‘Small’ missteps in operations lead to big impacts

They are seemingly “small” laundry room actions…rapid advancing a cycle, leaving loads sit in the washer-extractor or tumble dryer after cycle end, drying loads beyond normal dryness level, veering from prescribed cycles.

However, as most laundry managers know, small missteps lead to costly results in wash quality, finish quality, and overall costs. While managers do their best to keep an eye on staff and use training/retraining, they cannot be on-site 24/7. This is where leveraging technology and systems such as UniMac’s new CORE offering help keep quality high. Here is a refresher on the impact of “small” process errors.

Rapid advance. Cycles are programmed for specific results. Speed through a wash? Hygienic results suffer. Speed through a rinse? Chemicals aren’t rinsed and get baked in during drying. Bottom line: rapid advancing contributes to poor quality and reduced linen life.

Leaving loads sit. Loads sitting in the washer-extractor or tumbler tend to set wrinkles and leave a poor look. In addition, loads that sit waste labor and reduce daily throughput.

Over-drying. The list is long for the impact of over-drying and includes costly linen wear – items have a shorter useful life; utilities are wasted; and labor is wasted.

Veering from prescribed cycles. Wash and dry programs are set for a reason. Selecting the wrong cycle will impact wash quality (selecting a low soil cycle for a heavy soil load); wrong dry cycle can lead to over-drying that wastes labor, utilities, and prematurely wears out linens.