NOVEMBER 2020
Late News Unitex acquires United Linen Service in Massachusetts ELMSFORD, N.Y. — Unitex, a regional business with locations throughout the Northeast in the healthcare laundry industry, reports it has acquired United Linen Service, located in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. “United has continually provided great service, value and support to its customers, and we are excited to build on that legacy as we welcome their customers to Unitex later this year,” says David Potack, president of Unitex. “The coming together of these two companies is a natural evolution of Unitex’s expansion into the New England market, and we promise a seamless transition for customers with a continuation of extraordinary service.” United has long served the healthcare industry in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine, providing exceptional laundry services to area hospitals and extended care facilities, according to Unitex. Unitex says it will be transitioning these customers over to its newly constructed 188,000-square-foot facility in Lawrence in late 2020. ALN
Navigating local/state chemical requirements Experts share thoughts on how laundry operations can stay on the right side of local/state regulations BY MATT POE, EDITOR HI A O hemicals are necessary when it comes to the laundry process, and with the potential for personal and en ironmental harm, numerous regulations ha e to be followed regarding usage, storage and safety. ederal re uirements are often top-ofmind with chemicals, so operators might o erlook local and state regulations. There can be wide ariations in chemical storage and use regulations, but most general re uirements are based on national or international building and fire codes, says li ryderman, director-technical serices for laundry chemical pro ider urtler Industries Inc. These regulations will specify the amounts of ha ardous chemicals that can be stored on-site the type of building, con-
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tainment and fire protection re uired and any other storage and use considerations. “ ery state is different and it would re uire that an operator research what standards their local state agencies follow and who those state agencies are,” says Vaughn inissian, director of operations for chemical solutions and water technolo-
gies company orchem orp. “Local state federal re uirements are aried, and operators should always employ a bottom-up strategy, focusing on local re uirements first,” adds Ryan ontroneo, chief technology officer for chemical manuSee RULES on Page
Delivery fleet maintenance essentials Keeping laundry trucks moving depends on scheduling, technology, communication BY MATT POE, EDITOR
Volume 46, Number 11
INSIDE Columnist at Large In this issue, Eric Frederick writes about not turning a blind eye to employee behavior.
1120aln_p01,02,0406,08 Front of Book-FINAL.indd 1
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Panel of Experts Looking for ways to stand out against the competition? The Panel of Experts offers ideas.
See FLEET on Page The Newspaper of Record for Laundry & Linen Management
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[10] PRODUCT SHOWCASE
Fleet maintenance keeps laundry delivery vehicles on the road, servicing customers—instead of in the shop or on the side of the road. (Photo: Morgan Olson)
HI A O or laundry and linen ser ices that pick up and deli er goods, a properly functioning plant is only one side of the customer-ser ice coin. The other side is the functionality of the deli ery fleet. If trucks aren’t running and the customers aren’t recei ing their linens, the best processing in the industry won’t make a difference. So, what makes the difference between a truck that runs and one that doesn’t leet maintenance. “ leet maintenance, that’s the difference between trucks that are going on almost - years of ser ice, but they were built to be -year ehicles,” says enn lein, director of marketing and communications for walk-in an pro ider organ Olson in Sturgis,
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