Phil Hart, president of Kannegiesser ETECH, Inc., has accepted an invitation to fulfill the unexpired term of Allied Trades Director, left vacant by the unexpected passing of Mark Mann of MIP Inc. in January. Hart will hold the post through June 2024. 

“An organization draws on the strength and experience of its leaders, and ALM is proud to announce the addition of Phil Hart, president and CEO of Kannegiesser ETECH, Inc., to our Board of Directors,” said ALM Board President Richard Bott, RLLD, CLLM.

We're happy to have you, Phil! 

As members of ALM, we value your insights and we’re interested in learning more about your experience on our website so we can improve! We only need 10 minutes of your time to complete a short online assessment of our site. And the best part ... coffee is on us! All participants will receive a Starbucks gift card mailed directly to them!

To participate and receive your FREE Starbucks gift card, please email lmccorgary@almnet.org. Don’t wait, space is limited! 

National Laundry & Linen Week, April 24-30, 2022, is an opportunity to recognize the value and hard work provided to healthcare and hospitality services through the efforts of textile professionals and staff.

Here's how to help bring attention to the unsung heroes in our industry:

• Send ALM stories of the people you work with who help ensure laundry is safe for all guest, residents and patients. Email Nicole Morris at nmorris@almnet.org to see your story posted here!
• Share stories on your own social media, and be sure to use our hashtag "#NatlLLWeek" so we can see and share your post!
• Learn more about Laundry & Linen Week and why it matters on ALM's blog or podcast.
• Download the National Laundry & Linen Week promotional materials to easily share across social media or in your own publications.

Join us Thursday, April 14, at 2 p.m. ET, for our next webinar, Healthcare Textile Quality Management, with Rich Bott, Liz Remillong and Cecil Lee.

Providing high quality textiles and textile care services starts with setting mutual expectations between the laundry processor and hospital customer, and is managed through data tracking and communication. Listen in on this conversation among industry professionals representing nursing, laundry and linen management while they share scenarios and discuss various approaches to manage them.

ALM webinar registrations start at $55. Remember, you can have as many people watch from your location as you want (but you only pay one registration fee and we still give every person 1 laundry/linen contact hour credit!)

Online voting will open soon for the next ALM Board president election! Three candidates are vying for the position. Voting opens Wednesday, May 25. All members are eligible to vote; however, please remember ALM memberships are either group or individual. Group memberships extend the benefits of membership to all employees working for the company and receive up to five votes. An individual membership grants benefits of membership to a single individual who receives one vote. 

Election results will be announced at the ALM virtual annual meeting on Wednesday, June 22, at 2 p.m. ET. Please mark your calendars for these important dates!

This year's recipients for ALM's Laundry & Linen College scholarship program are Stephen Coleman, Assistant Plant Manager, Summit Point, recipient of the Dave Flattem Scholarship sponsored by MIP; Jo Dekmak, Customer Services Manager, Metropolitan Detroit Area Hospital Services, recipient of the Tom Frame Memorial Scholarship sponsored by MIP; and John Glodon, Director Environmental Services, Memorial Hospital West, recipient of the Gary Wright Scholarship sponsored by Standard Textile.

"I enjoy being a lifelong learner," said Dekmak. "To me, the relationship between leaders and organizations is both a process and an achievement. While my organization plays an important role in helping to develop leaders, the responsibility for personal leadership development resides in me."

Scholarships to ALM’s Laundry & Linen College are available on an application basis. The Laundry & Linen College is aligned with the information on the RLLD certification exam; while attendance at the college is not a requirement, it is excellent training to ensure successful completion of the exam. Directors, general managers, or those with experience in middle management of a laundry with an aptitude for higher levels of responsibility are candidates for the RLLD exam.

Thank you to MIP Inc. and Standard Textile for supporting ALM's efforts to ensure all textile care professionals have access to the education they need.

More information about the Laundry & Linen College is available on ALM’s website, under Education, Laundry & Linen College.

Learn something new, get inspired and have fun at this year's Clean Show! Listen, learn and interact with some of the industry's best minds when you attend ALM's leading-edge educational sessions. So ... what's on the agenda? Here's a sneak peak at what you can expect:

• Pardon the Interruption, Automation in Progress
• Proven Strategies to Combat Hourly Labor Shortages
• The CDC Perspective on Textile Care Services
• and more!

Registration for The Clean Show is open now! Don't miss out.

The largest event in the U.S. for the laundering, dry cleaning, textile care services, supplies and equipment industry will adjust the dates and locations for two upcoming editions. After The Clean Show 2022, being held this year in Atlanta July 30 - August 2, Clean will shift back to the odd years in 2025.

A lack of adequate changing facilities at hospitals in England is preventing healthcare workers from safely washing their uniforms in accordance with NHS guidance, a new study has found.

Professor Katie Laird and Dr. Lucy Owen, from Infectious Disease Research Group at De Montfort University Leicester (DMU), surveyed more than 1,200 nurses, healthcare workers and nursing students across England, to learn about their behaviors and attitudes toward laundering of their uniforms during the COVID pandemic.

Girbau North America (GNA) received a 2021 exceptional performance award – a gold “G” – from parent company, Girbau Global Laundry Solutions (Girbau), headquartered in Vic, Spain. Girbau President Serge Joris presented the award to GNA President Mike Floyd during GNA’s weeklong sales meeting, held in Oshkosh, Wis.

“GNA exceeded our expectations from a sales and growth perspective during 2021,” said Girbau President Serge Joris. “The team in North America went beyond expectations in challenging circumstances due to the global supply chain and transportation obstacles, as well as the COVID pandemic. The team in North America showed their strength by operating and collaborating as one team. It is the team’s performance – exceeding sales and profit targets – and its contribution to Girbau results, while facing significant headwind, that made this achievement ‘beyond expectations.’”

After a temporary pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Pellerin Milnor is pleased to announce it will resume its in-person Spring CBW® Service School.

The seminar is designed for field service, maintenance, plant engineers, operators, and/or management personnel who deal with Milnor equipment. Attendees will learn fundamentals, troubleshooting, and preventative maintenance for Milnor systems, as well as an in-depth look at the Mentor® controller, MilTrac, Drynet, Dryer/Shuttle control, and device master. The course will also feature a hands-on schematic and wiring activity to deepen the understanding of Milnor circuits and wiring.

Las Vegas based Applied Chemical Innovations (ACI) has completed its first significant development since partnering with Christeyns USA in January by hiring Perry Pierce as its new Chief Operating Officer. He reports directly to ACI founder Chet Van Orden.

Healthcare Linen Services Group (HLSG), is excited to announce a new investment partnership with York Capital, New York.

“I am looking forward to our new partnership with York Private Equity, and the growth opportunities they can provide in both capital and expertise. Today’s Healthcare customers demand sustainability, redundancy, and scale to support their mission of quality care and geographical expansion. HLSG will leverage this new partnership with York to solidify our footprint and enter new geographies via acquisition,” stated Joe LaPorta, CEO of HLSG. “We will continue to invest in automating our existing facilities, accelerate our growth, and continue our commitment to provide the highest level of quality and service to our customers.”

Healthcare Linen Services Group recently welcomed four new employees! Omar Vargas, marketing manager; Xenia Eckel, accounts receivable clerk; David Bellotti, director of Operations; and Ariel Baez, plant manager.

Omar was a freelance graphic designer and contractor offering his services to a variety of industries, including healthcare. Omar received his bachelor’s degree in advertising and public relations from Grand Valley State University, and he enjoys basketball, cornhole, frisbee golf and listening to music.

Xenia has been an accounts receivable clerk for 13 years at her previous job. She has 3 kids that she loves very much, and she says in her free time, she enjoys watching movies, going on walks around the neighborhood with her kids, and reading mystery novels.

David comes with many years of experience working in the healthcare industry. He has a wife and 4 children, and is a Pittsburgh Steelers fan. He also was a gold medalist in the Golden Boxing tournament. Rumor has it, David still has a wicked upper left-handed punch.

Ariel has many years of experience as a plant supervisor, plant manager and general manager, with extensive knowledge of both healthcare and uniforms. He has a wife and 2 sons. In his free time, he likes to travel and play the drums.

Technical Service Manager Gary Clark, of Oshkosh, Wis., recently retired after 27 years of service with Girbau North America (GNA). Clark started with GNA at its formation in 1995 and was among the first employees hired.

He will be missed for his friendship and many contributions, according to GNA President Mike Floyd. “We’ve all been fortunate to work alongside Gary, to get to know him and his family on a personal level, and to call him a friend,” he said.

Throughout his long career, Clark designed and led countless service training workshops for distributors and end users, fielded a huge number of service phone calls, provided on-site technical expertise and was the go-to person for “anything product related.” He worked closely with the sales team and Girbau Global Laundry Solutions on product development and continuing improvement, and interfaced daily with GNA’s professional distributor network. “He leaves big shoes to fill,” said Floyd.

UNX is excited to welcome Adam Rusgrove and Jimmy Polan to the team as their newest Territory Managers. Adam will utilize his 6+ years of industry experience along with his 15+ years of serving customers in the telecommunications industry to serve UNX customers in the Southeastern South Carolina and Southeastern Georgia areas. When he is not working, you will find Adam singing with his family, for his church, or rooting on the University of Georgia Bulldogs.
 
Jimmy has extensive knowledge of UNX products along with over 7 years in janitorial sales and will be serving customers in central Georgia area. Outside of work, Jimmy enjoys hunting, golfing, spending time with his family on the family farm, and also cheering on the Georgia Bulldogs.

TheLaundryList is proud to announce the new Vice President of Engineering & Technology, Gerald Snider. With almost 30 years of experience in the laundry industry, Gerald brings an ideal and unique combination of skillsets to support TheLaundryList and bring added value to customers.

Very few people in our industry have the experience and the perspective from laundry operations to an equipment manufacturer’s engineering and service. Gerald has extensive experience on the operations side as for the past 11 years, he was the corporate engineer at The Linen King in Tulsa, OK, and prior to that he was a chief engineer at Faultless Linen. From the equipment side, Gerald was a service tech for Lavatec and spent over a decade with Loomis Brothers, a distributor for Milnor and Chicago equipment.

Needless to say, with his knowledge and expertise, TheLaundryList is excited about the next chapter of their company. Gerald will have an integral role in new expansion and future endeavors.