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OPLs: Future Success Depends on Increasing Efficiency, Cutting Costs (Conclusion)

CHICAGO — When linen needs to get cleaned for a business or institution, there are two main ways to go about it: Wash it yourself on-site, or have someone do it for you. On-premises laundries (OPLs) have served their purposes well for many years, but as costs of textile care increase, and as businesses look to find ways to outsource various aspects of their operations, having an on-site laundry may start to lose its appeal for some.

But if the outsourcing trend continues, what will become of OPLs? For this piece, American Laundry News spoke with several operators of OPLs in hospitality, healthcare and university settings about the challenges of operating and the factors that will allow on-site laundries to stay competitive and even prosper in the coming years.

THE VALUE OF OPLs

Convenience, control and flexibility are the main reasons an OPL might be the best option to serve a business or institution, says David Coe, director of facilities and purchasing at North Central Group.

Sandip Thakkar, vice president of HSM Hospitality Management Co., agrees: “I like to have that control.” He says that by outsourcing the laundry, hotel operators would be “putting [their] livelihood in somebody else’s hands.”

The ability to supply an item right away is a major benefit of an OPL, says Jesse Clyma, operations supervisor at Spartan Linen Services at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Mich., and Betty Champlin, laundry supervisor at Campbell County Memorial Hospital, Gillette, Wyo.

“A cubicle curtain—if they want it right now—I can wash it and have it back within two or three hours, where you couldn’t do that with off-site laundry,” Champlin says.

“To me, if it’s run right, you’ll always have product when you need it,” Rick Haggard, laundry manager at the New Orleans Hilton Riverside, adds. “[If] you outsource, you’re totally dependent on them—totally.”

But in order for OPLs to stay competitive, they need to confront their challenges head-on. Those polled list labor as one of the biggest issues affecting the success of on-premises laundries. Acquiring good, dedicated employees; securing the budget to pay their wages; and making sure they’re educated on the wash process are key areas of concern.

Thakkar says he realized some time ago that employees are his laundries’ biggest investment, and since then has made an effort to find good workers and pay them well.

“Do it the right way, and when you find a good person, take care of that person,” he advises. “Because not everybody likes to be in a laundry.”

Aiming for energy efficiency and decreased operational costs are ever-present goals as well.

“Trying to maintain our expenses is the most difficult challenge we have,” Clyma says. Because the departments his laundry serves are themselves dealing with escalating expenses, passing increasing operational costs on to the end-users is not an option.

If you’ve got the capital to do it, get rid of your old equipment and upgrade to more efficient machines, the sources say.

“We’re still cleaning and drying the way we’ve always done, but I’ve noticed that the machines are becoming more sophisticated in enabling the efficiency to increase,” says Coe, who lists high-speed extraction and reverse drying as technologies that can increase performance.

Thakkar says he recently bought a new machine for the Comfort Inn in downtown Cleveland that has made all the difference.

“We were so busy, and I wanted crisp, white sheets,” he says. “We made a substantial investment, and it’s really paid off.”

The new equipment was part of a larger plan to replace anything causing hiccups in the laundering process.

“I started with the chemical company, I started with the labor, and I started with the equipment, and upgraded everything. And now, two years later, I couldn’t be any happier,” Thakkar comments.

Modernizing on-premises laundries, including making use of automation, can help operators lower their labor costs, according to Champlin.

“[That’s] probably what saved my laundry,” she says.

ADVICE FOR MANAGERS

Whether you see the future for OPLs as promising or bleak, the administrators and managers interviewed have advice for managers who want to maintain successful operations for the long haul.

Always look for ways to cut costs, to be more knowledgeable about the industry and modern ways of doing things, and to communicate with fellow managers, Champlin says, adding that you’ve simply “got to work hard to keep it.”

Be dedicated to educating yourselves on possibilities for improving your service, as well as whatever issues end-users are facing, Clyma says. “That’s the main thing: You have to be flexible and willing to make changes not only in how you do things, but a lot of times, what you’re spending a lot of your time on,” he adds.

Thakkar says managers should roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty from time to time, doing the tasks that workers do on a daily basis to get a better sense of their roles.

“If you understand what it takes to do it, you can coach it,” he says. “But if you’ve never done it, how are you going to coach it? And so that’s my advice—try it for a week.”

Having a good, trained maintenance person is essential, Haggard adds.

For Coe, it’s important that managers “sit back and watch the efficiency” of their departments, making sure to dig a little deeper if they find any “bumpy portions” in the laundering process. Having a properly trained team, and possibly a designated person or people to handle the laundry, can also be effective.

There are many factors in getting a quality product—personnel, linen, the quality and ability of equipment, and water quality are just a few.

“All of those kind of interrelate, and if any of those get out of whack, that’s a challenge that you have to take care of,” Coe adds.  

Miss Part 1? You can read it HERE

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(Photo: ©iStockphoto/LSOphoto)

Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Matt Poe at [email protected].