Preparing for mobilization
business
Since the 9/11 tragedy, President Bush has
recalled almost 60,000 Reservists and National Guard personnel
to active duty. Most of them, however, are for the Army, and
the next largest recalls are for the Air Force.
The good news for our industry is that a
large number of National Guard troops are serving as security
at all the major airports, seaports and those industrial plants
vital to our national defense. The Air National Guard has been
recalled to support the active duty Air Force in the home
defense mission as a primary mission, as well as to augment the
regular combat air units oversees. The Air National Guard is on
a 24-hour alert to secure the skies over our domestic cities,
government agencies and any possible airplane take-over by
terrorists.
What this means to you is more business,
since many of the personnel are living at home while
performing their active duty obligation.
Their base of operations is the National Guard Armory or Army
Reserve Center, but most of the Army personnel are still
quartered at their homes.
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The Air National Guard, however, is
performing its duties at the Air Force bases or major airports
in your city which have devoted a section of their real estate
to the Air National Guard. Since uniforms must be worn while on
duty, many personnel have been issued additional clothing and
other gear to bring them up to active duty standards.
All uniforms, other than battle dress
uniforms (BDUs), require chevrons and shoulder patches to be
sewed on each sleeve, and BDUs require sewing of name tags,
shoulder patches and other insignia. Dress uniforms will
require considerable alterations, such as: pants length, pants
waist, sleeves and body adjustments.
In this regard, you should have on hand:
olive drab thread, tan/khaki thread, olive green thread, medium
blue thread, red thread in addition to other threads required
for a complete alteration department.
Customer service reps (CSRs) should be
trained to do marking off for minor fittings with tailor chalk
or straight pins. Female CSRs can easily take a man’s
outside seam measurement, a crotch measurement by pinching up
the excess fabric in the center of the waist-to-crotch seam
with the thumb and forefinger and marking the two ends with
tailor chalk and many other simple measurements.
My experience with high volume alterations
is that the tailor should not be bogged down with measuring to
take away his or her valuable time to tailor. By the way, never
refer to your alteration person as a “seamstress.”
Use the term “tailor” since it sounds more
professional.
You should go to a National Guard Armory,
an Air National Guard Base, a Navy Reserve Center and a Marine
Corps Reserve Center to solicit bulk cleaning, laundry and
tailoring business. The respective supply room is a good place
of operations for pick up and delivery.
Of course, like most of the hotel and
motel deals, you will need to give free work to the supply
clerk and the chief non-commissioned officer. Also, you should
ask for a copy of the respective regulation on uniforms,
insignia, etc., to allow your alterations department to comply
with those uniform regulations.
Finishing BDUs
Pants: The most productive unit for a
single operator for all pants consists of two double toppers,
two double legging presses and one mushroom topper (for odd
sized waists).
The toppers and legging presses are
parallel to each other with the mushroom at the end to form a
horseshoe configuration. Production should be about 35 to 40
pants per hour.
If you have a large volume of pants, the
two-operator unit is more productive. This unit consists of two
double toppers parallel to two double toppers with a mushroom
press at the end to form a horseshoe configuration. A horse, or
cart, is placed at the beginning of the topper unit, in the
center, to hold the finished tops for the legging unit. The
second part is the legging unit consisting of three double
legging presses in a horseshoe configuration.
Jackets: The most productive unit for a
single operator consists of one cabinet sleeve press, one
collar and cuff press with a shirt hanger rod on each end and a
double buck cabinet body-bosom-yoke press with a coat hook in
the center of the cabinet would be installed parallel to the
cabinet sleeve press.
If you must crease the sleeves, then the
collar and cuff press with a shirt hanger rod on the
operator’s left is installed first, and a military flat
sleeve press should be next (angled), and the double buck
cabinet body-bosom-yoke press should be installed parallel to
the collar and cuff press.
Production is about 30 per hour with
cabinet sleeve press and about 20 per hour with the military
flat lay sleeve press. The cabinet body-bosom-yoke press should
have no tail clamp.
The most productive set-up is a
two-operator unit consisting of two cabinet sleeve presses, two
collar and cuff presses installed parallel to each other with a
shirt hanger rod on each side, and with the cabinet sleeve
presses at the top center to form a horseshoe configuration for
Operator #1; one double buck cabinet body-bosom-yoke press and
one single buck cabinet body-bosom-yoke press installed
parallel to each other for Operator #2.
Note: Two double-buck cabinet shirt
presses may be used, provided one is used as a single-buck
cabinet press. The cabinet shirt presses should have no tail
clamps. Production is about 80 per hour with cabinet sleeve
presses and about 60 per hour with military flat sleeve
presses.
Important considerations are:
1. Head down
time much longer than civilian pants and shirts due to heavier
weight fabric.
2. Steam
pressure at the unit must be at least 100 psig with 115
recommended.
3. Pipe sizes
must be adequate to maintain steam pressure with maximum heat.
4. Good working
bucket traps rated at 80 psi for maximum condensate removal.
5. After
extraction, BDUs should have about 60% water/starch retention.
6. Padding on
cabinet body-bosom-yoke presses should be either metal base pad
with two 20 ounce nylon flannels, or metal base with flamonel
base pad with one 10 ounce nylon flannel.
7. If at all
possible, try to convince customers that creased sleeves on
BDUs are not required by Uniform Regulations. The sleeves
should be only “shaped” by running your thumb and
forefinger down through the top of the cuffs. Show the customer
a quality, heavily starched BDU and he or she will be more than
satisfied.
Finally, if there is an Army or Marine
post near you, it may be to your advantage to apply at the Post
Exchange office for an invitation to bid on a concessionaire
contract.
Note: My spotting video,”The Caplan
Method of Stain Removal,” which includes my comprehensive
text (edited by Hal Horning) and the handy spotting board
reference, is available in English, Korean (video only) and
Spanish from the Golomb Group, c/o Dennis McCrory, 7664 Plaza
Court, Willowbrook, IL 60521, phone (800) 679-5856. This video
is actually a “Trainer in a Box” and is a complete
training course for both experienced and novice spotters. My
comprehensive text reinforces all of the background technical
material required to produce a professional spotter. Each
method of spot removal is thoroughly discussed and
demonstrated. Bleaching and use of digesters are explained in
addition to basic textile chemistry.
Also available from the Golomb Group, in
English and Spanish, is my video on step-by-step shirt
finishing which includes my comprehensive text in loose-leaf
form outlining each procedure for single-operator and
two-operator cabinet shirt units. Both units are demonstrated
using a cabinet sleever and single, or triple, heated collar
former. This procedure was developed by me for top quality with
no touchup (regular sizes) together with maximum production
without overexertion by its operators. Avoiding shrinkage,
wilting and dipping of the collar, together with its proper
“breaking and forming” on the heated collar former,
are all demonstrated. Both the collar and front buttonhole
placket, the two thickest parts of the shirt, are totally dried
under the press head with no loss of production.
Attractive detailing and packaging of the
hangered shirt, padding, steam pressure and timing are all
discussed. A unique wash formula to give whiter whites,
brighter colors and complete removal of grease and body oils is
included in the loose-leaf text book.
Stan Caplan has over 35 years experience
in his own high volume dry-cleaning, laundry and tailoring
plant and two package plants with adjoining coin-operated
laundry and dry-cleaning. He is a former chief instructor at
the International Fabricare Institute, The Southwest
Drycleaners Association School, the Illinois State Fabricare
School, the Michigan Institute of Laundering and Dry-cleaning
School, the Mississippi Fabricare Association School and
Louisiana Fabricare Association School, the Pennsylvania
Drycleaners and Launderers Association School (now
Pennsylvania-Delaware Cleaners Association), the Johannesburg
Cleaners Association School (South Africa), the Hyatt-Regency
Southeast Asia School (Singapore and Hong Kong) and numerous
short courses in all areas of the fabric care industry
throughout the US and Canada. Stan offers consulting, training
and engineering services in all areas of the fabric care
industry from customer service area to the boiler room. His
total system (TQM) encompasses maximum efficiency, economy and
product excellent quality. Stan can be reached at 7341 Amberly
Lane, Suite 310, Delray Beach, FL 33446; phone/fax:
(561)496-2548; his e-mail address is:
stancap100@aol.com.
