Whether your animal care facility is in the market for new laundry equipment because laundry keeps piling up, or your equipment keeps breaking down, it isn’t always easy to figure out what’s best for your space and budget. In this article, I’ll offer some pointers on choosing laundry equipment that not only solves your problems and fits in your space, it delivers superior efficiency and productivity for lower overhead costs.
Tip 1: Start with Your Distributor
Before you do anything, contact your local laundry equipment distributor. Girbau North America’s distributors are experts in laundry analysis and will assist you with equipment selection and ongoing service after the sale. Your distributor holds years of experience working with vet clinics and animal hospital laundries and will lead you through the process of selecting the right equipment to fit your space, budget and goals. Your distributor will provide:
- A free laundry analysis. Your distributor visits your location to understand any goals and challenges you might have, as well as to verify space constraints, utility connections, airflow and drainage requirements.
- Guides you in equipment selection: There’s lots of options when it comes to commercial washers and dryers and your distributor will show you the benefits of each.
- Laundry design. Proper laundry design is critical for optimum workflow and laundry productivity.
- Installation. Your distributor installs equipment and instructs your staff on how to operate it.
- Ongoing service. To ensure your laundry operates at maximum efficiency, your distributor offers repair and maintenance services for the future.
Tip 2: Commercial Not Residential
If you contacted your laundry equipment distributor you’re on the right track because they offer commercial-grade washers and dryers that will easily handle your clinic’s laundry. Those commercial machines will also be engineered for durability and constant use and are backed by factory warranties on parts and labor.
Tip 3: Select Equipment That Offers High Spin Speeds
Perhaps the most important thing you can do is to be sure the washer you buy offers high extract speeds of 300- 450 G-force. High spin speeds remove more water during extract, which shortens dry time and increases the amount of laundry you process each day. High spin washers will:
- Allow you to complete more laundry each day
- Cut dry time and natural gas usage for lower energy bills
- Extend linen life because laundry spends less time in the dryer
- Eliminate dryer bottlenecks
Tip 4: A Soft-Mount Design
Washers with soft-mount designs don’t require bolt-down or reinforced concrete foundations. This makes them simpler and less costly to install. They have sophisticated suspension systems that help prevent out-of-balance loads and ensure quiet operation.
Tip 5: Go for Programmability
It’s important to be able to adjust washing and drying programs by load type to ensure the highest quality results in as little time as possible. Your distributor can help you select a programmable machine that automatically injects detergents and offers easy operation. Once programs are set, operators just load, select a program and press start. The machine does the rest.
If you’ve read this article, you’re already on your way to a headache-free laundry operation that eliminates pileups and reduces equipment breakdowns.