an institutional laundry that may have a singular or limited common customer base.

Since rental laundries exist in a much more competitive environment, it is essential for the production department’s contribution to the rental company’s bottom line be fully within strict budget forecasts. The trick here is that all production forecasts are predicated on sales forecasts, and the latter can be difficult to project for a coming year.

There is a constant need to search for improved best practices to satisfy the varied demands upon their daily changes in usage, product variation and resource allocation. It becomes essential to leverage all advantages that eliminate or reduce waste while at the same time operate within projected budget requirements. These are all centered on “lean and mean” customer satisfaction.

The production department’s contribution to bottom-line profit in a rental laundry is scrutinized and monitored due to its constantly changing customer base. Rental laundry production management must be much more engaged and “hands on” in addressing all the demands of its varied customers’ needs. Pressures on rental managers are more numerous and dynamic than those on institutional managers. Rental production managers must be good business managers as well as knowing their trade.

Another difference is the role of a production department in a rental industrial laundry. Full-time salespeople use their production department as a sales tool and regularly take potential customers on plant tours. Therefore, the department always has to be in marketable “showplace” condition.

A rental laundry’s service department also uses the production department as a customer-retention tool. Service departments have developed sophisticated programs to elevate a customer’s understanding of the rental laundry’s value in maintaining their fixed costs, convenience, and quality standards. As such, they constantly market environmental advantages in waste treatment, sanitary conditions, safety practices, and inventory control. Processing techniques are used not only for production but to gain and retain customers.

Because of its dedicated freestanding facility, the rental laundry has acquired a “target” on its back for every governmental inspector. Consequently, it must operate under the assumption that it will have city, state, regional and federal government inspectors in its facilities throughout the year. The end result is rental laundries have unsurpassed training and updated performance exercises in safety, waste management, OSHA, and human resource issues out of the realization that they will be audited. This constant pressure creates a professional, self-policing system and a comfort zone for their customers.

Both types of industrial laundries have similar equipment, chemicals and procedures for the items they process in common. Because of the difference in competitive situations, rental laundries must operate at a higher level of customer speed to retain revenue-generating clients.

It has been my experience that most rental production managers could operate an institutional laundry quite easily while most institutional production managers would have to expand their skills to effectively manage a rental industrial laundry.

Equipment Manufacturing: Kim Shady, Laundrylux Corp.

How do you define commercial laundry or institutional laundry? Often, those terms are used interchangeably. So let’s remove the descriptive terms and be more absolute. What is the equipment difference between a laundry processing less than 3,000 pounds per day and a laundry processing more than 3,000 pounds per day?

In the simplest form, the equipment differences can be defined by automation. It may reduce labor costs, improve quality, reduce processing time or save energy. As the pounds processed per day increase, there become economies of scale for each of these items.

While improved quality may be a goal for selecting automation, the determining factor is most likely the return on investment (ROI). You can calculate this by projecting labor savings, energy savings and maybe even overhead by square foot vs. the cost of automation.

A small-piece folder is one of the smallest investments for automation. It can process towels, gowns, blankets or fitted sheets. If your laundry is processing 1,000 pounds of these items a day, a small-piece folder could reduce your staffing by one person. An institutional laundry is likely using a staff of two to hand-fold these items. If a basic small-piece folder is $45,000, what might the ROI be?

Commercial laundries likely process a large quantity of flat goods. Automation in this case may include automatic pickers to replace one or two staff members.

Processing linens through an ironer requires the least amount of energy per pound of finished goods. But that doesn’t mean ironing is the lowest-cost method for processing goods. An institutional laundry may use an ironer but lack automation, thus requiring two to four staff members.

Over the last five years, numerous ironers on the market have offered feeding, folding and stacking built into the ironer, allowing a single operator to process 150 or more pounds per hour. Processing 75 pounds per hour is a common goal in laundries without automation. A machine with these features can reduce the staffing required for ironing. The additional investment for the feeder, folder and stacker may be $100,000. What might the ROI be for this automation?

Labor will always be the largest cost of operating a laundry. An institutional laundry can be limited in methods for reducing labor costs, so automation can be a difference maker. It is the difference between the equipment selections in a commercial laundry and an institutional laundry.

Member at Large: Douglas Story, Swisher Hygiene

When I first read this question, I thought, “What in the heck can anyone say about this? Processing fabric is processing fabric, right?” But it is a good question that has forced me to look not so much at the equipment or procedures that are used by the two laundry types but at the philosophies behind the use of that equipment.

As I was contemplating what I would write, I was inspired by one of my favorite “philosophers,” Jeff Foxworthy. Here, offered somewhat tongue-in-cheek, are some differences between a commercial laundry and an institution-based laundry:

• If the laundry manager is a graduate in hospitality management and is in the job as a learning experience, it might be an institution-based laundry.
• If a washer’s rated capacity is used as the measure of the pounds of linen being processed, it might be an institution-based laundry.
• If a washer’s rated capacity is considered an estimate and everyone knows that it can hold another 100 pounds, it might be a commercial laundry.
• If the laundry manager loads the washer and then walks to the next room to welcome a guest and offer them a cookie, it might be an institution-based laundry.
• If the laundry manager is proud of his washroom’s 2,000 lbs/hr production but can’t understand how two 100-pound dryers can keep up, it might be a commercial laundry.
• If the laundry manager, when asked why he has 10 washers and two flatwork ironers stored in the parking lot, answers, “Parts,” it might be a commercial laundry.
• When employees stay later to produce more laundry, it might be a commercial laundry.
• When employees stay later to clean the rooms or provide patient care, it might be an institution-based laundry.
• When the flatwork ironer goes down and the laundry manager prays for its recovery, it might be a commercial laundry.
• When the laundry manager can give you the cost per piece, labor, utilities, fixed and variable cost itemized, it might be a commercial laundry.
• When the laundry manager says, “I don’t know all of my utility costs,” it might be an institution-based laundry.

There are philosophical differences between commercial (for-profit) and institutional (not-for-profit or support services) laundries, but it is not, for the most part, in the equipment or processes they use. It is more in how management approaches the business and customer service sides of the operation.

In the past, the primary focus of a commercial laundry was the customers that paid for their service. By contrast, this was/is not always the case for the institutional laundry. But as we look to the future, I believe that we are seeing the philosophies of these two operations beginning to merge.

Institutional laundries are becoming more like their commercial counterparts because of economic pressures and because many of the organizations operating these laundries have realized the impact they have on the bottom line of the institutions they serve.

Commercial and institutional laundries are becoming more customer-focused, so both are looking at better, or more efficient, ways to improve the way they do business for the customers they serve. For both, it is a matter of survival.

Click here for Part 1.

KEYSTONE, Colo. — You might not expect a town of 825 permanent residents to have much need for production laundry services, but try adding 230 inches of annual snowfall, 19 ski lifts, 135 ski runs, cat skiing, night skiing, high-speed gondola rides, ice skating, and hockey.

Twenty-five thousand pounds of rooms linen each day adds up pretty quick for Richard Griffin, laundry manager for the Keystone Lodge and Spa.

Griffin, a veteran laundry manager and vice president of the Association for Linen Management, operates a tight but effective production hospitality plant at the Vail Resorts property. Service requirements include three different levels of linen quality serving 400 hotel rooms and 1,600 condo units.

He recently spoke to American Laundry News about the challenges of linen management and distribution at the seasonal resort laundry operation.

“The key to our linen management success is controlling the inventory,” Griffin says. “We provide linen services here at the Keystone Lodge and Spa, but also to a number of smaller properties in Keystone and over the mountain at Breckenridge, as well as for 1,600 condo units in the area.”

Q: What type of linen products do you use?

Griffin: We process the hotels by the batch as NOG (Not Our Goods) type work. Most of their products are very nice 240- and 400-thread-count blend and full cotton flatwork.

We are in the process of upgrading all of our condo linen to 240-thread-count cotton blend flatwork and high-end terry. It is a significant capital commitment. We spent a lot of time detailing linen specifications: weight, thread count, and other quality criteria. Then we requested samples and tested all the proposed linen solutions for months, to see how they would hold up.

Once the final cut came in, it was all down to who wanted to make the sale. The lowest-cost-approved vendor won the business.”

Q: What about production?

Griffin: The heart of our wash aisle is a 10-year-old, sling-loaded, seven-module Milnor tunnel. The staff calls it The Beast. We feed it, and The Beast keeps spitting it out.

The press operates much more efficiently when we under load a bit from the 110-pound rated capacity. Our target weight per module is 95 pounds. Our real-world production is about 2,000 pounds an hour from the tunnel, which translates to an average of 21 transfers per hour.

Managing what goes into the tunnel and in what order is very important. The lead person on the soiled side is the guy feeding the tunnel. He and the finishing-side lead are in constant communication so that the tunnel keeps pushing out the right products to keep downstream in full production.

We track production on the clean side after each break. We have hourly production standards that need to be met. I want the operators to know what is going on without taking all of our time getting bogged down in numbers.

Having dedicated lead supervisors on each side of the plant really helps our operation.

Q: How does operating a tunnel differ from a conventional wash aisle?

Griffin: Tunnels give you a lot more production in less floor space. It streamlines everything. The steady flow of tunnel production provides a consistent volume of goods for clean-side processing.

Tunnel washing also eliminates operator-related issues in the wash aisle. No more restarts, or idle, unloaded machines out of production. You feed the tunnel and it spits it out.

The key to tunnel production is paying attention to what goes in. Managing the batches to avoid “single caking” the dryers, or dryer line overloading, is important in order to maximize productivity. We also don’t start the tunnel until we know that we have enough linen to keep it going all day.

Denver-based Martin Ray Laundry Systems supplied the equipment used at the Keystone Lodge & Spa. President Bill Mann says that the tunnel was a natural solution for Keystone when the resort upgraded the plant 10 years ago.

“There was a mix of washer-extractors that had been added here and there over the years as the resort service base grew,” Mann says. “It got to a point where production requirements and the high cost of water out here made the ROI on a tunnel system the best solution.”

Click here for Part 1.

ALBANY, Ga. — Equinox Chemicals has announced that it has acquired Adco Cleaning Products, based in Sedalia, Mo. Terms of the acquisition were not announced.

Equinox will move Adco’s manufacturing operations to its state-of-the-art manufacturing plant in Albany, according to Yalda Harris, Equinox’s executive vice president for Global Product Management.

Dr. Jim Schreiner, Adco’s chief product technology officer, will also be relocating, she says.

Customer-service and order-taking staff will remain in Sedalia, and there will be no changes to the way customers or distributors order from Adco, Harris adds. The national sales team will remain the same.

Equinox is a specialty chemical manufacturer with specialty research, innovation, product development and commercialization capabilities that reach markets spanning the globe, the company says.

Adco manufactures a comprehensive line of specialty cleaning chemicals and detergents used in dry cleaning, commercial laundry, and janitorial and institutional cleaning applications. It offers more than 300 proprietary products through the Adco and Laidlaw brands.

“This latest acquisition will continue our aggressive strategy to revolutionize and revitalize the laundry, dry cleaning and cleaning chemical industry,” says Mark Grimaldi, CEO of Equinox Chemicals.

Mentor Partners had owned Adco since 2007.

Healthcare Laundry: Scott Beaton, Kaiser Permanente Northern California

I am the Kaiser Permanente Northern California regional product manager for linen and laundry, overseeing and maintaining a system that serves 21 Northern California hospitals with more than 27 million pounds processed annually.

Previously, I was operations manager for Sodexo in Stockton, Calif., one of the largest COG healthcare laundries in its laundry division. The plant processed more than 44 million pounds of linen per year while serving 30 hospital and 47 clinic customers in accordance with HLAC and Title 22 healthcare standards.

I’ve been in the commercial laundry industry for more than 20 years, having operated healthcare, hospitality and uniform plants throughout the West. I developed and implemented initiatives that contributed to increases in productivity and quality at each location while operating in union and nonunion environments.

I began my career at ARAMARK as a group merchandise control manager and worked at several different facilities throughout the Southwest in merchandise control and production. I later joined UniFirst Corp., where, as Western regional production trainer, I was responsible for the development of production managers and the implementation of all production-related best practices and procedures in the region.

My goals this year include enhancing the patient care experience and healing environment through enhanced linen quality and product upgrades. I also plan to increase the velocity and utilization of products by training stakeholders through the implementation of best practices at the user level while at the same time reducing our carbon footprint.

It’s an honor to be selected for this Panel. I hope to share the benefit of my experience with you.

Equipment/Supplies Distribution: Steve Clark, Laundry Equipment Services Inc.

Most of my laundry knowledge comes from hands-on experience, which I hope to be able to share while serving on this panel.

I grew up in the laundry industry; my father worked for Economics Laboratory for 32 years. I began transporting and installing laundry equipment when I was 16, and worked as a service technician for Ecolab in my early 20s. The latter position allowed me to understand general laundry procedures, applications, and the challenges that laundries face on a daily basis.

After several years, I decided to move into sales as a territory manager with Diversey and explored the chemical aspects of the industry. All of this experience primed me to open Laundry Equipment Services Inc., a commercial/industrial laundry equipment sales and service company. We supply new and refurbished equipment, as well as ancillary items, to hospitals, hotels, resorts, nursing homes, prisons, Laundromats, etc. We also have a large coin-operated division and parts department.

Operating LES allows me the diversity of managing a great group of employees, training customers, designing locations, constructing and/or rebuilding laundry facilities, and doing so within budgets. We focus on proper equipment sizing, correct equipment mixes, professional installations and continuous service after the sale.

Because so many of our customers are financially challenged by the economy, we’re forced to continually look for ways that they can save money. Our biggest challenge is keeping our customers operating safely while maintaining quality with the lowest costs possible, but it’s one we conquer.

Textile/Uniform Rental: David Dersheimer, SITEX Corp.

I am the plant manager for SITEX Corp. in Henderson, Ky. SITEX is a well-established uniform and linen rental company that has been serving customers in Kentucky, Illinois, Tennessee and Indiana for more than 50 years. We provide outstanding image programs for our customers and reference that in our company’s tag line – SITEX, The Image Makers.

I am responsible for the day-to-day production, maintenance, and safety of our Henderson operation. I’ve been with SITEX for six years.

I’ve been in the commercial laundry industry on the production side for 29 years, and have worked for companies that produced from 3 million to 30 million pounds annually. I served one company briefly as a service manager. I have extensive experience in work measurement and production standards, as well as safety.

One of our challenges over the last couple of years has been dealing with the continued increase in the cost of raw materials that go into our end products. With the volatility in the cotton and petroleum markets, we have all seen price increases on our rental textiles as well as processing supplies.

SITEX has been able to maintain operating expenses by carefully researching alternate textile products and operational supplies and procedures. We have been able to offer our customers alternate and, in some cases, better products to suit their needs. I would consider this challenge met to be a success.

I am excited about what 2012 holds for my company and our industry, and I am proud to have been selected to serve on this panel. I hope that my experience and input helps my peers not only meet but exceed their expectations in 2012.

Tomorrow: Introductions to representatives of the consulting services, commercial laundry, and uniforms/workwear manufacturing sectors.