American Laundry News - August 2022

Late News

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The Executive Committee of TRSA’s Board of Directors recently voted to honor Brian O’Neil, president of California Linen Services, Pasadena, with the association’s highest honor: the TRSA Operator Lifetime Achievement Award.

O’Neil will receive the award on Sept. 15 at TRSA’s Annual Awards Dinner, held in conjunction with its Annual Conference in Nashville.

TRSA says O’Neil, 80, has dedicated his career to working in the linen, uniform and facility services industry and continues to lead the staff at California Linen, where 25% of its employees have been with the company for 25 years and another 25% have been for another 10-25 years.

TRSA Chair Noël Richardson, president, Shasta Linen Supply, Sacramento, California, notes that the Executive Committee’s decision, “allows us the pleasure of extending a heartfelt thanks for Brian’s service to the industry.”

Cost control in laundry operations

BY ROBERT HINES AND DAN LEAVY

SAN DIEGO — We’ve all faced a range of challenges over the last 18 months with the supply-chain issues along with the extraordinary increases in textiles, utilities, fuel and wages.

At Emerald, it is important that we invest in opportunities that can help us mitigate the cost impacts that we continue to experience.

Emerald Textiles has strategically deployed capital, right-sized our business in various areas and has been proactively reducing costs that will provide short and long-term positive impacts for our business.

We’ve done this while not wavering from our mission to provide high-quality products and trusted services, helping our customers achieve what matters most: affordable, high-quality service.

BENEFITS OF AUTOMATION

At Emerald, we are continually investing in our facilities, technology, equipment, people and customers. Labor is of the utmost importance as we currently employ nearly 2,500 team members.

In California, we’ve not only experienced

labor shortages, but also year-over-year minimum wage adjustments. However, the minimum wage increase has not solved the issue of employee retention or the ability to hire new employees.

ImageFIRST acquires Edina Laundry Company

KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa. — ImageFIRST, a national provider of linen and laundry services specializing in the healthcare industry, reports that it has acquired Minnesota-based Edina Laundry Company.

This acquisition marks ImageFIRST’s second location in Minnesota.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Edina Laundry Co., founded in 1952, provides commercial rental and laundry services for hospitality and healthcare businesses throughout Minnesota, including the Twin Cities and surrounding areas.

Edina Laundry Co., located in St. Louis Park, will continue to

Linen Inventory Assessment

A snapshot of linen inventory at Goodwill Laundry & Linen in Milwaukee.

Continuous Process Quality

How

Panel of Experts

In this issue, the experts share strategies for replacing a retiring, valuable employee.

The Newspaper of Record for Laundry & Linen Management

National healthcare linen provider expands laundry processing capabilities in the Twins Cities with latest acquisition, adding second location in Minnesota

O’Neil named TRSA Operator Lifetime Achievement Award winner

(Image licensed by Ingram Image)

Edina Laundry Company associates have been retained by ImageFIRST with its acquisition of the St. Louis Park, Minnesota, operation. (Photo: ImageFIRST)

O’Neil

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — TRSA, the association for linen, uniform and facility services, will host its 109th Annual Conference on Sept. 13-15 at The Loews Vanderbilt Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee.

The association says the conference will connect industry leaders, allowing an opportunity to mix professional development and industry updates with social networking and music.

TRSA adds that the event will make the most of Music City, including a group tour of the Grand Ole Opry, mini musical concerts during the conference breaks, and the spouse/partner musical history tour of Studio B Recording Studio and the Country Music Hall of Fame.

The 109th Annual Conference’s extensive agenda will offer general and breakout sessions, as well as Industry Awards recognition, including Operator and Supplier Partner Lifetime Achievement Awards and Volunteer Leadership Awards.

TRSA says attendees will be inspired and entertained during keynote presentations scheduled throughout the conference.

Examples include:

• The Stories Behind the Songs: Chronicling the journey through music and narrative.

Charles Esten, actor, singer, songwriter and entertainer will bring his unique storytelling perspective sharing experiences through narratives and song.

• Wherever I Wind Up: My quest for truth authenticity and the perfect knuckleball.

Nashville native R. A. Dickey, former MLB pitcher and bestselling New York Times author,

will share some of his life’s obstacles, including his hardscrabble childhood and overcoming challenges in his pitching career.

General Session topics will include:

• Bulletproof Selling: Building Sales Systems in the Textile Rental Industry, Shawn Rhodes, speaker and business systems engineer.

• The Elements of Value, John Brandt CEO, The MPI Group.

• Legislative Update with Kevin Schwalb, vice president of government relations, TRSA. In addition, the conference will offer four breakout sessions:

• The Value Proposition of an Effective Training System, Ian Bigelow and Keith Ware.

• Three Things You Can Do to Enhance Trust and Teamwork in your Organization, Dan Gondor, owner, president, Strategic In/Sight Partners (formerly SixD Consulting).

• Economic and Industry

Update, Robert W. Baird Facility & Industrial Services Research Team and Andrew Wittmann CFA, director, senior research analyst.

• Learn, Start, & Open: Carbon Zero Implications for TRSA, Jeff Strahan Ph.D. director of research compliance and sustainability, Milliken & Co.

During The State of the Association and annual membership meeting, TRSA leaders will provide an annual update on the association’s finances and member-driven initiatives. Attendees will participate in the election of new Officers and Directors and gain insight into the development of TRSA certification programs, including in-person and virtual events, information-sharing opportunities and industry-specific training.

Registration is open and attendees will save $100 if they register before Sept. 13.

View the in-depth session descriptions and register at trsa.org/ annual conference.

Publisher

Charles Thompson

Phone: 312-361-1680

E-Mail: cthompson@ ATMags.com

Associate Publisher/ National Sales Director

Donald Feinstein

Phone: 312-361-1682

E-Mail: dfeinstein@ ATMags.com

Editorial Director

Bruce Beggs

Phone: 312-361-1683

E-Mail: bbeggs@ ATMags.com

Editor

Matt Poe

Phone: 866-942-5694

E-Mail: mpoe@ ATMags.com

Production Manager

Mathew Pawlak

Digital Media Director

Nathan Frerichs

Phone: 312-361-1681

E-Mail: nfrerichs@ ATMags.com

Advisory Board

David Barbe

Janice Ayers Davis • Nick Fertig Deana Griffin • Cecil Lee Edward McCauley Jim Slatcher

HONG KONG — Texcare Asia & China Laundry Expo (TXCA & CLE) is well-known as the leading trade fair in Asia for the laundry and textile care industry, organized by the China Laundry Association and the China Light Industry Machinery Association, as well as Messe Frankfurt (Shanghai) Co. Ltd. and Unifair Exhibition Service Co. Ltd.

Originally scheduled to be

held in Shanghai, the 2022 edition will now be held in Ningbo, China, at the Ningbo International Conference & Exhibition Center, Sept. 28-30.

Organizers expect the event to host many local and international industry players.

Industry recovery is a key theme of this year’s fair following several postponements caused by the pandemic. The last edition in

2020 brought together 14,413 visitors and 122 exhibitors, with positive reviews given by many of the attendees at the time.

Organizers say exhibitors showcased products that focused on automation and intelligence, reflecting global developments seen in the industry amid the pandemic.

Over the past decade, China’s laundry industry products have reached international standards, and good evaluations have given the fair’s exhibitors excellent export opportunities.

TXCA & CLE 2022 organizers expect to welcome more than 250 exhibitors and more than 20,000 industry professionals and buyers.

In attendance will be specialized suppliers with a range of products, showcasing machinery, systems and accessories; chemicals and consumables; energy-saving and environmental protection; digital and intelligent solutions; leather care products; as well as cleaning machinery, tools and chemicals.

Main Phone: 312-361-1700 Fax: 312-361-1685

www.americanlaundrynews.com

American Laundry News (ISSN 1091-9201) is published monthly. Subscription prices, payment in advance: U.S. 1 year $50.00; 2 years $100.00. Foreign, 1 year $120.00; 2 years $240.00. Single copies: U.S. $10.00; Foreign $20.00. Published by American Trade Magazines LLC, 650 West Lake Street, Suite 320, Chicago, IL 60661. Periodicals postage paid at Chicago, IL, and at additional mailing offices.

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© Copyright AMERICAN TRADE MAGAZINES LLC, 2022. Printed in U.S.A. No part of this publication may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher or his representative. American Laundry News does not endorse, recommend or guarantee any article, product, service or information found within. Opinions expressed are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the views of American Laundry News or its staff. While precautions have been taken to ensure the accuracy of the magazine’s contents at time of publication, neither the editors, publishers nor its agents can accept responsibility for damages or injury which may arise therefrom.

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I ’m not making any great revela tion by writing that today’s busi ness environment is challenging.

Supply-chain issues, inflation, fuel prices, labor concerns … it feels like everything is stacked against businesses succeeding.

I’m sure you’ve felt the pinch at the pumps, on the “docks,” in human resources, all throughout your laundry operation.

Hopefully, this issue of American Laundry News can offer some ideas and strategies to help alleviate some of these conditions.

For example, on page 1 you likely noticed the main feature on cost control in laundries. In that piece, officials from Emerald

The Editor’s Desk MATT POE

Textiles share how they’ve worked to control costs while maintaining quality and customer service.

Maintaining quality is key to

keeping customers and staying in business. On page 10, learn what Doug Story of UNX-Christeyns shared during an Association for Linen Management educational session on conducting quality control in automated, high-speed plants.

Then on page 8, read about how Goodwill Laundry & Linen in Milwaukee keeps track and inven tories its linen (can’t keep costs down if the goods go missing).

In the rest of the issue, you’ll find articles on acquisitions, trade shows and summits, equipment purchase results, and more.

As always, we’re here to help you keep it clean, everybody!

Rebuilding your plant operations teams post-pandemic

As the world starts to return to a more normal state following the impact of the pandemic over the past two years, many are finding it more difficult than ever to rebuild their teams.

Many companies found they could out source office operations, have certain func tions work from home (for likely a long time yet to come) and really scale back on people in the office environment.

Not so with plant operations teams! These jobs—sorting linen, hanging uniforms, filling orders, to name just a few—those jobs can’t be moved out, not now, not ever. But during the past two years, many plant employees were laid off, furloughed only to be laid off later and have moved on to other jobs.

The industry is finding itself in a feeding frenzy for talent across all types of jobs, and in competition with other industries as the labor pool has seemingly dried up.

Key areas and special efforts that will help during your rebuild ing effort are outlined below.

be led by local leadership. Existing employees have been retained as part of the transaction.

“We are excited to partner with a national organization that shares our values,” says Lee Stotts, President of Edina Laundry Co.

“It was essential that Edina Laundry remain focused on cus tomer service, and we are confident that ImageFIRST will continue to meet and exceed our customers’ needs.”

Existing Edina Laundry cus tomers will now be serviced by ImageFIRST as it continues to grow its customer base—expanding its linen and laundry capabilities and creating more job opportunities in Minnesota, the company says.

“We look forward to building on the success that Edina Laundry and its team have achieved over their 70-year history,” says ImageFIRST President and CEO Jim Cashman.

“The addition of Edina to our

central region will enable us to streamline operations while con tinuing to provide clients with world-class service.”

This acquisition marks the national laundry provider’s second location in Minnesota, follow ing the recent acquisition of Eden Prairie, Minnesota-based Elite Healthcare Linen.

With more than 10 acquisitions

within the past year, ImageFIRST says it has achieved significant growth, making it the largest national linen and laundry provider special izing in the healthcare industry.

This strengthened national cov erage also supports ImageFIRST’s expanding national account division as it grows its service offerings to more multi-location accounts.

Furloughed and laid off a few people, huh? This is the sim plest of all solutions—call them back! Give ’em a ring and see if you can convince them to return. Don’t lose that trained talented workforce you had once upon a time. Consider bridging their time away to cover improved benefits as an incentive to return.

When you do bring new (or returning) people in make it a BIG DEAL! Plan ahead for their onboarding experience to be flawless! Remain in contact with them during the days leading up to their start. Send them welcome flowers, gift cards for a family meal out somewhere nice, and some company swag to get them back into the mood. Create pride in their workplace before they ever set foot in the building.

A flawless onboarding experience is key—have all their firstday materials ready—benefits packages, hiring paperwork, hand books, uniforms, and work outfits, and plan a nice lunch for new employees on their first day.

Don’t forget to reward and recognize those employees who stuck it out with you through the pandemic. Many of these were already or became very well cross-trained in many jobs and tasks through that time.

Take advantage of that expertise that was developed and buddy them up with a new employee. Make trainers out of them and engage them in the process of bringing on a new employee suc cessfully. And don’t hesitate to reward them for it.

Make sure your management team, not just the shift supervi sors, rally around these new employees. Make them feel at home, keep them informed on company news and assure they know if they are doing the job to your satisfaction.

Shift supervisors are incredibly important but incredibly busy, so it can’t hurt for the GM, service manager or others to frequently walk the plant and build relationships with the plant employees.

During the pandemic, many operators turned to automation. This may be a shock to some returning employees, but with labor rates escalating among a decreasing labor pool, automation may be the only choice for some jobs.

Continue to assess what tasks can be automated and what that will do to help your operation, and don’t be afraid to bring in your plant employees to the conversation.

Above all, they know better than anyone what tasks are repetitive to the point that automation may be the best choice. Protect their employment—turnover will happen naturally soon enough—but continue to find ways to reduce the manual labor input to your product line.

The Bottom Line: We need our plant employees, and they need to be employed. Just make sure to cherish them from Day One (and sooner for new hires).

Tommy Cocanougher is director-operations engineering solutions for Cintas Corp. Western North America and vendor relations rep for European suppliers. He directs engineering, reliability, quality and safety initiatives across 200-plus industrial sites across North America. He has more than 28 years of experience in the industrial laundry industry.

From

Edina Laundry Company, founded in 1952, provides commercial rental and laundry services for hospitality and healthcare businesses throughout Minnesota. (Photo: ImageFIRST)

COLUMNIST AT LARGE Tommy Cocanougher

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So use YellowGo to keep your customers happy and keep them coming back.

Potential employees are looking for far more than minimum wage, which until last year was historical ly accepted, and have many oppor tunities to secure employment.

Emerald Textiles’ effort to miti gate labor challenges is through continued deployment of capital that will help reduce the number of employees required to operate.

We have deployed over $40 mil lion of capital over the past three years, including $15 million in 2022, continuing to make signifi cant investments in our business.

These investments and automa tion reduce the dependency on labor as well as create efficiencies to maintain the excellent service levels that our customers realize.

Investing in automating our pro cesses ensures we consistently meet our high productivity demands, create future sustainability and assurance of supply, and save on our reliance on natural resources.

Maximizing the amount of linen that is consistently sent into each washing load through our continuous batch washers (CBW) reduces water consumption by

50% when compared to conven tional washers.

These CBWs utilize far less hard manual labor to lift or move the laundry into position, which is allaround better for our employees and their safety.

Automation through new machinery and technologies allows us to work in better ways pro tecting our employees by offering ergonomic ways to do the job and has the added benefit of increasing employee satisfaction.

Additionally, we are protecting our high-grade healthcare fabrics through a well-managed, precise processing method and pre-set hygienically clean standards.

Hands-on training and creating a positive and friendly work envi ronment create happy employees, which, in turn, increases produc tivity and improves quality.

Automation and employee sat isfaction are the main ingredients. However, tracking efficiencies manually or through a system such as Spindle can be a great benefit.

It’s important plants are man aged by the numbers while always looking for ways to improve through data analysis.

ENERGY COSTREDUCTION STRATEGIES

Several of our plants implement

an overhead rail system technology which opens up floor space and improves product flow through the plant.

Our Los Angeles facility is cur rently in the process of converting to this gravity-fed system, sched uled to be complete in Q3.

Also, by utilizing CBW washers and water and heat reclamation methods, Emerald contributes to a greener environment through a reuse process all while maintain ing the highest infection control standards.

Each facility is different depend ing on the labor force and peak hours of operation. We have had success adjusting plant hours in some of our facilities to help the community save on precious energy.

We’re currently exploring the option for solar that would pro vide huge savings in energy usage and utility costs.

We are continuously replacing lighting systems with LED and adding motion sensors in areas that have the highest opportunity to preserve energy when areas of the facility are not in use.

WORKING WITH SUPPLIERS

Keeping vendors “honest” and competitive can help manage costs. Utilizing multiple vendors

for certain services, such as linen, parts and chemicals, can lead to tremendous savings

In selecting vendors and pro grams, we look for assurance of supply to guarantee we always have linen for our customers.

We value higher-quality prod ucts with high-grade fabrics, which creates overall savings by ensuring less loss and damage.

If you source higher-quality fab rics that may cost a little more and ensure proper use in their processing and handling, you are saving in the long run by preserv ing high-quality products to their fullest extent.

Another key area of focus where we help both parties greatly reduce costs is through proper linen man agement and partnering with our customers allows us to control overordering, order/PAR manage ment, overstocking, etc.

We work closely with all of our customers to make sure they have the right products in the right place, focusing on the right quan tities. Not only does this allow us to maintain consistency in our plants, but it also directly correlates to a reduction in usage that our accounts realize.

Through proper linen manage ment, Emerald has seen customers save 30% of their linen costs. Not

only is this an initial saving once implemented, but as maintained, it becomes a year-over-year savings.

REDUCING DELIVERY COSTS

Route optimization is often overlooked as an incredible oppor tunity to save money on the cost of linen delivery.

Reviewing routes, tracking through GPS and daily logs can be instrumental in achieving incred ible savings.

Other options would include routing so vehicles are not operat ing during high traffic hours and reducing the required number of deliveries per week.

THE COST CYCLE

Costs are cyclical, but one thing we can always be certain of is that they will always rise over the long run.

We should be prepared, not just for today but for the future, to continue to explore additional streamlining and cost reduction when and where possible while keeping in mind quality for our customers.

Hines is vice president of sales and marketing and Dan Leavy is COO of Emerald Textiles in San Diego.

Exhibitors of rental and other industry-related services will also be showcasing their businesses.

Not only does this wide product variety cater to the purchasing demands of buyers from Eastern China, but the diversity also serves to attract industry players from around Asia to the fairground, say organizers.

Visitors encompass represen tatives from laundry companies, commercial laundry services and

stores; leather and footwear care stores; hotels and catering insti tutions; hospitals and nursing homes; railway and airline depart ments; government; property management, housekeeping and cleaning companies; and many more.

Supported by about 100 domes tic and international associations, there is much to look forward to at Texcare Asia & China Laundry Expo, according to organizers.

In addition to the fair itself, several high-quality concurrent events and activities will be set up at the expected 260,000 square feet of exhibition space at the Ningbo International Conference & Exhibition Center.

Robert

Texcare Asia & China Laundry Expo organizers expect to welcome more than 250 exhibitors and more than 20,000 industry professionals and buyers to the Ningbo International Conference & Exhibition Center. (Photo: Messe Frankfurt (Shanghai) Co. Ltd)

(Image licensed by Ingram Image)

(Image licensed by Ingram Image)

Essential program: Linen inventory assessment

BY MATT POE, EDITOR

CHICAGO — Danny Harris is director of linen services for Goodwill Laundry & Linen in Milwaukee, which processes more than 13 million pounds annually for healthcare, military and clinics throughout Wisconsin and Northern Illinois.

The operation runs both rent al and customer-owned goods (COG) in the healthcare market, from bedding to isolation gowns, from scrubs to surgical packs.

“When I arrived here, we were 100% COG, and I established a rental program because clearly there’s a lot of rental potential out there for new customers,” he says.

With the mix of rental and COG, and the different types and styles of linen the laundry pro cesses, it’s important that Harris’s operation keeps track of all the goods that get processed so noth ing gets lost along the way.

To accomplish this, the laundry has put a linen inventory pro gram in place.

INVENTORY SYSTEM

The system the Goodwill laun dry uses for its inventory could be called a “hybrid” of digital and manual.

“I utilize software but it’s lim ited, so I do have to do some manual checking,” Harris shares.

“We use our software basically to check and balance, if you will, on what was ordered. We look at bill rates that are sent out, as well, and look at the shortages.

“Plus, once a week I have my operations manager or my pro duction manager go back through the rental area to make sure that what we have on hand is what we believe we have on hand if we need to make any orders. That’s what we base it on.”

One of the challenges Harris faces in terms of linen inventory is replacement costs.

“On a rental program, you’re going to have replacement costs typically built into that rental program,” he says.

“Replacement costs have jumped so much in the last six months that it’s not quite double, what they were six months ago. So, if I had 40,000 pounds go out in the last month under a rental program, typically I would do 10 to 12 cents per pound on a new order for that month. Now rental replacement rates are 16, 17, 18 cents a pound.

“So, it’s become incredibly dif ficult to support that without hav ing to consider going back to cus tomers and raising rates, which is unfortunate, right?”

Harris does use his hybrid soft ware/manual system to help cus tomers track linens.

“With our software that we use, (customers) know how many bath towels they get; they know how many blankets they get, all the linen we send them back, this is what you get,” he shares. “Now, we do not count the soiled. We just do a soil-to-clean variance comparison, so they know that roughly what you’re getting back is what you sent in. As long as it’s within those acceptable percent age rates, then we’re good.”

Goodwill also helps with inventories for its customers twice a year.

“They count on-site, and, obvi ously, we don’t have to worry about that,” he says. “We offer assistance with on-site counting, but typically we just have to count what we have on-site, which is pretty simple as we do that every day. We wash everything and pro cess it all and send it all back.”

Harris says that he is pushing his operation forward into using radio-frequency identification (RFID) to help with linen tracking and inventory in the coming year.

“It wouldn’t be for every linen item,” he points out. “It would only be for scrubs and isolation gowns. Scrubs are your highest lost item in a hospital, so I would use it for that.

“Not only would I use it for my rental programs but I would use it for my COGs. I would put that cost in there because it’s pretty common for COG customers to believe that their laundry is losing them, and scrubs are no different.

“We want to make sure that they know we received all these scrubs in, and here’s what’s com ing back out. So it’s a real good way to cover us to make sure that we’re doing the right thing and to assure them.”

Harris says he would use RFID in isolation gowns because the prod uct is so popular lately with ongo ing pandemic health concerns.

“It’s a lot of manual labor with the grid marking of isolation gowns,” he says. “Most of them I put into bags. It’s really easy to do 25 to a bag, a plastic bag, but I do have some new customers com ing in that want me to fold them, for which I purchased specific small-piece folders just to take care of folding isolation gowns, which are probably difficult.

“But having an RFID for that would save me huge amounts of time in grid marking and check ing to make sure that the 75 uses that isolation gown is supposed to go through happen while still being productive.”

INVENTORY PROGRAM BENEFITS

For any plantwide or custom

er-wide inventory program, there will be benefits along with chal lenges.

For Harris, the biggest benefit of a linen assessment program is to know, clearly, what product is on hand.

“You need to know what you have on hand, whether that be for your COG customer or your rental program,” he shares. “That is by far the biggest thing. So you can identify losses, you can iden tify processes that might not be being met. That’s probably about your main benefit.”

The biggest challenge? The process is labor-intensive.

“If you’re going to do a full inventory, it’s labor-intensive,” Harris says. “And when you’re COG, such as myself, it’s typically okay, as long as we’re caught up.

“But if we’re behind, if one of my tunnels has gone down or if I have an ironer that’s gone down and I’m sitting on linen for longer than I really want to, that becomes challenging, it’s labor-intensive, it costs me a little more money than I’d like operationally.”

STEPS TO IMPLEMENTATION

When it comes to a laundry operation looking at the first steps to implementing a linen inven tory program, Harris goes back to the benefits of using RFID.

“RFID is the way to go,” he reit erates. “Now, that is a financial commitment that not every laun dry wants to do.

“However, in the research I’ve done and the vendors that I have reached out to and discussed RFID programs with, it pays for itself, and then some, because you’re not only going to be able to track loss for your high-loss items like scrubs but you’ll know spe cifically what items are going to a customer and not returning.

“So you can, therefore, initiate some charges if they’re sitting on linen. We know it hasn’t come back to us, so either you lost it or you’re just sitting on it. I think RFID is just the way to go when it

comes to that.”

Harris says that scheduling and conducting linen inventories need to be done properly to get the most accurate data possible.

“It’s time consuming because, first off, it has to be a snapshot, right? You don’t want to count the same item twice, and we pro cess things on the same day,” he points out. “So, if I send it back today and they just happen to grab it and put it back in soil— within two days, you’re going to see the same linen go through your facility.

“You have to do a snapshot, and it has to be coordinated. So everyone in the hospital, you have to count every area in the hos pital. You have to stop the soil pull or coordinate it around the soil pull from the many different locations within the facility so you can mark all of that soiled linen to be counted.”

At the laundry, Harris says the process is easier because with COG the operation is going to process it all and count only the soil that is marked.

“So the marked soiled comes in, and this is what I’m counting and nothing else,” he shares. “And that could come in with other soiled that come in later, depend ing on how efficient they were at the hospital to pull this. So, you’re relying on a lot of different mov ing entities and the coordination of it is challenging for them.”

Without RFID, linen inventory comes down to manual count ing either on the soil side or the clean side.

“You can do it by pounds,” Harris points out. “You can sepa rate it all out. We’re going to sepa rate it when we wash it anyway, so I can give you a wash report and say, today I gave you, or I washed, 14 pockets of blankets at 100 pounds, or I can give you the exact pounds. It might be anywhere between 93 and 105 pounds.

“Based on the pounds per what each blanket weighs, we can give you how many blankets we put

through during that inventory period, that snapshot.”

He says that most linen soft ware today can provide this type of information. As long as it’s not a mixed cart of linen that goes across the scale, the software knows that if it’s a bath blanket that weighs 1.3 pounds and the tare weight is this, here’s how many blankets are there.

Laundry operators can accom plish this through the tunnel by wash weight, or they can do it by clean, dry weight at the scale, which typically the scale software will count.

“There are a lot of manual ways you can get through that, and the worst one, obviously, is physi cally counting every one of them,” laughs Harris.

INFORMATION IN ACTION

The big question, once a linen inventory program is put in place and information starts rolling in, is what to do with the data. What kind of action and follow-up needs to take place?

“That’s a good question, and some of my customers do an inventory because it needs to be done and they’re very flippant with it,” shares Harris. “It’s not important to them or their EVS, and this is just what they’re sup posed to do because they’re sup posed to do it twice a year.”

He shares that Goodwill has a customer service manager that is very involved with customers when linen inventory takes place to gauge the level of interest and to follow up after the information goes back to the customer.

Was the inventory what they thought it was going to be, wheth er good or bad? If it wasn’t what the customer thought it was going to be, how can Goodwill make it better next time? What can the laundry do to take the steps neces sary to make the customer’s inven tory what it is supposed to be?

“That’s kind of our partner ship, and a lot of times I get involved with that beyond my customer service manager to make sure that we’re doing every thing we can, and also so they see the support,” Harris says.

“I want a partnership, not just a customer relationship, for longterm. Most of our contracts are more than 20 years, so we want to make sure that they under stand that we’re there for them to make any of their laundry or linen issues our issues. We tackle this together.

“So, we will typically go on-site and go over their results and go over ways and opportunities for us to improve, whether it be on our end or their end.”

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Laundry director shares how his operation inventories goods to the advantage of the company and its customers

Quality laundry in continuous process environments

BY MATT POE, EDITOR

GREENVILLE, S.C. — To Doug Story, president of UNXChristeyns’ LL Division, laundry operations today are manufactur ing facilities.

“You have heard me say this before, and I keep pushing on it, because we are now manufactur ing,” he says. “We bring a raw material in, dirty linen. We process it, and we send it out the door.

“In today’s laundry operation we have now moved to that point where we are continuous process. Think about the linen. The only time a human being touches a linen is when they’re pulling out the linen at the soil sort.

“No one touches it, depending on how long it takes, and then it comes out and goes to a robot that carries it and drops it into the facility. So, we are now a continu ous manufacturing process, for the most part.”

Story shares that a continuous production process is consistent, constant and uninterrupted.

In manufacturing, a continu ous process is a method that is used by manufacturing or pro duction companies to churn out the greatest quantity of a product over the least amount of time.

This is consistent, constant and uninterrupted—in contrast to batch processing. In laundry, Story says the operation of a tun nel washer is the example of a continuous process, similar to the operations that take place in manufacturing plants.

The question is how does an operator ensure quality control on a continuous process?

“Do we want the customer to be our quality control directory?”

Story asks.

He explored these questions and more during the Association for Linen Management (ALM) educational session “High Speed.

High Quality. No Problem.”

CONTINUOUS PROCESS QUALITY

Story says that the key to main taining quality goods in a con tinuous laundry process is by measuring. The well-known say ing in the industry is, “If it is not measured, it doesn’t happen.”

“How can you talk about how good your plant is doing if you do not really know?” he says. “Do you really know? Most of these large plants are shoveling stuff through them so fast. Do you really know, or at least have an estimate, of how your quality is doing?

“The faster and faster you go, the less likely you’re going to know.”

But how can a laundry be sure with systems that change on the whim of equipment or on the demands of the facilities/custom ers it serves?

Set standards, says Story. For example, what is an acceptable stain? “Is it the size of your thumb print? The size of a quarter?

“Those are the kinds of differ ent standards you can set within your process.”

Then, collect, measure and interpret data about the operation relating to the standards. He does note that these suggestions can be put into place for the washerextractor batch process.

He says the quality control pro cess for continuous manufactur ing follows this basic pattern of examination:

• The raw materials go into the system.

• Check at the first mix point.

• Check at the middle mix point.

• Check at the endpoint.

• Check at the final product cure point.

Automation has replaced many of the manual processes that were used in the past, but laundry

operations still need to engage a quality control process.

Story says the quality control process for “continuous clean fab ric manufacturing” should look some like this:

• The raw materials go into the system—soil sort. Too often, according to Story, this is simply dirty linen being sent through for processing. However, the “raw materi als” need to be examined for damage (tears, tape, dye, etc.) and should be sorted into their own classification as these are actually “out-ofspecification raw material.”

• Check at the first mix point. Titrations done of the early stages of wash process to meet specifications. Source water analysis. Look at tem peratures, load sizes, water levels, time and wash for mula selection.

• Check at the middle mix point. Further titrations to meet specifications. Again, examine temperature, water levels and time.

Check at the endpoint. Final titrations and sampling of temperature, water levels, time and finishing pH.

• Check at the final product cure point. Finishing is where most operations lose control over their quality control as the production speeds are pushed higher, Story points out.

“Touch and eyeballs” were the final stage of quality control in laundry operations for many years, but those days are going away, he says.

Story goes on to say that there is a whole science of quality control methods of continuous systems in most systems of this type, which involves some sort of automated or physical sampling, and then statistical analysis of the product(s) being produced.

Quality assurance and control in the finishing function of a laundry will have to follow some sort of automated or physical sampling process.

At this point, automated sys tems are being introduced but in very rudimentary stages of devel opment, so physical sampling and statistical analysis must be the primary methodology used by the linen services industry.

Are there easy physical sam pling options for laundry options? Story says yes, offering sugges tions for static audits and con tinuous audits.

For static audits, he shares two kinds. First is a timed finished sample.

For this, at least two bags or carts of different colors are inject ed into the system to collect ran dom or targeted goods for quality control static audit checks. Bags or carts are emptied, and linen evaluated for quality.

The second is return and inplant rejects. Rejects internally and from the customer are evalu ated and measured. Bags or carts are emptied and linen evaluated for quality the same as the time finished sample.

When it comes to continuous audits, in-line sampling takes place, shares Story. Simply put, linen samples are taken as the process is working.

For example, with flatwork, blanket folders, etc., a continuous observed sampling (kinetic audit) takes place at the interface between ironer and older or spreader and folder. Classifications of samples include:

As automation and speed grow in laundry operations, quality control becomes even more important

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Good (no stains, contamina tion or damage observed).

• Bad (opposite of good).

• Wrinkled (item misfed and too crumpled to read, could also indicate issues with spreader or ironer).

A continuous audit involves a set process on a timed basis—one time per shift, day, week, etc. An ideal collection sample is when the number of good items is 100 or larger.

Finally, Story adds that as data is collected, a report on the type of stain can be recorded as well.

“The more data you collect, the more accurate it becomes, the more indicative of the system it becomes,” he says.

QUALITATIVE AUDIT: CONSISTENCY MEASURE

Story shares that consistency measure is a process to qualita tively look at the end product and judge the consistency of the product being produced.

He shares a “rule” his mentor in the laundry business had: “If you are producing gray or dull linen make sure you are always produc ing gray or dull linen. Do not produce gray linen on Monday morning and then white linen on Monday afternoon. It will not bode well for long-term customer retention.”

The consistency measure can be taken at three locations:

• As the towels, sheets, etc. are moving down the convey or belt from the folder and stackers.

• On the carts where the linens are stored for shipment to the customer.

On shelves at the customer’s location.

How does consistency measure work? Story uses a stack of 10 towels moving along a conveyor or on a rack as an example. Count the towels and record the number of towels among the stack that vary in color from most towels in the stack.

If in the stack of 10 towels there are eight white towels and two gray towels, the consistency mea sure for that stack is 8. Or, in the stack of 10 towels, there are eight gray towels and two white towels, the measure of that stack is eight.

Story points out that consis tency measure is not a measure of quality; it is a measure of the consistency of the production process. He says that when per forming a consistency measure of an item (towels, sheets, etc.), mea sure at least 100 of each class of item per testing effort. The more data collected the more indicative of the operation it becomes.

“In a nutshell, it will be the ‘canary in the coal mine’ that will head off big issues in a continuous operation,” he says.

Some benefits that can result from consistency measure, Story shares, include improved opera tions in soil sort, modification of wash formulas to attack unique

stains found on fabrics and edu cating customers on procedures to limit abuse of linens.

What have some operations found by using the consistency measure?

One plant’s consistency mea sure dropped due to the inventory they had put in production from a plant they had just bought out, Story shares. Their standard linen was a blended linen while the plant they bought used a nonblended 100% fiber. The variation between the two fiber types drove down the consistency measure.

Another operation improved its number by adding an extra

purge function between the col ored goods being processed fol lowed by white goods, he says. This eliminated some slight dye transfer that negatively affected the data.

Finally, Story shares that an operation improved its customer relations by adapting consistency measure audits at the customer’s facility to gauge its overall quality and image with the customer.

“Again, in a nutshell, the more data that you collect, the more indicative of your operation,” he shares. “Keep collecting the data and the more you put together, the more accurate your picture of

your own plant is going to be, but then again it gives you an oppor tunity to compare it to other folks in the industry.”

THE FUTURE OF AUTOMATION

Story says that the laundry industry has seen the growth of automation, and this will con tinue with each innovation.

“Is a number greater than 400 PPOH possible? Probably,” he says.

Understanding and developing quality assurance (quality plan ning) and quality control (imple menting a quality assurance plan)

is a growing issue as “touches” and “eyeballs” continue to drop within the operations laundry manufac turing of today and tomorrow, Story says. These are the first steps in addressing these issues to be followed by automated systems with even greater accuracy than currenlty available.

“Remember, we are all in an industry that uses tangible pro cesses to produce an intangible result, so no matter what we do, our industry’s quality is generally in the eye and opinion of the user and our systems will have to be adaptable to that environment,” he concludes.

PANEL OF EXPERTS

Replacing retiring long-term, trusted employees

This can be a tough subject given the difficulty in our cur rent workforce in recruiting and onboarding new talent.

That said, I am a firm believer in cross-training throughout an organization. If you are trying to recruit to fill a skilled position of a retiring staff member, it is going to be very difficult to do so with enough time to train and retain the knowledge and experi ence you are losing.

If you take a proactive approach, though, and share knowledge and skills throughout your teams, you are better pre pared for events such as retire ment, sudden sickness, etc.

That said, the sharing of information and skills across team members can lead to addi tional benefits as they better understand your processes; they can also contribute to process improvement while contribut ing to and improving the overall customer experience.

over their years of service.

You could also consider hav ing them mentor one or more of your better employees. You could also ask this employee to put into writing a playbook of what they’ve learned to share with your entire team. Whatever you can do to have that employee share their insights will be helpful.

You also need to start looking for their replacement. Perhaps this person knows a good candi date. Perhaps your other employ ees know someone.

I would offer an incentive to anyone who suggests a good candidate that you hire and stays employed for a period of time (usually three months). Consider a going-away event for this employee when they do retire.

Step 3: Now that everyone is on the same page. Have the replace ment start shadowing the retiree. They need to know not only WHAT the retiree knows, but they also need to know how the retiree does things.

They also need to know who the retiree knows and their contacts for getting things done. If you keep notes on this activity, it can be useful if the replacement leaves or doesn’t work out.

Step 4: Every four months have a quick meeting with each person one at a time first then with each other. Find out how things are pro gressing. Concentrate on areas that may be progressing slower than the others.

that their company actually cares about success in the long term and cares about them. Many times retired employees will let you know when they are ready to be left alone.

Step 6: Check in with the replacement every few months, at least, and ask them how they are doing. If you need to call the retir ee to ask for input or questions, most will be happy to help. Nobody likes to feel like they have been forgotten, employed or otherwise. Before calling or e-mail ing anyone not on duty, make sure they are okay with it. There are some people who want to get away for good but most will appreciate you still thinking of them.

My department, being small, has not one of my origi nally inherited people left in it. Attrition happens. In today’s labor market, people are being promised the greenest of pas tures to jump ship.

On the engineering side, it is hard to find people willing to make the investment in time to learn the trade. Heck, it has become hard to find someone to apply for any position in this current environment.

If you have some time to plan (e.g., an employee announces they are retiring in 18 months), there exists the opportunity to have other bodies shadow this person. It would be a really good idea to make sure you under stand their job.

A more challenging issue is the two-week notice, or, God for bid, a death. Now you only have time to realize how prepared, or ill-prepared, you are to see this person’s duties are fulfilled with minimum impact on others.

The best companies in the world, with the best pay, best break room, and best atmosphere, must deal with retirement and death.

In my time running my department, I can think of two painful and stress-inducing examples of a valued member divorcing the machine.

The most recent one was a person who was promoted from within the company and invested in considerably—great learner, reli able, trustworthy and capable. He thanked me for the training when he turned in his notice so he could take a job making more money. I was sad. He was my horse.

L

ong-time, trusted employees are often the backbone of your business. Losing one can cause issues if not properly prepared for their departure.

I would first thank your longtime employee for their service and ask them if they can help with con veying their knowledge and experi ence to your other employees.

I would then have this employee work with your other employees to share their knowledge and expertise. Have them work with all your employees to ease the transi tion and pass on their knowledge. Have that person share their insights of what they’ve learned

Step 1: Since it is very late in the game to groom a replacement, you need to sit down with the pro spective retiree and decide who the replacement will be.

Step 2: Once you have a candi date lined up you need to let them know what the plan is.

If it is not going to work out, it is best to discover it early. Also, the one-on-one meetings can some times give you a little different pic ture than the group meeting.

Step 5: The employees need to know that management is support ive and willing to help in any way they can. The reason is that it is an investment in the company’s future and the employee’s future.

This goes for the retiree as well. They are an important asset oth erwise you would not be going to these lengths to replace them. Even after retirement they can help with questions, part-time fill-in if needed, or at least let them know they have not been forgotten.

This is a good example for the remaining employees to have faith

Our employees, whether you are a manager or an owner, are our biggest assets, but also our biggest liabilities.

When you have a person who has proven their ability and value combined with the loyalty of time, well, it is a sobering feel ing when they announce their upcoming departure.

I was also frustrated that the company invested financially, and I invested time, to create his path to another venue. A lot of people are jumping ship for what they see as greener pastures. With the labor market being so competitive, there exist many “over the top” desperation offers. This, too, shall pass.

At the end of the day, the sun will rise after any of us die. Sometimes, as my owner has reminded me, it shines a little brighter. Cross-train when and where you can, and try to remember that laundry isn’t can cer or combat.

As tough as transition and change can be, all voids will be filled.

“I have a long-time, trusted employee who’s planning to retire this year. I’m concerned about losing that experience with today’s labor market. What steps can I take to smooth the transition and get the right person on the job?”

Healthcare Laundry

William Muse United Hospital Services, Indianapolis, Ind. Hotel/Motel/ Resort Laundry Kelly Reynolds Sea Island Acquisitions, Sea Island, Ga.

Chemicals Supply

John Schafer Diversey, Fort Mill, S.C.

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L osing a valuable long-term employee to retirement will defi nitely present challenges, but before we address them, congratulations on keeping a valuable employee long enough for them to retire!

This is a happy story at its core and deserves celebration. Definitely involve the impending retiree in the game plan moving forward, as they will be able to supply pertinent information as you begin to search for a suitable replacement.

Hopefully, they can provide some valuable insight into a possible replacement from within the ranks of your current employees or even someone they might be familiar with outside of the organization.

Once you’ve decided on some one to hire, do your best to work with your retiree to properly onboard and intentionally train the new employee.

It’s also a great time to sit down and review the position and formally outline the job duties and responsibilities of the position so there is no confusion about what the new employee’s responsibilities are as they begin their work in a new company.

This not only benefits you going forward, but also helps to ease the transition from the retiree to the new kid on the block and provides the new hire with an actual list of required duties and skills and reduces ten sion during the transition.

If possible, keep your retiring employee on a brief retainer for a few months so that you can call and ask questions without feeling like you’re taking advantage of your long-term loyal employee.

Finally, have a blowout celebra tion for the person that stuck with you for the long haul and let them know exactly what they meant to your organization and truly show your appreciation for a job well done! Again, congratulations!

If we’re referring to a produc tion employee, you’ve hopefully been tracking performance (… or you should start right now!). The data will therefore be available to identify who would do best in the role, based on their productivity on the same or similar tasks.

Pair them up with the experi enced employee (e.g., put them on adjacent lanes of an ironer, station them next to each other at hand-fold tables, etc.) for a period of time and see how the “replacement” achieves the performance you have come to

expect from the veteran.

Whether or not you specifi cally state, “You’ll be shadowing this person next to you,” there would typically be an inherent improvement, simply from the nature of working together. In fact, your best option is that per son who will rise to the level of “the competition.”

If we’re referring to a supervisor or manager, consider your existing employees. Identify those with an aptitude for the job itself or with leadership skills in general.

As Jim Collins sets as a goal

in “Good to Great,” you should hopefully have the “right people on your bus”; you might now have an opportunity to shift them around to put someone in their new “right seat.”

Also, simply ask the retiring employee who might fill their shoes; they know what’s required for their job and may even have someone in mind.

If we’re referring to engineers (other than promoting some one from tech to chief, which would be handled similar to the manager replacement described

previously), you may be required to go outside the business.

Now, we hit the issues of the current labor market head-on. However, while someone already in the industry might be a good fit, but perhaps costly or even unavailable, a trade school gradu ate would present a good option.

You could bring them on in advance of the retirement and start the transfer of information from the old to the new staffer.

Best of luck. Replacing quality with quality is tough, but there are opportunities to do so.

First of all, congratulations!

It’s never easy to lose a qual ity employee, but losing one to retirement is a testament to your business. You’ve created a culture where they’ve remained for the long haul.

Al

CHICAGO — TRSA, the association for linen uniform and facility services, held both its Health & Safety Summit and Production Summit & Plant Tour at the Embassy Suites Chicago Downtown in May.

The association says attendees experienced presentations, break out sessions, process improvement ideas and more during the events.

HR, HEALTH & SAFETY SUMMIT

Specialists in either safety/ health or human resources, or generalists responsible for both, found abundant common ground on May 17 at the HR, Health & Safety Summit.

Attendees experienced industryspecific presentations, award-win ning ideas from other industries, breakout sessions and interactive panel discussions on critical issues with leaders in the linen, uniform and facility services industry.

Participants enjoyed a series of sessions and opportunities to net work, including keynote speaker Michael Halter, director of loss control at Haylor, Freyer & Coon Inc., Syracuse, New York.

Halter offered an outside per spective on how to be safe and compliant in today’s ever-chang ing landscape and how to tackle the financial implications present at various stages from applicant screening through driver training.

Other sessions included:

• Building Partnerships with Human Resources and Safety to Manage Workers’

Compensation

• Health & Safety Breakout Session – Culture Beyond Compliance

• DEI Success Stories

• Why Do Candidates

Choose You? Attracting the Candidates You Need to Grow

• Why Safety? Milliken’s Journey from Program to Process

• General Plant Safety: Lock Out/Tag Out New Employee Onboarding & Keeping the Long Term Employee Happy

As part of the summit’s HR sessions, Kathleen Quinn Votaw, founder and CEO of TalenTrust, delivered two breakout sessions specifically for HR professionals in linen, uniform and facility services.

The first enabled participants to recognize why candidates choose their companies. This helps locate more individuals who would be attracted to their workplaces.

Her second session gave advice on onboarding new employees and retaining them through more effective engagement.

Detailing how their compa nies achieved diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) success were Molly Ruiz, HR generalist, ImageFIRST, and Karla Fitzgerald, safety and risk control VP, Aramark Uniform Services.

Ethnicity remains a major com ponent of DEI, yet at Aramark, efforts are increasing to relate to gender identity and expression. Fitzgerald’s company is pursuing

efforts to employ individuals with mental and physical challenges.

During the safety sessions, Lee Huston, Western territory man ager for Miliken’s Laundry Service Team, guided attendees in recog nizing the most common mishaps that lead to injuries and what is typically spent per associate for preventing these—as opposed to the cost of contending with such incidents after they occur.

He called on companies to cal culate the “true cost of hurting people,” concluding that “the issue is training” and urged the audi ence to refresh such training more frequently to drive down the num ber of safety-related incidents.

Jay Addis, Alsco’s North American safety and production leader, explained how Alsco uses a “maturity model” for each cor porate facility to ensure that its safety programming progresses closer to the goal.

A relatively immature operation needs a discipline/compliance focus at first. As the situation improves, staff can concentrate more on selfassessment and data. The next step: refining the corporate culture to enhance its focus on safety.

The event concluded with a networking reception for attend ees and speakers. This event gave them time to share what they learned and continue to build on their industry relationships.

PRODUCTION SUMMIT & PLANT TOUR

The Production Summit & Plant Tour took place May 18-19,

and attendees experienced a gathering of some of the indus try’s most successful operators who discussed their latest pro cess improvements for improved throughput and profitability in plant operations.

The summit addressed market areas including healthcare, indus trial and linen supply.

Participants enjoyed a day of sessions and networking opportu nities, including keynote speaker Kevin Ames, the founder of Ames Leadership Institute. Ames pro vided an outside perspective on labor market shifts and how laun dry operators can adapt.

Other sessions included:

• Legislative Update

• Recruiting and Retention in the New Market for Talent

• New Wastewater Challenges

• Plant Safety & Health

• Benchmarking

• Mitigating Supply Chain Problems

Recruitment and Retention Tactics Panel Discussion

Summit attendees emphasized the impact of COVID-19 during the program with participants dis cussing how employee retention has deteriorated during the pandemic and what steps operators can take to combat these challenges.

Panelists suggested that mental health was a main driver for this issue, as employees require a sense of stability, and placing a stronger emphasis on stability when adver tising job positions could help pro mote staff longevity and resistance to recession-related challenges.

Recruitment expert Kathleen Quinn Votaw encouraged employ ers to reframe their focus from “recruiting” to “talent acquisition,” highlighting an important point for attendees to consider: “Employees don’t work for you. No one ever did. They work for their families.”

Attendees backed the idea that the industry’s HR and sales per sonnel can collaborate to find and acquire talent, with TSRA leading the charge through collaboration by its HR and Marketing & Sales committees.

While candidates hesitated to endorse Votaw’s idea of inviting families and friends to a catered lunch to encourage candidate referrals, amid concerns about its likely payback, there was sup port for increased on-site dining events to reinforce team build ing, which could have a positive impact on retention.

The next day, attendees visited two of America’s largest opera tor’s local plants: UniFirst Corp.’s year-old 64,000-square-foot facil ity in Hammond, Indiana, and Alsco Inc.’s 20-year-old 185,000 square-foot plant in Chicago.

The hosts at both plants described not only what they have, but why management had chosen their various plant systems.

Attendees praised the tours.

“UniFirst Hammond, very impressive; both the new plant and the proud knowledgeable staff, an example for our industry,” said one attendee. “Alsco Chicago, a huge facility, well maintained and great quality product.”

Healthcare laundry capital investment underway

SAN DIEGO — Emerald

Textiles, a healthcare laundry ser vice provider based here, reports that $15 million in capital proj ects are underway with technology advancements and improvements across its 12 commercial health care linen and laundry processing facilities.

The company says it has invest ed nearly $50 million in capital since 2017 through new equip ment, innovation, re-tooling of facilities, and the building of a brand new, high-tech facility from the ground up in Livingston, California, in 2019.

Since then, Emerald has dou bled in size, expanding its com mercial footprint in December 2021 with the addition of six pro cessing facilities.

Today the company shares it owns and operates 12 linen and laundry processing facilities and three service centers that service the major healthcare networks and hospitals across California, Arizona, Nevada and Utah.

Emerald says it is underway with several new highly efficient, automated equipment installa

tions, as well as facility improve ment projects as part of a $15 mil lion capital investment spanning across all facilities in 2022.

The company says its strate gic capital deployment remains focused on innovation, resourcesaving equipment and processes, automation, people, and produc tivity.

It adds that its “unwavering mission is to deliver high-quality products and trusted services to help our customers achieve what matters most: affordable and qual ity patient care.

“Emerald’s facilities are designed and strategically built to provide unmatched contingency planning, able to withstand rapid healthcare demands and remain agile in health crises.”

The largest of the investment includes the facility in Los Angeles and the facility in Livingston, California, which services the Northern California market, says the company.

Emerald Textiles Los Angeles will have received three project phases with final completion expected by the end of the third

quarter, beginning with a new LAVATEC 50,000-pound con tinuous batch washer, extended conveyor, new boilers, automated cart dumpers and new automated bagging system for isolation gown and linen packaging.

Currently underway is the mas sive Kannegiesser ETECH Rail System that will span across the soil side and clean side of the

facility that will include new com puterized sorting systems and dis patch of suspended linen bags on overhead rails that will transfer linen through the sorting, wash and finalization process.

Emerald says efficiencies and automation are key in its unwav ering focus on its customers, products and service.

In Northern California, major

expansion and growth plans are underway at the Livingston, California, facility, the compa ny shares. Recently, Livingston installed a new Kannegiesser FA-X Servo garment folding robot that delivers a fast way to folding gar ments with extreme precision and robotic sensory intelligence that automatically reads and processes up to eight different types of gar ments at one time.

Livingston is also preparing for the large installation of a new Kannegiesser garment finish ing system that Emerald says will greatly increase speed, automa tion, sorting precision and higher outputs with the newest comput erized technology and rail systems.

The new system will take on fast and easy data retrieval, sim plify and improve control, reduce linen defects, and consistently deliver superior finishing quality with healthcare scrubs and gar ments, according to the company, to “improve our customer satis faction levels and drive health care’s garment processing for the wider Northern California mar ket.”

Emerald Textiles’ $15 million capital investment will span across all of its healthcare laundry facilities in 2022

Emerald Textiles Los Angeles’ Kannegiesser ETECH Rail System will span across the soil side and clean side of the facility. (Photo: Emerald Textiles)

Southern Oregon Linen Service chooses energy-efficient equipment

Company examined needs of its customers, where industry is heading, regional business/environmental conditions

BEACON FALLS, Conn. — Marathon runners train their bod ies relentlessly, running hundreds of miles to prepare themselves for a race. They do it to build endurance so they can overcome any condi tions, stave off fatigue and finish with a strong sprint to the finish line.

That scenario is similar to the situation where laundry equipment manufacturer LAVATEC recently installed new equipment at Southern Oregon Linen Service (SOLS).

Four years after beginning the process, LAVATEC had only 10 days to remove the old machinery and install an entirely new system that centered around a custom-built continuous tunnel washer. The company completed it in eight, and SOLS is on the road to achieving its energy efficiency goals.

“For the capacity we handle daily, we’re now able to process everything in less than 10 hours a day compared to 14-18 hours previously,” explains Antonio Casillas, Southern Oregon Linen Service’s general manager. He’s been with SOLS for the last eight years.

“With this new equipment, we anticipate saving over 7 million gal lons of water annually. In the first month the new equipment was operating, we averaged a savings of 30,000 gallons of water a day.”

Casillas’s statement is significant and relevant to the challenges SOLS has encountered.

Four years is hardly a normal pro cess but climate change has caused a shift away from what is consid ered normal in the western United States. The company took stock of the needs of its customers, where the industry is heading, and regional business and environmental condi tions before making its decision after thorough consideration.

Water and energy conserva tion has taken on a new meaning and here’s why. SOLS is in White City, about 35 miles north of the

California border and close to I-5, the major north-south interstate that runs through the states border ing the Pacific Ocean.

A provider of cooperative laundry services for nine Oregon hospitals and one assisted living facility within a 300-mile radius, its 30,000 squarefoot facility first opened for business in 1996. With 70 full-time employ ees, it makes it one of the largest local employers in the town of fewer than 10,000 people.

A few weeks before the LAVATEC equipment arrived at SOLS, the gov ernor of Oregon declared a drought emergency in several counties including Jackson, where White City is located.

More than 70% of the county is experiencing extreme conditions, and forecasters are predicting the prolonged drought to be worse than in the last two years. Local farmers delayed planting due to the lower water storage and snowpack levels, and there are huge concerns again since the fire season officially arrived on June 1.

Jim Slatcher, LAVATEC’s Western regional sales manager, began con versations and building a solid rela tionship with the Southern Oregon Linen Service management team in 2018.

When it became apparent last year that it was time to replace the existing tunnel system, LAVATEC was one of three vendors invited to submit proposals.

“We never had any LAVATEC equipment, but after four years of working with them and understand ing the benefits of their system, it was evident they were our choice,” said Casillas.

“LAVATEC is now part of the Southern Oregon Linen Services family, and we look forward to future projects with them.”

In addition to the new LT60 con tinuous tunnel washing system with 14 compartments, SOLS added an

LP572 40-bar press, six TT-745 dry ers with a capacity of 292 pounds each and a Shuttle system.

To keep up with the demands of a two-shift, five days a week work schedule, Casillas outsourced work to several area laundries until the conversion was completed.

“LAVATEC did a phenomenal job completing the project in eight days. I would like to genuinely thank everyone involved with the installation team for all the sup port, especially Pacific Machinery Moving,” Casillas says, referring to the California company Slatcher brought in to handle the rigging for the project.

“In my opinion, Hector Gutierrez has put together the best rigging company in the industry.”

Certifiably, Casillas and his staff know they are working with highly energy-efficient washing equipment.

The simplicity of the LT-60 tunnel

washer gets the ball rolling, deliver ing superior performance with max imum throughput. With the capa bility of over 100 wash programs, it allows SOLS to select, monitor and control all inputs and levels of energy, water and chemicals to do the work.

Its power source is the tunnel rotation, which utilizes four motorpowered friction drives. That deliv ers a huge advantage compared to a single-motor chain drive requiring constant lubrication.

Casillas is also impressed with the TT-745 dryers. Equipped with an inline burner, these machines provide total basket coverage that evenly dis tributes heat throughout the drum.

A more efficient fuel burn is achieved with lower gas pressure and Btu consumption, generating addi tional time and cost savings.

“The equipment has definitely lived up to our expectations. After

the installation, we had a few minor issues as expected, and the LAVATEC team promptly took care of it,” Casillas shares.

“Having six dryers has kept our steam line flowing consistently. The infrared sensors work very efficiently and help keep the flow of work moving quickly. When you combine the extraction press and shuttle, the whole system has helped us to run more efficiently.”

Casillas indicates another impor tant factor with the new equipment is it’s designed to take Southern Oregon Linen Service to the next level.

“We have been producing over 8 million pounds of linen con sistently,” he says. “We expect to see growth in our business and process about 9 million pounds in 2023. As we continue to expand, we hope to add additional equip ment.”

The shuttle system feeds the new LAVATEC tunnel, which is helping Southern Oregon Linen Service reduce its water usage by an average of 30,000 gallons a day. (Photos: LAVATEC)

A laundry cake travels from the tunnel washer to its next destination, one of the six new TT-745 gas dryers installed earlier this year.

Top management officials at Southern Oregon Linen Service include, from left to right: Todd Shields, board president; Cara Marsh-Rhodes, board treasurer; and general manager Antonio Casillas.

Molko retires from Mayo Clinic Linen and Central Services

RICHMOND, Ky. —

The Association for Linen Management (ALM) reports that Cindy Molko, RLLD, CLLM and former presi dent of the ALM Board, recently retired from her position at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, after nearly 43 years of dedicated service.

“Some of my fondest ALM memories have been with Cindy,” says Linda Fairbanks, ALM execu tive director.

“Cindy has always been some one we could reach out to for knowledgeable guidance, whether it be for industry education, understanding member needs, or business insight, she has always been generous and enthusiastic in helping textile care professionals.”

Track Career

That knowledge has been gained through years of working at every level within The Mayo Clinic. Molko began as a central service tech and was quickly promoted to a supervisory posi tion, where through the years, she was instrumental in building the Mayo linen and central services into what it is today.

“It has been an incredible experience to work with Cindy, whose knowledge and experience is invaluable to the organiza tion and industry,” says Kathy Mulhern, director linen and cen tral service, Mayo Clinic.

“I cannot thank Cindy enough for her mentorship. Cindy’s con sistent support and leadership is responsible for all our accom plishments. Congratulations on your retirement!”

Despite Molko’s many respon sibilities at Mayo, ALM says she always found time to lead by example in other industry asso ciations and organizations.

At ALM, Molko spoke at con ferences, taught at the Laundry & Linen College, as well as led by example by completing and maintaining certifications in

both the Registered Laundry & Linen Director (RLLD) and the Certified Laundry & Linen Manager (CLLM).

She has also participated in the Boards of the Minnesota Health Care Central Service Materials Managers (MHCSMA) and the International Association of Healthcare Central Service Materiel Management (IAHCSMM).

She was also a member of American Laundry News’ Panel of Experts in 2004.

Molko plans to spend her newly found free time snuggling with grandbabies, traveling to see family and friends, and working in her garden.

Paradise new CFO for ImageFIRST

KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa. — ImageFIRST Healthcare Laundry Specialists, a national provider

of linen and laundry ser vices for the healthcare industry, reports that Richard Paradise has been named its new chief financial officer, succeeding Jim Malandra.

Paradise will report to President and CEO Jim Cashman as part of the company’s executive leadership team.

He most recently served as a consultant for multiple small and large private equity-owned companies, including Thayer Power & Communication Line Construction Company, KSI Trading Corp and Interior Logic Group.

In these roles, Paradies was responsible for overseeing stra tegic and tactical planning to support senior leadership, par ticipating in the development of monthly reporting and Board presentation materials, co-leading the development of analytical tools designed to improve profit

ability, and identifying opportu nities to drive operational pro ductivity.

He has also served as CFO at several medium and large private and public companies, including The Dematic Group, Keystone Automotive Operations, The Children’s Place Retail Stores, and American Standard’s Bath and Kitchen Division, leading the execution of various strategic and tactical initiatives through periods of significant company growth.

“Rich is an exceptionally quali fied financial executive, joining us at a time when we are hyperfocused on accelerating towards an exciting future,” says Cashman.

“We look forward to the con tribution that Rich will make in driving key goals and strategic initiatives.”

“I can’t imagine a better time to join ImageFIRST, especially in this period of tremendous growth,” says Paradise. “I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to be a part of this world-class organization and team.”

Paradise will succeed Jim Malandra, who has served as CFO for 13 years.

Molko

Paradise

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P.O. Box 400, Kenner, LA 70063 504-467-9591, Fax: 504-468-3094 www.milnor.com

Pellerin Milnor Corp. P.O. Box 400, Kenner, LA 70063 504-467-9591, Fax: 504-468-3094 www.milnor.com

Pellerin Milnor Corp. P.O. Box 400, Kenner, LA 70063 504-467-9591, Fax: 504-468-3094 www.milnor.com

Kaeser marks full year of green energy

FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — Both Kaeser Compressors Inc. based here and Germany’s Kaeser Kompressoren SE report they are marking a full year of operations using only green energy.

All Kaeser compressors are manufactured with 100% renewable energy, and the company says it matches its con sumption with renewable energy in both the United States and Germany.

“Not only are our products and systems designed for exceptional energy efficiency and maximum environmental compatibility, but Kaeser also incorporates environmentally responsible practices in our everyday operations and in the design and selection of our facilities,” says Frank Mueller, president of Kaeser Compressors Inc.

The company says this milestone has been achieved with three key programs. First, over a year ago Kaeser Kompressoren SE installed a photovoltaic system that gen erates approximately 650 MWh for its main manufacturing plant in Coburg, Germany.

Second, Kaeser purchases renewable energy credits for our remaining manufacturing facilities. And third, in the United States, Kaeser Compressors is part of Dominion Energy’s Green Power Program and pays a premium per kWh for the U.S. headquarters in Fredericksburg to match energy consumption with renewable resources.

Kaeser adds that for its 20-plus branch locations across the country, as well as for its teleworkers, it purchases RECs (Renewable Energy Certificates) from Dominion Energy exceeding the amount of power consumed.

Energy for the RECs is purchased from a broad range of renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, hydropower, wave/tidal power and landfill gas recovery.

These initiatives align with Kaeser’s ongoing commitment to reducing, and where possible, eliminating the impact on the shared environment.

“We are committed to lowering our carbon footprint by manufacturing with green energy, to support renewable energy through Dominion Energy’s Green Power Program, and to demonstrate community leadership in this immedi ate and sustainable way,” Mueller says.

CINET accepting nominations for Global Best Practices Awards

OPHEMERT, The Netherlands — CINET, The International Committee of Textile Care based here, is accepting nomina tions for its 2022 Global Best Practices Awards through Sept. 1.

“The goal for the GBPAP2022 is to collect extraordinary professional laundry and dry cleaning showcases from around the world, showcasing how sustainability, hygiene, digitization and innovation open new Professional Textile Care (PTC) market opportunities, new service, new business models,” according to the organization.

Awards for the fourth edition of the program include Retail Textile Cleaning (RTC-A) (Sustainability Award, Innovation Award, Overall Best Practices Award), Retail Textile Cleaning (RTC-B) (Sustainability Award, Innovation Award, Overall Best Practices Award) and Industrial Textile Services (ITS) (Sustainability Award, Innovation Award, Overall Best Practices Award).

The Global Best Practices Awards Program 2022 was launched during CINET Live via Zoom in December. A pre

sentation about the program was made during InterClean in Amsterdam in May and was also covered at The Clean Show in Atlanta.

CINET will present award winners during EXPOdetergo in Milan, Italy, Oct. 21-24.

To request a reply form to join the competition, e-mail cinet@cinet-online.com or call +31344650430.

Malboeuf joins ALM Board as president-elect

RICHMOND, Ky. — The Association for Linen Management (ALM) reports that Chip Malboeuf joined its Board of Directors at the end of June as president-elect.

The longtime ALM member succeeds Jim Mangini, RLLD, Maine Medical Center Linen Services, as Mangini moves into the role of president.

Malboeuf has more than 28 years of experience in the industry and serves as vice president of engineering for ImageFIRST Healthcare Laundry Specialists.

“I am honored and humbled at being selected for this posi tion,” Malboeuf says. “I look forward to working with the ALM leadership and members and am excited for the opportunity to share my knowledge of the industry and to give back to ALM members.”

Malboeuf has taught myriad ALM educational programs throughout the years, and his history with ALM has built a foundation for collaboration with both the incoming and outgoing Board presidents, according to the association.

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“I am excited that Chip Malboeuf has been chosen by our membership to serve as the president-elect of ALM,” says Mangini. “Chip’s extensive background within our industry is an asset to not only our membership but also our Board.

“I welcome the opportunity to work side-by-side with him over the next few years.”

“I am thrilled to have Chip join the ALM Board as presi dent-elect,” says Rich Bott, RLLD, CLLM, who is shifting into the role of immediate past president. “I have known Chip for several years and his reputation, integrity and industry knowl edge are exceptional.

“Chip will add tremendous insight and leadership to ALM as we look to the future to provide excellence in both educa tion and support to our industry. I appreciate Chip’s willing ness to serve and look forward to working with him.”

ALM Executive Director Linda Fairbanks is pleased with the members’ decision for ALM leadership, saying, “I am so proud of how many wonderful individuals we have throughout our membership. So many step up to help others learn from their expertise, and Chip is the quintessential example of working together to make things better for everyone.

“I’m confident that with his leadership, ALM and its mem bers will continue to grow and thrive.”

CINET, The International Committee of Textile Care, is accepting nominations for its 2022 Global Best Practices Awards through Sept. 1. (Graphic: CINET)

Malboeuf