Sheltered workshop goes green with Electrolux Professional
At the vanguard of technology, this laundry washes, dries and irons 1,000 kilos of linen per day. The commercial laundry service is ultra-modern! After obtaining the ISO 9001 certification ten years ago for quality management, the company today also achieved the ISO 26000 label. A strategic direction on which Electrolux Professional accompanied the establishment. To achieve it, ESAT Allaines/Albert needed to establish a safe environment for its employees and at the same time become environmentally friendly, an approach that required a complete redesign. “This strategy was going to drive our organization’s performance in achieving the right balance between economic efficiency, preservation of environment, territorial anchoring and social equity,” confirms Éric Dheilly, Director of ESAT.
“The project is to innovate and to make sense. More sustainable and social economies are the ones which encouraged us to make ecological choices. The board of directors did not hesitate to invest in innovative technologies, recycling and green energy,” notes the director. “On this specific point related to the environment, I want to recognize the quality of this project’s technical partners, in particular Electrolux” said Dheilly. The work environment is fully integrated, including the management of elements (wind and sunshine), but also the management of human and logistical flows. It was in July 2009 that the meeting between the site director and Electrolux’s commercial referent took place. This meeting was aimed at determining the area required for a laundry room of 1000 kg / day. The plan was presented on September 2009, as well as the choice of equipment. In January 2010, Electrolux met the team in charge of building to determine all the requirements for the set-up of the laundry. In February 2011, Electrolux carried out the execution plans and ensured the follow-up until materials were delivered and in September 2012, the training workshops were completed for the now operational laundry services.
The following Electrolux products have been installed in the laundry: Washer extractor barrier: 13Kg – Barrier washer extractor: 25Kg – Barrier washer extractor: 50 Kg – Pullman barrier washer-extractor: 70 Kg – Pullman barrier washer-extractor: 80 Kg – 2 Dryers 25Kg – 3 Dryers 50Kg – Dryer ironer diameter 60 / width 190 cm Rear output – 2 ironing tables.
“This facility benefits from specific washing equipment. All washer-extractors are equipped with dual-valves that separate the wash and rinse water in two different collectors, this for a first filter upstream of the waste water recycling system.” explains Patrick Rogé. In the drying zone, the tumble dryers have a residual moisture control system. “This allows the drying of all textiles, even the more delicate ones,” notes Dheilly.
“To operate, the laundry needs different water types: cold and hard, cold and softened, and warm. We made the choice to heat water through a biomass system. This approach required the creation of a biomass workshop where disabled workers feed wood to the boilers that heat the laundry’s water” explains Arnaud Dheilly, Technical Director. “ESAT has made the choice to invest in an ultrafiltration system to recycle 70% of the laundry water” adds Arnaud. Still in the interest of economy and sustainability, hot water isn’t heated at a temperature of 50 degrees anymore, this is now possible because of the use of effective low temperature detergents.
“To keep this sustainable way of operating, rain water is recovered 100%, and the water in the lavatories is heated by a solar balloon. Everything here has been studied for the comfort of the operators, from the flexibility of the soil to the colors of the walls, space allocated to tasks and air treatment. The whole thing converges for operators to evolve in good conditions and that the linen is handled in a spotless environment as expected by the standards.” “We have won the Life Quality at Work Trophy,” concludes the director.
