Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved. HOUSEKEEPING MANAGEMENT SECOND EDITION ︳ MATT A. CASADO

Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved. CHAPTER Main Concepts 6 Laundry Room Management Planning the Laundry Linen Poundage Determination Laundry Operation Laundry Operating Costs Staffing the Laundry Room

Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved. PLANNING THE LAUNDRY Laundry Room Design: The first step iconsists of building a facility with enough capacity to process the maximum amount of linen a property can generate per day. Layout: Should provide adequate work-flow pattern to avoid worker cross-traffic. Washers/Extractors: Should have high spinning power (G-Force). The use of ozone allows for shorter wash cycles and can result in energy and water savings.

Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved. PLANNING THE LAUNDRY (CONT.) Dryers: In general, twice as many dryers as washers are needed. To save energy, a battery of dryers should be enclosed on the top and sides. – Dryer lint must be removed oftenfrom the ventilation system as it can be a major fire hazard. Mangles: Ironing rollers are often used for napkins and table cloths. State-of-the-art flatwork finishers are preferred to mangles because they can dry, iron, and fold linen automatically.

Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved. LINEN POUNDAGE DETERMINATION The linen poundage of a property is the weight of one par of linen (at 100 percent occupancy). The linen poundage determines the capacity of washers needed to process one par of linen in 8 hours work (one worker shift). The linen poundage is calculated by multiplying one par of linen by the respective weight of one piece of bed and bath linens used in the property.

Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved. LAUNDRY OPERATION The linen laundering cycle includes the following steps: – Sorting of the linen – Pretreatment of stains – Loading the washers, washing, and extracting – Drying – Ironing – Folding – Storing

Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved. LAUNDRY OPERATION (CONT.) Water: Good water quality is necessary for washing linen effectively. Hard water prevents detergents from releasing their sudsy action to remove soils. If water is too hard, the installation of a water softener may be necessary.

Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved. LAUNDRY OPERATION (CONT.) Chemicals commonly used in laundry operations are: – Alkalis – Antichlors – Bleach – Breaks – Softeners – Sours

Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved. BEST RESULTS Appearance: The linen must be snow white (for white items) and free of wrinkles and spots. Odor: Must be fresh and clean. Feel: Should be smooth and velvety, not coarse.

Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved. LAUNDRY OPERATING COSTS Cost percentages for a typical laundry operation nationwide can be averaged as follows: – Labor45% – Linen Replacement20% – Energy15% – Laundry Chemicals10% – Other10%

Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved. STAFFING THE LAUNDRY ROOM An ideal scenario is to have enough equipment and personnel to process the property’s poundage in eight hours, to avoid overtime. In large establishments, laundry operations are coordinated by a laundry manager who reports directly to the executive housekeeper.