6 Ways to Improve Your Hotel Laundry
When was the last time you thought about how to make your hotel washer and dryer equipment work for your operation? Commercial laundry equipment, whether it’s a few large-scale machines or a handful of smaller-scale hotel laundry machines, can almost always be utilized to make your laundry service more efficient.
To help, we’ve compiled this list of 6 ways that you can improve your hotel laundry today.
Properly Train Your Staff
This may seem obvious, but for your laundry to run smoothly you need to properly train your staff to operate the laundry machines used in hotels. As you no doubt know, the hospitality industry has seen massive turnover and labor shortages. It’s possible that there are some in your laundry operation that don’t know the nuances of operating commercial washers and dryers.
Make sure they understand how to properly load, unload, clean, and maintain your hotel washers and dryers. Some hotel laundry equipment suppliers are able to help you to get everyone on the same page.
Follow Manufacturer Recommendations
Speaking of commercial laundry equipment suppliers, make sure that you review the equipment manuals they give you. You will want to closely follow manufacturer recommendations for everything from maintenance schedules to detergent choices.
If your equipment is down, your laundry room can’t do its job. As Hotel Management explains, “Consistent and effective equipment preventive maintenance by a qualified laundry mechanic is essential to keeping your laundry up and running.”
Improve Technology
In case you haven’t looked recently, laundry for hotels has come a long way in a short time. From high-efficiency dryers and washer extractors that shorten drying times to high-speed washers that get more laundry clean in less time, hotel washers and dryers are more technologically advanced than ever.
There are high-tech laundry systems that can help with everything from maintenance schedules to cycle alerts. These can help you to track usage for each machine, and for your overall laundry facility.
Properly Load Machines
Make sure you are loading your hotel washers and dryers correctly. Hotel Management reminds us “Your commercial washers are designed to operate at their rated capacities. Over- and under-loading throws the machine out of balance and causes excess vibration and damage to internal bearings. Make sure your laundry has a working scale and that your team consistently weighs every load and fills every load to the machine’s rated capacity.”
Replace Outdated Equipment
Commercial laundry equipment has a finite lifespan. While top-quality equipment will last you for years, outdated equipment is prone to downtime, repairs, and reduced efficiency.
Hotel Tech Report says “After a certain period of time, usually ten years, regular maintenance is no longer enough and you’ll need to replace and upgrade your laundry equipment. If the machines break down often or frequently need repairs, it will eventually cost more than 50% of the machine’s initial cost.”
Get Efficient
When it comes time to level up, look to improve efficiency. You may explore washing machines with higher extraction speeds, or decreased water usage.
You might look for energy-saving appliances. If you run at smaller room capacities on weekdays, perhaps smaller-capacity machines might be a good idea for your laundry room.
Energy and water costs for hotel laundry can be substantial. As a recent report by Hotel Effectiveness puts it, “It's estimated that laundry is responsible for 15-20% of energy consumption and 16% of water usage for a full-service hotel.” High-efficiency equipment is a must to keep those costs in check.
And as we explain elsewhere in our blog, “There are many options that are more energy efficient than your current machines, saving you money every month. Many new commercial laundry machines are built to reduce water usage, and newer washers often extract more water than older ones, saving energy by reducing dry times.”
If you are ready to upgrade your machines, or to seek additional laundry equipment, be it large-scale industrial washers or smaller profile machines, SelfOp Laundry has just what you need. When it comes to hotel washers and dryers, we’re your one-stop shop.