If your hotel is outsourcing it’s laundry, and has been for some time, you might well want to have another look at whether this is the most cost effective option for you.

While looking at the news pages on one of our commercial laundry suppliers websites we came across an interesting press release from Electrolux.

They were talking about how a fairly large, established hotel which was outsourcing it’s laundry realised that the laundry costs they were paying were significantly higher than other similar sized hotels which were doing their laundry in-house.

With this in mind the hotel – one of the MacDonalds chain – decided to convert one of their bedrooms into a laundry room. To do this they worked with one of Carlton’s commercial laundry equipment suppliers, in this case it was, of course, Electrolux.

As a result the new laundry equipped with Electrolux commercial washing and drying machines, has made a significant positive impact to the hotels bottom line.

Not only that but the lady who first thought of the idea to do this, has now been promoted to General Manager of the hotel.

If you think that your business could save money by handling it’s laundry in-house instead of outsourcing then give me a call. We have an extensive range of commercial laundry equipment to fit all requirements. You could start saving your company money very quickly – and you never know – you might get a big promotion as well!

For more details on our commercial laundry equipment ranges please click commercial washing and drying equipment or call us on 01793 512550. It would be great to hear from you.

A year ago, Primus introduced its Wash Technology Team (WTT) and one of the first results is the comparison between our T9 industrial dryer and 8-9 kg professional dryer.
The tests were illustrating that the overall profitability of our T9 is much better due to shorter drying times (25-35 minutes), less energy consumption and a longer life span of the T9.  

The new ECO & SUPER ECO programmes are a second important realisation.  Primus WTT has worked out 3 settings of programmes which are standard available on all Primus washer extractors from now on.    With our new ECO & SUPER ECO Programmes you will be able to reach consumption figures with only  +/- 7 litres per kg linen.    Depending on your needs, type & quantity of linen to wash you will be able to reduce significantly your costs on water & electricity and encourage your environmentally friendly activity.

The Beginning…

In 1908, Joe Barlow and John Seelig, two hardware store owners in Ripon, WI, purchased several hand-powered washing machines from a company in Kansas City, MO. After experimenting with the washing machines, the inventors were successful in devising a way to increase the machine’s efficiency through high speed gearing. The partners then purchased the manufacturing rights from the company in Kansas City and Barlow & Seelig Manufacturing was born. The company initially produced a limited amount of washers named the “White Cloud.” It wasn’t until 1928 that the brand name became Speed Queen.

During the ownership period of Joe Barlow and John Seelig, Speed Queen saw many new innovations. In 1911, the company’s first washer powered by an electric motor was built. In 1915, they introduced the first swinging wringer to operate in any direction and in 1922, the manufacturing of washers built with nickel copper tubs, a first in the industry began. In 1939, Speed Queen traded in the nickel copper tubs for stainless steel and it’s still used in our washing machines today.

The War Era

Like many manufacturers during World War II (1942 – 1945), Speed Queen halted its production of laundry equipment to manufacture 20mm shells as well as parts for airplanes, tanks and guns. Operating 24-hours a day to support the war effort, the company received numerous awards for its service.

The Present

The history of Speed Queen, from its humble beginnings in 1908 as Barlow and Seelig Manufacturing to the present is a fascinating change of events. And today, as in 1908, Speed Queen continually strives to provide you with quality products that are backed by superior customer service. With over 100 years of commercial quality and expertise we bring to you a line of washers and dryers built with a no-nonsense design and performance-based construction for your home. These products will get your clothing cleaner. After all, it’s what you expect from a company that only does laundry!

Speed Queen Laundry - it’s all we do!

The European Union (EU) Directive on Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment. The Directive deals with the collection, treatment, recovery and recycling of electrical and electronic waste products. The WEEE Directive’s aim is to transfer the responsibility for disposal of up to 6 million tons of potentially hazardous WEEE produced within the EU annually to producers of these products. Producers will be required to recycle equipment at end of life instead of disposal to land-fills. This is also referred to as “producer responsibility”. Companies selling electric or electronic devices in the EU will be required to mark new products with a durable marking or label to indicate separate collection of the device at the end of its useful life, and also be prepared to take back and recycle these products. Failure to comply with WEEE legislation will result in fines. The Directive was supposed to take effect 13th August, 2005, however, Germany’s requirements take effect in March, 2006 and the UK has indicated that its regulations may take effect in January, 2006. Holland, Belgium and Sweden should be on time as they already operate national WEEE recycling schemes.

The categories of electrical and electronic equipment covered by the directive include large and small household appliances, IT and telecommunications equipment, consumer equipment such as television sets, lighting equipment, tools, toys, leisure and sports equipment, medical devices, monitoring and control instrumentation, and automatic dispensers such as vending and ATM machines.

Miele GB was established in 1963 when Karl Heinz Wedekind was entrusted by Rudolf Miele to set up a sales and marketing subsidiary in Great Britain. Originally operating with a small staff from offices in Great Portland Street, the company moved to larger premises in Acton in 1972 and, in 1981, to its current purpose-built offices in Abingdon.

When the building was completed it provided an office area of 20,000 sq feet, which included a second floor built as a shell for future expansion, and 56,000 sq feet of warehouse space. In the intervening years, through the acquisition of two adjacent warehouses, the Miele site has expanded to cover 13.5 acres, our storage capacity has been increased to 120,000 sq feet and the opening of our new customer centre, the Miele Experience Centre, in 2005 released much needed office space on the ground floor of the main building.

Miele, manufacturer of premium domestic appliances, achieved its highest turnover ever in the 2007/2008 business year, which ended on June 30. The family-run company, headquartered in Gütersloh, Germany, increased turnover in the period under review by 2.5% to €2.81-billion, compared with €2.74-billion the previous year.

The Miele group as a whole topped the €2-billion mark five years ago, however turnover outside Germany alone, this year, exceeded the same figure for the first time. Staff levels over the past five years have also risen worldwide by 1041 to a current 16,163. Miele subsidiaries have increased their headcount in marketing, sales and service.

Germany heads the league table of the 10 strongest Miele subsidiaries worldwide, followed by the Netherlands, Great Britain, the US, Switzerland, France, Austria, Australia, Belgium and Russia.

The largest percentage growth, though, came from Eastern Europe. All Miele subsidiaries there, from Russia, the Czech Republic, Poland, the Ukraine, and Hungary to Croatia, Slovakia and Slovenia, reported healthy two-digit growth. Pleasing, too, was progress made in regions in South America and Asia where Miele sees great potential for future growth.

Within Europe, Miele achieved high double-digit sales growth in many regions. Success was spearheaded by Turkey, followed by Norway and Finland, but healthy growth also came from Miele subsidiaries in Denmark and Ireland in the north down to Greece, Portugal and Italy in the south. Great Britain also reported strong growth in local currency.

Despite a general drop in spending in traditional markets in mainland Europe, Miele remains confident. With a model range including premium cooking and steam cooking appliances alongside refrigeration products, coffee makers, dishwashers, laundry-care machines and floorcare products as well as commercial machines and medical devices, Miele is well positioned to grow.

Miele is also helped on its way by excellent test reports, superb quality and a whole host of unique selling propositions such as the honeycomb drum on washing machines and tumble dryers and the in-door salt container on dishwashers.