Trinidad Office: Lot No. 8 Diamond Vale Industrial Estate Diego Martin, Trinidad, W.I. Tel: (868) 637-3581, Fax: (868) 637-0555 E-mail: sales@ciltnt.com

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Some Benefits of Linen Supply Companies

Convenience:
Linen Supply Companies deliver fresh, hygienically clean healthcare linen rental items on a regular schedule that customers can rely on (e.g., bed linen, towels, gowns, etc.).

Quality:
Textile experts specify the best fabrics and construction for each application ? textiles that will perform well with repeated use. Linen Supply plants launder the merchandise to the highest standards to maintain softness, comfort, absorbance and barrier protection.

Appearance:
Quality purchasing and processing results in textiles that meet exacting customer standards. Not only is the merchandise sparkling clean and well finished, but whites are bright and sets of colored items are of the same hue.

Cleanliness:
Linen Supply plants process all merchandise to ensure it is nonallergenic and hygienically clean. Linen Supply Companies satisfy the needs of even the most discerning hospitals, nursing homes, and medical clinics.

Safety:
The Linen Supply industry is a leader when it comes to satisfying the increasingly complex and demanding standards set by OSHA for employee protection. Every uniform and textile item is designed to perform its designated function in a safe, effective manner.

Savings:
Linen Supply customers need not invest capital expenses on equipment or merchandise. Their costs can be carefully budgeted, closely monitored, and expensed against operations. There are no financial "surprises" with Linen Supply services. Furthermore, customers need little space to store merchandise because it is replenished regularly.

Image:
Customers' employees receive uniforms in the styles and colors that impart a professional look. In an age when healthcare facilities are in competition for the same customers, image is critical. Also, staff that has a consistent look promotes a sense of professionalism and competence. 


Healthcare is a dynamic segment of the marketplace and potentially will benefit the most from services provided by the Linen Supply industry. As hospitals experience the pressure to cut costs, the Linen Supply industry solves the problem by providing hygienically clean linen at affordable prices.

The healthcare market includes hospitals, medical and dental offices, outpatient surgical, acute and subacute care facilities, public health clinics, nursing homes, assisted-living facilities, and home care.

Today, more hospital and healthcare facility administrators are outsourcing linen and laundry services to Linen Supply Companies because they find that on-premise laundries (OPLs) are not cost-effective to operate. These administrators are also making an environmentally safe decision by using linens (e.g. gowns, towels, and incontinent care products) that are reusable, as opposed to disposable products. 

Costs that affect the (OPL)

Laundry Production Payroll:
Payroll costs for wages paid to hourly employees who handle linen, including laundry production, soiled sort, washroom, flatwork, ironing, tumble dry operation, etc.

Management Payroll:
Employees who handle linen inspection; linen control; janitorial services; machinery repairs and maintenance; and internal linen distribution.

Employee Benefits:
Includes payment of national insurance, Health, holidays, one-or-two week vacations, health insurance (varies), union contributions, etc.

Laundry Chemicals:
All detergents, alkalis, bleach, sour, fabric softener, bacteriostatic agents, starch, etc.

Maintenance, Repair, and Parts Costs:
Includes all machine repair parts, lubricants, drive belts, iron pads and covers, tools, boiler treatment and water softener salt.

Utilities:
Gas, electricity, fuel oil and water account for a large part of expenses.

Equipment Costs:
Equipment experiences wear every time it is operated. Replacement costs must be considered.

Insurance / Other Business Expenses:
Insurance, lease charges, safety expenses, uniforms, training, and other expenses allocated to the OPL.

Lost Opportunity Costs
The space occupied by the laundering equipment could be used to house a revenue-producing facility such as a physical therapy or day care center (adult or child). An existing program or department within the facility also could expand into the available space, such as a new MRI Center, resulting in an increase in revenues from that department. The space could even be leased out to groups of physicians as office space. 

As the cost of medical care goes up in hospitals, the trend has been to move patients to the most cost effective, best care facilities to meet their needs. Alternative care facilities include surgi-centers, doctor?s offices, etc. To meet the needs of patients, these facilities are becoming converts to reusables, particularly reusable patient examination gowns.

Mike Potack, owner, Unitex Textile Rental Service, Bronx, NY, believes reusable patient examination gowns are an important niche market that textile rental operators cannot afford to ignore. Unitex is a leader in medical retail serving 700 customers in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. ?An important factor in favor of reusable patient gowns is the fact that the price of the equivalent disposable products is increasing,? Potack says. He says the cost of disposable patient gowns is increasing due to the rising cost of paper. With an average of 75-90 servings per reusable gown, Potack believes that costs are strongly in favor of reusables.

David Ehrlichman, vice president, Amertex, Bronx, NY, agrees. ?The cost per disposable ?one size fits all? gown can even be higher if an overweight patient requires two disposables because one does not fit. The fact is, most doctors feel patients are spending a lot of money to see their doctors and they [the doctors] can afford reusable gowns.? Another point for reusables. Once disposable gowns are used, they become garbage and must be stored until they can be disposed of. Potack believes doctors would sooner avoid this hassle due to tight office space.

From the patient?s point of view, there are benefits to using reusable patient gowns. Chief among these benefits is comfort. ?The typical doctor?s practice has three examination rooms, one for undressing, one for the examination, and the third for redressing.? Potack says. ?Patients often have to wait for the doctor and the wait can make an already nervous patient sweat and feel uncomfortable.? According to Potack, a paper garment makes the discomfort worse because it may not fit properly, and may tear. Also, it does not have the ?airing? capability of a reusable product. When it comes to making the patient feel relaxed and comfortable, he believes there is no match for a terry gown. ?We clinch deals by asking doctors to try our reusable gowns for a week, and to ask patients how they like them over paper gowns.?

?It?s a fact that more and more patients are complaining about disposable patient examination gowns because they are see-through, and are short particularly for MRI patients,? Ehrlichman says. ?Also, any movement by the patient is like to cause a rip. If you get the disposable wet, forget it, because it completely disintegrates.?

?What patients wear, reflects in the image the doctor wants his practice to convey,? he continues. ?When a doctor is faced with the choice between a skimpy plain vanilla, see-through, disposable gown, with a paper belt or a well designed, comfortable kimono-style reusable gown in mauve or teal colors that can be worn forward or backward, which do you think he?s going to select? The reusable, of course. The doctor knows the reusable gown will give the nervous patient dignity and make him or her feel like a human being.?

On Premise Laundry Conversions: The Time Is Right

Hospitals are under increasing pressure from government agencies, health maintenance organizations and their patients to keep costs low. But with the high-cost of medical technologies, doctors' salaries and prescription drugs, hospitals across the United States are struggling to find the fat to cut.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the average cost of a daily patient visit to a hospital has increased from $245 in 1980 to $1,033 in 1997. However, in recent years, hospital CFOs seem to be doing a better job at controlling costs. Since 1995, average daily patient cost has increased by less than 4% each year, and in 1997 the increase was only 2.6%. This change, from double-digit increases in the 1980s and 8-9% jumps in the early 1990s, shows hospital administrators are getting serious about cutting their costs.

When a hospital administrator looks around their facility for places to cut expenses, unfortunately the laundry isn't always the initial place they go. First, they rightly see laundering as an essential part of their operation, but assume the work must be done in-house. Secondly, they mistakenly say, "Well, we've invested in the equipment already, we can't change now." By using the Hospital Textile Cost Manual, Linen Supply Companies can easily debunk these misconceptions and provide dozens of reasons why the hospital should switch to textile rental services.


Some Facts to consider:

Laundering:
Is not a hospital's primary mission: A hospital should spend capital on resources on its core function. This would include buying new medical equipment, hiring more physicians and nurses and adding additional physical space for patients. Spending capital on laundry equipment and on running an OPL goes against the hospital's primary mission and does not make economical sense when an outsourcing option is available.

Energy savings:
Running a laundry requires the expenditure of a significant amount of resources, such as water, electricity and natural gas. For instance, each washing of a pound of linen requires approximately four gallons of water, two-thirds of which is hot water. In some areas of the country, where water costs are rising sharply, water savings is a major argument for closing an OPL.

Labor savings:
Cost of laundry personnel would be eliminated, including benefit expenditures and vacation and sick time costs.
        
Better use of space:
Building space being used for laundry equipment and processing can be better used by the hospital for medical purposes.

Equipment expense and repair:
The tens of thousands of dollars spent on industrial laundering equipment can best be spent on improving patient care. Repairs for this equipment are also a substantial expenditure that can best be shifted to patient care.
        
Insurance:
Hospitals can lower their insurance costs by eliminating laundry equipment from their facilities.

No worry laundry service:
Linen and other healthcare items are delivered on a regular basis. It is the responsibility of the textile rental company to ensure goods are available to staff when needed.
        
Simplified accounting:
Instead of tracking multiple cost categories, hospital accountants need only budget for payments to the Linen Supply Company.
        
Additional services:
A textile rental company can provide services that the OPL often cannot, including embroidery, OR packs, incontinent products and many other specialized healthcare items.

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Our Equipment

•  Washer/Extractors:  2 - 55 Lb, and 2 - 140 lb

•  Ironers: 2 Chicago Tri Star 24"

•  Dryers: 8 Cissell 75 lb dryers.