The Textile Rental Association (TRSA) has certified Swedish mat launderer H R Björkman in its Clean Green programme. This is not only the first certification outside North America it is also the first awarded to a mat launderer.

Founded in 1993, HR Björkman has gradually expanded its customer base to include Poland as well as the Swedish home market. It opened its first laundry in 1997 and became the first ISO 14001 certified laundry in Sweden two years later. In 2005, the company opened a second plant near Malmo and this features several "green" technologies.

TRSA says that the addition of HR Björkman brings Clean Green’s total to 39 companies and 84 plants. The certification provides companies with verified, quantified proof of their effectiveness in reducing their customers’ carbon footprint.