Laundry guide

At Onnera Laundry Academy we wanted to gather all the information about the industrial laundry sector in this fantastic guide.

From the simplest concept to the most technical and complex knowledge, here you will find everything you need to know about industrial laundry, explained in a clear and entertaining way.

An absolutely essential guide if you have a business in the laundry sector or are considering opening one.

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Vocabulary

Do you have doubts about any technical word related to the world of laundry? No problem, in this section you will find the most complete glossary of the industrial laundry sector arranged alphabetically.

A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
Z
A
A
ANIMAL GARMENT
Garments for use by animals that need to be washed. These include small items, such as dog or cat clothing, but there can also be large items, such as pet beds, horse blankets, etc. Their main characteristic is that they tend to be quite dirty and hairy, so it is necessary to consider whether they need to be treated separately within the self-service facility.
Assisted self-service
A self-service in which, as well as being able to do your own washing, you have the option of dropping off and picking up your garments for the laundry service to handle. A facility may have machines solely for this use, or the same machines can be used as self-service machines.
AVERAGE USEFUL LIFE OF A GARMENT
The number of washes, on average, that we can carry out on it; it may be equivalent to the number of times we can use it. As far as we are concerned for the time being, this would be the number of washes we can carry out on the garment with acceptable wear and tear.
B
B
BYSSUS
A very fine-textured linen, which was in use until the time of the Crusades.
C
C
CONTROL
The machine control holds the software to carry out the drying programs. It is responsible for sending/receiving information from all the elements of the machine: frequency inverter, sensors, etc. through the programming carried out for the program running.
CROSS FOLD
Cross folds are made after the longitudinal folds.
D
D
Destination
In the presentation, we use “destination” when we prepare a space to be used. We differentiate this point because the time from when we prepare the space to the time it is use can vary.
Drum load (%)
This is the amount of items that can be washed in one wash cycle; it usually depends on the drum volume. As we mentioned, many manufacturers work with 50 to 60% of the drum volume. This value is increasing as better ways of working are discovered
Dry mop
A mop that is designed to be kept dry and if any product needs to be applied, it is applied at the time of use. In many instances, a dry mop can replace a broom and it is very practical, as it can hold a limited amount of dust and sand within the head itself
DRYING
Any process relating to the drying of a garment.
E
E
Enclosure (of the drum)
Outer cylinder that supports the drum and forces air through the drum over the garments.
F
F
French or 1/3 fold
The French fold, usually of a towel, involves folding each side 1/3 of the way to the middle. Of course, we first need to fold one side and then the other.
FREQUENCY INVERTER
Electronic equipment that modifies the power supply frequency of the electric motor, thus controlling the rotational speed. The inverter is also the key element to control the reversal of the rotation. Understanding the inverter on a machine can give us a lot of information about its general operation
G
G
Gear motor
An electric motor incorporates a gear reducer, which in this case has been chosen so that the output revolutions of the gear reducer are the same as those required by the drum, with the help of the inverter.
H
H
HALF OR 1/2 FOLD
This is the fold in the middle, which leaves the same length of garment on both sides..
HOUSEHOLD LINEN
Household garments that need to be washed; they are usually large, such as bed duvets, curtains, blankets, etc.
Hydrogen ion
Atoms are composed of a nucleus containing protons and neutrons that are surrounded by negatively charged particles called electrons. Ions are molecules or atoms that have lost or gained electrons. A single atom that has a surplus or deficit of electrons is called an atomic or monoatomic ion, while a polyatomic ion consists of two or more atoms.
I
I
Ironing
Ironing is a process whereby the fibres of fabrics are stretched, thereby removing wrinkles.
J
J
K
K
KPI
Key performance indicator; a measure of the performance of a process. The indicator value is directly related to a previously set target and is usually expressed as a percentage. A KPI is designed to show how progress is being made on a particular process or product, hence it is a performance indicator.
L
L
LOAD RATIO
A unit that describes the number of litres of drum volume required for each kilo of laundry to be washed.
LOCATION
Site of the self-service laundry. It is the key issue to ensure the business can function.
Longitudinal folds
Longitudinal folds are the first folds made by the machine, and they are crosswise to the machine’s direction of motion. These folds reduce the width of the garments for storage.
M
M
Machine
Equipment designed for washing in water; in this type of machine we differentiate the mechanical part from the electrical-electronic part.
Machine CONTROL
A set of electronic devices that are capable of controlling the activity of a machine. Moreover, with the corresponding software we can modify the parameters to achieve the desired results.
Motor
It is understood that we are talking about an electric motor. A device capable of converting electrical energy into rotational energy.
N
N
Neutralisers
These are products that transform the residues of washing and bleaching products into neutral products that can be easily removed, leaving fabrics residue-free. They are normally used in the penultimate rinse. There are chlorine neutralising products, alkalinity neutralising products or chlorine and alkalinity neutralising products.
Nominal load
The nominal load of the machine means the load for which the machine is designed. At the nominal load, the machine performs at its best in terms of efficiency and productivity.
Non-water-soluble stains
Stains that the polarity of the water is unable to dissolve and remove from the fabric. In order to remove them, further supplements are needed in addition to chemicals.
O
O
OFFICE (store room)
Reserved space for storing the laundry items to quickly supply the points of use of the garments. They can be understood as partial store rooms distributed throughout a hotel.
P
P
PERSONAL CLOTHING
Garments worn by a person. They can be of different shapes, fabrics and colours.
PRESSURE
This is the force exerted by the hot part of the machine on the working surface.
Pressure drop
The pressure drop that occurs in a fluid due to friction of the fluid particles against each other and against the walls of the pipe/drum carrying the fluid. A high pressure drop reduces the air flow rate and also the flow velocity.
PRIVATE SELF-SERVICE AREA
A space for cleaning clothes that is not accessible to the public, but that is used for processing the customer's clothes.
PUBLIC SELF-SERVICE AREA
A space for use by customers, where they have access to all the services we can offer
Pulley assembly
It is a set of two or more pulleys and a belt which rotate and transmit the power of the motor. As the pulleys have different diameters, the rotational speed of the drum is reduced.
Q
Q
R
R
RADIANT BURNER
Flameless burning system where we heat a fabric to very high temperatures, thus also achieving the propagation of convection heat by radiation
REJECT
Definition of rejects in a laundry or dry cleaners: rejects are all those garments from which we have not removed the dirt or stain during the first wash cycle in order to consider the garment acceptable.
Residual moisture
Residual moisture in a fabric is the amount of water it retains after a spinning process. It is expressed as a percentage (it is the weight of the water with respect to the weight of the garment) and it depends on the type of fabric, the centrifugal force (GF) of the machine, temperature, chemicals, etc. This concept has a major influence on tumble dryers and ironers
ROLLER OPERATING TEMPERATURE
This is the temperature of the roller's working surface, it should be the same as the temperature programmed in the machine.
S
S
Sanitary barrier washers
Washing machines that have the special feature of having two doors, one for loading and the other for unloading. We cannot open the unloading door while we are loading, and vice versa. This forces us to perform the cleaning process in order to open the unloading door, thereby completely separating the two zones.
Self Service
We use the term self-service laundry when the customer can do their laundry autonomously; i.e., when it is the user who activates the machines and selects the processes they need for their laundry.
Sinner’s Circle
Named after Dr Herbert Sinner, a chemical engineer at Henkel, who in 1959 summarised the 4 basic principles of professional disinfection and cleaning.
Softeners
The decalcification process is the most common process for softening water in a laundry. A water softener works by means of a chemical treatment which, through ion exchange, removes limescale.
SOFTENERS
These are the products that give the fabric a good finish, making it fluffy and soft to the touch, as well as a good smell in the case of scented fabric softeners. They also help to reduce drying time and improve the static electricity of some garments and make ironing easier. They are normally used in the last rinse. There are some softeners that can be combined with bacteriostatic agents.
T
T
TECHNICAL SELF-SERVICE AREA
A space intended to house the equipment for the proper functioning of the machines
U
U
Uniform quality
We mean getting the same results every time the same program is run on the machine, as the machine is able to repeat the same behaviour over and over again.
USE
When the customer makes use of the fabric in the space.
V
V
W
W
Water-soluble stains
Stains that water is able to remove from the fabric, with the help of a chemical product.
WET CLEANING
This refers to cleaning garments that have been made wet by water.
Wet mop
A mop that is designed to be used when wet. It is normally prepared with the necessary products in the washing machine and left at the ideal residual moisture for the next use. Wet mops are usually kept in a special container so that they do not dry out.
Z
Z