UK
Leading laundry supplier CLEAN has invested in equipment at its sites in Cheltenham and Nottingham to help make them more efficient and improve customer service. In addition, the company has also launched three white linen collections designed to meet the rapidly evolving needs of the hospitality sector.
The company has made a £500k investment at Cheltenham with the purchase of new Kannegiesser towel folders, an associated conveyor system and a repurposed shrink-wrap unit, while a £490k investment at Nottingham is funding a new iron feeder, press and folder.
The installation of new Kannegiesser towel folders at Cheltenham now allows 2,400 towels to be folded per hour, compared to the current 1,600 per hour, while a repurposed shrink-wrap unit will ensure better consistency of wrapping.
All laundered towels leaving Clean's Cheltenham laundry are folded and shrink-wrapped in plastic film to ensure they reach hotels in perfect condition. As towelling makes up 40% of the products processed at the site each week, it is important they reach hotels in the best condition possible.
Clean Cheltenham site director Nick Phillips said: "Having state-of-the-art equipment installed on site will lead to better service which will have a huge impact on the business. The benefits to customers are threefold: It will speed up service, improve reliability of the folding and ensure consistency in wrapping.”
He added: "It will also improve sustainability across the whole factory. If we can process more towels in the same time, we will use less energy."
At Clean Nottingham, a new iron feeder is said to help improve energy efficiency by 8% while the new press is 10% more efficient. A new folder, due to be installed, is expected to lead to greater gains in energy efficiency.
Clean Nottingham site director Iain Corner said: "The investment in new equipment increases quality for our customers, increases the site's capacity and has positive benefits for staff who can see that the company is investing in them and their site."
Clean CEO Jason Miller said: "We continue our strategy of investment into our laundries in Cheltenham and Nottingham which will not only improve service for our customers but will also enable staff to do their jobs more efficiently."
Clean’s decision to launch three white linen collections is in response to trends in the UK hos
pitality sector, which saw a flurry of new bedrooms come to the market across a wide range of properties – from budget hotels and serviced apartments to boutique and luxury five-star establishments. The product lines cater for all types of hotels – from 130-thread count everyday comfort line Lucia, to the cotton-rich mid-range 200-thread count Isabella up to the opulent 300-thread count premium range Oria.
