Content about Laundry

IRVINE, Calif. — Several drycleaning and laundry services franchises were recently recognized by Entrepreneur Magazineas being among the top 500 franchise systems for 2012.

Making this year’s list were:

• Martinizing Dry Cleaning, No. 278
• ZIPS Dry Cleaners, No. 325
• FRSTeam, No. 333
• Comet Cleaners, No. 346
• Certified Restoration Drycleaning Network, No. 388
• 1-800-DryClean, No. 427
• DryClean USA, No. 461
• Pressed4Time Inc., No. 481

To be eligible for the annual Franchise 500® ranking, a franchisor must have a minimum of 10 units, with at least one in the United States, and must be seeking new franchisees, the magazine says. All companies are judged on financial strength and stability, growth rate, size of the system, and other factors.

To learn more about the Franchise 500®, visit the Entrepreneur website.

WASHINGTON — When the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) posted the final health assessment for tetrachloroethylene—also known as perchloroethylene, or perc—to its Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) database in February, it deemed the chemical to be a “likely human carcinogen.”

The assessment replaces the 1988 IRIS assessment for perc and for the first time includes a hazard characterization for cancer effects. The assessment underwent several levels of rigorous, independent peer review including: agency review, interagency review, public comment, and external peer review by the National Research Council, according to the EPA, and all major review comments were addressed.

The Halogenated Solvents Industry Alliance says 70% of U.S. commercial dry cleaners use perc; EPA estimates the total number to be 27,000. So what does this development mean for the future of the industry’s preferred solvent?

PEMBROKE, Mass. — Dry cleaners lose customers all the time. There’s a fight and the cleaner knows the customer will never come back.

A wholesale account calls to complain about pricing and announces it will find somewhere else to do business.

A customer is so annoyed that the cleaner didn’t have the order ready as promised that she’ll never be seen again.

Most dry cleaners shrug, and say they’ll do better next time. They also feel they tried their best and nothing more could be done.

This is the wrong approach. The dry cleaner should resolve to make up the lost customer by replacing her with new business. In fact, this should become the dry cleaner’s mantra: I will not let business go without replacing it.

This tactic will stop you from accepting of whatever the market brings, and could propel you forward. It should. This practice could be called “determined progress.”

LAUREL, Md. — A five-day Introduction to Drycleaning course, sponsored by the Drycleaning and Laundry Institute’s (DLI) School of Drycleaning Technology, will make a stop in Chicago April 30 through May 4.

Known as DLI On the Road, the course offers the opportunity to locals to train without expensive airfares, hotel accommodations, or time away from family to learn the basics of the drycleaning business.

The class, co-sponsored by the Illinois Professional Drycleaners & Launderers, will be held in the northwest Chicago suburbs. Sessions at Haiges Machinery in Huntley, Ill., and at Vogue Cleaners in Crystal Lake, Ill., are planned. Registration closes April 6.

The drycleaning course provides a solid foundation for the profession and is ideal for newcomers to the industry, DLI says. Some of the basics covered include sorting loads for dry cleaning; cleaning garments, including silk and satin; operating a drycleaning machine; removing stains, including coffee, ink and grease; pressing pants, coats and skirts; and using tensioning equipment to improve finishing quality.

CONCORD, N.C. — There are times when all stains begin to look alike; they seem to be a shade of tan or yellow. The problem is, not all yellow stains are the same.

They do not have the same origin; they do not have the same composition. This yellow/tan can range from caramelized sugar, to a beverage stain, to a stubborn oxidized oil stain.

The earlier the stain is identified, the easier it will be to remove the stain. This points to the need for your customer service representative to form the habit of asking each customer, “Are you aware of any spots or stains on any of your garments?” Information gathered should be passed on to the spotter to assist in establishing the proper course of action to effectively remove the stain.

Stain content will determine the chemical tools necessary and the protocol to follow in stain removal. Fiber content and garment construction, as well as the age of the stain, can adversely affect the stain-removal process. Any attempt by the customer to remove the stain will make professional stain removal more difficult or even impossible.

CHICAGO — In light of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) updated assessment that lists perchloroethylene (perc) as a “likely human carcinogen,” 71.6% of respondents to this month’s AmericanDrycleaner.com Wire survey believe the solvent will no longer be a viable option for the average operator within 10 years. Of that group, 37.5% believe perc has another 10 years while 34.1% say it’s only five years.

Approximately 13% give perc another 20 years, while equal shares of 8% peg its time remaining as a viable solvent option as either 15 years or “indefinitely.”

Should the EPA assessment create stricter regulation of perc or lead to a phase-out, it stands to have a major impact on the drycleaning industry. Perc is generally considered the most-used solvent among U.S. dry cleaners.

Among respondents to this month’s survey, 69.9% say they use perc. Other solvents used by respondents include high-flashpoint hydrocarbon (23.7%), GreenEarth (D5 silicon) (6.5%), liquid CO2 (2.2%), Solvair (1.1%), and DrySolv (n-Propyl Bromide) (1.1%).

SAN FRANCISCO — The lifestyle changes of consumers (most notably more casual attire), their extremely hectic lifestyles that limit time and/or desire to run errands, and the downward economic pressure in general have all been factors in the search for alternative profit centers to maintain the economic health of the fabricare industry.

I’m going to address some of the alternatives that are contributing to the sales and profit of cleaners. It is important to remember that any and all of them take careful planning and execution to be successful.

DISASTER RESTORATION

Disaster restoration divisions, with their large orders on the positive side, and the uncertainty of demand on the negative side, have been a common and welcome addition to many companies.

Anyone considering entering this business for the first time is advised to thoroughly research the required initial investment, potential challenges of collection, and the extremely aggressive competition in the sales process. If these factors are manageable, a professional team is required to make this business a success.

COLD SPRING, Ky. — Two valued Fabritec International employees and veteran contributors to the dry cleaning industry have died in recent months, the company reports.

Retired Vice President Bob Knippling died Jan. 12 at age 85. Knippling, a U.S. Army veteran who served during World War II, graduated from college with degrees in chemistry and biology. He joined then-Emery Industries in 1951 as a chemist.

While with Fabritec, he was in charge of the Stamford distribution and Emerbrite divisions, and he worked closely with Fabritec’s salesmen. Knippling made major research contributions during his 50 years in the industry. He served as Fabritec vice president for 20 years before retiring in 2001.

Retired Sales Support Manager John Geer died Oct. 22 at age 78. After receiving a physics degree, Geer began his dry cleaning career with his family’s business in Marion, Ohio. In 1976, he joined Fabritec (Emery Industries at the time), where he became director of technical services.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — North American Restoration Dry Cleaners (NARD), a national group of textile restoration professionals, has welcomed three new members in expanding its national coverage.

Urban Valet Cleaners, Buffalo, N.Y., has been in the restoration business for more than 10 years and services western New York and northern Pennsylvania.

Bobby Page’s Restoration in northern Nevada has been working restoration dry cleaning for almost 50 years.

Fabricare-Restoration by Margaret’s is recognized as Southern California’s premier dry cleaning institution and as one of the nation’s top cleaning establishments, NARD says. The business recently added a separate division focusing solely on insurance restoration cleaning.

“We are one step closer to our goal of providing national coverage with the finest restoration dry cleaning professionals in the country,” says NARD President Mark Folzenlogen.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Friday officially characterized tetrachloroethylene—also known as perchloroethylene (perc)—as a “likely human carcinogen,” but the agency does not believe that wearing clothing dry-cleaned with perc poses a health risk.

EPA issued its final health assessment to its Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) database, which describes health effects that may result from exposure to various substances. The assessment provides estimates for both cancer and non-cancer effects associated with exposure to perc over a lifetime.

The agency has already taken several significant actions to reduce exposure to perc. It has clean air standards for dry cleaners that use perc, including requirements that will phase-out the chemical’s use in residential buildings by Dec. 21, 2020.

EPA also set limits for the amount of perc allowed in drinking water, and levels for cleaning up perc at Superfund sites throughout the country, which will be updated in light of the IRIS assessment.

Drycleaning & Laundry Institute Cleaning & Stain Removal Course.

HARRISBURG, Pa. — The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) recently awarded 46 small businesses $293,889 in grants to help them invest in energy-efficiency or pollution-prevention projects, and three dry cleaners—Quality Cleaners in Lemoyne, Steininger’s Laundry & Dry Cleaning in Selinsgrove, and Murrysville Cleaners in Murrysville—were among the recipients.

Quality Cleaners received a $7,500 grant to aid in the purchase and installation of a K4 hydrocarbon system to replace a perchloroethylene system (total project cost is $87,635). The business is owned by Barry Gordon.

Steininger’s Laundry and Dry Cleaning received a $7,500 grant to aid in upgrading to a Union drycleaning machine for greater solvent mileage and waste reduction (total project cost is $67,385). Owner of the company is Charles Steininger.

Murrysville Cleaners received a $7,500 grant to install a high-efficiency boiler, with a goal of reducing emissions (total project cost is $31,000). David Beatty is the owner.