August 1998
News & Views
Around the U.S.
|
Ready to serve
An ongoing series of outreach seminars sponsored by the International Fabricare Institute included a program on customer service at Medlin-Davis Cleaners in Raleigh, NC, recently. Attending were, from left in front row, Michelle Woody, IFI instructor Chris Allsbrooks, Linda Whitaker and Sherry Clayborne. In back from left are Kay Payne, Michael Pritchard, Timothy Rolle and Janet Aliff. IFI's outreach seminars as well as education programs at the Silver Spring, MD, headquarters are continuing. For more information...
Profile
Bill Sessoms and other members of the North Carolina Association of Launderers and Cleaners participated in the annual IFI membership and board of directors meeting in June. "We surprised them," Sessoms said. "We had on white shirts and shoes and could speak in sentences of more than two words."
Columns
Newsmakers
Information Central
|
The Mid-Atlantic Cleaners and Launderers Association will sponsor a "Face-to-Face" meeting with Congress in Washington, DC, on Thursday, October 1.
The goal, according to MACLA executive director Dave Norford, is "to leave no stone unturned" in efforts to secure passage of H.R. 1711, the Barton bill. A "Phone & Fax Day" coordinated by MACLA this spring helped recruit several additional Barton bill cosponsors.
While MACLA's efforts will be concentrated on gathering more sponsors for the bill from the states of Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia, the association is inviting other trade groups and cleaners from around the United States to join by arranging meetings with their respective representatives and coming to Washington for face-to-face meetings.
The Hyatt Regency at 300 New Jersey Ave. NW will serve as the headquarters hotel the hotel is located at the foot of Capitol Hill near Union Station.
Norford said he is particularly interested in securing the sponsorships of members of Congress who have expressed interest in the bill but are yet to sign on. Eighty-two members of the House had agreed to cosponsor the bill that was introduced last year by Texas Republican Joe Barton.
Congress has set Oct. 9 as its adjournment date and Norford said the usual flurry of last-minute action may provide an opening for Barton to move his legislation, especially if he has secured the 100 cosponsors that he has said he needs to get action on the bill.
"We are just so close to having the 100 cosponsors Congressman Joe Barton says he needs to make this thing happen that we simply cannot leave any stone unturned to get them, said Earl Knight, MACLA's legislative chairman.
"Gary Baise (of the Baise, Miller and Freer law firm) and Congressman Barton have both indicated that there are still a number of options open for passage during the waning days of this session of Congress.
If the bill is not acted upon in this Congress, Barton has said he will reintroduce it in the next Congress. Norford said that the more sponsors the bill can obtain this year, the further along it will be when the new Congress convenes on January.
Norford said he believes it is important for cleaners to come to Washington to make the industry's case. Meeting with representatives or staff people in local district offices has merit, but speaking directly to the representative and key staff people in their Washington offices can carry more weight. Legislative aides in the Capitol meet with the representative every day, as well as other representatives and their key staff members, and they are often the ones who can make the commitment.
The upcoming Congressional schedule combined with MACLA's face-to-face gives cleaners an opportunity to touch base with both the home district office and the Capitol Hill office. Congress will be in session through August 9, but most members will be home from August 10 through Sept. 8 for the "Summer District Work Period."
The agenda
The schedule for the MACLA-sponsored face-to-face meetings will have cleaners and other industry representative arrive in Washington on Wednesday, Sept. 1. A reception will be held that evening at the headquarters hotel.
On Thursday morning there will be a continental breakfast at 7:30 a.m. at the Hyatt Regency followed by a briefing session and distribution of materials. Speaking at the briefing will be Gary Baise and Mary Scalco if the International Fabricare Institute.
After the briefing session, participants will head for the congressional offices on Capitol Hill.
That evening there will be an informal gathering back at the headquarters hotel to review the day's events.
While MACLA will underwrite meeting room expenses, coordinate professional assistance and individualize materials for distribution as requested, the individual participants are responsible for making appointments with their representative or the legislative assistant in charge of environmental matters.
Appointments should be scheduled between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Oct. 1. Groups will be formed to go to each appointment.
Norford invited other trade associations to participate with MACLA in the event; so far, he said, the Southwest Drycleaners Association and the South Eastern Fabricare Association have expressed interest.
There is no registration fee, but participants are asked to register with MACLA by Sept. 20 by calling (800) 235-8360. Arrangements for hotel accommodations should be made directly with the Hyatt by calling (202) 737-1234 and identifying yourself as part of the Mid-Atlantic Cleaners and Launderers Association group.
New cosponsors
A flurry of sign-ons in late June added five Republicans and two Democrats to the list of cosponsors for Rep. Barton's that is designed to reform cleanup standards for drycleaning solvents.
Recent additions to the list of 20 Democrats cosponsoring the bill are Jim Barcia of Michigan and Mike Doyle of Pennsylvania. Joining the list of 63 Republicans were Chip Pickering of Mississippi, Bob Aderholt of Alabama, Scott McInnis of Colorado, Christopher Cannon of Utah and Barbara Cubin of Wyoming.
Representatives from 32 states are now signed on to the bill.
In a memo to the bill's industry supporters, Marshall Miller of the Baise, Miller & Freer law firm, which has been working to get the bill through Congress, said the key to the bill's success is grassroots support.
"We have lined up quite a number of other Congressmen who, we believe, are ready to join us if and when they hear from their home folks. That means we have to have your continued help," he said.
"Don't be shy," he urged. "If you know your congressman, or if you and several others are willing to write his office, let us know and we'll help you."
The law firm can be reached by phone at 202-331-9100 or e-mail at baisemill@aol.com.
In another update on Barton bill activity, Jamie Mayberry, administrative coordinator of the Fabricare Legislative and Regulatory Education group (FLARE), noted that one of the recent sign-ons, Wyoming's Barbara Cubin, is an influential member of the House Health and Environment Subcommittee and the House Finance and Hazardous Waste Subcommittee.
The bill's prospects
As for the bill's prospects, Mayberry said there is still a chance for this session. After Labor Day, Congress is scheduled to be in session for only about a month. With elections coming in November, Congress plans to adjourn Oct. 9.
"Even if the bill does not see action this session, our course of action must remain the same," Mayberry said. This effort still needs the industry's ongoing financial support. We still need to gain as many cosponsors as possible so that the bill can be reintroduced from a position of strength in the next session."
Call for contributions
The Barton bill effort needs cleaners' cash contributions, too. Fund-raising efforts for the bill through the Dry Cleaners Action fund of America have raised about $150,000 to date. About $130,000 of that has been spent, primarily on lobbying efforts to pass the bill.
Expenses have been running at $18,000 to $20,000 a month, according to DCAFA adminsitrator Merry Bering.
"We need donations," she said.
Contributions continue to come in, she said, but the expenses associated with lobbying continue, too.
Donations in any amount can be made in the form of a checks made out to the Dry Cleaners Action Fund of America and sent to DCAFA, c/o MILD, PO Box 14044, Lansing, MI 48901.
The Wetcleaning Roundtable held in Chicago in mid-July earned praise from attendees and sponsors for the quality of its programs and the sense of growth and development taking place of cleaners
Sponsored by the Center for Neighborhood Technology, the "From Here to the Future" program attracted 50 participants. Some of these people were looking at wetcleaning-only processes for their facilities, others were using wetcleaning as a part of their production process mix, CNT said.
"I was impressed at the number of cleaners who would come at their own cost to network and learn about the wetcleaning process," said Sylvia Ewing, CNT's pollution prevention manager. "I was impressed with the preparation and the amount of information that each speaker brought to the forum."
The presentations ranged from talks by chemical and manufacturing company representatives to a session with divergent views on marketing and a program on the fundamentals of wetcleaning.
Anthony Star, CNT manager, said he was satisfied with the developments at the roundtable. His summation of the seminar focused on three specific issues he hoped wetcleaners work on in the coming weeks.
The first of these is working with the Federal Trade Commission so it might solicit input from wetcleaners. The second point was the policy statement supporting wetcleaning issued by the International Fabricare Institute. Third, there was the creation of the Professional Wetcleaners Network (PWN) as a center for coordinating activities, information and programs exclusively about wetcleaning.
Star provided participants with handouts which explained what the FTC is doing about the care label law. The material outlined questions the FTC wants comments on, the proposed definition of wetcleaning and the FTC address to which wetcleaners can send their comments on the proposed care label changes. (The deadline for submitting comments was July 27.)
IFI garment analysis lab director Jackie Stephens told the group IFI believes that most fabric care facilities can successfully wetclean 30 to 40 percent of the items they process with minimal difficulty.
Given skilled labor, specialized equipment and chemicals and training, that amount can be increased to 60 to 80 percent, she said.
With a high level of commitment, a plant can achieve higher than 80 percent, she said.
Attendee and PWN leader Dawn Hargrove said the roundtable presentations were informative.
Hargrove said the "chemical people and manufacturers explained where they were and where they are going," an indication to her that wetcleaning technology continues to grow.
Playing a part in the programs were representatives of Adco, Laidlaw, Colorex, Eco-Lab, Milnor, Kreussler SA-Miehle and Böwe-Passat. In addition, Royaltone and Kirk's Suede-Life sent material and Proctor & Gamble representatives were in attendance.
Hargrove, Ewing and Marilyn Fleming, owner of Natural Cleaners in Wisconsin, presided over a session that explained the fundamentals of the wetcleaning process. This session evolved when the sponsors discovered "there were a lot of people there who didn't know equipment, didn't know detergents, didn't know anything. Ann did the fundamentals, I mediated and Marilyn explained what her plant was doing," Ewing said.
In a pair of presentations that underscored the different marketing methods a business might use, Fleming and Debra Davis, owner of Cleaner by Nature in California, explained their individual approaches to selling cleaning services.
Marcia Todd, publisher of Fabricare Canada, added a few words of advice to wetcleaners. She told the audience she agrees with wetcleaning and is "glad it's here."
"But don't waste your time with people 50 and older; aim for the younger crowd," she advised.
Eric Jones of Reeds Cleaners in Chicago, the leather teacher for CNT, gave a presentation on the process which attracted many questions, mostly on how the wetcleaning procedure is used.
Ed Share of Reehorst Cleaners in Ohio told participants how he expanded his wetcleaning business using new machines. He mixes wetcleaning and solvent cleaning in his plant.
Ewing thought it was important to note that the roundtable events were "driven by cleaners rather than CNT."
"I was glad to see growth and development taking place with cleaners who want to work amongst themselves to share wetcleaning information and to organize amongst themselves to make the process easier, more profitable and better accepted," she added.
"We look forward with anticipation to how this new group -- the Professional Wetcleaners Network -- can fill the void created by the demise of the Professional Wet Cleaning Partnership."
Wetcleaners network
The Professional Wetcleaners Network was introduced to attendees at the roundtable.
A network for cleaners who use wetcleaning processes in their stores was formed at the Center for Neighborhood Technology roundtable program in Chicago July 11-12.
PWN, explained co-founder and Chicago-based industry consultant Ann Hargrove, "is a voluntary membership group dedicated to providing information and education on wetcleaning.
"PWN intends to make services available to people who have a serious interest in using wetcleaning in their business."
Annual member subscription rates were established at $100 a year for cleaners, $500 for allied trades and $1,000 for manufacturers.
Information on the Network is available from PWN, c/o AHA, PO Box 1, Lyons, IL 60534, or call (708) 447-0879. Its startup at the roundtable netted 11 members.
PWN plans
PWN outlined an agenda that includes operating a training school, providing field-service wetcleaning training programs, creating a database on wetcleaning information, delivering a monthly newsletter with wetcleaning facts and data, posting a web site to provide internet access to PWN information, and providing oversight of state and federal regulatory efforts which effect wetcleaners.
Carolyn Schwass has agreed to provide the school site, according to PWN. Ann Hargrove will work with Schwass, who owns the Blue Ribbon Fabricare Training Center, on education programs and field service program delivery.
A consensus was established that certain areas of responsibility needed definition. These included support and information, regulatory issues, financial affairs, governance, education and communications.
Four committees were created -- Regulations, Communications, Education and Outreach. According to PWN, chairs for each have been selected and work is being done. Other committees are being formed as well.
For now, PWN has people working on specific issues. Marilyn Fleming is working on support and information on wetcleaning, Sid Leiken on regulatory issues and Dawn Hargrove on financial and governance.
Two wedding gown manufacturers agreed to pay civil penalties to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they violated the Care Labeling Rule by using "Zurcion Method" care instructions.
The labels specified "Dryclean Only by Zurcion Method Continental" and gave an 800 number for contacting Continental Gown Service in New York.
The July 20 action followed a complaint filed by FTC on May 27 alleging that Continental Gown Service Inc., provided gown manufacturers with care labels that falsely advertised that the company was the only drycleaner able to clean the gowns.
The FTC's May 27 administrative complaint also cited four related New York-based companies -- Nationwide Gown Cleaning Service Inc., Prestige Gown Cleaning Inc., Gown Cleaning Service Inc. and Jonathan Ashley Ltd. -- for use of the Zurcion labels. The complaint also named two individuals, Lewis Weissman and Gary Marcus, as corporate officers of the companies.
The commission is proceeding with its case against those individuals and the New York companies, said FTC attorney Constance Vecellio. Any cleaner who successfully cleaned a "Zurcion" labeled gown and who can identify the customer/owner of the gown has been asked to contact the FTC's Edwin Rodriguez at (202) 326-3147.
The gown manufacturers who have agreed to pay civil penalties for using the Zurcion care labels are Ilissa Bridals Ltd. and Mori Lee Inc. both of New York, NY. Ilissa Bridals and an officer of the company, Demetrios James Elias, will be $20,000 in civil penalties. Mori Lee and its officer Arthur Udell, and individual defendants Morvin Leibowitz and Mitchell Udell, will pay civil penalties of $40,000.
The FTC said that the Continental labels used by the manufacturers violated the care label rule by failing to provide adequate instructions for drycleaning the garments. The labels do not name at least one type of solvent that may be used on the gowns and fail to explain how the normal drycleaning process must be modified for these delicate garments.
A complaint has been filed against a third manufacturer, Alyce Designs Inc. and two individual defendants, Alyce Hamm and Jean Paul Hamm, in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The complaint against Alyce Designs contains the same charges the other two firms agreed to settle.
In addition, the complaint against Alyce Designs alleges that the company did not have a reasonable basis for instructing that the gowns can be adequately cleaned by the Zurcion method and for warning that the gowns cannot be cleaned by any other method of drycleaning or by washing.
The complaint against Alyce Designs was filed by the Department of Justice at the FTC's request. The proposed consent decrees with Ilissa Bridals and Mori Lee were filed by the Justice Department U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York at the request of the FTC and are subject to FTC approval.
FTC's complaint against Continental Gown Cleaning Service contains the same allegations of care label rule violation while also alleging that Continental engaged in false advertising representations to wedding gown manufacturers and consumers.
False and misleading
For example, FTC said, Continental claimed that its "Zurcion Method" was a patented drycleaning process and that it was the only safe and effective method for cleaning and preserving the gowns.
The FTC complaint against Continental also said that the company did not disclose to consumers the conditions of its guarantee related to preserving wedding gowns.
The complaint said that if a consumer sent a gown to Continental for cleaning and preserving, the gown would be returned to the consumer in a sealed container and the consumer would have to return the gown to Continental to be "unpreserved" before the gown could be worn.
If the consumer otherwise broke the seal or opened the container to check the gown, the warranty would be invalidated.
The FTC said that if breaking the seal or opening the box voids the warrant, the companies must tell consumers this in any advertisement that mentions the guarantee.
Additional remedies
The FTC's complaint against the Zurcion companies not only would require them to cease and desist their labeling practices, false advertising and inadequate warranty notices, it also would require the companies to take steps to remedy problems that may have been caused by those practices.
For example, FTC wants to require the companies that provided the Zurcion labels to manufacturers and bridal shops that the labels are not accurate and that other cleaners can clean and preserve the garments that have the "Zurcion Method" label attached to them.
Further, the FTC said, "if the facts are found to as alleged in the complaint, it may be necessary and appropriate for the commission to seek relief to redress injury to consumers, or other persons, partnerships or corporations, in the form of restitution and refunds for past, present and future consumers."
The FTC will decide whether to seek court action for such relief "on the basis of the adjudicative proceedings in this matter and such other factors as are relevant to consider the necessity and appropriateness of such action."
The Zurcion Method is a method that is widely used by the bridal and formal wear industry. This type of processing is a specialized method that regular drycleaners cannot use for regular garment care for several reasons which are 1) specialized processing equipment needed for Zurcion solvents; 2) Solvent cost factor (solvent made from pure chemical compounds not industrial); 3) Special training needed to handle Zurcion fluids; 4) Not available to the general drycleaner only to our company.
...
If any cleaner cleans a wedding or evening gown with any other method than the one described, he (the cleaner) runs the risk of damaging the gown and had to by law compensate for the damage or loss of that article."
Don't be mislead (sic) by drycleaners who claim to have the knowledge of cleaning your fine apparel. Only send your fine apparel to the one place that has proven to live up to it's (sic) reliable reputation."
...
"Please be aware that there are regular drycleaners that try to imitate our service but the can not imitate our Zurcion process of method. Beware of the so-called gown specialists, it could prove to be disastrous."
...
Fact: Don't be fooled by con artists that tell you they have a special process called wetcleaning. The definition of wetcleaning is to wash as prescribed in soap and water. Beware of these claims. They are grabbing for straws."
HOUSTON, TX -- R. R. Street & Co. was found not liable for sharing the site cleanup costs incurred by the former owners of Pilgrim Cleaners. The 11-1 verdict was reached July 20 by a Texas jury. The decision came after three years of legal maneuvering during which all other defendants settled with the former owners. Pilgrim was seeking a monetary award to help cover the $12 million in expenses incurred during cleanup.
The suit was heard in the 215th Judicial District Court in Harris County, TX, in a trial that took nine weeks.
In a statement released after the verdict, R. R. Street declared that "the jury emphasized that the owners and operators of drycleaning businesses are ultimately responsible for having knowledge and understanding of the laws governing the operation of their business and for complying with them." Street also said that the verdict indicated that the company dealt with and informed cleaners of the proper handling, use and disposal processes associated with perc.
"The jury also found that Street, in providing the former Pilgrim owners with products, processes and services, had conducted its business relationship and operations properly, and, therefore, could not be held liable for cleanup costs," Street added.
The Houston Chronicle reported that Street attorneys said "their company was being made a scapegoat by a drycleaner that did not handle waste materials properly and that knew it was taking a risk by pouring water with dissolved perc down the drain." The central issues of the case were contentions by lawyers for the former Pilgrim owners that R. R. Street and other defendants failed to properly inform cleaners on the proper use of perc, that the "defendants designed their equipment in a manner that was inherently defective and which would result in spills, leaks and/or discharges of perc during normal operations." The former owners also charged that the defendants failed to "provide appropriate mechanisms to prevent and/or catch releases or spills of perc and its by-products from such equipment." According to a petition filed with the court, the contamination issue arose when, "as part of an investigation in connection with the sale of their drycleaning assets, Pilgrim for the first time discovered environmental contamination at their facilities. (They) discovered their injury on September 27, 1994." As a result, Pilgrim needed to clean-up a number of sites as required by regulations of the Texas Natural Resources Conservation Commission.
Pilgrim also tried to prove that Street "failed to advise Pilgrim (and others) that the normal and intended uses of perc in their dry cleaning machinery could lead to environmental contamination, that traces or minute amounts of perc could cause environmental contamination, (and) that dry cleaning equipment such as separators did not properly separate water and percŠ" The jury rejected these and other arguments in one-and-a-half days of deliberation. Other defendants had already reached a settlement with Pilgrim and are not affected by the verdict returned on the Street case. These include Dow Chemical Co., Hoyt Corp., Harkrider Distributing Co. and Vic Manufacturing Co. Terms and conditions of these settlements have been kept confidential by all parties involved.
R. R. Street's statement after the verdict explained that it chose not to settle while other defendants did because it wanted to "maintain its practice of defending itself against claims that it knows to be without merit." "While the company is pleased with the outcome of the trial, it is appalled at the huge waste of time, energy and resources, and by the millions of dollars incurred in legal and expert witness costs by the plaintiffs, as well as defendants in the case, to prosecute and try the lawsuit," Street said.
"Street has for so many years invested resources and maintained a leadership position in the industry's efforts in areas of environmental safety and regulation," Street added. It also said it will continue to work with drycleaning industry leaders on solutions to retroactive liability and regulatory problems.
The company said it hoped the litigation encourages drycleaners to unite and work for the repeal "of unjust retroactive liability laws that represent the real issue and gravest threat to our industry." R. R. Street also expressed "disappointment" with unnamed people and groups who it claims "are actively supporting or even promoting proliferation of such counterproductive, costly litigation." The company said these lawsuits play "right into the hands of those wishing to take unfair advantage of our industry's exposed vulnerabilities."
Jean Frizzel, an attorney for the former owners of Pilgrim Cleaners, said "we are going to appeal the jury's verdict to an appellate court." Frizzel also said no appeal had been filed as of July 24. Mike Pohl was the lead attorney for the Pilgrim Cleaners team.
Pilgrim Cleaners was purchased from the former owners, the Robertson family of Houston, TX, by Hugh Morrison and a group of investors calling themselves Clean Acquisition.
The Robertson family had owned the company for 40 years. The Houston Chronicle, reporting on the deal at the time, described Pilgrim as the biggest drycleaning business in Houston with 105 company-owned and 77 franchise locations in Houston and San Antonio.
Hopes for a relatively cheap and easy method of cleaning up perc in soil and groundwater were raised last fall by a CNN report on perc-eating bacteria identified as Strain 195 by Cornell University researchers.
However, one of the Cornell University researchers who is involved with the project said that the Strain 195 bacteria are at least five years away from field use.
A different strain of perc-degrading bacteria are ready for field use now, according to Rick Spencer, senior geologist at T. M Gates Inc., an environmental and applied earth science consulting firm based on Milford, OH.
Using Munox Series 6 bacteria produced by Osprey Biotechnics, T. M Gates Inc. said it has reduced perc concentrations in groundwater at a Kentucky drycleaning facility by 91 to 99.9 percent.
Two of the three test wells at the Kentucky site currently show perc concentrations below the 5 parts per billion cleanup level.
Based on what was learned at the test site, T. M Gates Inc. anticipates that future biological remedial systems will be able to achieve site clean-up in significantly less time than the approximately two-year clean-up time needed at the test site.
In most states, Spencer said, 5 ppb is the groundwater cleanup standard for perc.
At this low concentration, insufficient perc is available to support the types of bacteria that feed directly on perc.
The Munox bacteria work differently, he said, degrading perc by a process known as cometabolism.
A faster, cheaper method
Cometabolism of perc contamination using Munox bacteria is faster and less expensive than other remedial approaches, according to Spencer.
In this process, the Munox bacteria require oxygen and rely on a supplemental non-toxic food source for growth and energy. To consume the supplemental food, the Munox bacteria secrete digestive enzymes that in turn break down the perc.
The activity of Munox bacteria is not limited by low concentrations of food, which can be a constraining factor with types of bacteria that feed directly on perc as a food source.
Therefore, as long as the Munox bacteria have ample supplies of oxygen and supplemental food, they will continue to degrade perc, even when perc concentrations reach very low levels.
Spencer said the Munox bacteria are non-pathogenic and ultimately reduce perc contamination to carbon dioxide, water and acids like hydrochloric without generating toxic by-products such as vinyl chloride.
Progress in Kentucky
At the Kentucky site, approximately one-half acre located in an older residential and commercial area near the Ohio River, perc contamination was discovered in the early 1990s when the property, which has been a drycleaning site since the 1930s, was for sale.
Groundwater contamination was found in a shallow zone extending eight to 12 feet below the ground surface.
Before undertaking bioremediation, some of the more highly contaminated soil was removed from the site. T. M Gates Inc. installed three wells for continuous pumping of the groundwater beginning in 1994.
The wells prevented further movement of the contaminated groundwater beyond the property boundary but resulted in only slight reductions after two years of system operation.
It was then that the company decided to speed up the perc removal process with Munox bacteria.
First a shallow network of perforated pipe was installed around and through the area of the pumping wells.
Surface ports in the piping allow for adding microorganisms and nutrients into the perforated pipe.
The ends of the pipe were hooked up to the building's downspouts so oxygen-rich rainwater running off the roof would enter the percolation system, which helped maintain soil moisture and dissolved oxygen levels
Not only is this important for the activity of the Munox bacteria, it also helps to flush any residual perc contamination from the soil into the groundwater.
The Munox bacteria and agents were first added to the system in May, 1996 and the cometabolic process commenced.
Groundwater analyses
Groundwater analyses from the monitoring wells show the effects of Munox bacteria.
One well showed perc concentrations of 14,000 ppb in July of 1994 before any remediation activity and 3,820 ppb in April 1996 just before the Munox process began.
By June 1997, about one year after Munox bacteria were introduced, the well showed perc concentration of 10.1 ppb.
In another monitoring well, where the initial perc concentration was 3,080 ppb in May 1994, the level had reached 1,520 ppb by April, 1996, and was at 69 ppb in June 1997.
Both wells were below 5 ppb by April of 1998.
At a pumping well where perc concentration measured 311 ppb before bioremediation began, the level was under 30 ppb within a year of the onset of bioremediation and had reached almost 5 ppb by August of last year.
Application to other sites
To date, aerobic biological remedial systems similar to that at the Kentucky site have been installed at three additional contaminated properties.
Spencer said that preliminary results show that effective destruction of perc is occurring at these properties.
Based on these applications, T. M. Gates Inc. is actively seeking additional contaminated properties which may be suitable for installation of a biological remedial system. For information, contact Rick Spencer at (513) 248-1025.
BY BARRY VICTOR
Regulations and health concerns surrounding the use of perchloroethylene, many operators have been investigating the use of hydrocarbon solvents.
Hydrocarbon solvent refers to a broad class of solvents which are created by refining petroleum.
There are a number of choices available in this category, including the newer Class IIIA solvents such as Exxon's DF2000 and Shell's 142HT as well as a host of Class II solvents under various names such as Quickdry, Stoddard and many others.
Solvent classifications
Solvents are classified by the National Fire Protection Association (in the document NFPA 32) with regard to their potential for burning.
Flash point is the main factor that determines a solvent's classification. Flash point is defined as "the maximum temperature of a liquid at which sufficient vapor is given off to form an ignitable mixture with the air at or near the surface of the liquid or within the vessel."
In the 1996 edition, Class I solvents are defined as liquid having a flash point below 100 degrees F. Class II solvent are those with flash points between 100 and 140 degrees F and Class IIIA solvents have flash points between 140 and 200 degrees F.
This article will present an overview of the technologies being employed by drycleaning equipment manufacturers for the safe use of Class IIIA solvents only.
A little history
Before the end of World War II, drycleaners across America were using petroleum-based Class II solvents. These solvents were typically used in a transfer operation. The dryers used were non-recovery type with the solvent vapors being exhausted to the atmosphere, similar to a laundry dryer. This system proved to be hazardous due to the low flash points of the solvents and the ever present possibility of sparks from lighters and static electricity.
When Perchloroethylene, a Class IV synthetic solvent was introduced to the industry after the war, many cleaners began to replace their equipment and most new stores were built around this new solvent. Back to hydrocarbon.......
The fire triangle
The safe operation of a flammable solvent in a closed loop drycleaning machine requires an understanding of the fire triangle. To have combustion, three elements must be present at the same time:
- Fuel in adequate vapor concentration in the form of the solvent.
- Oxygen to support combustion
- An ignition source in the form of a spark.
Inside a drycleaning machine, it is impossible to completely eliminate the potential for a spark due to static electricity or the possible presence of a lighter. Therefore, all new drycleaning machine systems employ means to monitor or eliminate one of the other two elements -- fuel and oxygen.
Oxygen reduction
Oxygen reduction systems use either a nitrogen blanket to replace the oxygen or a partial vacuum to remove the oxygen from inside the machine.
Machines using nitrogen blanketing manufacture the large quantity of nitrogen from the plant's compressed air. These systems require substantial volumes of compressed air, adding to the load on the plant compressor.
My experience tells me that moisture in the compressed air can be detrimental to the operation of the system. Some humid climates will require expensive refrigerated or desiccant dryers be installed before the nitrogen generator.
To be assured the nitrogen generator is functioning properly, an oxygen sensor monitors the system. Most of these oxygen sensors require occasional calibration and eventual replacement.
The frequency of calibration and replacement cost of the sensors can vary. These questions should be asked of the manufacturer before making a commitment to this technology.
If the sensors are not calibrated accurately and with the frequency suggested by the manufacturer, they can read erroneously and create an unsafe operating condition.
Machines using vacuum removal as the primary safety require a vacuum pump to remove approximately 50 percent of the air from the machine as a means to reduce the oxygen content.
A vacuum switch monitors the system and will not allow operation of the dry cycle until the proper vacuum is reached. No calibration or replacement is typically required for the vacuum switches because they are accurate, simple and reliable sensors.
In my opinion, these systems, which rely on well maintained gaskets and seals for efficient and safe operation, will begin to be problematic after the machine has been running for a number of years.
As the machine ages and the seals wear, the vacuum pump will continuously pull air into the machine and exhaust the air vapor mixture, reducing solvent mileage.
If the seals become worn beyond a certain point, the system will not function until the seals or gaskets are replaced or the vacuum switch is bypassed. Bypassing the vacuum switch would be an unsafe action and is not recommended. Machines that use this system typically have an additional temperature monitor as a secondary safety.
Fuel concentration monitoring
This system uses either a hydrocarbon monitor or temperature monitoring to determine the actual amount of fuel in the air. Most new drycleaning machinery designed for Class IIIA solvents will never have enough fuel in the air to support combustion. However, malfunctioning refrigeration or blocked air flow can cause the system to reach a point where sufficient fuel is in the air stream to cause concern.
Hydrocarbon monitoring systems use high technology sensors which require occasional calibration and eventual replacement. The frequency of calibration and the replacement the cost of the sensors vary and should be determined before making a commitment to this technology.
If the machine operator does not calibrate appropriately and with the frequency recommended, the sensor will read improperly and can allow the machine to operate in an unsafe condition. These machines typically have an additional temperature monitor as a secondary safety.
Temperature monitoring
Temperature monitoring is used on some machines as a means to determine the fuel vapor concentration in the air stream. It can be calculated and verified by experimentation that a certain air temperature can only hold a limited amount of fuel in vapor form.
This can be described as the relative humidity. The relative humidity cannot exceed 100 percent. By placing temperature sensors at appropriate points around the machine, the fuel concentration can be calculated and actions taken to reduce this level if preset maximums are exceeded.
This system uses inexpensive, reliable and accurate sensors and usually employs two sensors per point to be completely sure of the readings being reported. In addition, the temperature sensors are used to determine if the air flow is inadequate, which is another condition which would warrant safety precautions.
How the technologies are implemented
Many different types and combinations of safety features are being used for the safe operation of the drying process within a heated, closed loop machine that uses Class IIIA solvents.
Several manufacturers currently use multiple temperature sensors as a means to determine the maximum possible amount of vapor in the airstream. These temperature sensors are accurate, inexpensive, simple and reliable devices. Duplication of temperature sensors at each point assures fail safe operation.
The computer controller on the machine constantly monitors these temperatures and initiates a systematic shutdown of the machine if any preset temperatures are exceeded.
Several levels of response are employed with the final action being a machine shutdown and inerting with nitrogen from a pressurized bottle.
Since no vacuum is used, this system assures rapid dry cycle times and does not rely on gaskets and seals to maintain a vacuum, which can deteriorate over time.
At the beginning of each automatic cycle, the nitrogen inerting system is fully tested as to amount of gas in the bottle and proper functioning of the inerting gas valves.
Nitrogen inerting allows for safe shutdown without damage to the garments, which could occur if steam or chemicals were used for inerting. The use of nitrogen also prevents future problems that could occur from moisture in the system if a steam inerting method is used.
One manufacturer that uses multiple mechanical and electronic temperature sensors also uses a commercial fire extinguishing system as part of the safety system. A rupture disc allows expanding gas to exit the machine safely in the event of a fire or explosion.
Other systems by manufacturers incorporate a hydrocarbon sensor for safety monitoring.
If the hydrocarbon level becomes unsafe, the machine heat is turned off. If it increases further the entire machine is shut down.
One machine model in this category has no standard inerting system, although one can be connected optionally using steam or bottled nitrogen.
Controls for the inerting system run from the hydrocarbon sensor; no provision is made to test for adequate supply of inerting gas or proper functioning of gas valves.
A temperature sensor monitors the drying air temperature to make sure it does not exceed a level which has been calculated to prevent basket exit temperatures of over 140 degrees F.
Other manufacturers incorporate a partial vacuum on the drying chamber as a method to reduce the oxygen content to a range that will not support combustion. By removing 50 to 70 percent of the air inside the machine, the oxygen content is reduced to a safe level.
The drying process doesn't begin until the vacuum in the machine is at approximately 50 percent of normal atmospheric pressure.
In this system, the temperature of the air stream is monitored and will begin a shutdown of the machine if the temperature exceeds a safe level. No inerting system is provided.
Only one manufacturer currently employs nitrogen blanketing and oxygen sensing as a standard feature.
The number of companies offering petroleum (hydrocarbon) drycleaning machinery has grown rapidly in the past five years. Contact the following companies for specifications, prices and other information on their lines.
- Aero-Tech Phone (305) 754-4551; (800) 746-4583.
- Böwe Permac Phone (972) 503-1998; fax (972) 503-3311. Web: www.bowegcs.com.
- Firbimatic Phone (800) 220-0630. Web: www.firbimatic.com
- Forenta Phone (423) 586-5370 fax (423) 586-3470. Web: www.forentausa.com
- Hoyt Corp. Phone: (800) 343-9411, (508) 636-8811; fax (508) 636-2088. Web: www.hoytcorp.com
- ILSA/Columbia Phone (516) 293-7571; fax (516) 298-7863.
- Marvel Manufacturing Co. Phone: (800) 487-1326; fax (210) 344-3004.:
- Midwest (Hill Equipment) Phone (405) 943-9773; fax (405) 943-0332.
- Omega Cleaning Systems Phone (800) 361-1194. Web: www.omega-systems.com.
- PROS Phone (888) 545-4300; fax 612) 920-4784. Web: www.htinfo.com/pros.htm
- Realstar Phone: (800) 872-0171; fax (818) 848-0144.
- Renzacci of America Inc. Phone (562) 423-4111; (800) 842-0188; fax (562) 422-4390. www.renzacci.com.
- Union Drycleaning Products USA Phone (404) 763-1691; fax (404) 763-9066.
Two other companies, Bergparma and Multimatic, have plans to add petroleum drycleaning machines to their lines in the near future.
ELGIN, IL -- Although all of its stock has been acquired by Laidlaw Environmental Services, Safety-Kleen, the hazardous waste handling firm, will continue to be known as Safety-Kleen.
Laidlaw Environmental had acquired a majority of Safety-Kleen's shares in an exchange offer this spring.
Each share of Safety-Kleen stock was exchanged for 2.8 shares of Laidlaw stock plus $18.30 in cash. That offer netted the South Carolina waste management services company 83 percent of Safety-Kleen's stock. Another 10 percent of Safety-Kleen's outstanding shares were tendered by guarantees.
The remaining shareholders received the same compensation for their shares as a result of a merger completed in May.
The merger of Laidlaw Environmental and Safety-Kleen created a single industrial waste service company in both hazardous and non-hazardous waste streams.
From collection through recycle and disposal, the combined company provides comprehensive waste management services to more 350,000 industrial and automotive and drycleaning customers in North America.
Laidlaw has subsequently announced that it will do business as Safety-Kleen Corp. and that its stock will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the Safety-Kleen Corp. name and the ticker symbol SK.
The formal name change requires shareholder approval, which the company will seek at its annual meeting in November.
"The Safety-Kleen name has tremendous brand recognition and value," said Kenneth Winger, president and CEO of Laidlaw Environmental Services.
The name change will also help distinguish the company from its former parent, Laidlaw Inc., which is headquartered in Canada.
Laidlaw Environmental facilities and fleet have already begun to implement the name conversion. Winger said the transition should be seamless for customers and stakeholders.
Safety-Kleen will continue operations from the Elgin, IL location.
Laidlaw Environmental Services is not connected to Laidlaw Corp., which provides chemicals and other supplies to the drycleaning industry.
An export surge from Asian nations in economic turmoil contributed to the another double-digit increase in U.S. apparel and textile imports in May, the U.S. Commerce Department reported.
During May, the imports totaled 2.12 billion square meter equivalent (SME) up 11.6 from the previous month. The total for the 12-month period that ended in May was 24.21 billion SME, up 17.6 percent from a year ago.
The May figures also made it 20 of the last 21 months in which imports increased by a double-digit percentage.
The Commerce Department report lends credence to apparel industry analysts contentions that relatively cheap imports from Asian nations are soaring due to the poor economic conditions in those countries. At the same time, imports from Mexico and the Caribbean appear to be tapering off.
For example, textile and apparel imports from Thailand rose 28.9 percent for the year ended in May compared to a 9.2 percent rise for the year-ago period. Indonesian imports were up 38 percent for the year after rising 23.8 percent in the previous year.
Makers in Thailand and Indonesia have slashed prices on various apparel and textile products in response to the economic crises gripping those countries.
Donald Foote, director of the agreements division with the Commerce Department's Office of Textiles and Apparel, said that continuing high import levels are also being supported by a surge in imports from Pakistan which were up 59.5 percent for the year. Japan had been a traditional market for Pakistani products, but with the Japanese economy in recession, producers in Pakistan have sought other markets to compensate for falling sales.
Meanwhile, Mexican apparel and textile shipments for the year that ended in May were up 29.4 percent from a year ago compared to a 42.4 percent increase in the previous year. Caribbean makers' increases for both years were 18 percent, but during the month of May the increase was just 5.3 percent compared to a 26.7 percent increase from a year ago.
The TexCare Asia exhibition at the World Trade Center in Singapore Aug. 19-21 has sold nearly all of its exhibit space with about 100 companies planning to take part.
The show is supported by the European Laundry and Dry Cleaning Manufacturers Organizations (ELMO), the Italian Association of Manufacturers of Laundry and Dry Cleaning Machines (ACIMIT), the Association of German Machinery and Plant Builders (VDMA) and the Laundry Machinery Manufacturers International (LEAD).
Italy and Germany are the best represented European exhibitors nations with 22 and 16 companies respectively. Organizers reported that 18 U.S. companies are signed up.
Exhibit hours will be 10 am to 6 pm. on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, Augst 19-21.
On Aug. 18 a European Union Business Forum will be held at the Stamford Hotel in Singapore. A panel of European experts will share the expertise in the laundry and drycleaning sector and provide an overview of EU/Asian trade relations.
In addition, Textile Care Training Centre in Singapore will conduct workshops, panel discussion and seminars.
Concurrent lecture programs will focus on laundry machines and drycleaning machines with speakers from Böwe, BÜFA, Donini, Jensen, Kannegiesser, Milnor, Renzacci, Singkingwerk and Union as well as from the Hohenstein and wfk institutes.
Information is available from Messe Frankfurt Singapore, phone 65 737 1704, fax 65 732 9296, or from Messe Frankfurt GmbH, phone 49 69 7575 6618 6297 or fax 49 69 7575 6788.
ATLANTA, GA -- More than half of the exhibit space for Clean '99 was taken within six weeks of the beginning of booth sales, according to the Riddle & Associates, the show management organization.
Riddle anticipates 280,000 net square feet of exhibit space will be used at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL, for the June 24-27 show. Early sales show an increase over the comparable period for previous shows.
Clean '97 in Las Vegas, NV, had more than 255,000 square feet of exhibit space occupied by 546 companies and attended by 26,394 industry members from around the world.
"The brisk sales for Clean '99 indicate the Clean Show will be bigger and better than ever," said John Riddle, president of Riddle & Associates.
Anticipating a complete sell-out of the exhibit pace, riddle urged potential exhibitors who need steam in their booths to get the space applications in promptly. "There is limited steam area and once it's gone, it's gone," he said.
Show management is enhancing the Clean Show web site (www.cleanshow.com) which will offer detailed information about the exhibition, including a floor plan and regular updates of a list of exhibitors with the products and services each offers. Information about hotel and travel rates, education sessions, industry trade publications, a calendar of events and deadlines and a new "Frequently Asked Questions" section will be included, too.
Potential exhibitors can also review a synopsis of the exhibitor prospectus and contracted exhibitors can find portions of the exhibitor manual on the web site, too. Attendees registration via the internet will also be offered once registration begins.
Information about the show will also be available through a Fax on Demand service.
Attendee packets will be sent in early December and show registration will open in mid-December. Pre-registration will be $35 per person; on-site registration will be $60.
For more information about the show or to be added to the mailing list, contact Riddle & Associates by phone at (404) 876-1988; by fax at (404) 876-5121, or by e-mail at info@cleanshow.com.
The biennial show is sponsored by six national industry associations: Coin Laundry Association, International Fabricare Institute, National Association of Institutional Linen Management, Textile Care Allied Trades Association, Textile Rental Services Association of America, and Uniform & textile Service Association.
Nicolae Rascov has been named export manager for Resillo Press Pad Co. after 13 years of leading the export division of Bishop Freeman Co.
Under his management, Resillo exports its full collection of laundry and drycleaning press pads to most countries in the world. Rascov is fluent in four languages and travels the globe to visit clients and assess opportunities for helping them improve operating efficiencies.
Rascov is "at home anywhere in the world," said Resillo president Leo Pearl.
A native of Romania, Rascov emigrated to the United States with his family in 1982, settling in Chicago where he continues to live with his wife of 29 years and their 21-year-old daughter.
Resillo was founded in Chicago in 1933 and is known for its patented, stainless steel mesh pad technology.
Westgate Software has announced the completion of Westgate Plaza, a 35,000-sq.-ft. professional office complex development owned by the company in Draper, UT.
Building #1 of the complex serves as the worldwide headquarters for Westgate Software Inc. and SPOT Computerized Drycleaning Systems. Westgate Software will occupy additional space within the plaza in the future. More than 18,000 square feet of space is occupied by six non-related businesses.
Alliance Laundry Systems has promoted Todd Kaull to manufacturing engineering manager for its Ripon operation and Janet Schipritt to production and inventory control manager for the materials department.
Kaull has been with the company since 1994, starting as manufacturing project engineer. In his new position he will be responsible for overall leadership by focusing on development of manufacturing strategies, improving processes and work systems and facilitating product introductions.
Schipritt will be responsible for vendor scheduling, production control, final assembly scheduling and inventory control.
NORIT Americas has announced that R. R. Street & Co. Inc. is the exclusive distributor of Premium Darco carbon worldwide. Premium Darco is a powdered form of carbon designed to be used in filter systems using diatomaceous earth as the filtering medium. It is processed and activated from high quality virgin lignite coal. Premium Darco will continue to be available in 1.5-lb. cartons, 36 to a case. The cartons come in new, more rigid cases for improved handling.
UniMac honored its top distributors for 1997 during the company's Annual Sales meeting. Recipients included Greg Svancara of CPEC; Mike Zuffinetti of Skyline Laundry Systems; Trebor Brown of Southeastern Laundry Equipment; Kim Shady UniMac's North American Sales Manager; Roy Geiser of Fowler Equipment; Mark Moor of REM Co.; and Bob Hansel of Commercial Laundry Equipment.
Also, Dick Wells of Automated Laundry Systems; Joe Herndon of Consolidated Laundry Equipment; Ty Taylor of Taylor Laundry Systems; Ray Kunkel of Altimus Distributing; Jack Stratton of Washington Automated; Dave Demarsh of BDS; Ralph Daniels of Daniels Equipment Co.; Bob Haiges of Haiges Machinery; and L.C. Hicks of Central Equipment.
Also, Bill Kimmel of Lenz Kool Co.; Tom L'Esperance, CEO of Alliance Laundry Systems; Ti Stokloosa of Clean Designs; Scott Martin of Scott Equipment; Joe McDonie of Commercial Laundry Service; Brett Higgins of Bestway Commercial Laundry Equipment; Mary Hynes of Hynes and Waller; Jay Jordan of Coin Laundry Equipment Co.; and Jeff Brothers, senor vice president of sales and marketing for Alliance Laundry Systems.
The management committee of IPSO-ILG has agreed to building a new production facility for washing machines in Panama City, FL, and setting up a fully- owned finance company to meet purchasing need of customers. IPSO-ILG said it hopes this investment will lead to an increase of its current U.S. market share to 15 percent from the current 6 percent in three years.
The industrial laundry equipment group is active in two area of the United States. IPSO, via its subsidiary Cissell in Louisville, KY, produces finishing equipment and dryers that are distributed world wide.
The group also owns IPSO USA, a sales subsidiary that distributed an average of 3,000 washing machines and accompanying dryers per year in the American market.
IPSO's market research indicated that machines needed for the on-premise laundry market in the U.S. were absent from its range.
The research also showed that local production is necessary to ensure timely delivery to customers. Thus, the new Florida facility will manufacture a line of fix-mounted high-spin machines.
Production at the new facility is expected to begin in the summer of 1999.
Ecolab celebrated its 75th anniversary with a parade, trade show and evening gala during the company's annual management meeting this spring.
Hundreds of associates and community members lined the streets as more than 800 Ecolab sales managers marched through downtown St. Paul, MN, with divisional floats, sales groups and marching bands.
Later that day, associates and retirees headed to the company's Worldwide Trade Expo where attendees learned about the company's products and services and enjoyed games like cockroach races at the Pest Elimination booth.
"This was one of the greatest showings of Ecolab spirit and camaraderie that I can remember in my 40-year career at Ecolab," said Al Schuman, president and CEO of the company. Schuman, who acted as grand marshal for the parade, added, "You can't imagine how proud I am to be at the helm of this great organization."
SILVER SPRING, MD -- The International Fabricare Institute will offer seminars on stain removal and shirt laundry procedures at various locations in coming month.
Resident courses and seminars at the Silver Spring headquarters are also scheduled.
Stain removal seminars will be in Albuquerque, NM, on Aug. 8, Oklahoma City, OK on Sept. 12; Phoenix, AZ, on Nov. 21; and Las Vegas, NV, on Nov. 22.
Topics to be covered in these sessions are elements of the stain removal process, including fibers and fabrics, tools and agents, stain removal procedures and unusual stain removal problems. The cost is $99 for IFI members and $129 for non-members.
The shirt laundry procedures seminars will be held in Kansas City, MO, on Nov. 21 and St. Louis, MO, on Nov. 22.
Upcoming seminars at IFI headquarters include wetcleaning and basic stain removal in addition to the regularly scheduled introduction and advanced drycleaning courses.
The wetcleaning seminar will be October 9-10. The cost is $99 for members and $119 for non-members.
Basic stain removal will be presented Oct. 16-17. The cost is $129 for IFI members and $149 for non-members. The course will cover fundamentals of stain removal techniques and tools.
The Introduction to Drycleaning Resident Class will be offered August 10-14, Sept. 14-18 and Oct. 26-30.
The course covers basic elements of drycleaning, stain removal and finishing for employees, owners and managers who have less than one year of experience. The cost is $350 for members and $455 for non-members.
The Advanced Drycleaning Resident Class will be offered Aug. 17-28, Sept. 21-October 2 and Nov. 2-13.
The course covers more advanced topics like stain removal techniques, finishing procedures, wetcleaning and fiber identification. The cost is $700 for members and $910 for non-members.
Certification exams
Cleaners planning to take the examination for Certified Environmental Drycleaner or Certified Professional Drycleaner must register by Aug. 15 for the tests to be given on Oct. 3. The next opportunity to take the exams will be April 10, 1999. Sign-up deadline for those tests will be Feb. 15, 1999.
The "Certified Environmental Drycleaner" (CED) designation and the "Certified Professional Drycleaner" (CPD) designation show that cleaners meet certain professional standards by passing examinations in which they demonstrate an understanding of environmental responsibilities and professional practices in the drycleaning industry.
The 150-question Certified Environmental Drycleaner examination covers environmentally related subjects -- regulations, waste handling and safe operating procedures for drycleaning equipment. The test fee is $175 for IFI members and $275 for non-members.
The 250-question CPD test covers business management, customer service, fibers and fabrics and the drycleaning process. The test fee is $295 for IFI members and $395 for non-members.
The tests are administered through the Professional Testing Corp. For information, contact the company at 1211 Avenue of the Americas, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10036; or phone (212) 852-0400.
For registration or other information about any of the IFI educational offerings, call IFI, (800) 638-2627.
KING GEORGE, VA -- Two sessions on petroleum solvent cleaning will be sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic Cleaners and Launderers Association on Sunday, Oct. 4.
Jim Schreiner of Exxon and industry educator Everett Childers will lead the two hands-on presentations with the first beginning at noon and the second at 4 p.m. Prestige-Exceptional Fabricare at 9420 Georgia Ave. in Silver Spring, MD, will host both sessions.
Ed Boorstein, owner of Prestige and membership chairman of MACLA, said the sessions will be a no-pressure, information opportunity for cleaners who have questions about using or switching to petroleum solvent.
There is no charge to attend but advance registration is requested.
Between the two petroleum solvent sessions, Childers will also present a hands-on training session on garment classification, drycleaning, spotting techniques, wetcleaning and wetcleaned finishing.
That session will run from 1:30 to 4 p.m. Advance registration is required for that session and the charge is $10 per person for MACLA members. Non-members may participate on a space-available basis for $25.
Inquiries should be directed to the MACLA office, (800) 235-8360.
WILLOW GROVE, PA -- The program agenda has been finalized for the Drycleaning & Laundry Expo '98 trade show in Atlantic City, NJ, Sept. 25-27. The Pennsylvania Drycleaners Launderers Association show will feature four classroom seminars and a "field" program on the exhibit floor.
The show starts with a Friday "Welcome Reception" sponsored by exhibitors.
On Saturday, three morning programs are planned. They include "Low Cost Ways to Promote Your Business" with Barbara Zippi, Artemis Productions; "Marketing Ideas That Work" with John Jordan, Fabritec International; and "Keeping Your Customers Happy" with Jane Zellers, JCZ Consulting. The Sunday program starts at 9 a.m. with a forum titled "Saving Your Business." Panelists include Barney Deden (Omaha One Hour Martinizing Cleaner), Gary Baise (Washington attorney with Baise, Miller and Freer), Bill Fisher (CEO of IFI) and Abe Cho (Environmental Affairs Officer of the Korean-American Cleaners Association of New Jersey).
Field presentations follow the panel with the "Technical and Maintenance Workshop." In this, participating exhibitors use equipment in exhibit booths to demonstrate routine preventive equipment maintenance and answer questions.
Show exhibit hours are Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For information on the show agenda, special hotel rates and other activities, call PDLA, (800) 822-7352.
Chairty golf event for Central Pennsylvania cleaners
The Central Pennsylvania Drycleaners Association will hold a golf tournament to benefit the Special Olympics on Aug. 20.
The seventh annual CPDA golf tournament will be held at the Briarwood Golf Course in York, PA. The participation fee is $75 for golf and dinner; $40 for dinner only. Last year this charity event raised more than $3,000 for the local Special Olympics program.
The association is accepting individual and corporate sponsors, program chairman Bob Ford said. For information, call (717) 741-3817.
KING GEORGE, VA -- The Mid-Atlantic Cleaners & Launderers Association recently warned that "an alarming number of members are permitting required paperwork and training to go uncompleted." The situation was noticed during association field representative visits in the area.
"I think it may be that owners and managers are just cut so thin they run out of time before they run out of things to do," MACLA executive vice president Dave Norford said. "But it's a fact. Required record keeping and compliance with governing regulations is just that, required." Norford termed the trend "worrisome" and urged cleaners to review their paperwork to make sure they are in compliance with all the rules.
MACLA can be reached at (540) 775-2525.
SAN ANTONIO, TX -- The Southwest Drycleaners Association awarded two scholarships on the opening day of its popular General Fabricare Course which was held in June at the Texas Research Center for Laundry and Drycleaning in Denton, TX.
At the beginning of the two-week course on June 15, SDA president Bruce Baldwin presented scholarships to Monica Halliburton of Culpepper Cleaners and Belinda Buckingham of Johnson Cleaners. Halliburton's scholars was made available through the Herrington-Parker-Worthington Scholarship Trust Fund; Buckingham's came from the Harkrider Scholarship Fund.
Three courses remain on the 1998 schedule for the SDA school at Texas Woman's University in Denton. Stain Removal will be held Oct. 19-23; Advanced Stain removal will be Nov. 9-11 and Finishing will be Nov. 12-14.
All courses are taught by Jane Zellers. For more information or to register, call the SDA office, (210) 826-4684.
JACKSON, MS -- The Louisiana/Mississippi Drycleaners & Laundry Association is accepting applications for a cleaning school tuition scholarship.
The Assunto Scholarship was established to promote education among drycleaners. The scholarship is available to Louisiana and Mississippi industry members whose plant is a LMDLA member. This scholarship can be applied to IFI courses at Silver Spring, MD, or courses at the Texas Research Center for Laundry and Drycleaning at Denton, TX.
Among the requirements for candidates are an age minimum of 19 and at least 12 months of plant experience and on the job training.
Applicants must submit a form which asks for a brief personal history, an outline of responsibilities and job performed in the plant, a statement on why the candidate deserves the scholarship and a few words concerning the candidate's future goals. The person must be sponsored by the owner, chief executive or president of a member firm of LMDLA.
The scholarship must be used within a calendar year of its award.
A review board of the LMDLA President and education committee chairman will evaluate the applications.
The association plans a silent auction at its annual convention to raise funds the scholarship grantee can use for travel expenses.
For information, contact LMDLA, (601) 352-4291.
The Mississippi legislature recently passed Senate Bill 3989, creating a new program in the Department of Environmental Quality. The state is funding a program referred to as the Brownfield Agreement.
This will allow a property owner to enter into an agreement with the Commission to clean up a contaminated site according to a specified plan with DEQ. There is a fee of $2,000 for administration cost. The property owner will no longer be liable for past contamination, but will still be responsible for future contamination.
EPA and the DEQ will enter into a memorandum of agreement which will provide assurance to the property owner that once the agreement is kept with DEQ, the EPA will not pursue action for post contamination or the site. The main purpose of the bill is to provide some incentive for the development of heretofore undesirable property. This will allow for the utilization of current industrial sites and prevent the need for further development of certain areas. Superfund sites are not eligible for this program.
This program has already been funded by the legislature and is scheduled to take effect July 1,1998. In reality the regulations are still to be promulgated and it is reasonable to expect this to be accomplished by early 1999.
Methods for Management meets in Oklahoma
Methods for Management held the first meeting of the Central Plains Management Bureau earlier this summer in Oklahoma City, OK.
MFM staff consultant Diane Vollmer facilitated the meeting. Cleaners from businesses in Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Colorado are members of this bureau.
The meeting included a visit to a drycleaning plant where participants reviewed procedures, quality control practices and customer service. A review of the operation was offered to the owner of the plant.
Vollmer presented a session on the preparation of employee handbooks and the group discussed long-term planning, marketing and handling upcharges.
RALEIGH, NC -- Four representatives of the North Carolina Cleaners & Launderers Association attended the annual members meetings of the International Fabricare Institute in an effort to strengthen ties between the state and national groups.
NCALC president Bill Sessoms, vice presidents Al Cardenas and Marvin Thomas and sergeant-at-arms/acting executive director Sto Fox met with the IFI Board of Directors at the quarterly IFI board meeting and annual meeting and installation of officers.
"A free and open interchange of information between NCALC and IFI indicated that both groups are not only willing but anxious to establish closer ties and cooperation which will benefit the membership of NCALC," the North Carolina attendees said. "One very key concept that we picked up on is 'NCALC is IFI's exclusive representative in North Carolina.' Additionally, we have been missing out on services and opportunities which are part of our joint state status that can be of great benefit to NCALC and the membership."
In July, the NCALC executive committee met to discuss association plans. The meeting began with a two-hour discussion of specific programs to improve and increase member services. The board identified several areas in which services could be enhanced, including additional spotting and customer service seminars, management development seminars to be held in conjunction with board meetings and other functions, explanation of insurance programs, improve the benefits of the newsletters to the membership, the formation of local or area associations to strengthen NCALC.
The association also said its backyard barbecue in Durham featured a presentation by IFI garment analyst Chris Allsbrook.
For information on NCALC, call (919) 850-0707.
JEMISON, AL -- The Blue Ribbon Fabricare Center is running a summer series of weekend training programs with a twist. The sessions are on Sunday and Monday and focus on alternative technologies.
BRFC director Carolyn Schwass and wetcleaning consultant Ann Hargrove teach the classes.
"This course selection has been created for fabric care professionals who are interested in hands-on training in the alternative cleaning methods available today," BRFC said.
For information on the programs, contact Schwass at (205) 688-2414 or Hargrove at (708) 447-0879.
TAMPA, FL -- A CPR and first aid course will be offered this fall by the Gulfcoast Fabricare Association and the American Safety and Health Institute.
The all-day session covers "common emergencies which occur in the workplace including heart attacks, cuts, burns, sprains, sudden illnesses and many other problems," GFA executive director Lou Lawrence said. The course also familiarizes people with OSHA standards. All students attending will receive a course completion card.
For more information, contact Lawrence (813) 527-3151.
ST. AUGUSTINE, FL -- The Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Office of Air Programs, Communications and Outreach (OAPCO) will hold a seminar titled "Communication: Marketing Your Message" Aug. 6-7.
The program will be held in the Radisson Hotel, St. Augustine.
There is a presentation for drycleaners on the agenda, featuring Richard Banks and Margaret Cangro of the Dept. of Environmental Protection/Northeast District.
For complete information, call Alex Hirtle of the Florida DEP, (850) 487-0594.
SACRAMENTO, CA -- An amended South Coast Air Quality Management District rule will affect drycleaners, the California Cleaners Association reported, but the association is working to make the impact of the new rule manageable.
SCAQMD rule 1401, which covers new source device of carcinogenic air contaminants, applies only to new, modified or relocated equipment. Perchloroethylene had not been on the list of contaminants covered by the rule, CCA said, but a July 10 decision by the SCAQMD Board of Governors will change that when amendments to the rule take effect Sept. 11.
The amendments approved at the meeting change the list of contaminants from "carcinogenic" to "toxic." The list now includes perc along with a number of other compounds considered toxic and not previously listed.
Under the rule, new, modified or relocated facilities must meet risk-based limits to receive an operating permit. SCAQMD records show that about 175 drycleaning facilities per year out of the 2,400 within the district are potentially affected, mainly because of modifications.
The risk limits are a Maximum Individual Cancer Risk (MICR) of one in one million if Best Available Control Technology for Toxics (T-BACT) is not used and 10 in one million if T-BACT is used.
That is where the problem lies, CCA said.
Operating and other requirements for drycleaning facilities in the district had already been established by Rule 1421 for Control of Perchloroethylene Emissions from Dry Cleaning Systems.
Under Rule 1401, the risk-based limits are determined by a computer model that takes into account variables such as source type (volume or point), annual volume of clothes cleaned, gallons of perc used, size of building housing the machinery, presence or absence of a stack and forced air ventilation, area meteorology and distance from other locations with people (receptors) present.
The initial model developed by SCAQMD staff indicated that based on their assumptions on variables, 90 percent of more the of the drycleaning facilities complying with Rule 1421 will be considered to be operated with T-BACT and capable of meeting the 10 in one million standard.
However, similar models run by the California Cleaners Association, with assistance of the Halogenated Solvents Industry Alliance, indicated that drycleaning facilities complying with Rule 1421 may, in fact, have difficulty in meeting the 10 in one million standard.
Barry Gershenson, president of CCA, Jackie Smith CCA vice president and Lee Adler, CCA's executive director, met with SCAQMD staff in June to work toward a resolution of the issues and assure that the implementation of Rule 1401 is reasonable and workable for the industry.
Adler also expressed industry concerns in testimony presented at the July 10 hearing and is continuing to work with the district's staff to define the modeling input factors.
Amendments to the proposed rule, which were unique to cleaners, were accepted by the SCAQMD board to allow the installation of new machines with the same or increased capacity without triggering Rule 1401 requirements provided there is no increase in emissions.
ANAHEIM, CA --Fabricare '98 opens for four days starting Aug. 20 and the California Cleaners Association has a number of activities planned. The biennial show will be held in the Anaheim Marriott, across the street from the Anaheim Convention Center, the show exhibit hall. The exhibit itself will be open Aug. 21 23.
"Convention highlights include educational sessions that benefit your pocketbook, a spectacular golf tournament, the announcement of course schedules for the CCA Drycleaning School, recognition of the top-of-the-line Five Star Drycleaners" and more, the association said.
In pre-convention activity, golfers can participate in the annual CCA golf tournament on Thursday, Aug. 20.
The program agenda includes the election of five new district directors, the naming of the 1998 Dry Cleaner of the Year, the honoring of the five-star cleaners and three mornings of education programs.
The election of 1998-99 association officers will be held Friday morning. Education program topics cover route business, working on a team approach and managing the return on a cleaner's greatest investment -- the business itself.
A discussion on route sales leads off Friday morning. "Make More Money by Establishing a Route Business" will show cleaners how to increase their income by establishing an outside sales force. Jane Zellers and Kenney Slatten will address attendees on Saturday morning with a presentation on "The Team Approach." On Sunday, Bill Hay and Jim Beecher of R. R. Streets will discuss "Managing Your Return on Investment: Process, Quality, Cost, Productivity, & Profitability." Nationally-syndicated columnist Heloise will be the special guest at Saturday evening's "A Night with the Stars" program.
For details, call (800) 390-9409.
PHOENIX, AZ -- Monthly membership meetings in three cities are on the fall calendar of the Western States Drycleaners & Launderers Association.
Meetings in Tucson, AZ, will be held Sept. 9, Oct. 9 and Nov. 11.
Las Vegas membership meetings are planned Sept. 17, Oct. 16 and Nov. 19.
Phoenix will play host to gatherings on Sept. 16, Oct. 23 and Nov. 21. The November program includes a seminar with the International Fabricare Institute.
WSDLA also advised members that a small business environmental home page is accessible to cleaners.
"The home page contains federal and state information and serves small businesses," association executive director Mike Schenck said. Other topics covered on the site include information on state small business assistance programs, trade associations and technical assistance programs.
For information on WSDLA activities, call (602) 253-9186.
DENVER, CO -- The Rocky Mountain Fabricare Association entered the electronic communications era with the posting of an association web site last month.
Lori Bellavia, RMFA webmaster, said the main page was posted in July with additional pages now being completed for uploading to the site. The web site address is .
The page will have information on seminars, events, and membership and board listings. Links to RMFA member web pages will also be posted.
Bellavia plans to post membership information and applications for cleaners who wish to apply for RMFA membership.
To reach RMFA, call (303) 433-4446.
The first class of Wisconsin Certified Professional Drycleaners has been named by the Wisconsin Fabricare Institute. In addition, the second year of the Wisconsin Certified Environmental Drycleaners program began with 20 new members added to the ranks.
Eleven cleaners successfully completed the examination for the WI-CPD program. This "program focuses on drycleaners' awareness of various professional issues, including business management, customer service, fibers and fabrics and the drycleaning process," WFI said.
The first group of certified professional drycleaners includes Lara Aiholzer, Louise Breaux, Brian Cass, Sue Doolin, Jill Fitzgerald, Mike Kerkhoff, Debra Nass, Dennis Schmitt, Karen Swink, Tom Swink and Judy Verhasselt.
The environmental drycleaner program test on the drycleaner's awareness of environmental laws and regulations as they pertain to the drycleaning industry, WFI noted. The new WI-CEDs include Gail Apfelbeck, Susan Marvin, Wendy Bacon, Russ Behling, Kevin Burditt, Kevin Cooper, Darlene Porter, Steve Cass, Jayne Englebert and Nancy Frinzi.
Also, Joellen Kwiatkowski, Mary Loiselle, Steven Ste. Marie, Dan Martino II, Diane Meyers, Don Prueter, Jeff Seidensticker, Michael Wankowski, Frank Wirth and George Young.
Recertification of WI-CED cleaners will be held Sept. 18 in conjunction with fall conference.
The next WI-CPD test will be Nov. 12 at the University of Wisconsin extension offices.
The recertification is done in one location only because WFI provides a study session prior to the exam.
WFI also announced the program for its Sept. 18-20 fall conference. Topics will include employee recruitment and retention, state regulatory updates and a panel discussion on cost controls in site investigation and remediation.
For information on Wisconsin certification programs, contact Casey Roska at WFI, (414) 529-4707.
The Illinois Dry Cleaners Environmental Response Fund now has a seven-member council, the Illinois State Fabricare Association reported recently.
Gov. Jim Edgar named three cleaners, two insurance company executives and two allied trade representatives to the board. The first council includes cleaners Hong Pae Yi of Naperville, Jimmy Sober of Jacksonville and Jerome Lewicki of Elmhurst. James P. Davis of Zurich - American Insurance and Thomas R. Eoff of State Farm Insurance were also appointed as were Wayne McGhie of Vulcan Chemicals and James Sanservino of Safety-Kleen.
ISFA reported that the first meeting of the council has yet to be set.
The association also issued a call for cleaners to plan now for this fall's Coats for Chicago Drive. A new chair of the coats committee will be appointed soon. Long-time association director Greg Ehman resigned his post due to business obligations. For now, drive information may be obtained from the ISFA office, (815) 729-0137. The association's trade show in Westmont, IL, Aug. 14-16 is occupying the staff as well.
According to an ISFA representative, "the show goes very well; we're just about sold out." Chicago '98 will take place in the Inland Exposition Center.
Also in the planning stage is the annual "State of the Industry" dinner. It will be held in the Drake Oakbrook Hotel, Oakbrook, IL, on Nov. 4. As part of the program, the Al Nelson Scholarship will be awarded that evening.
KOKOMO, IN -- The Indiana Drycleaning and Laundry Association will holds its state convention in Nashville, IN, Sept. 25-26.
The Seasons Lodge and Convention Center, headquarters for the convention, is near Brown County State Park, golfing, shopping and historical sites.
The weekend begins with a golf outing on Friday afternoon followed by a social at the hotel. Seminars will be held Saturday, with topics focus on electronic technology such as point of sale computers, Internet for drycleaners, electronic funds transfer, surveillance cameras and the like. Exhibitors will have table-top displays to show their products.
For more information, contact IDLA executive director Rex Beddies, (765) 453-3054 or fax (765) 453-3825.
Hearings held by the Department of Environmental Conservation on Regulation Part 232 in New York State have concluded with representatives of two trade associations agreeing that cleaners now know the state DEC is serious about the rules.
The regulation established rules for perc-using drycleaning and mandated vapor barriers for mixed use buildings, reductions in emissions and efficient drycleaning machinery. Neighborhood Cleaners Association International director of environmental services Nora Nealis observed that "the outreach let cleaners know what, if any, funds are available for cleaners and what support the state has in place for helping cleaners in complying with the regulation." North East Fabricare Association executive vice president Peter Blake said it was "an eye-opening experience for cleaners as to what the state wants done. And it brought up the issue of what is a mixed-use building." Nealis saw the hearings as a chance for cleaners to hear practical information on "how to use leak detection equipment and how to fill out the air facility registration forms -- a new wrinkle in the drycleaner's life with DEC. They were told about the basics of vapor barriers." At the conclusion of each program, DEC held a "question and answer session" where department representatives asked a question and then answered it.
They also used the opportunity to publicize rules changes on stand-alone buildings.
"They went very well," Blake said of the meetings as a whole. "They may have scared a lot of cleaners; made them aware that the state is serious about the rules." By next year, New York cleaners are expected to begin certification testing.
ALBANY, NY -- The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is advertising for an independent testing company which would develop and administer the state's perc-using drycleaner test.
DEC estimates at least 7,500 to 10,000 candidates will sit for the exam in the next 18 months. The independent testing organization would administer the test. It projected that in the initial stages of the program, exams will need to be given weekly in the New York City metropolitan area and monthly in the rest of the state.
The department expects to review the credentials of testing organizations by the end of August.
The New York regulations for perc-using drycleaning facilities require owner/managers and operators to be trained and certified. The certification will be good for three years.
Those people who need to be certified must take a training program authorized by the department. Five such programs are in the process of state review at present.
For more information on the state program, contact Michael Cronin of the DEC, (518) 457-7688.
Drycleaner Bill Minty of Bridgeport, CT, is keeping his dream of a Fashion & Fabricare Museum alive by working on fund-raising for the project.
"We're doing okay," Minty said in July. The next big effort on behalf of the museum is an attempt to hold a fashion show with "a major designer." He has been working with the University of Bridgeport on the project. The school has a center that seats about 700 people, Minty's attendee goal for a fund-raiser.
"The goal for the show is Nov. 6. We're always trying ways to raise some cash," Minty added.
The museum is proposed for an old department store building in Bridgeport. The location is an hour east of Manhattan.
Minty can be reached at (203) 334-3171.
Directors who sit with him on the North Carolina Cleaners & Launderers Association board describe their president as "a go-getting ball of fire with a solid track record of service to the association and his community." This new president of the group is a person who professes "I don't handle titles well at all." What he's looking for is a team approach to problem solving. What he has is a confident board.
"The attitude and atmosphere is positive, it's happy, it's a team, it's us together doing this," Hendersonville, North Carolina, cleaner Bill Sessoms said recently. As president of the association, he was feeling very positive about the direction the group has been heading the past couple months.
He was also happy with their participation in the annual International Fabricare Institute membership and board of directors meeting.
"We surprised them," Sessoms said. "We had on white shirts and shoes and could speak in sentences of more than two words." Then he laughed. The new officers and directors of NCALC had been in office for several months now and things were going better than he projected.
"We're going out now on recruiting trips, we're going out to form neighborhood associations, and we're going to work closely with allied trades people," he declared. It's all a matter of working together.
"We don't need any chiefs," he said. "Just more Indians." To hear it from Sto Fox, the acting executive director of the association, Bill Sessoms is a hard-working, non-stop creative type of person, someone who will get up at three in the morning and go to his office to write down a few ideas he came up with while sleeping.
Sessoms' career in the cleaning industry dates back nearly three decades.
"I started in 1971," he recalled. "I was with a big insurance company and they transferred me to Columbus, Ohio. While I was there I had a friend who I played golf with. One day he said 'we have to get a sideline.'" Both had children approaching college age and needed supplementary income to pay for school. After a little bit of research, they decided to investigate drycleaning.
The two talked with American Laundry Machinery in Cincinnati. The hook was the advertising campaign featuring Arnold Palmer in his green Masters coat.
"They were marketing Arnold Palmer Drycleaners. It looked successful," Sessoms said. "Well, we went to Cincinnati to talk and they told us 'something didn't work out with the Arnold Palmer thing so we're going to do One Hour Martinizing.'" Palmerizing or Martinizing, it didn't matter -- these were two people thinking of investing in a business. But there was the question of where the business would be.
"We were living in Ohio and every time we talked, the guy talked about Hendersonville, North Carolina. We'd never been there. So we came down and talked to a lot people," Sessoms continued.
The bottom line? It was perfect -- for business and golf.
"We found a vacant building and put in a One Hour Martinizing. We built a big place downtown for a One Hour Cleaning plant and a laundromat, which we kept open from 6 am to 10 pm daily." The business needed to grow and the partners looked for the right space to channel that expansion. They built another "big old laundry," he said. When another cleaner opened, Sessoms said they soon "bought that. We bought several more sites to expand." The seventies were years of growth for the business. By 1978, however, the nature of the company changed. The partnership ended and Sessoms began consolidating his company.
Village Cleaners had become more than a one-man management operation. His wife Susi was a key player in the company and his "kids worked in it constantly until they went to college."
"After college they came back and I disposed of all but three of the plants," Sessoms said. "The Tryon store (Brocks Dry Cleaners) went to my son while my daughter stayed there in Brevard." Susi and he stayed in Hendersonville. Within a few years, though, his daughter left the industry to pursue a professional photography career.
"She got tired of it, having been in it all her life, and she got an offer from an ad firm in Atlanta," Sessoms said.
With 12 employees, he offers drycleaning, shirt and laundry service and drapery cleaning. The company also has a full-service alteration department.
Sessoms has created a workspace at the plant where he is in a room right off the call office of his store, with doors to both the call office and the production areas. It's not uncommon to hear a boisterous greeting ring out throughout the plant when a friend of his enters. Or to call out into the plant when he needs something done. He admits to being a "Type A" personality, "inexhaustible" in energy as he charges from project to project.
He supplements his counter business with smoke, fire and water damage restoration cleaning in cooperation with a major restoration company. He provides pickup and delivery service to any location in western North Carolina.
Additionally, he services several commercial accounts including summer camps in the area. His wife keeps the company finances and charge accounts straight and tries to keep track of him, even though she can never be sure if he's out picking up a fire order or load of campers' dirty clothes or presiding over his front counter and production areas with his own brand of humor and down-home friendliness.
"Running this one plant, I'm involved in the business and thoroughly enjoy it," he said. "I'm into drapes and restoration losses. I can walk into a house and get a $5,000 order." He knows other cleaners who won't touch the stuff.
"A dear friend of mine, one who's up the street and a competitor, gave me a call and said, 'I got a job for you in a house.' I went in, examined the drapes, said I can do it and took them." It was a $1,000 order.
Drapery cleaning is not as easy as it sounds, he warned.
"Some of them are falling apart on the window. Sunlight and the moisture cause them to fall apart. The constant heat change from the light and the moisture off the window. A lot of time you can clean them but these streaks remain. Sometimes they take something like a cheese cloth and they put a plastic on it. You have to watch the lining more than anything else. We had a commercial building that had giant drapes. We cut the linings out and they got a few more years out of them." Sometimes the best thing is not cleaning them. "We saw this little old lady and she really wanted her drapes cleaned," Sessoms said. "We tried to talk her out of it -- it was going to cost $500. I asked her how she'd like new drapes. She said she'd love it."
His NCALC involvement dates back more than 25 years. In this time, Sessoms has served as a district director, a vice president and as first vice president for 15 of those years.
"You can count on one hand the number of board of directors or executive meetings he has missed during that time," another director said. "Bill has always contributed generously of his time and money to support the activities and programs of the association, including our recent efforts to pass legislation to protect North Carolina drycleaners from the potential financial disaster of pollution liability."
The cleaning industry isn't the only recipient of Sessoms' giving. He has an extensive record of community service. Sessoms has served as superintendent of the Sunday school department at the First Baptist Church, and as the Bible School director and Needy Family supervisor.
He is a charter member of the Hendersonville Daybreak Lion's Club and was voted Lion of the Year. He is past president of the Humane Society, and was presiding when the animal adoption and rescue center was built.
Sessoms was honored by the governor of North Carolina for his work with the handicapped, has served as director of the area Rape Crisis Board and assisted the Western Carolina Community Action Program, which operates a training program to help unskilled people find meaningful employment.
Earlier this year Sessoms was named Small Business Leader of the Month by the Hendersonville Chamber of Commerce.
If service to his profession and community is his interest, then golf is his passion. The heat wave that baked the South all summer was as strong as it gets in July. Almost too hot for golf, but not quite. Sessoms talked about the round he had the day before, when temperatures were in the 90s. Then he recalled the previous weekend's golf club competition where he and his partner finished second, getting beat on the last hole while they sat in the clubhouse.
It's never a bad time for golf. Only cold weather bothers his game, he said. "It's hard to play golf in snow. By the time the ball gets to the cup, it's all caked up, the size of a softball." He realized how much he hates cold weather a few years ago.
"We had a blizzard here in Hendersonville once. We lost the power, the heat and the building froze up," Sessoms said. "I said I'd never complain about heat again." Sessoms is rolling now, recalling stories about the weather and cranking them out in short bursts of humor. He recalled an experience years ago with a snowstorm in Ohio when he was still fresh from South Carolina.
"I was outside, looking up at all these big snowflakes come down. Then I saw all the dumb Yankees cleaning up the snow, working up a sweat. I wondered why. But a week later they could get into their houses and I couldn't. I could barely park my car on a patch of my driveway. I thought, 'who's the dumb one here?'" The legacy of Bill Sessoms is best expressed by Fox. "It is hard to find anyone in Hendersonville who doesn't know, respect and like him."
Millions of dollars were at stake in a recently concluded lawsuit in Texas in which a former cleaning plant owner sued manufacturers and distributors of equipment and chemicals to recover the cost of cleaning up contaminated sites.
The result was mixed for the former owners of the multiple-plant Pilgrim Cleaners operation who were on the hook for a multi-million dollar cleanup of their drycleaning sites. The plaintiffs reportedly had spent more than $12 million on cleanups and the job still isn't finished.
Settlements were reached with a number of the defendants, but ultimately the jury's verdict favored the one defendant who chose to fight it out in court, R. R. Street & Co. Inc. The jury, in an 11-1 vote, said that Street was not liable for the contamination on the Pilgrim properties.
The millions of dollars that were at stake can be distributed now with the plaintiffs getting at least some of what they sued for in the form of settlements reached with the other defendants. The lawyers for both sides, of course, will take their share, win or lose.
There may be appeals. There may be other lawsuits. The winners and losers may be different next time. But no matter who the winners and losers may be in any one lawsuit, the drycleaning industry as a whole stands to lose if this type of litigation continues.
Plenty has been lost already. It has been lost in the form of thousands of dollars in attorneys fees and many thousands, probably millions, more in settlements. It has been lost in the form of ill will created as manufacturers, distributors and cleaners went on a finger-pointing binge in court, and as others sat safely on the sidelines cheering their chosen heroes or booing their designated villains. It has been lost in the form of time as hundreds of hours were expended over several years trying to reach a so-called solution in this one case.
This is not the way to solve a problem. In fact, it just about perfectly describes the problem this industry and others face under Superfund and similar cleanup laws. One party sues another over contamination. Then another is sued, and another and another. While lawyers battle it out in court, the problem -- contamination -- remains. Sometimes the cost of litigation exceeds the cost of cleaning up the contamination. In some cases, these battles go on for years without anything getting cleaned up while the bank accounts of the contesting parties get cleaned out.
So, as it was once said, you are ether part of the solution or part of the problem. Seeking relief from liability by suing someone is being part of the problem. Seeking to fix the laws and reform the regulations that have created the problem in the first place is being part of the solution.
Many people in this industry, to their credit, have worked long and hard at being part of the solution. Legislation has been created at both the state and federal levels that attempts to establish workable solutions to the contamination problem. In some states, cleaners working together have succeeded at getting legislation passed. At the federal level, we now have the Barton bill in Congress, with more than 80 cosponsors, that addresses the need for more rational cleanup standards. Such standards, if they were already in place, would make state-level solutions more viable and would reduce, if not eliminate, the desire to file multi-million-dollar lawsuits to assign liability and get someone else to pay.
Yet compare the millions that one lawsuit in Texas has cost a relative handful of industry companies to the few thousand dollars that has been raised to help get the Barton bill through Congress. Since the Dry Cleaners Action Fund for America was established last fall, about $150,000 has been raised. The bills for the law firm that is handling the Barton bill effort in Washington run, at the most, about $20,000 per month. We don't know what the plaintiffs and defendants spent on attorneys fees in Texas, but we'd guess it was more than that. Wouldn't that money be better spent on seeking a solution than on being part of the problem?
The example of the Texas lawsuit could not make the choice more clear. Spend a few dollars now to be part of solution, or risk spending thousands sometime down the road when you become part of the problem. In this regard, we would take issue with Ben Franklin who said "A penny saved is a penny earned." In this scenario, a few pennies spent is a million saved.
BY BILL BOGUS
Being drycleaners, we are in between fact and fiction that perchloroethylene is a health hazard, which is true if you drink it, or use it as an ointment.
The same is true with water. When a person who has never learned to swim plunges into deep water and becomes a fatality, should we ban water and search for an alternative?
Pressure regulations and questionable decisions are unfair and costly for the drycleaners. This has caused instinctive distrust of those regulators who rely on unsubstantiated evidence of fact. Their interpretation of fact may not be valid if it is based on evidence not found in humans but by forced experimentation on mice using high dosages of perc in order to validate someone's opinion.
There is no correlation between mice and men other than both love cheese. Perc is a safe product when used as prescribed by the manufacturers. Warnings are necessary, just as in medical prescriptions and household products where misuse is a possibility.
Perc was made safe by the drycleaning industry before it became regulated. Uncertainty is surrounding the decision as to which solvent will prevail into the future.
A quick-fix disaster?
Time will tell. But a quick fix could be a disaster. Other substitute solvents and methods must further mature before long-lasting decisions can be made. Just as in athletics, substitutes need more experience. Perchloroethylene has more than 50 years of experience.
Scare tactics used by TV and magazines claiming that perc is a carcinogenic solvent that can cause cancer. As of this date there is no firm evidence, and cancer research scientists have made no such definitive claims.
Today cancer research scientists are making great progress in fighting cancer. The word "cure" is not used. What they are saying is that cancer is "conquerable."
To understand the enormity of the problem, there are millions of multicelled organisms in the human body and some of these are cancer cells. Cells can function alone or interact with other cells. To find cancer cells is like looking for a needle in a haystack on a dark night. The war on cancer is everyone's battle.
Today Americans are experiencing and enjoying the good life. We are healthier, well fed, better housed and have many conveniences.
More important, we are living longer. During the early centuries, a woman's life span seldom exceed 30 years.
Living longer, fighting old age
Today some middle-aged women are having their body parts reconstructed. They want some parts off and some parts made bigger. They want a younger and sexier look. They may never be satisfied with their appearance -- seeing themselves in a mirror, taking a deep breath and uttering: "Could be better."
Men over 50 who want to get back what fizzled out but is not forgotten are now trying Viagra. They want to get back what they were capable of doing years ago but not necessarily as often.
We are having it so good we are losing our sense of purpose. We don't know what we want next because we already have it, and this doesn't make us feel good.
We may be becoming obsessed. Some people have sleepless nights worrying that their cars won't start in the morning. This can be a problem. They don't need a mechanic. They need to see a psychiatrist who understands why cars behave as they do.
Drycleaners have many reasons to be obsessed and frustrated. Regulators are the ones who are causing it. If government regulators owned drycleaning plants, there would be no problems. They'd be the first to raise Cain about unfairness. But who would listen to their complaints?
Lost sense of direction
Having said that, the reasons why drycleaners feel the way they do and worry is because of the "uncertainties" that are going on in our industry. We are losing our sense of direction which is being inhibited by ridiculous regulations imposed by government regulators.
What they are really telling us is that they are going to put us out of business. How is it possible to do more by using less? By doing more, which is needed to survive, drycleaners will use more supplies and use more perc. Supplies are expendable. Perc is recyclable.
Drycleaners provide a valuable service. Why should they be accused of using a cleaning a solvent that is said to be a health hazard? In a court of law guilt, must be proven beyond reasonable doubt. Are regulators above the law?
Get real answers
he time has come that drycleaners should look to medical science and cancer researchers for answers, rather than opinionated environmentalists and forecasters.
Our intellectual and institutional leaders should not use fortune tellers as consultants. That is where decisions go wrong and mistakes are being made. Fortune cookies make predictions, but if they are wrong, you can still eat the cookie.
Intelligent people can make mistakes, too, but not as often. Ignorance always screws up more frequently. Opinions, which we all have, are the easy and thoughtless way to make mistakes.
Charles H. Duell, whom you may have never heard of, was President McKinley's Commissioner of the U.S. Patents Office. He urged President McKinley to close shop on the patent office because everything that could be invented was already invented.
He was positive about that. How positive is positive? Saying "No" is positive.
Years ago a song about fruit peddlers became popular. The song was, "Yes, we have no bananas."
Today we have plenty of bananas. They are called consumer advocates and environmentalists.
Bill Bogus is president of Textile Restoration Services Inc. in Laurel, MD. He can be reached at (301) 776-4961.
BY MAX RECHNITZ
EDITOR'S NOTE: The Clean UK exhibition held in June drew a full house of 89 exhibiting companies and, despite competing with England's opening game on the World Cup, a fair number of attendees. Among those attendees was long-time Colorado-based industry consultant Max Rechnitz, who filed the following impressions of the show.
This equipment show was sponsored by the Society of Laundry Engineers and Allied Trades and held at the Wembley Exhibition Center on the 14th and 15th of June.
Equipment shows in England, for the past several years, have been held at Birmingham, a location which has spoiled exhibitors and visitors alike with its fabulous proximity to rail, air and lodging. Wembley is not quite in the same league.
What were some of the highlights of the show?
Considering that this was not to be an international exhibition and not in the famous European biennial circuit, it was a very good show, well supplied with the latest equipment and well attended.
First, the cleaning machines. Most of the big ones were represented. Böwe, Renzacci, Multimatic and others had their latest models on display.
Hydrocarbon wins favor
Hydrocarbon machines were obviously the favorites, Exxon and Perclone (Alex Reid) were heavily advertised with flash points and other "consumer friendly" specifications readily available.
Perhaps due to the existing state of the drycleaning business, there was a huge growth in the display of small equipment, such as presses, steam finishing equipment for pants and coats, hand-finishing units, fancy spotting boards and touch-up boards.
Parts for everything
The most amazing displays, however, were the many parts supply displays for replacement and repair of all types of equipment. One got the impression that the cleaners/laundry operators are doing their own work and are carrying their own parts inventory for quick repairs.
The BLANCA press should be mentioned here. A new, portable, electric press with an ironing area of 80cm x 29cm, or about 31 x 11 inches. A great touch-up press for the dry store or for the sewing department.
For the small laundry operator, numerous one-roll ironers were on display; all of them with the latest controls and very quality oriented.
Several energy efficient boilers were shown with particular design features for fast start-up and easy conversion to the use of different fuels.
"Marketskil Publishing and Publicity" was very helpful with information regarding a 1997 study by the Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, London, on the subject of "Risk of spontaneous abortion among drycleaning workers." A sizeable display on the subject was shown in their booth.
Two of the U.S. exhibitors visited were The Mayfield Group and Dry Cleaning Computer Systems, both of whom were pleased with attendance and cleaners' interest in their services and equipment.
Conveyor systems missing
Missing on the exhibit floor were various conveyor systems for laundry and cleaning plants, perhaps an indication of the pre-dominance of basically small operations.
The hospitality extended by the exhibition staff was greatly appreciated and the assistance extended made this indeed a worthwhile and pleasurable visit.
You can (and should) remove almost all the perc vapors from your cleaning machine's cylinder.
That's right. And you can thank our old friend, the carbon adsorber. The "sniffer," as we called the carbon adsorber, was replaced (by law) by the current National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP)) as a primary vapor recovery unit by the refrigerated condenser.
As required, the "major" perc users had to have a small carbon canister attached at the rear of their cleaning machine to an exhaust damper which adsorbed (captured) some of the residual vapors in the cylinder when the operator opened the door and the fan went on.
When the carbon chips inside the canister became spent, they were simply discarded into the hazardous waste container and a new bag of carbon chips was placed into the small canister. This device's chief advantage was the drawing back of perc vapors from the operator's face since it removed very few of the total residual vapors from the cylinder. The vapors were deposited onto the carbon chips within the canister and the residual air was then discharged into the plant.
This device is still in compliance with NESHAP and OSHA, but it does not satisfy the very stringent laws of New York and California. These very strict requirements will very possibly be adopted by many other jurisdictions as well.
What is required is the removal (adsorption) of almost all of the residual perc vapors in the cleaning machine's cylinder down to no more than 300 parts per million (ppm) before the door is opened.
What caused the removal of the old carbon adsorber (sniffer) by NESHAP was the generation of unusually large amounts of waste water due to the requirement for using steam as the method of desorbing (stripping) the unit. This waste water is classified as "hazardous waste" due to its contact with perc vapors. Also the old carbon adsorber exhausted directly to the atmosphere since it had no way of recirculating back through the cylinder of the cleaning machine (washer-extractor with no condenser attached, recovery tumbler or dry-to-dry cleaning machine).
Now the carbon adsorber has returned, and it is better than ever. Most of the latest type of cleaning machines can be purchased with the carbon adsorber factory installed; or it can be installed later by the same manufacturer, or it can be retrofitted at any time. In fact, any refrigerated dry-to-dry cleaning machine can be retrofitted with this device in the field.
The new carbon adsorber consists of a regenerative activated carbon bed that adsorbs perc vapors from the cylinder, button trap and still. These concentrations are reduced by circulating the perc laden air out of the cylinder, to the condenser, through a large activate carbon bed and back to the cylinder. This process continues until the perc concentration has been reduced to less than 300 ppm. The amount of residual vapor remaining is actually determined by the number of times the air is circulated. The adsorption process begins after the load has completed its cool-down cycle and before the loading/unloading door is opened.
Also, the vapor-laden air must not be heated before it flows over the activated carbon bed in order to not interfere with the carbon's ability adsorb the vapors. This is why the air flows over the refrigerated condenser before it enters the activated carbon adsorber canister.
However, in the interest of achieving a good production rate of drycleaning, I recommend not trying to achieve a residual vapor of much less than the 300 ppm requirement before the loading/unloading door is opened.
When the loading/unloading door is opened, the unit will actuate and begin to draw air from the operator and over the activated carbon bed. This air will move at approximately 100 CFM in order to reduce the operator exposure at the loading/unloading door to almost "0" ppm. After the air is directed across the activated carbon bed it is vented outside through a stack and away from the building. The air is called "fugitive."
When the carbon adsorber unit's activated carbon bed becomes saturated, the time required to adsorb the vapors will begin to increase. At this point, it is necessary to desorb the activated carbon bed by heating the air passing through the activated carbon bed or by heating the carbon bed only by inlaid steam coil, then passing the vapor-laden air over the cleaning machine's refrigerated condenser (attached coil). This condenses the vapors back into liquid perc which is then drained through the cleaning machine's water separator into the base tank.
The retrofit unit contains: 65 pounds of activated carbon in its canister; a high volume blower; a set of automatic valves for adsorb, desorb, and fugitive; an automatic steam valve and an all-copper steam coil installed within the activated carbon bed for the desorbing cycle. The unit's blower moves the air.
The built-on unit (or unit available as an option for later installation on latest generation cleaning machines) contains: 35 pounds of activated carbon chips in its canister; a high volume blower; a set of automatic valves for adsorb, desorb and fugitive and an automatic steam valve to heat the air passing through its built-on steam chamber outside the carbon adsorber for the desorption cycle. The unit's blower moves the air.
Note: The retrofit unit's built-in steam coil within its carbon bed thoroughly heats the entire bed surface and below it as well. This condition makes the perc vapors more volatile as the entire area within the canister is heated also.
The main difference, therefore, between the old sniffer and the new vapor adsorber is the absence of steam introduced directly into the activated carbon bed (old sniffer), no generation of contact water in the desorption cycle and no discharge to the atmosphere during the desorption cycle.
The sniffer also generated a great deal of heat in the plant from the live steam introduced into the carbon bed.
The term fugitive, in regard to the use of this unit, is the process of pulling fresh air into the cleaning machine through one or more of several openings in the machine such as the loading /unloading door, button trap cover or lint filter door. The air is then pulled by the unit's fan and forced through the activated carbon bed before being directed out through a roof or room exhaust vent.
This process is typically done to keep the residual perc vapor in the cleaning machine from drifting into the breathing zone of the machine's operator.
This author strongly recommends the addition of the new carbon adsorber unit onto your cleaning machine. The additional savings in perc will pay for the unit in a short period of time, and the safety and comfort of your employees are by far its greatest advantage.
NOTE: My new video, "The Caplan Method of Stain Removal," which includes my comprehensive text with handy spotting board reference, is now available for only $199. Please contact Dennis McCrory, (800) 646-5736, PIN #4615.
Stan Caplan has over 35 years experience in his own drycleaning/laundry business and over 20 years experience teaching and consulting. A former chief instructor at IFI and the SDA school in Denton, TX, he offers consulting services on work flow concepts, lot systems management, call office efficiency studies, production studies, plant equipment layout, engineering studies and specifications, equipment specifications, TQM, training programs, cost analysis and accounting and general plant management. He can be reached at 3601 Clarks Lane, Suite 307, Baltimore, MD, 21215; phone or fax (410) 358-0870.
I am always impressed when I meet an individual who is gifted with "total recall" or with a supposedly photographic mind!
Yes, there are such people but I'm such a pessimist that those gifted are surely in the minority.
I tend to believe we remember what we want to remember because we deem it important enough. Maybe we found that recalling some even insignificant facts or names proved to be a strong benefit to our success as business people and a great asset in our everyday social life.
The first demonstration of that people skill that I knew of was James Farley, an old-time New York politician who learned the power of voter support and the rules of cronyism.
A politician's trick
Farley knew the value of remembering names, and possessed a phenomenal memory. He also used a ploy when he forgot a name.
He would shake the voter's hand, look him in the eye and say "your name is...?" The person would say, "Bill" ( or Jones) and Farley would answer "Of course, I know your name is Bill! I meant your last name!"
Strange how it worked, and how the voters loved him. "Imagine, he knew who I was, and with all those people!"
It was said even the undertaker cried when he met his maker!
How important is remembering names?
More important, can we all master this simple skill?
I don't believe the human psyche has changed and that people still love to be recognized and acknowledged. Even stranger is when the acquaintance is casual and sincere recognition is given. It makes one feel "I must have impressed someone. I must be impressive!"
The methods have been around for decades. The first starts with our early grammar school daysŠ repetition.
Think of learning the multiplication tables, or the Pledge of Allegiance.
Learning by repetition
Think how this applies to the counter sales person who must ask the customer's name, as the first step in writing an invoice.
Then the repetition starts. "I'll have our seamstress tighten this button, Mrs. Jones", or "This stain should be no problem. Is it recent, Mrs. Jones?" Or "I love this color (or material). It's so serviceable, Mrs. Jones"
"We can have this ready on Thursday, or would Wednesday be better, Mrs. Jones?"
Any one of those comments when writing a invoice would be a normal approach and shows your customer your professionalism.
Now that you have repeated her name twice or more, your closer can be, "Thank you, Mrs. Jones, see you on Wednesday!"
If there was some special instruction, you have the opportunity of putting some note reminding you of "stain on left sleeve" or something specific and that makes another opportunity to refresh your memory about Mrs. Jones.
That's five times you have had to repeat your customer's name. With a little practice and the goal of 20 or more new names a week (the average counter person has over 100 transactions a day!), you could easily master 100 names a month!
If you consider it important enough, it's really up to you, and a little determination.
An association game
The next method of remembering names, or any facts, aside from repetition, is association.
Sometimes the association can be even ridiculous. The more outlandish the better.
Here's an example: I once had a chore of going to Fairchild Cameras to repair a sensitive portable video camera that I used for presentations around the country. It was very effective and fit under an airline seat.
I would always get it serviced immediately prior to catching my flight. It happened once, when I drove past my turnpike exit, and the next exit was some six miles (that meant 12 miles round trip) to go back and risk missing my important flight.
I vowed I would never make that mistake again!
So I put together a ridiculous association. The exit number was 54 Candlewood Road, and the company was Fairchild. All future thoughts were to simply making a picture of a "Fair hair 54 year old boy, with a candle on his head!"
Yes, it was ridiculous, certainly. But it works to this day. I'll never pass by that exit!
The point here is that is was important to me, very important. That is the main point -- it has to be important to the individual.
Regardless of what the fact is, be it a valve that must be closed at night or setting up a checkoff list that avoids a costly mistake should you fail to follow it.
A sharper mind
Last but not least, there is some break-through in the medical field that research has uncovered. It seems there is conclusive proof that a lack vitamins and nutrients, can effect our memories!
The overwhelming number of cases of Alzheimers, and the longevity of our seniors, has brought new advances in treatment and can apply to all of us who feel their memories and the ability to recall simple facts are impaired.
I'm somewhat of a skeptic when it comes to miracle drugs, since they don't tell about the side effects, but the use of our God-given gift, the mind -- that endless computer -- will never fail us if we simply keep it in good condition and not allow it to grow dormant.
Yes, I have met 80-year-olds who can recall the most significant facts about what life was like, and you can bet they did not allow their brains (that marvelous computer) to atrophy into a useless hat rack!
Think about itŠ "The Miracle of Memory!"
Ray Colucci, an independent consultant to the drycleaning and laundry industry, conducts sales seminars and participates on industry discussion panels. He has been a tailor, professional drycleaner and national sales manager. He can be reached at 410 Warren Ave., Mamaroneck, NY 10543; phone (914) 381-2171.
Wetcleaning is a process of removing soil and stains with water and wetside chemicals.
Care labels for textile wearing apparel must either have washing or drycleaning instructions.
Garments labeled as washable are not required to be serviceable to drycleaning.
Garments that are labeled "Dryclean" or "Dryclean Only" may not be wetcleanable.
The wetcleaning process has become more commonly used due to the following:
- To comply with the Federal Trade Commission care instructions.
- To reduce perc consumption.
- To remove stains and soil not removed in drycleaning.
- To restore yellowed and oxidized garments that are otherwise unwearable.
- To clean garments and fabrics that can not be drycleaned, e.g.: Some rubber and plastic coated garments and some beaded and trimmed garments.
- To satisfy customers perception of alternate cleaning methods.
Fabric problems
The problems associated with wetcleaning are:
- Improper wetcleaning techniques. Failure to control the water temperature, mechanical action and improper use of chemicals. The result is shrinkage, dye bleeding and dye crocking.
- Poor dyes used in manufacture. Some dyes will bleed and crock due to poor affinity that the dye has for the fabric. This can occur even on these garments labeled as washable.
- Failure to obtain customer permission. Some fabrics would require a customer release due to fabric lining, trimming and dye limitations.
- Improper preshrinking in manufacture. Wetcleaning may result in shrinkage because the fabric has not been properly preshrunk, or stabilized in manufacture.
Inspection
Garments that are to be wetcleaned should be separated from the drycleanable fabrics. These include those with restrictive labeling or when correction procedures are to be attempted.
Garments that may require wetcleaning may be:
- Denims (labeled washable.)
- Cottons (labeled washable.)
- Pigment prints (labeled washable.)
- Thermoplastic fabrics such as polyester, nylon, acrylic and acetate (not velvet.)
A customer release should be obtained on those fabrics that may shrink or bleed. Cleaners who have more extensive fabric knowledge will be able to wetclean more fabrics. It is desirable to measure the garment if you suspect It might shrink.
Testing
To determine the serviceability of the dye to wetcleaning, the following test should be made
- Apply a synthetic detergent to an unexposed area. Heat with the steam gun and flush into cheesecloth. Note any bleeding and dye transfer to cloth.
- Apply synthetic detergent and other chemicals that may be used on an unexposed area. This may be acid, alkali or bleach. Heat with steam gun and note the dye fastness of the fabrics.
Cleaners can wetclean with the new chemicals available with sophisticated wetcleaning equipment as well as with home washers, pails and sinks.
Silk and wool require a neutral or acid based detergent with softeners.
Cottons, polyesters and linens may require alkaline based detergents and sizing agents.
For whitening, mild oxidizing bleaches should be used.
Rules of wetcleaning
- Use lower water temperature for safety (90 degrees F.)
- Garments subject to dye crocking should be turned inside out and subjected to a minimum of mechanical action.
- Colors should be carefully tested.
- To avoid stretching, knits should be folded over the bars of two hangers or placed on a towel to dry.
- Premeasure knits and loosely woven fabrics so they can be restored to size.
Prespotting
Prespot tannin stains such as coffee, tea, liquid, soda, etc. Use lubricants and acid. Prespot protein stains such as blood, wine, egg, milk; etc. Use lubricants, alkali and digester.
Prespot dryside stains such as oil, grease, wax and paint.
Use special wetside prespotting agents that contain ingredients that break down oil based stains.
Do not use solvent based prespotting or oily type paint removers used for prespotting fabrics prior to drycleaning.
Drying
Do not tumble soft wools or angora. (Hang to dry.) Dry other garments at a low temperature and remove while damp or when 90 percent dry.
Finishing
Garment should be steamed after wetcleaning while damp or can be placed on a steam air finisher and dried with the air only.
Linens and cotton and silks should be resized to restore proper feel. Woven garments should be pulled and stretched to avoid any shrinkage.
Knits should be blocked to proper size.
Dan Eisen is chief garment analyst for the Neighborhood Cleaners Association Inter-national. He can be reached at the NCAI office, (212) 967-3002, ext. 243 or via e-mail: ncai@sprynet.com.
What's the difference between a supermarket and a drycleaner?
A little and a lot. You see, they both cater to the same geographical market and the same customers, but there are extreme differences.
The average family of four will spend $4,000 a year at their local supermarket.
That same family, in the average demographic income level, will spend only $100 for drycleaning services during a 12-month period.
This is a ratio of $40 to $1 in consumer spending. Another way to put it is that average drycleaning customers will spend 40 times as much in their local supermarkets as they will spend for their drycleaning and shirt laundering.
Even of greater interest is that supermarkets do better in blue-collar markets than in high-income markets and, conversely, the drycleaner will do far better with folks who live in more expensive homes and usually work in the professions.
Here's how the ratio can change to as much as 4 to 1.
Big Tuna drycleaning and laundry customers can and do spend as much as $1,000 a year while that same family will still spend $4,000 a year in the supermarket.
Why is there such a discrepancy? Let me explain.
A family of four has to provide food and most of its weekly purchases are made at the local supermarket. Income is somewhat irrelevant because, rich or poor, they still need to spend about $80 a week for groceries.
Households with income at about the national average of $33,000 do not have extra funds for a large wardrobe or the financial ability to spend much on the maintenance of their wearing apparel.
On the other hand, people with four times the national household income have a large wardrobe and the social activity that normally goes with a higher income. Yet, they will not spend more than the same $80 a week in supermarkets. They spend more in restaurants and gourmet food shops, but for the most part, still spend an average of $80 a week in their supermarket.
Now, let me tell you about an experience Bill Bishop and I recently had. We attended a three-day conference called Supermarket College held in Bally's Hotel, which is on Park Place and the Boardwalk in Atlantic City. If you recall, from your Monopoly days, this was the choice piece of real estate.
Friends of ours put on this annual event and they invited us to attend as their guest. The Raphels and my company have been sharing marketing ideas for years.
Supermarket College draws over 350 executives, supermarket owners, marketing experts, and people of the highest levels in this, the largest of all industries.
One of Supermarket's sponsors is American Express. Another is NCR and a few other big names who are indigenous to the supermarket field.
No other industry can boast doing over $320 billion a year except the U.S. Government and they take in close to six times that amount, or roughly $1.75 trillion dollars a year.
The U.S. Government has no competition, but supermarkets compete with gourmet shops, convenience stores, fast-food restaurants and fine sit-down restaurants, of which there are literally hundreds of thousands.
Now at this point, you may be asking, "Where is Stan going with this story?"
Well, I'll tell youŠ
Marketing is marketing
Customers are customers and employees are employees and the supermarket management people have to cope with the same problems as drycleaning managers. In this regard, supermarkets and drycleaners are the same.
The supermarket people, with all their check-out counters, have not been able to distinguish one customer from another.
They are well aware of this and are rapidly getting to the point where they can recognize a good loyal customer from a once-in-a-while customer.
They are now rewarding customers accordingly, while in our industry, the most astute drycleaners have been doing this for years.
Now, supermarkets can track customers using magnetic cards that track everything about customers -- what they buy, how often they use the store, what hours they prefer, and how much they spend.
For the first time in history, supermarkets no longer have to treat customers like numbers. They now have the wherewithal to track all the data on the customer's plastic cards.
The check out person now sees the customer's name on the screen and can tell what kind of customer they are at a glance. The rewards have already been built into the purchases and the check out person knows to treat this customer particularly friendly.
The supermarket knows how to promote to loyal customers and not worry about the "cherry pickers," on whom they lose money.
A classic example they use is that a "cherry picker" comes in for an advertised heavily discounted price, buys a few items and goes through the fast check-out line. Meanwhile, the loyal customer stands in a line three or four deep waiting to check out an order of $150 every week.
They knew this was wrong, but didn't know what to do about it as they didn't know who their Big Tunas were. Now they do and you will see major changes in your own supermarket as these methods are introduced around the country.
Supermarket College was a great success in that the entire three days were devoted to better servicing the customer.
They started with the hiring and training process to make their employees understand the value of being customer-friendly. They used to hire warm bodies, just as most cleaners do to represent them at the front line, the counter that immediately separates the employees from the customers.
Supermarkets are now going all out to train and retrain their people in all departments to treat customers like kings and queens. They are instructed to follow the two rules in dealing with customers:
Rule #1. The customer is always right.
Rule #2. If the customer is wrong, go back to Rule #1.
I know this doesn't sit well with drycleaners when a customer complains that a spot wasn't there when the garment was brought in.
Most of the "College" was devoted to ways to track customer activity and ways to reward them with discounts on items they buy or items they could buy as complementary, such as a dozen eggs free when they buy a pound of bacon.
These supermarket people are very sharp and they concentrate on making a profit. But in order to do that, they have to establish customer loyalty and these are the methods they use to accomplish this.
There were two marketing professors, Richard George, Ph.D. and John Stanton, Ph.D., both of St. Joseph University. These guys made a fantastically interesting presentation with each standing at opposite ends of the stage and working on a program where they bounced the conversation back and forth and mesmerized the audience for about an hour.
They had recently written a book titled, "Delight Me -- The Ten Commandments of Customer Service."
This educational and very entertaining book was published by the Raphels, who own Raphel Publishing, and are very close friends of mine. As a matter of fact, they published my book, "How To Find, Capture and Keep Customers."
I called Neil Raphel and asked him if I could make "Delight Me" available and he said if anyone wanted a copy and said that I recommended it, he would waive the normal $4 shipping charge. The cost of the book is $19.95. All you need to do is call or write Raphel Publishing.
(Raphel Marketing 12 S. Virginia Ave. Atlantic City, NJ 08401 Phone: (609) 348-6646 Fax: (609) 347-2455).
The following are a few paragraphs from the book to give you an idea what it is about.
Keep it up
Remember our statement "Marketing is a race with no finish line." You can't really stop and take a breather and still win the battle for the customer.
Delighting is not something you can take a vacation from. It's an everyday thing.
A few years ago we went into a newly opened Boston Chicken (now Boston Market). The people were great; everything was done for the customer. We could not have been more impressed. Recently we visited a Boston Market, and things were different, and we mean more than the ham and meat loaf. It was more than average. We were satisfied but not delighted. We certainly would consider going somewhere else, even though we got reasonable service at the Boston Market. Whatever they did when they opened needs to be done again.
Every day brings a new audience that expects to be delighted.
The other dozen speakers represented the Who's Who of the supermarket field, from CEO's of major supermarket chains to leaders in marketing.
In closing, I have to state that every learning experience provides food for ideas to enhance any business and certainly the drycleaning business. As long as I'm capable, even at the age of 73, I will continue to learn as learning is the source that sustains my life.
Stan Golomb is president of The Golomb Group Inc., a firm that designs marketing programs for drycleaners. Contact him at The Golomb Group Inc., 7664 Plaza Ct., Willowbrook, IL 60521; phone (630) 887-7339. His e-mail address is: sgolomb@ix.netcom.com
Every employer knows that there is a federal minimum wage and that overtime (time-and-one-half) must be paid after 40 hours. Beyond that, employers have a difficult time understanding their obligations under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.
There is good reason for that. The wage and hour laws are complicated, and it is easy to violate the law without even knowing it.
Here are some of the most common employer mistakes.
1. Employers believe that employees can agree to take less than minimum wage or waive overtime.
This is false. Even if the employee comes to his employer with an idea to get around the wage and hour laws, the employer can be held liable for back pay. Several years ago, an employer was forced to pay overtime for hours worked over 40 in the work week, even though the employees themselves suggested the idea of working a few extra hours each week to accumulate time to take deer season off without using vacation time. The federal government did not care.
2. Employers believe that if they pay an employee a salary, that employee is exempt from overtime.
That is not true. Employees who are paid a salary are exempt if they perform duties that qualify them as executive, administrative, or professional employees.
The existence of the exemption depends on what they actually do. If an employee is not paid a salary, he is likely not exempt from overtime and the minimum wage, regardless of what he does.
3. Employers believe that overtime must be paid after 40 hours of pay.
On the contrary, overtime must be paid after 40 hours of actual work. If the employee receives vacation pay for 8 of the 40 hours, he is not entitled to overtime until he actually works 40 - not 32 - hours.
4. Employers think they can deduct any amounts they want from an employee's paycheck, provided it is authorized in writing.
Deductions cannot, however, have the effect of bringing the employee below the minimum wage for the week. The only exception is for cash advances or loans.
Those cases, the federal government treats the advance or the loan as compensation already paid. Deductions for tools of uniforms the employee is required to have are not allowed if they bring wages below the minimum.
5. Employers believe that travel time is not compensable.
This depends on the circumstances.
The Department of Labor has taken the position that most travel time is compensable. This position is probably incorrect under current statute and regulations.
Travel to the first job in the morning and from the last job in the afternoon, if the employee can go straight home, is probably not compensable.
6. Employers believe that they are not responsible to pay employees who start work early and leave work late, especially if it is only a few minutes.
This is not correct. Employees must be paid for all the time they work. Hours may be rounded to the nearest five minutes, 10 minutes, or quarter hour.
This means, however, that if any employee works 8 minutes over his regular quitting time, an employer may be responsible for up to a quarter hour of straight time or overtime, depending on the total hours worked in the workweek.
7. Employers believe that overtime is based on the minimum wage.
This is false. Overtime is based on the employee's regular rate. That includes the employees hourly rate, plus any other compensation, including bonuses, divided by the number of hours that amount is intended to compensate.
8. Employers sometimes think that they do not have to keep track of hours worked.
Rather, employers who fail to keep records of hours run the risk that a court will decide that an employee's "records" establish the number of hours worked.
Employers should not take unnecessary risks concerning payments for their employees.
If mistakes are made, the employer may be responsible for back pay, an equal amount as liquidated damages, and attorneys fees. It pays to pay employees correctly.
Frank Kollman is a partner in the law firm of Kollman & Sheehan, PA, in Baltimore, MD. He can be reached at (410) 727-4391.
A growing concern for the environment has spurred the search for more environmentally friendly methods of cleaning suedes and leathers. The result was the development of the wetcleaning process which has been called the ultimate processing method for cleaning suedes and leathers.
Wetcleaning is the industry term used to describe washing or laundering drycleanable articles using water as the cleaning fluid and additives like water soluble detergents, conditioners and auxiliary treatments like water repellents and sizings.
Washing suedes and leathers
Washing suedes and leathers can be found in the processes performed in tanneries where the skins of animals are made into leather. Washing the skins in water is used extensively throughout the tanning process, which starts with washing the salt-cured, blood-soaked skins after they arrive at the tannery from the slaughter houses. It continues throughout the tanning process with treatments that use water as the liquid carrying agent for the tanning chemicals and dyes and for rinsing them out. Then it ends with a fine spray of water on the leather to establish the final desired moisture level in the skins.
In more developed countries like the United States, wetcleaning of suedes and leathers was not used to process all items because drying was time consuming compared to modern high-production oriented leather drycleaning operations.
In less developed countries, wetcleaning of suedes and leathers was quite common because these nations did not possess the capital, technology, machinery, solvents or chemicals for modern, efficient, high-quality leather drycleaning.
However, the advent of modern Wetcleaning products and equipment lets leather cleaners meet environmental concerns and wetclean suedes and leathers safely and efficiently.
Wetcleaning can be especially advantageous for items with water soluble stains like blood or milk soaked into the suedes or leathers as well as for wetcleaning distressed leathers or items trimmed with vinyl. Wetcleaning these items could be the only way to safely clean and restore them to a usable condition.
Equipment and machines
Suede and leather wetcleaning equipment can be as simple as a bucket, a sink, a tub or some other type of container. It can be done in a simple washing machine like a small home washer if volume is not too great. A home washer can wetclean four to 12 suedes or leathers an hour.
It can also be done in larger standard commercial laundry washers for greater output. Or it can be done in modern wetcleaning machines equipped with washing cycle programs that control drum rotation, mechanical agitation, timing of multiple cycles, water temperature, water level injection of additives, extraction speeds and duration etc.
In most cases, the cycles of these machines can be custom programmed in accordance with information from the detergent and additive manufacturers.
Wetcleaned items can be dried by hanging to dry in the air by tumbling in a cool tumbler or in a special dryer that can be programmed to sense and control moisture level and temperature.
An existing washer can be used to start wetcleaning suede and leather. Drying can be accomplished by hanging or tumbling in a cool tumbler. The home washer will do if no other wetcleaning equipment is available. Or the shirt laundry washer can be used it is available.
One or two pieces of old suede or leather can be wetcleaned to build confidence. From there it is off to the races!
Additives and supplies
The additives used to wetclean suedes and leathers must be biodegradable, nonhazardous, non-flammable and non-solvent in order to meet government regulations when the used wash water is dumped into existing sewer systems.
They must also be able to restore suede and leather to its original softness, without glue bleed problems, without shrinkage, without color loss, without color bleed on multicolored items or cloth, suede, leather or vinyl combinations.
The most important additives required to wetclean suedes and leathers are the detergent and the conditioner.
The purpose of the detergent is to remove and suspend water soluble soils to prevent them from redepositing on the items being wetcleaned in warm or cold water.
The purpose of the conditioner is to protect the softness and to prevent color loss and bleeding of the dyes.
Ideally these two additives should be combined in a single product (Prosuede Wet being an example).
The next most important additives the prefinish softener conditioner rinse (such as Leather Soft). The purpose of this additive is to provide added softness and to aid in finishing.
Other additives that are useful include a sizing (Leather Size for example) to restore body and firmness to items that contain water soluble sizing, a water repellent (like Leather Seel) to impart a water resistance to suedes or leathers and a dye fixer (like Leather Fix) to set dyes that testing indicates are water soluble.
While most water-soluble stains can be removed from suedes and leathers in wetcleaning, some prespotting may be necessary with a biodegradable wetcleaning prespotter (such as Leather Magic).
Oily solvent soluble stains like paint, oil, grease, etc., must be removed with a non-oily POG remover (Spot Magic, for example) before wetcleaning any suede or leather. The non-oily POG will flush out in the wetcleaning without leaving an oily ring.
Likewise, ink stains must be removed with a non-oily ink remover (such as Ink Magic) prior to wetcleaning.
To start wetcleaning suedes and leathers, the key additives to use in an existing washer are the detergent plus conditioner, the softener/conditioner and the prespotter.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Products named in this article are Royaltone brand products and are the recommendations of the author. Similar products may be available from other companies, but the author makes no warranty for the effectiveness of their use as a substitute.
Frank Lucenta is president of Royaltone Co. Inc., a firm that manufactures products for drycleaning and wetcleaning suede, leather, fur and cloth garments. He also teaches plant owners to identify, accept, spot, wet clean, dryclean, press and recolor suedes, leathers, and furs at the two-day training academy. Classes will next be offered Sept. 17-18 at the Royaltone Suedemate Leather Cleaning Center in Tulsa OK. Class size is limited to seven students. For information on training sessions or the subject covered in this article, or information on handling suedes, leathers and furs, or for a free three-ring binder to hold copies of these articles, or for information on the Royaltone Instruction Book & Spotting Charts, call (800) 331-5506 or email royaltone@royaltone.com. Information is also available at the company's website: www.royaltone.com
When given properly, feedback is a powerful motivator and can dramatically improve an employee's performance.
It works best when it creates a learning situation for the employee. How can you find a better way to say what you need to say in a productive manner so that your staff can correct unacceptable behaviors without feeling defensive, and be encouraged to do a better job?
First, management needs to remember that it is critical that an employee be allowed to maintain his or her dignity and self-respect. If not, resentment and anger will set in, and work productivity will plummet.
The golden rule when it comes to giving feedback to employees is "Think before you speak."
Timing is everything
Give feedback as soon as possible after an incident occurs. The sooner your employee receives feedback, the easier it is for them to change their behavior.
It is much better to correct a problem immediately than to have an employee make the same mistake repeatedly.
If you wait too long, you may minimize or forget the problem, and service and quality will suffer.
Pick the right place
The worst thing you can do is to give negative feedback to a worker within earshot of someone else.
If customers are present, take the worker aside to correct the problem If other employees are near, hold off on your comments until you can speak to that particular worker in private.
Privacy and confidentiality are critical to an employee's willingness to accept feedback. You may foster resentment if you take the worker to task in front of others.
Don't allow interruptions to your discussion
Taking the worker aside to give him or her feedback says that you want to create a climate for better understanding and that the employee's job performance really matters to you. Don't let this positive situation be diminished by interruptions.
Be cool and calm
How you say things is as important as when you say things. If you are upset or angry about a situation, don't give feedback until you've cooled down. It's difficult to pick the right words when you're fuming.
Think through what you plan to say and how you will say it.
Planning your comments will make the feedback more productive and will prevent angry outbursts.
Another time to delay feedback is when the employee has just dealt with an irate customer or had a conflict with another employee.
At this point, the person is angry or hurt, so you should wait until he or she has calmed down before you initiate a conversation.
Address behaviors, not attitude
Let the employee know the purpose of the discussion. Tell them it is to discuss behavior you have observed and that you care about them and their progress.
Describe the actual behavior you observed in terms of your shop's policies and practices or established rules and the results of that behavior. This way the feedback is unbiased because you are not expressing it as your personal feelings, but rather as generally accepted practices.
Don't magnify
If an employee is late on occasion, don't say, "Why are you always late?"
If the employee was always late, you would probably have fired him a long time ago.
Instead, say: "On both Tuesday and Saturday, you were more than 15 minutes late. Our agreement was, that you would begin working by 8 a.m.
"When you are late, other people have to cover for you, and our workflow is disrupted."
Before you end the discussion, you must be sure the employee understands what is expected. Although it doesn't necessarily guarantee that those expectations will be met.
It will take time for employees to change old behaviors into new habits. Further observations and follow-up discussions will most likely be necessary to ensure results.
Giving high-quality feedback means being able to say the right thing at the right time -- and repeating those words if necessary.
This repetition will create loyal, committed and productive employees who will have customers giving them -- and you --plenty of positive feedback as well.
Positive feedback
American Express recently asked 1,387 Americans 18 years and older what they wanted most from their employers.
When it came to what form of appreciation they desired, money was rated second by a large margin. The reward employees wanted most was personal feedback.
While some may be surprised by this finding, if you think about it, it makes sense.
"If you treat me like a dog, beat me down and then give me a $200 bonus, I'll be happy with my bonus, but not necessarily with my job. However, if you pat me on the back, it will go a long way as far as my personal motivation."
This thinking appears to be the norm as about half (48 percent) of the respondents of the American Express "Incentives At Work" survey said personal feedback is their preferred reward for extra work performed.
Money was a distant runner-up, with a third of the respondents (32 percent) choosing financial rewards as their favorite form of appreciation.
Feedback is a very powerful and underrated tool. It is important to employees because it shows them that their boss or manager has the courage to tell them how they feel. Feedback gives employees a road map as to where the success areas are and how to avoid the pitfalls. Silence leaves employees unsure.
But this doesn't mean a hearty "Thank you" for a job well done, can replace a bonus.
It's certainly a low-cost, high-margin incentive. But it doesn't pay the bills. Employees need to be rewarded financially if they do a good job.
You won't keep employees just be raising their salaries. If you don't satisfy their other needs, they'll still leave you. They want to know how they're doing. And they want to feel like part of a team.
In the end, the long-term value of feedback beats the short-term value of a fat wallet. Feedback stays with you, cash disappears.
Someone once said, "The reason we have a memory is so that we can smell the roses in December."
Feedback is like the roses, it says in your memory.</p>
Dennis McCrory offers several programs and products to assist drycleaners. For more information or to place an order (credit cards accepted), call (800) 646-5736, PIN #4615. Identify the package you are interested in as follows:
Package A: Pre-Employee Screening Kit ($18).
Package B: "The Caplan Method of Spotting" video tape and handbook, produced by Stan Caplan and Dennis McCrory ($199).
Dennis McCrory writes for several industry publications both here and abroad. He also speaks and does consulting on advertising and marketing. In addition to the phone number above, he can also be reached through The Successful Management Group, 3925 Lake Trail Dr., Kenner, LA 70065.
The best business owners that I know in the drycleaning industry are seldom the best technical people in terms of cleaning and spotting clothes.
If these owners do not spend the day with their heads stuck in the wheel or in a basket, what are they doing with their time?
What they are doing and you should be doing is running your business by the numbers. To run your business by the numbers you must first determine in which of the three expense categories each expense item belongs.
The three expense categories are; 1) variable, 2) semi-variable, and 3) fixed.
Variable expenses
Your variable expenses are those expenses that vary directly with your sales volume. For example, if your direct labor costs are 40 percent of sales then $100 in sales will cost you $40 in direct labor.
If sales go up 10 percent your direct labor should go up 10 percent.
If your $100 in sales goes up to $110 (a 10 percent increase) then your direct labor costs of $40 should go up to $44.
The opposite is also true -- if sales goes down 10 percent to $90 -- your direct labor costs should go down 10 percent to $36.
Semi-variable expenses
Your semi-variable expenses are those that vary with your sales volume, but not in direct proportion.
Examples of semi-variable expenses are; electricity, water and the majority of your supplies.
Fixed costs
The fixed costs are the costs that normally stay the same for 12 months. These would include rent, liability insurance, and office salaries.
The next step in managing your business by the numbers is to establish expense standards for your variable and semi-variable expenses and to identify your fixed costs. Your "standard" must be a figure that is lower than that of the past 12 months but not so low that it can't be achieved.
Realistic standards
To establish realistic expense standards, we must first take the most recent 12 months worth of financials and determine the actual average monthly cost of each line item.
For example, if total labor costs for the last 12 months were $192,000 and you divide that by 12 months your average labor costs per month were $16,000.
Take a close look at all of your labor costs in each department.
Are there any areas where you can be more efficient?
Was there any overtime that can be reduced by better scheduling?
Is productivity as good as it should be?
Is your total shirt department producing 25 shirts per hour, per employee; including wash, shake, inspect, touch up, assemble and bag?
It doesn't take more than one counter person to process 12 incoming and 12 outgoing orders per hour. Are you paying your counter people to entertain each other? If so, reschedule.
Set your goals
Set new cost standards for each operating area of the business. These standards should be 3 percent to 5 percent below what you spent during the last 12 months. When you plug these new numbers into your financial statement you have created a budget.
Now you are becoming pro-active and you can start planning your business future.
Next, tell your people what you're doing -- get them involved! Your key people will understand and will become a part of the solution instead of being a part of the problem.
Following are some actual labor costs taken from a variety of clients for whom I recently conducted Business Surveys. As the numbers indicate, each one of these clients has a different customer base and a different sales mix.
This is precisely why blanket/across-the-board cost standards don't apply to every company. If I am working with 100 different dry cleaners,, even though they are in the same industry, I am actually working with 100 entirely different businesses.
Chart: Actual average labor costs expressed as a percent of total sales
Client #1 Client #2 Client #3 Client #4
Drycleaning Labor 13.17% 14.96% 17.86% 10.05%
Laundry labor 3.56% 5.17% 14.92% 9.77%
Counter Labor 14.26% 17.06% 11.47% 14.74%
Delivery labor 2.23% 3.72% 2.05% 1.44%
Labor, other 0.63% 1.04% 1.83% 0.89%
Total direct labor 33.85% 41.95 48.13% 36.89%
Comparing companies
The four companies in the chart above show how dramatically labor costs can vary from one drycleaner to another.
At first glance we may assume that the management of the company with the highest labor costs is performing the worst.
This may not be the case. Labor costs when expressed as a percentage of sales are influenced by many factors.
These factors include your selling prices, hourly rate of pay for employees, overtime hours, sales volume and management's ability to motivate.
In the case of a drystore, the cost of counter help as a percent of sales is actually a function of that location's sales volume.
The good news is that the more factors there are, the more opportunities you have for improvement.
Make projections
By projecting the upcoming month's sales volume and inserting what your costs should be at that level of sales, at the end of the month you can measure how well you performed to those standards.
In the first column of your spreadsheet insert your projected sales and what your standard costs should be.
In the second column put in what your actual costs were.
In the third column put in the difference between your standard costs and your actual costs
The difference between your standard cost and your actual cost is your variance and this spreadsheet report is your Monthly Variance Report.
Analyze the results
The Monthly Variance Report is a management tool that not only tells you what happens, it also tells you how and where you can manage better.
When actual costs are higher than your standard, you must determine why it was higher and either fix the problem or re-evaluate your standard.
The same is true when your costs come in below standard. Determine how you saved the money and make that change a permanent operating procedure.
Your numbers are trying to tell you a story, so work with them and experiment with them.
Set aside four or five hours per week to review what happened last week and to decide what you can and will do to make it better next week. Invest this time in understanding the story your numbers are telling.
Become pro-active -- and improve your bottom line!
Remember, in the game of business the more you know the better you can play the game.
Alan Robson is a private consultant dealing with the specialized needs of the drycleaning industry. Readers are encouraged to contact him with questions or comments by telephone at (508) 753-6619 or e-mail at: agrobson@ma.ultranet.com
I am sure that everyone reading this has been frustrated by employees who have tried to abuse the right to put in a claim for unemployment benefits.
I have dealt with employees over the years who have appeared to be a great find, only to learn that they came to work for me only long enough to qualify for unemployment. We try to anticipate this type of person by eliminating job applicants with a history of working for six months with six-month gaps between jobs.
Unfortunately there is no sure way to know what the future will bring when hiring.
After learning how the system works, I have successfully defended our right to disqualify a potential claim against our account on many occasions.
In every case the potential claimant was shocked and confused about why I would take such a stand. They never believed that they could be challenged, or understood why an employer would care. They have no understanding, or could not care, that a claim is charged against an employers account.
I am speaking of those people who believe that collecting unemployment is their right as an American.
I will not claim to offer legal advice and perhaps the rules in your state differ, but I will share with you what I have learned is necessary to defend your rights. I do recommend that after reading this you contact your state's unemployment office and ask for an employer's handbook, which they probably issue.
The biggest mistake I have learned that employers are guilty of is assuming that employees know the difference between right and wrong. The fact is, we usually lose because of the employee's ignorance of our policy.
As ridiculous as it seems, any infraction of your rules must be explained to the employee and they must be given a chance to correct unacceptable behavior.
These rules include such things that we would take for granted, such as attendance and absenteeism.
Yes, in my state an employee who is fired for being constantly late or absent would be eligible to collect if you did not inform the employee that these infractions are against your company policy.
The next challenge for an employer to build a case is to have good documentation. You must show that there was an attempt to correct undesirable behavior. This can be a series of consultations with the employee and a reprimand.
If unacceptable behavior persists, disciplinary action would be in line. This could start with a suspension day and be followed by a longer suspension if the problem is not corrected.
At this point, it would be appropriate to inform the employee that the behavior is against company policy. They should be told in no uncertain terms that if their violation of company policy does not stop they will be terminated.
Furthermore I believe they should be advised of your intent to challenge any claim they may make for unemployment. You should strongly explain your intent to fight any claim, and your intent to win.
Unfortunately, many people who think they deserve to collect will not take your warnings seriously. It is of utmost importance for your company's well being that you follow through.
This is not only because of the monetary implications to you in increased unemployment assessment in the future, but also for the ripple effect it will have within your organization. If other workers see how easy it is to be careless about their job, and then be rewarded with unemployment coverage, they will think they can get the equivalent of time off with pay.
When you are faced with responding to a request for information from your state's unemployment compensation office, know the lingo. An employee may be disqualified for such things as job abandonment, not because they stopped coming to work.
Other acceptable reasons for disqualification may be violation of company policy or gross misconduct, not because they were late or absent. These are terms the rules recognize in my state. And if they stopped coming to work you must make it clear that work was available to them.
If a claimant is given a hearing you must appear if you wish to win. It is imperative that you have with you documentation of the days that any infraction occurred and how you informed the employee they were in violation. The best documentation would be a form signed by the employee acknowledging they received a copy of the company's policy.
Additionally a signed memo of any reprimand would be valuable.
Again, I remind you that I am not offering legal advice.
If you believe that is what you need when a situation arises, you should seek a professional with experience in your state. Also, feel free to contact the unemployment office and ask them to explain their rules to you.
Arthur Weiss owns Betty Brite Cleaners and loves to get mail from readers at 334 Route 33, Mercerville, NJ 08619. He can be reached by phone at (609) 890-8787 or by email at: awclean@aol.com.
ANN ARBOR, MI -- The 1-800-DryClean Network Inc. is attempting to create a name brand through an alliance of thousands of independent drycleaners. Customers who call 1-800 DryClean will be referred to a participating cleaner in their area.
Cleaners who are members of the network have exclusive use of the 1-800-DryClean phone number in a protected market area and can use the phone number, logo and 1-800-DryClean name with the defined area.
Calls to the number originating from the cleaner's exclusive area will be automatically directed to the cleaner through high-speed computerized phone routing technology.
An internet advantage is also part of the package. Members of the network can be located through the 1-800-DryClean.com web site and also have their own web site linked through it. The network provides internet access for ordering supplies, sharing technical tips, news, e-mail and chat with other members.
Regional and national seminars will give network members a chance to share information with other, non-competing drycleaner members.
For more information, send email to ncled@aol.com and request Product AU104.
KEARNY, NJ -- An updated drycleaning and laundry stain removal chart printed in Korean is available from A. L. Wilson Chemical Co.
The front side of the chart lists 44 stains and indicates the proper drycleaning or laundry stain removal product to use for each. The stains listed include oil-based, food and beverage, rust, dye and protein.
The rear of the card has detailed directions for using each of the eight referenced stain removal products. The Wilson products on the chart are TarGo for drycleaning; Laundry TarGo; RustGo; YellowGo; QwikGo; BonGo; SpotsGo; and RiteGo.
For more information, send email to ncled@aol.com and request Product AU103.
WESTPORT, MA -- Hoyt's new Petro-Wash petroleum solvent washer/extractors are available in load capacities ranging from 45 to 100 pounds.
The Petro-Wash units require no special foundations and are prewired for service connections. The units have a low center of gravity and out-of-balance controls to prevent accidental tipping. Dual safety interlocks automatically shot down operations when the front door is opened.
Manual controls for manual batch processing are augmented by a time-saving automatic cycle. A reversing, two-speed drive motor allows selection of the best washing action for each load.
All components are American-made, UL-approved and readily available.
The units meet NEMA 7 electrical requirements with explosion proof drive motors, pumps, panel boxes, conduit and switches.
The components, including the control panel, are readily accessible and feature heavy steel construction, all welded stainless steel cylinders, high-quality pillow block bearings and hydrocarbon-resistant Viton seals.
For more information, send email to ncled@aol.com and request Product AU100.
CORAL GABLES, FL -- The Vincam Group Inc., provides small businesses with an outsourcing solution to employment and human resource needs by establishing a co-employer relationship with its clients.
Vincam contractually assume substantial employer responsibility and assists business owners in managing the costs associated with workers' compensation, health insurance, workplace safety programs and employee-related litigation.
The company provides employees with competitive health care and related benefits and helps reduce the time and effort needed for dealing with legal and regulatory issues affecting employment.
Vincam takes responsibility for payroll, tax reporting and payment, workers' compensation compliance and benefits administration.
The client business supervises job-specific activities and is responsible for compliance with code provisions on benefits administration, professional liability or malpractice, product liability and compliance with state and local government contracting provisions and licensing requirements.
Vincam works with the client business to implement policies and practices concerning employer/employee relationships, fringe benefits and hiring, terminating and disciplining employees.
The company currently has more than 2,000 clients and 42,000 worksite employees and maintains branch offices in Georgia, Colorado, Michigan, Wisconsin, New Hampshire and Connecticut in addition to its home state of Florida.
For more information, send email to ncled@aol.com and request Product AU106.
IRVINE, CA -- Grafia's decal signs are designed to provide a professional and economical way for drycleaners to promote their services through window and door displays.
Each decal, which sticks to the inside surface of glass windows and doors, shoes a colorful graphic or advertising message.
Examples of services that can be promoted with the signs include wedding gowns, alterations and repairs, same-day service, shirt laundry, tailoring, suedes and leathers reweaving, silks and wools, bed spreads, formal wear, bulk cleaning, fluff and fold, storage and shoe repair.
The signs are easy to apply and can be removed and reused so they can be changed periodically to add variety to the storefront. Grafia Inc. said the decals will not fade and can last for years.
For more information, send email to ncled@aol.com and request Product AU105.
HOUSTON, TX -- Axiomatic Products Corp. is introducing its Hanger Handler, a tool designed to make handling clothes hangers easier and more comfortable.
The Hanger Handler holds up to 30 hangers and sustains 50 pounds or more of garment while shielding hands from hanger tips. Two overlapping components, molded from ABS plastic, are sonci-welded for strength. The contoured handle is attached to a textured post adjacent to a shielded "hanger port." within the hanger port,, hooks are compressed or bundled together by the interior walls while supported in a semi-circular support bar that orients the hanger tips through the port.
The carrier includes a thumb hook receiver on the underside of the handle for supporting the device on a conventional automobile interior hook or on a coat hook. The carrier also has a centering bar that stabilizes and centers the device during loading and unloading when placed on a clothes rod.
For more information, send email to ncled@aol.com and request Product AU107.
LAMY, NM -- The Prospecting & Marketing Institute Inc. has released a new marketing and advertising program design for drycleaners that contains more than 100 marketing strategies in the form of ads, direct mail letters, radio scripts, Val-Pak coupons and others. The program includes the following:
€ How to educate prospects so they will want only you to do their drycleaning.
€ How to implement a "remote control" auto-pilot system for less than $1 a day that delivers new customers.
€ How to screen out cheap-price "mooches and attract better customers.
€ The 10 words to add to every ad, coupon, flyer, etc.
€ How to keep current customers coming back.
€ How to get customers to recommend you and send their friends to your store.
€ How to create a "cash flow surge" during slow periods.
€ Direct mail strategies that pull 10 to 20 percent response rates.
The program provides a year of follow-up and support.
For more information, send email to ncled@aol.com and request Product AU10222.
TULSA, OK -- Royaltone has announced its Soft Set, a new specially formulated liquid prewash dye set for wetcleaning cloth articles in any laundry washer.
Soft Set PreWash /Dye Set is added to the Prewash cycle of the wetcleaning process to set the dyes of color testing indicates that bleeding may be a problem.
The product is added at the ratio of one ounce per 10 pounds of garments in water at 100 degrees F or less for heat sensitive fabric like wool, wool blends, cashmere, angora, rayon and other "dryclean only" fabrics.
For more information, send email to ncled@aol.com and request Product AU101.
----------
Date created: August 1 1998
Copyright © 1998, BPS Communications Inc.
National Clothesline
ncled@aol.com