Training

For any business to be effective – training is required at ALL levels of employee. From the boardroom to the factory floor, training improves efficiency, productivity and PROFIT.

Our training courses a based on the latest technology and have been successfully used Internationally – and are both generic as well as ‘bespoke’ to fit your specific requirements – ranging from ½ day to 3 days both ‘On the job’ as well as ‘Classroom based’ – using overhead presentations and demonstrations where relevant.

Some of our generic courses are:

• Laundry and Drycleaning: Operator and Service Support National Vocational Level 2 (NVQ2);

• Washing Technology: (2 days) A ‘Back to Basics’ introduction to effectively processing textiles for the Washroom operator, Supervisor, Production Management, Engineering staff and Management;
• Finishing Technology: (3 days) An introduction to textile finishing methods in the laundry and how to identify what can go wrong (a why) as well as managing equipment output, productivity and quality output. Designed for the Supervisor, Production and General management, Engineers and employees with Supervisory/management potential.
• Textiles for the Laundry: (1 day) An in depth examination of textile issues and how to ensure the right type of textiles are purchased as well as how to get the best from them. This workshop is for the Supervisor, Manager and Textile Buyer/Supplier as well as Machinery and Chemicals Suppliers to the industry.
• Continuous Batch Tunnel Washer – Safe Systems and Code of Practice: (1day) Designed for the CBTW operator, Supervisor, Engineer and All Management to ensure optimum production output , quality standards are achieved – safely and effectively.
• Laundry Technology for the Engineer: (2 days) Failure by the engineer to ensure all equipment is correctly tuned and maintained can destroy productivity and quality. This workshop gives the Engineer and Management the skills and knowledge required on how to set-up and monitor the Key Performance Indicators of all production equipment.

We have a wide range of training materials available covering all aspects of the Laundry and Drycleaning sectors.
Please contact us for details of any aspects on which you would like training for either yourself and or your employees/colleagues.

Fault Appraisal

During the Laundry and Drycleaning process there are many things that can go wrong that can affect the appearance, handle or life expectancy of a textile item.

In all instances where things have ‘gone wrong’ the responsibility will invariably be with either:

• The manufacturer due to an error during the production/manufacture of the item; or
• With the launderer or drycleaner for failing to use the correct processing techniques; or
• With the Owner/User due to either an accident whilst using the item or abuse.

With drycleaned items the responsibility for the fault can often be identified by detailed examination of the item without either destructive or laboratory tests.

With laundered items they sometimes need more detailed examination and laboratory testing or even further test washing.

In all instances:

• If we are unable to positively identify who is responsible for the fault – there is no charge for our services and the items are returned to the owner. The only cost associated with this is the return postage cost;
• All our reports are clear and concise using, wherever possible, non-technical terms, and allocating the responsibility and the reasons for this;
• Unless additional laboratory test work is required, our reports are normally completed and submitted with the item examined within 10 working days from receipt of the item at our offices;
• All reports can be submitted digitally if required (normally in PDF format) and are never copied/distributed by us to 3rd parties without prior written agreement or request from our client.
• All reports clearly outline the work done, with reference to any relevant BS EN ISO SANS standards and specifications as well as containing a statement for the Courts as the ‘Expert Witness’ in the unlikely event that litigation occurs;
• No additional charges are incurred for test work without the prior agreement with the items owner or whoever has submitted the item for our Fault Appraisal service;
• Where we believe additional test work is required, the reasons for this, with expected outcomes, and the associated costs are ALWAYS detailed in writing for approval/acceptance;

The following is a ‘short-list’ of some of the additional test work that may be required (often for laundered items only):

Test	Purpose	ZAR	GBP (£)	US ($)
Cuprammonium Fluidity	To determine fabric damage	1090	75	120
BS EN ISO 13934-1	Fabric strength – Strip method	550	38	60
Wash tests BS6330	Shrinkage assessment Per wash/dry cycle	220	15	24
Whiteness Reflectance and/or Brightness	Per item	220	15	24
Thread Count	Number of picks/ends	220	15	24
Fabric mass (g/m2)		220	15	24
Yarn linear density	Mass of yarn used warp and weft	1240	85	135
Towel loop tenacity	Force required to extract the loop	870	60	95

Please note:

• There are many additional tests available based on user requirements. For further details please contact us.
• The above prices are excluding value added tax and are subject to change without notice.

Textile Specification & Analysis

• ‘Cracked-ice’ creasing that cannot be ironed out
• Overall creasing and shrinkage wrinkling of duvet covers and pillow slips
• Excessive shrinkage – up to 24%
• Distortion (sheets and table linen getting longer and narrower)
• Champagne Glass’ creasing in central wear areas of sheets
• Towel threads pulling out, seams coming undone and edges fraying
• Pin-holes on high quality ‘Percale’ bedding
• Scallop-shaped and longitudinal creases because of elastic duvet fabric
• Pilling of bed linen and table linen
• Shredding of sheets and duvets, with parallel curved tears

The above range of textile related issues are becoming increasingly common-place with batches of new textiles after they have been subjected to just a few laundry processes.

The ‘blame’ for these issues is often placed on the laundry – who in turn blames the detergent/chemicals supplier. However, in many instances, these problems have occurred because either the incorrect textile has been purchased (has not been specified correctly) or the textiles received are not to the quality or standard required.

The purchasing of textiles can be a mine-field for any buyer, particularly with many manufacturers working in different time zones and with language barriers – both when speaking as well as when using technical terms to specify the product(s) required.
It is also necessary, having placed your order for a new consignment of textiles, to ensure that what has been ordered has, indeed, been delivered.

In recent years – due to natural disasters and increased pressure on arable land to produce food – the costs of cotton and polyester (Oil derivative) have more than quadrupled. This means that:

(a) To remain competitive, some textile manufacturers are ‘cutting corners’ to reduce the cost of the finished item; or
(b) Lower grade products are being offered – which, for the unwary buyer, can mean disaster.

If purchasing budgets are to be achieved, all textiles purchased must endure for the required period and provide the service they were purchased for throughout their useful life expectancy.

There are a number of essential key steps to ensuring that the right textile is purchased and that it meets your performance requirements.

Step 1.

• Identify the specific end use application.
• Are the textiles for a 5 Star or 2 Star hotel?
• What are the usage areas? The frequency of change? Stock holding levels? Type of usage (Heavy kitchen soiling or light single night room occupancy)

Step 2.

What type of fabric (cotton or polyester cotton)? – and to what technical specifications? E.g. Dimensions after laundering (shrinkage), fabric mass, fabric strength, yarn linear density, picks & ends.

Step 3.

Obtain quotations and samples – and assess the samples against the specification.

Step 4.

Place the order and ensure that copies of the manufacturer’s Quality Control certificates are submitted for comparison against the original specification BEFORE the fabric is shipped.

Step 5.

On delivery of the consignment, ensure that each item is uniquely identified to that each consignment can be readily identified once it is placed into circulating stocks and that samples are taken and cross checked against the specification.

We provide buyers and users with detailed guidelines on how to put together the correct technical specifications based on International Standards in terms of both the fabric construction and performance as well as how the finished items are produced based on the end-use application.

Then, having correctly specified the fabric we then develop a range of simple in-house tests and procedures to help ensure that what has been delivered was what was ordered and the product is fit-for purpose.

Once a container with 5,000 Duvet covers costing R250.00 each – (R1¼million) has been delivered and found to be faulty – it can be difficult to return it to Asia – especially if it has already been paid for!

Because each user has different requirements - it is not possible to specify exactly how much time – and therefore cost - is required to set up the system and procedures, train assessment staff as well as the Key performance Indicators for assessing textiles.

Quality Assessment

The key concerns of many laundry users are:

• ‘Are my textiles being returned Hygienically clean?’
• ‘Is the Quality up to International Standards in terms of appearance?’
• ‘Will I get my clean laundry back on time?’

Invariably many launderers are unable to answer these questions accurately – because they themselves do not know.

The BS EN ISO 14065:2002 Textiles – Laundry – processed textiles – Biocontamination system is a standard designed to guide the launderer through the steps to ensure that not only are all textiles returned to the user hygienically clean – but to the right quality standard.

The Quality and Hygiene audits are designed to be the first step in this process as well as providing the launderer with an accurate assessment of the standards they are currently achieving versus Internationally accepted targets and how to achieve the required standards.

The ‘Quality Assessment’ involves assessing not less than 100 items, taken at random, of each principle classification and checking them for:

• Whiteness Reflectance;
• Brightness;
• Residual dirty marks;
• Stains;
• Holes;
• Tears;
• Excessive creasing.

It also involves checking on Quality Control procedures, packing count accuracy, Re-wash levels and causes.

Hygiene Audit

The Hygiene Audit involves the identification of the critical control points throughout the laundry from the time that the soiled items are received – through the complete laundry process and delivery back to the user.

The ‘Critical Control Points’ will vary somewhat between different laundries depending upon the volumes of work processed and the existing procedures in place.
The audit uses either ‘contact dip-slides’ and/or swab tests that are used on all critical control points.

The micro-organisms normally tested for are:

• Total Viable Colonies (TVC)
• Coliforms (presumptive)
• Coaglase positive Staphylococci
• C. perfringens; and
• E. Coli

Wash process procedures to validate thermal disinfection is taking place on all textiles able to withstand thermal disinfection temperatures as well as the monitoring procedures in place to ensure that all equipment is correctly calibrated are checked.

Items that can only be chemically disinfected (Heat Labile) process checks are made to ensure that the correct dosing is taking place and operators understand this aspect of the process.
Cleaning regimes throughout the factory are checked as well as the use of anti-bactericidal hand cleaning methods – and staff use these.

Production Audit

The Production audit is designed to review the equipment currently in use and the services to the equipment and to assess the actual output being achieved versus the optimum for the equipment.

This process involves assessing the condition of each major piece of production equipment and reviewing the operational procedures used by the employees. For example, production from a Continuous batch Tunnel Washer can be delayed due to say, incorrect sequencing of work loaded into the CBTW or the membrane press may not be correctly tuned and the CBTW goes into a holding pattern whilst waiting for a Tumble Drier to discharge its load.

Production on multi-roll ironers can be reduced if the clothing or roll vacuum are not set correctly and so on.

The production audit will often identify production bottle-necks and off-set the need for additional equipment being purchased/installed by merely ensuring that existing equipment is fully functional and operators are using the correct safe systems of work and operational procedures.

Energy Usage (Carbon Footprint)

The second greatest cost for any launderer or drycleaner is the cost of energy – and is a cost that will continue to increase as the Worlds resources are depleted. Added to this, as each of us continue to use more energy, the amount of carbon monoxide and dioxide in the atmosphere is contributing to Global Warming.

We all therefore have a financial and environmental responsibility to make whatever reductions we can in the amount of energy we each use.

The sources of energy commonly used in laundries and drycleaners will often be a combination of several types – each with their own unique common unit of measurement, e.g.

• Coal and Oil (HFO and Diesel) with often be rated with a calorific value per tonne or litre;
• Gas in therms or joules per cubic foot or metre;
• Electricity in Kwhrs;
• Laundry and drycleaning machines will often be ‘rated’ at pounds or kilogrammes per minute/per hour – or will have a ‘thermal efficiency’ rating.

With the wide range of energy units commonly in use (calories, joules, BThU, Kwhr) – it can be a daunting task trying to determine just what energy is being used, where it is used and if this is too much or too little.

The Energy Audit is designed to review the various types of energy used in the plant and reduce it to a single unit of energy (Kwhr) and relate this to volume of work being processed in the plant to produce your Kwhr energy usage per kg dry weight of work produced – which can then be related to International standard targets as well as forming the benchmark against which any improvements are made.

The audit identifies where the energy is used and projects the financial implications of changes based on:

1. No financial investment;
2. Medium term investment; and
3. Larger long term capital investment.

For example, the reduction of the dip level on the Main wash stage of a wash process will reduce steam consumption – and will be at no financial investment. However, the introduction of a ‘Flash Steam’ recovery system may well be regarded as a longer term capital investment.

During the audit potential areas of reduced energy costs are identified and are detailed in our report – broken out by the above three categories for management application.

Product Assessment

New products are constantly entering the market-place – often accompanied by claims by the manufacturer (or sales people) that have either not been substantiated or have been demonstrated in the laboratory but not proven in the field – or the product itself is viable but to achieve its full potential additional support may be required – or it may work in the small environment but not suitable for the larger environment.

Alternatively, you may be considering a well tried and tested product – but you are not sure if it is suitable for your specific application and environment.

Such new products and or technology will often have potentially significant benefits for the Users and will come with a large price-tag. However, if they don’t work in your situation – the costs to your business can far exceed the initial investment.

For example, the introduction of a new chemicals/detergent system may offer unrivalled improvements in Quality or increased productivity via shorter wash processes – but if the system reduces the fabric life by 50%, this could be sufficient to put you out of business.

Due to our in-depth knowledge of both textiles as well as the laundry industry operating environment – we are able to explore and extrapolate the implications of new technology, products and systems aimed at the industry.

Plant Design & Layout

The way in which the machinery in any laundry is placed will dictate not only the work-flow (and therefore efficiency) of the laundry – but may well have an adverse effect on the risks of cross-contamination of the cleaned textiles as well as any potential future growth.

Most major laundry machinery manufacturers or suppliers will generate a CAD design for a new laundry – indicating placement of machinery as well as the positioning of power supplies, water, steam, gas and drainage. However, many of the manufacturers may well be excellent engineers and have experience in plant layout – but very few are launderers and may well not have the practical hands-on experience of managing a laundry and having to contend with either insufficient working space or obtaining the correct work-flow for the various classifications.

The selection of the right type and capacity of machinery is also a major influencing factor. It is essential that accurate data is available relating to the production requirements – both present and in the future – are known in order to ensure the correctly sized equipment is used and it is designed to cater for the work load envisaged.

For example, if there is sufficient of any one classification of a similar level and type of soiling to keep a Batch washer occupied full time – then a cheaper single skinned Batch washer will suffice. However, where there are multi-classifications or variable levels and types of soiling – then a Batch washer with individual programmable compartments is required.

Balancing each department to production levels is also essential as is ensuring there are adequate services (KVA electrical rating; Size of water and steam lines; Effluent discharge capacity and so on).

Installing a multi-roll high speed ironer capable of producing 1,000 sheets per hour is of little benefit if only 400 sheets per hour are required; Having a 20,000litre water softener and storage tank will be of little use if the laundry requires 50,000 litres per day – it will come to a stand-still by lunch-time each day!

• © 2014 laundryandtextiles.com. All rights reserved.
• Website designed and coded by andrewharris.tv