OKLAHOMA CITY — UniFirst, a textile and work uniform service company with operations in the United States, Canada and Europe, is ready to construct the foundation for its newest 72,000-square-foot industrial laundry facility after breaking ground here a week ago.
The 4.3-acre construction site is at the junction of Interstate Highways 40 and 35, a highly visible and convenient location just east of downtown.
UniFirst’s current Oklahoma City location handles only local operations and sales. All laundry is processed at the Broken Arrow, Okla., facility 110 miles away.
“Business has grown at all our locations over the past several years, but it’s more than doubled here in Oklahoma City,” says Tracy Caine, the UniFirst Oklahoma City branch manager. “It just made sense to build a new, locally convenient facility here.”
The Oklahoma City branch ships on average eight truckloads of laundry to Broken Arrow on a weekly basis. Caine says that the new facility will help alleviate the workload there and increase efficiency overall.
Aside from processing laundry, the new facility will offer UniFirst’s full product range of uniforms, work shirts, pants, floor mats, mops, wipers, bar towels and restroom products for customers in Oklahoma City and the surrounding areas.
According to Caine, the company expects to hire a staff of 100, mostly production workers, stockroom workers and some management, in addition to those already employed in Oklahoma City.
The building and equipment cost is estimated at $7 million to $8 million. Wynn Construction Co. is the contractor for the project, which has been in the works for about two years.
Caine is crossing his fingers for a Sept. 1, 2008, completion date.
“Our company motto is, ‘Customers for life.’ This new plant will help us fulfill our promise to provide the best service possible for our customers.”
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