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In the hospitality world, there are times of occupancy madness that kick every area of a hotel or resort into full gear. We know this as “peak season” and preparedness is the key to overcoming its challenges — especially in the laundry room. In this column, I offer several tips for ensuring a seamless peak season laundry operation.Are your linens…

In Part 1 of “Breaking Down NFPA 1851”, we covered the proper cleaning of protective gear. In Part 2, we’ll nail down how to properly dry gear. The development of the “NFPA 1851 Standard on Selection, Care, and Maintenance of Protective Ensembles for Structural Fire Fighting and Proximity Firefighting” was established as a protective measure against firefighter exposure to the…

Industry veteran Paul Hansen is in the business of buying, renovating and running laundries. His most recent laundry project — Wash Smart Laundry, in Chicago, involved a major renovation and retooling in order to return it to the community in peak operating condition. His goal? To provide customers the best possible laundry experience and services.Hansen knows laundry. He grew up…

If your dry cleaning machine is aging out and you’re on the fence about whether to invest in a new one versus a wet cleaning system, read on for a head-to-head cost comparison. In this column, we investigate operational expenses of both options, including labor, utility costs and disposal fees, as well as purchase price and installation costs. When the…

A new, 9,000-square-foot laundry recently opened in Rockford, Ill., bringing a high-rental, low-income area renewed vitality and customers a quicker, more pleasant laundry experience. Kevin and Cindy Olson, who own three 24/7 Laundromats, went bigger and better on their newest store by investing in soft-mount over hard-mount washers, adding ozone, maximizing store efficiency and customer rotation rates, and tripling square…

John Harris, owner of Royalty Cleaners, in Royal Oak, Mich., recently launched revenue and profits thanks to a single piece of equipment — a Poseidon 20-inch Flatwork Ironer. Since investing in the ironer, the residential bed and table linen business has become Royalty Cleaners’ most profitable revenue stream. Even better? The ironer’s return on investment was less than a year.“In…

Jeff Sitz comes from a long line of family members invested in the dry cleaning business. He owns City Cleaners, a fourth-generation dry cleaner in Akron, Ohio. He not only operates a robust restoration and dry cleaning business, he runs two high-speed laundries — branded Laundromat City — which are even more profitable.“I really enjoy the self-service laundry business,” said…

As an equipment manager juggling multiple responsibilities, the last thing you need are laundry pileups. If you and your staff struggle to keep pace with dirty uniforms, loops and towels, consider replacement washers and dryers with the technology to take you to new production and performance levels. Read on for tips on how to cut laundry processing time so you…

SmartWash, a new high-speed laundry in Fargo, N.D., was designed and equipped to maximize convenience, customer turnover and full- and self-service revenue. SmartWash features a 5,000-square-foot self-service laundry and a separate, 2,000-square-foot wash/dry/fold (WDF) space. Both harness soft-mount Continental Girbau Genius® Washers.Anchored by a Hornbocher’s grocery store, SmartWash is Fargo’s first new laundry in 20 years, according to co-owners James…

Parker Brubaker, of Brubaker Linens, in Phoenix, Ariz., grew his commercial laundry business from the ground up. He started by cleaning hair salon towels and capes at a local public laundry before delivering them to clients using the family van. He got the idea while in college when he made Brubaker Linens his capstone business school project. In the three…