HOUSTON — Dave Beavers has been in the laundry business for more than 40 years. He has worked in various types of laundry facilities, including industrial uniforms, hospitality, and healthcare. And he is always on the lookout for what’s new in the industry.
Today, he is employed by Crothall Healthcare as the chief engineer at Texas Medical Center Hospital Laundry, and if there’s a change in software or hardware, he wants to see it.
“What I’m looking for is new or improved technology,” Beavers says. “Our industry is constantly changing, technology keeps emerging. I look for innovation and anything that improves or enhances safety. I look at the quality of the machinery, how well it’s built.”
At Clean 2015 in Atlanta, Beavers scouted out some of the most recent advances in technology and equipment. During the Textile Rental Services Association (TRSA) webinar Emerging Technology/Equipment, he shared some of the things he saw that he believes can help laundry managers and owners improve operations within the facility.
RFID CHIPS
RFID—radio-frequency identification—chips aren’t really new, but Beavers sees them being used more and more in linens.
“In my particular field of hospital linen, one thing that we have is linen control, and especially things that seem to grow legs and walk out, like scrubs, items like that,” he says. “This technology, sewing in RFID chips, is being used in a multiple-cabinet-type format.”
He describes using the system in this way. An employee at the facility will have a card reader that will open up and show their identification. They select what garments they want, then a particular bin opens and they take out the goods. Since each item is identified, the system knows what’s being taken out of the cabinet.
When the employee returns the soiled goods to the cabinet, it “reads” the chips contained in what’s being returned. Their card tracks usage by what they take out and what they bring back.
“Another nice feature about this is that it will also inventory what’s in the cabinet and it will send that information and allow you to know what’s stocked in there, what’s getting low, what needs to be generated as far as refilling the cabinet,” Beavers says. “There are more and more of this type to help control linen losses being put into place. I thought this was a very nice system to have.”
REPORTING SYSTEMS
Beavers says his facility utilizes overhead rail systems, batch washers, finishing equipment, items of that nature. It’s important to stay up on the technology, he says, and that includes reporting systems.
His facility uses E-Tech’s eVue software system, which has recently been upgraded and is operated through a touch screen. It offers modules for material-handling control, production reports and maintenance reporting. Information can easily be accessed using an iPad or tablet.
Once an operator logs in at, say, the ironer, the system immediately starts tracking his or her production rate.
“What’s nice about this system is it’s user-friendly,” Beavers says. “You can have displays in the plant showing the operator. You can have displays on the touch screen that you can pull up located throughout the system. You could also have this information sent to you by text.”
Softrol offers this type of technology through its new LOIS system, Beavers says. A mobile app allows a user to monitor plant production. One could utilize a total plant management program through the system with the same dashboard.
Another provider of reporting systems is Spindle, he says. Its SpindleLIVE system provides the same basic types of report information, and it’s smartphone-capable to remotely obtain this type of information from any location.
“More and more of this stuff is coming online, and it’s very nice, good technology, helps you keep better track and control of your operation and maximizing your pounds per operator hour,” he says.
Miss earlier portions of this story? Read part 1 HERE and part 2 HERE.
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