FEBRUARY 2018
Late News Cintas to close Iowa centralized stockroom DES MOINES, Iowa — Cintas Corp. plans to gradually close its centralized stockroom here over the next four months, the company reports. Cintas acquired the facility as part of its merger with G&K Services. “Our strategy is to focus on the optimal distribution structure to facilitate excellent customer service and future growth across our entire organization,” says Terri Cain, vice president of distribution for Cintas. “As part of our integration of the distribution network we acquired from G&K, the company has made the decision to shut down this facility and integrate the products into other stockrooms across our company.” The stockroom’s closure will impact about 35 employee-partners, according to the company. Cintas has other facilities in the market and affected employeepartners are encouraged to apply for positions at those facilities. Cintas says it is a top priority for the company to assist employeepartners and their families throughALN out the transition.
Healthcare laundry: Balancing finances, processing, service Experts say industry continues to meet challenges in business, infection control, quality BY MATT POE, EDITOR CHICAGO — Randy Bartsch, president and CEO of Ecotex Healthcare Linen Service, which has operations in Seattle, Vancouver and Toronto, sees many challenges in the healthcare laundry industry. An overriding challenge he points to is the rapid consolidation of the customer base. “In December alone, we saw four of the top 10 health systems pair up in mergers,” he says. “First San Francisco-based Dignity Health, the fifth-largest health system in the nation, announced that it was merging with Colorado-based Catholic Health Initiatives
Hygienically clean healthcare linens are essential for patient comfort and care. (Image licensed by Ingram Publishing)
(CHI) to form an even larger health system with 139 hospitals. “Then, in the same week, St. Louis-based Ascension, the largest nonprofit health sys-
tem in the United States and the world’s largest Catholic health system, announced it See HEALTHCARE on Page 6
Product Evaluation:
Selecting goods, equipment that fit Expert says factors to consider include needs of customer, cost, value BY SAM SPENCE
Volume 44, Number 2
INSIDE Columnist at Large In this issue, Eric Frederick examines a necessary management skill: being a visionary.
0218aln_p01,06,10.FINAL.indd 1
(Image licensed by Ingram Publishing)
costs that we can properly price a new item and then determine if our customers are willing to pay a premium. Custom items are expensive to process
www.americanlaundrynews.com
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Hospitality Processes In this month’s OPL 101, learn how structured processes enhance guest stays.
because they introduce variability into the production system, and this drives up costs. See PRODUCTS on Page 10
The Newspaper of Record for Laundry & Linen Management
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[12] PRODUCT SHOWCASE
SADDLE BROOK, N.J. — A sales rep comes into the plant and excitedly exclaims, “I have a chance to sign a great new account, but … we will have to add a new item.” This scenario is one that is all too familiar with most laundry managers. Adding a stock keeping unit (SKU) can be an expensive proposition (and a slippery slope) for many reasons. Due to this fact, we need to determine if the new item represents a value-added proposition in the eyes of our customers, specifically by asking, “Do our customers want it and are they willing to pay for it?” It is not until we identify the hidden
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