LAUNDRY KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS TO TRACK FOR PRODUCTIVITY, EFFICIENCY AND QUALITY

On‑premises laundries in hotels, long‑term care, and athletic facilities run best when performance is visible. A small set of KPIs will highlight bottlenecks, help guide cost controls, and assist with protecting linen standards—without heavy admin work.

Productivity (Are we keeping up?)

• Pounds per labor hour (PPH/LPH): Baseline productivity. Track by shift and major linen types.
• Output vs. demand: Daily pounds vs. occupancy/census/team usage to confirm par coverage.
• On‑time delivery / fill rate: Orders delivered complete and on schedule—your key service measure.

Efficiency (Are we using resources well?)

• Cost per pound (or per occupied room / resident day): Rolls up labor, utilities, chemicals, and maintenance for leadership reporting.
• Equipment utilization (%): Washer/dryer run time vs. idle time; exposes staging, staffing, or scheduling issues.
• Dryer minutes per load (or per pound): Flags poor extraction, overloads, airflow restrictions, or formula drift.
• Utilities per pound: Water/gas/electric trends show waste and support conservation goals.
• Chemical use per pound + dispense accuracy: Catches overfeed (cost, residue) and underfeed (stains, odor, rewash).

Quality (Is linen acceptable and safe?)

• Rewash rate (%): The strongest quality-and-cost signal. Track reasons (stains, odor, sorting errors).
• Rejects/returns by reason: Holes, tears, stains, damage—often tied to over-drying, misclassification, or aging stock.
• Complaint rate: Log issues per 1,000 lbs (stains, odor, lint, shortages) instead of relying on anecdotes.
• Linen lifespan / replacement rate: Spikes can indicate mechanical stress, over-drying, or misuse.
• Compliance checks (as needed): Especially in long‑term care—process validation and separation practices.

Keep it simple

Start with five to seven KPIs, review weekly, and post a one‑page dashboard. Many sites get strong control from: PPH, cost per pound, rewash rate, on‑time delivery, dryer minutes per load, and rejects/returns. As a starting point, rely on your equipment distributor and chemical company representative to assist with gathering relevant information. Working with many facilities, they can often provide comparable averages and greater context.