Operations
Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) regulations.
In fact, when you are thinking about
investing in equipment, it is important to think about the end of its life right at the beginning. Some manufacturers design their machines to be easier to recycle. For example, using plastics of the same type, ensuring different materials are easy to separate and so on.
It is also important to think about
how long the equipment is designed to last, both in terms of your investment and environmental impact. For example, domestic machines are not WRAS (Water Regulations Advisory Scheme) category-five rated and have not been tested to cope with the demands of a care or nursing home. Domestic laundry equipment tends to be built to last around five years, delivering an average of 270 washes per year. On the other hand, commercial machines are built to last much longer and withstand heavier workloads. For example, Miele test their Benchmark range to 30,000 operating hours, which equates to ten years of usage based on the machine running eight hours a day for 365 days per year. When talking to equipment suppliers, find out how long they are willing to service the machine for. If they are happy to offer a service or rental contract for up to ten years you can be confident that you are choosing a machine which will last, minimising its waste impact. Another area to consider is carbon emissions. If you are running an older machine, which needs more service visits, this is going to be increasing the carbon footprint associated with servicing the machine.
And finally… Once your new machines are installed and up and running, there are everyday behaviours which you can encourage your staff to take which will reduce the environmental footprint of your machines and save you energy costs.
Using the right load size When loading your washing machines, think about Goldilocks - your load size needs to be just right. If the loads are too small, your machine will be using water and electricity that is not required - if your equipment does not have automatic weighing. If your load is too full, repeat washing might be required because the laundry did not have enough space to be agitated properly.
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consumption. A lot the technology they rely on is not currently available or suitable for care homes. However, the hope is that, in future, their learnings can be used and translated to a care home environment. For example, they often wrap copper coil
If your dryer is overloaded with laundry
your items will be more creased with poor results. Some items will not dry properly, which will mean extra drying time and increased energy usage.
Clean lint screens regularly If the lint screens on your dryers are cleaned regularly, it maximises the efficiency of the machines. When the lint screen has not been cleaned, the air cannot circulate properly so each load will take longer to dry.
Do not open the door during the drying cycle
It can be really tempting to check the dryer load but, by opening the door, all the hot air which has been created is being let out of the drum. More energy is then required to get the drum back up to temperature, increasing the energy and the costs associated with drying.
Think about your chemicals The detergents and chemicals used also have an environmental impact. One way to manage this is through auto-dosing, which ensures the right level of chemicals is dispensed and reduces any waste going down the drains. Also ensure that you have the right chemicals and detergents as this will reduce rewashing and wasting energy and water. For example, people often use non-biological detergent as historically it was thought that biological detergent could cause skin irritations. However, with the development of modern formulas this is far less likely and biological detergents are more successful at stain removal.
The future
As with all areas of life, technology is always improving. Large-scale commercial laundries often lead the way, using different types of technology to reduce energy
around exhaust ducting for heat recovery. Could this be scaled down in the future to work within care and nursing homes? Another area that is going to become more prominent is reducing microplastic pollution that is created with each wash. A parliamentary group has been set up to highlight the issue with support from the Women’s Institute. They are calling for new rules requiring manufacturers to fit filters to all machines sold in the UK including commercial use.
Within chemicals and detergents, the challenge is how to create more sustainable products that can still deliver the results needed, particularly with care homes. However, there are still lots of steps you can take today to reduce the impact of your laundry both on the environment and your energy bills.
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Peter Hosking
Peter Hosking is managing director of laundry equipment supplier WASHCO. With over 20 years in the industry, his ambition is to deliver high quality, customer-led service. He enjoys seeing the team succeed and create wow moments for customers, sharing their love of laundry, particularly within the care sector. Enjoying the challenge of finding and delivering new ideas and solutions which improve customers’ operations, he hopes to deliver more sustainable laundry offerings in the future as he is aware the impact a company can make on reducing environmental impact is far more than an individual.
www.thecarehomeenvironment.com February 2022
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