12 LCT December 2006

Technology

How to process 85,000 pieces a week and save 10 million gallons of water in 30 months

To this question theanswer is easy! Firstyou own a fifth

generation family laundrywith a broadly based mix ofwork, then you come upagainst the impossibility ofincreasing the water inputfor a variety of practical aswell as bureaucraticreasons. Finally you realisethat the ‘future’ is actuallynow in energy cost termsand that your very survivalin business demands thatyou take the correct long-term decision to invest innew technology - and,hopefully, solve all yourproblems in one fell swoop.

It also helps if the quotationfor the supply of a brand newwater recycling system has apromised payback period ofthree and a half years, whichmeans that the finance case issoundly justified. Other savingsand benefits were promised andthere were a range of knock-onefficiencies which at the timewere hoped for - but not givenas assurances which werecertain to happen after theevent. All in all, this was thegeneral situation in whichRobert James found himself inthe summer of 2003 at thePetersfield and RelianceLaundry in Hampshire.Business pressures weremounting, competition wasstrong, the water companiesinvolved were unhelpful on thesupply issue and the costincreases in energy, effluent andfuel were already rising at ahitherto undreamt of rate.

“We had to do ‘something,”says Robert, “as the status quowas not an option. We have avery constricted site in anindustrial area. We have amixed throughput of a lot ofsignificantly different types andclassifications of work, and wehad enormous pressure onproduction performance in thesummer months from our largehotel and guest house trade.

“It was not deemed possiblefor us to install a CBW forspace, production efficiency andwash quality reasons. We couldnot enlarge the footprint of theplant and it was not an optionfor us to move a substantialdistance away from our

workforce of 65 people.Together with my managementteam, we spent a long timeassessing the options anddecided to invest in a Kemcosystem supplied from theUnited States by Dunlop DesignEngineering in Ulster. Thisseemed to us to combine thenecessary qualities of robustdesign with leading edgetechnology, together with goodfield installation reports fromthe USA and, of course, a verysupportive back-up commiss-ioning team in the UK.

“Commissioning andinstallation were accomplishedover a six month period and wewere all on a very steep learningcurve. Our long serving plantengineer, Phil Stammers, spenta great deal of time with thecommissioning engineers andtechnical support staff fromDunlop and I too was closelyinvolved as the wholephilosophy of how the laundryoperated was taken through atotal change of approach. Wealso had a very productive andbeneficial relationship withChristeyns, our soap supplier asthe water recycling necessitatedthe complete reformulation ofour chemical input and dosing.

“Prior to installing theKemco system we were usingup to 700 cubic metres of waterper week and now, nearly 31months later, this consumptionis down to about 350 cubicmetres of water per week - afifty percent reduction onaverage. At the same time oureffluent discharge has droppedfrom 600 cubic metres per weekto less than 300 cubic metres; adrop of more than 50 per cent.

“These are truly amazingfigures as they representsignificant water and effluentcost savings and the nearbycommunity, which shares oursupply system, has had anadditional 10,000,000 gallonsavailable for its use. Naturallythe effluent treatment people arevery happy with theperformance of the system;equally naturally the watersupply company is not so happyas they based our tariff on ourformer usage and now there is aten million gallon shortfall involume and value invoiced!”

Robert James is a very

happy laundryman and he takesa great deal of pride in theKemco system and its deliveredperformance.

“We process over 75,000pieces per week throughout theyear and summertime wasbecoming a serious difficulty.With the full effects of thesystem only now becomingmeasurable, we have kept ourcosts at a figure which in effecthas stayed level at the two yearold mark. Nationally, as youhave seen in the recent TSACost Indices Tables, costs haverisen dramatically in the timesince installation and had wenot made the decision toproceed when we did, theeffects on the business wouldhave been serious.”

There have been significantadded benefits from the systemsince commissioning wascompleted, apart from thereduction in water input andeffluent discharge volumes. Aswater is recycled back for reuseat 50°C this reduces live steamdemand from the washer-extractors which has the effectof increasing boiler efficiencyas well as increased steampressure across the laundry.

“Recycling is so efficientthat we are able to use recycledprocess water in the final rinse,and when and where could youhave done that before installingsuch a system as ours?”, asksPhil Stammers.

“Previously we had a plateheat exchanger, but thisachieved minimal savingswhich didn’t equate to theenergy cost increases imposedfrom outside. The heatrecovery assumes greatimportance in reducing thecycle times of the washerswhich has had a markedincrease on the number of loadsbeing processed.”

Thus the heat recoverybrought about by the Kemcosystem has been a further directcost saving to the laundry.

“In fact,” says Stammers,“we have had a lot moredelivered than we were promisedand in this day and age that is afairly unusual event.”

So the Petersfield andReliance has successfullymanaged the transition fromwhat might fairly be described

as a ‘traditional steam laundryset up’ to being in the positionof market leader in energy andwater and effluent saving.Stable costs, and 20 per centincreased turnover – from£1.5M pre Kemco to £1.8Mafter system commissioning –are a huge achievement for thesmall and totally dedicated teamat P & R. The drive andleadership of Robert James hasbrought new technology andwith it, hugely beneficialinvestment returns to thebusiness. This may be the fifthgeneration now running thebusiness, but on our recent visitto investigate ‘how to save 10million gallons of water’ wedidn’t see any signs of thecommonly found arthriticsymptoms of old age in thisbusy business.

Perhaps it stems fromRobert James’ early career inthe advertising profession. Orperhaps it is the training whichRobert’s parents insisted hetook at other laundries of a

variety of different types, wherethe intricacies and quirks ofdifferent process requirementswere learnt ‘off-site’ away fromhome, and where the facts oflaundry life were instilled.Robert speaks with genuinepleasure of the months he spentwith Blossom and Browne indomestic laundry, and at threedifferent Sunlight plants inSouth Park, Croydon andEastbourne, where, as he says,“a full grounding in allmanagement issues and theneed for good training in allaspects of laundry wereimpressed upon me before Istarted in the family business”.

We also think that the bestinstincts and attitudes of a long-established family businesswere inherited by Robert andthat the happy decision to installadvanced technology andbecome the very firstinstallation of the ground-breaking Kemco system inBritain, was not just a chance inthe lottery of laundry life.

Petersfield and Reliance shouldbe held up as a genuineexample of how tradition meetstechnology and the sum of theparts, as expressed in thesuccess of this process waterrecycling plant is far, far greaterthan the benefits originallyquoted.

Many, many laundries couldtake real advantage for theirown future in a highlycompetitive and costly businessworld by following RobertJames’ example. Climatechange and the associated costsalready imposed and the taxesabout to be imposed, arepossibly the driving forces inthe laundry business today; byinvesting in his plant RobertJames has in effect stopped theclock and to a very large extent,frozen his costs. As for thesupplier/distributor, havingdelivered a totally ‘steam-free’laundry in the far west ofIreland and now a virtually‘water-free’ laundry process inPetersfield, we wonder justwhat Dunlop Design will comeup with next?

Irving Scott reports

TOP: Phil Stammers, plantengineer shows how simplethe control panel is. RobertJames is on the right

ABOVE: The complete end-onview of the Kemco in itsown separate steel shed

BIGSAVINGS ON TAP

RIGHT: Portrait of a very happylaundryman - Robert James in his office

LCT December 06 pages 26/11/06 3:39 pm Page 12