It hasn't been an easy road for Chris Birk, who has watched One Hour Cleaners in Peru, Indiana, overcome its share of setbacks since his family purchased the plant in 1966.
In fact, the road has had its share of twists and turns, bumps and dips, and even some construction from time to time (on Mother's Day in 1995, a car had driven off the street and smack into the plant, destroying plenty of equipment and making quite a mess)...but Chris has always believed in making the most of any situation.
"One Hour Cleaners is what I would call small town cleaners," Chris said. "Being in a county that was the only county in Indiana to decline in population, due to the closing of Grissom Air Force Base in the 1990s, and a town with three cleaners and few white collar jobs, there is no doubt that it is much different than the cleaners in a large town where they can cater to a segment of the population."
When Grissom Air Force Base was made inactive at the start of the 1990s, more than 5,000 people left the area. The move impacted the entire town. Chris noted, "We are rebuilding again. The county is recovering, but it is a slow process. "
Long before 1990, the Birks had faced another severe decline in Peru's population, once again as a result of Grissom Air Force Base shifting its personnel.
"Peru was heavily impacted in late 1969 and 1970 when the B-58 "Hustler" as it was called -- a mach 2.1 thermonuclear bomber -- was taken off active duty at Grissom Air Force Base," he recalled. "A lot of personnel left: majors, lieutenant colonels and colonels who made big bucks in flying this specialized plane --they were the 'top gun' pilots of the day. They made good money and spent it. I would estimate that 25% of our business left when the B-58 was mothballed."
The KC-135s replaced the B-58s, but the new flying machines lacked the finesse and challenge of its predecessors. The reason the B-58s attracted the best pilots was because a staggering 20% of the planes crashed, mostly due to pilot error. The KC-135s did not require the same unparalleled skill, so One Hour Cleaners saw a steady drop in their volume of "air force blues," just as they did during the early 1990s.
As for the Mother's Day incident in 1995, Chris utilized his construction skills and sealed up the building with a friend. Chris also ended up cleaning up the mess and repairing One Hour Cleaner's damaged steam headers so the business could be operating the following Monday morning.
Despite obstacles of population and automobile shifts, the Birks have long been able to stay in business in Peru. The formula for the Birks' success has often been their ability to cater to their machinery, not the population.
"It is very important that cleaners take a look at their equipment and upgrade it. In a small cleaners, you can't afford to have specialized finishing equipment because the volume of garments you get doesn't justify it, and, of course, space requirements...so you have to compromise and find what works best for you."
Equipment plays an integral part in any drycleaning plant's success, but the Birks always manage to find ways to stretch the limits of their machinery, upgrading only when necessary.
"When we bought the business, we had, in the finishing department, only two foot stompers -- that is, two right-handed manual (pedal-operated) presses -- puff irons, an ironing board and a "suzi (steam air finisher)."
At the time, Chris was a young boy who spent much of his time learning how to hang up garments, "blow out" garments on the suzi, make hangers (put on pant guards), and, as he put it, "probably be in the way."
"This was 1966," Chris recalled, "and all trousers had to be topped on the utility and then pressed with two lays per leg. The first thing we did was replace that smelly, messy bag filter and still with the highly automated autoflex filter. We also installed an air-operated legger and a topper to cut down on production costs.
"In the early 1980s we sent to the scrapyard the two Goldman utility presses. They were still in good working condition, but we replaced them with two air-operated, disappearing head presses with built-in irons. We also replaced and upgraded the spotting board and the steam air finisher."
Also in the early 1980s, One Hour Cleaners had a dry-to-dry cleaning machine installed, replacing the Martin rocking horse transfer unit they had.
"It had been a faithful unit and by upgrading it with cartridge filters and various other engineering changes we made, it did a wonderful job for us," said Chris. "I can recall as a child of eight or nine my dad cleaning four loads an hour, or around 120 lbs. an hour, in that unit from early in the morning until late in the day, and with just those two foot stompers, all that work being turned out.
"It did a wonderful job for us, but there is no doubt that you cannot beat dry-to-dry for cutting down on exposure and raising perc mileage."
It seems to be Chris Birk's nature to learn as much as he can. Chris graduated with a degree in computer science from Purdue University, where he emphasized business and accounting. Chris is also a Certified Environmental Drycleaner (CED), and he took a wetcleaning class at the International Fabricare Institute in 1998.
"I know a lot of drycleaners are 'anti-wetcleaning,' and, I have to admit, I was a bit that way myself. But I took the course, which was taught by Ann Hargrove and IFI instructors. I was quite impressed. I would encourage every drycleaner to take such a course," Chris said.
Chris had other advice for drycleaners, as well: "It is important that cleaners know how to use speciality spotting agents such as strippers and digesters. I don't know how a drycleaner can attempt to operate without a near-daily use of a digester. That is why I laugh at products like Dryel. If spotting was so easy with just one bottle, I would not have about 15 or 20 different agents that I have available for my use."
Birk subscribes to the belief that drycleaners have a duty to strive for the highest possible standards. One Hour Cleaners has achieved four-star status in the five-star program. The Birks started their plant in the program as a three-star cleaners in 1996.
Chris also feels it is necessary to participate in industry associations. "Today, the cleaner has to keep on top of fabric changes, and always keep on top of their skill. That is why membership in a state association and in a national association is important," he said.
Not only is Chris a member of IFI and the Indiana Drycleaning and Laundry Association (IDLA), but he was elected president of IDLA after being on the board for only a year.
"I got involved with the IDLA board because of the governmental regulations and the work our association was doing with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM)."
As for his fast rise to president, Birk explained: "That is either because they were impressed with me, or no one else wanted the job!"
A normal day for Chris Birk begins behind the spotting board where he does the specials and fills in wherever he's needed. On any random day he might be found modifying the plant's machines to perform better. "I usually make modifications to make the equipment suit my needs. I made an engineering change on one piece of gear and contacted the manufacturer, and now, it is a standard feature. I guess I like to tinker. I have done electrical wiring since I was 12 or 13, so making wiring changes or adding features in wiring is something that does not scare me."
Keeping the cleaning operation running smoothly is only part of his day. Chris spends the rest of his day as a computer programmer for Miami Computer Services, Inc., a company his father founded in 1968. "I have overseen as many as 20 locations at one time with about 300 (computer) users and about 25,000 programs," Chris said. "In my spare time, I rebuild and upgrade PCs for our clients and I design web pages."
While having two demanding jobs is more than enough for most people to give up on the idea of hobbies, Chris has managed to participate in more than his share.
He enjoys going to various car shows so he can display his restored 1978 Trans Am, and his electronic voice can be heard most nights on the fabricare forum (fabricare@egroups.com), where he often offers advice to his peers.
Until 1997, Chris was highly active in the Boy Scouts of America, the same organization where he earned the honor of Eagle Scout. He has also been awarded the Silver Beaver (the highest award given by the council) and the District Award of Merit (the highest award a district can bestow).
"I have camped over a year in nights. For ten years, I ran the scout camp kitchen for various events, feeding upwards of 300. I have served on three national boy scout jamboree staffs, and wore many hats on the local council and district level."
Unfortunately, Chris had to give up his participation in the Boy Scout program after he was struck with asthma in 1997. Never one to give up, however, Chris still pursues many interests.
"I do oil paintings. I am also very involved in the local church, where I have served in numerous teaching and leadership positions and am a lay speaker in the denomination. I have been a participant in the Promise Keepers' movement. I try to give it my all and my best."
Bergparma S.R.L. has appointed Jim Cueto as CEO of Bergparma of America LLC, located in Hammonton,NJ.
Bergparma S.R.L. has been manufacturing drycleaning machines for sale in the United States through various importers for the past 50 years. They have sold under such names as Lava, Dual, Miraclean and Forenta Miraclean.
Cueto has been in the industry for 20 years and has been involved in importing Italian drycleaning machines for such factories as AMA Universal, ILSA, Union, Firbimatic, Realstar, Italclean and others.
He has travelled throughout the United States and Canada working with distributors and conducting seminars on both the sales and servicing of drycleaning machines.
Cueto began an assembly program of the Bergparma machines in 1993 in Tennessee where he now resides. He has been involved over the years in the engineering process and design on many of the features seen today on drycleaning machine.
Headquarters will remain in Hammonton, NJ. The phone numbers are (800) 550-6948 and (609) 704-0800.
A second office will be opened in Tennessee in the near future.
Don Dallons, a veteran of 15 years in the drycleaning industry, has formed a new company, Dallons Environmental Services (DES).
He will offer a variety of hazardous waste services such as hazardous waste removal, environmental equipment to reduce hazardous waste and environmental training. He plans to run a hands-on operation and customize his services to the needs of his customers.
DES can be reached by phone at (800) 347-6551, on the web at www.environmentallyyours.com or by e-mail at don_dallons@yahoo.com .
SILVER SPRING, MD ‹ Robin Little has been promoted to vice president of marketing at the International Fabricare Institute.
In her new position, Little "will play a key role in positioning IFI as the premier drycleaning association that offers services no other group can match," said IFI CEO Bill Fisher.
Little said that over the next two years, IFI will "undertake the steps necessary to build a comprehensive program, with he focus on membership development and cross-selling of IFI products and services to the grassroots members."
"I will also be involved in helping to develop marketing strategies for the other major service areas of the institute, such as textile testing, education and research," Little said.
Before joining IFI last year as marketing manager, Little was marketing manager for the American Chemical Society for five years where she developed and executed marketing plans for that group's on-line publications.
She also has held marketing and advertising related positions with the Personal Communications Industry Association, Consumers United Insurance Co., and the American Geophysical Union.
Little holds a bachelor's degree in communications from Temple University in Philadelphia, PA.
The Korean-American Cleaners Association of New Jersey held their sixth Annual Ball in December with about 400 members and guests from supply companies and other related firms attending. Appreciation Awards were presented by the association to Ian Meklinsky, Wan-Mo Kang, Jay Hong and Bonnie Kim. Following the dinner and awards presentation, there was entertainment and music, with festivities lasting until midnight.
B&G Lieberman Co. Inc., has announced a "changing of the guard" on the occasion of the company's 50th anniversary. The new officers are Larry Lieberman, president; Robert Marx, CEO; ane vice presidents Gerald Lieberman and Walter S. Marx.
SuperTec Drycleaning Systems has been appointed the importer of the new SuperTec Gold and Gold Plus series of perc and hydrocarbon drycleaning machines.The machines are manufactured in Italy according to specifications unique to SuperTec Drycleaning Systems.
SuperTec Drycleaning systems is responsible for marketing, sales and technical support of SuperTec Gold and Gold Plus cleaning machines in the Southeastern United States. The company is seeking to develop sales through an authorized distributor network.
The company's administrative, sales and technical support personnel will be based in Miami, FL. For more information call (800) 605) 4808, or visit the company's web site at www.supertecdrycleaning.com.
Thermopatch has announced its acquisition of all of the Thermopatch BV operations in Europe.
As a result, some executive responsibilities have changed. Tom DePuit, president, has assumed the direct management of all operations of Thermopatch U.S., Canada and Australia.
Ray Paleczny has assumed the position of vice president of European Operations and will also coordinate all research and development efforts between Thermopatch U.S. and Thermopatch B.V. while coordinating the international sales efforts. DePuit will also oversee the financial programs of both operations.
Thermopatch supplies heat sealable identification labels and inks, mending supplies, printed and embroidered emblems, emblems printing systems, direct imprinting systems and heat seal equipment.
IPSO USA celebrated the official opening of its new manufacturing facility and United States headquarters Dec. 3 in Panama City, FL.
The mayor, representatives of the local economic development board and Chamber of Commerce welcomed the company with speeches before in audience of more than 300 guests.
The 50,000 square foot building houses modern executive offices and manufacturing facilities with land and plans for future development of an additional 150,000 square feet. Initially, the plant will be devoted to the production of the newly developed line of IPSO IPH washer-extractors for on-premise laundries.
Eddy Coppieters, president of IPSO ILG, welcomed the distributors and spoke briefly about the recent merger with the Jensen Group and the company's plans to increase its share of the U.S. market to 15 percent in the next three years.
Jorn Munch Jensen, chairman of the board of the combined companies, also welcomed the distributors and guests.
In a morning session for distributors, Bengt Bruce, president of IPSO USA, introduced distributors to the IPSO IPH line of washer-extractors and the new features incorporated into these machines.
Mats Bruce, vice president of engineering, led the group in a machine demonstration.
Initially, all IPSO machines produced at Panama City will be hard-mount models.
Production facilities at the new IPSO plant use the newest manufacturing technologies and equipment. Plans are underway for development stages two and three of the plant which will add 150,000 square feet of manufacturing space, the added space will be used for production of a number of new products now on the drawing boards.
The new IPSO USA headquarters and manufacturing facility is located at 99 Aberdeen Loop, Panama City, FL 32405. Phone numbers are (850) 271-5959 and (800) USA-IPSO and the fax number is (850) 271-5901. The company's web site is www.ipsousa.com.
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