Is your hotel laundry operation making you money?

Do you have an existing laundry operations in your hotel? Is your hotel laundry operation making you money?

Most hotels treat laundry operations like a cost center. However if managed properly, you have an opportunity to make revenue out of this space while minimizing the cost.

Save money:

There are many tips to save money in a laundry operation. Any good consultant will provide you with a solution that can include short term fix and long term solution. However when it comes to long term benefits, the key factor to look at is the life of linen being washed. Do not do anything which will hamper the life of the linen as the maximum cost is in replacing the linen if not properly handled.

So what can you do to save cost?

Optimum load weight: Most of the laundry machines are calibrated by vendors to make use of optimum quantities or load weight. For every load the chemical manufacturer will set up the machine based on the maximum weight that the machine can process. Even if the load is less, it will usually use up the same chemical and water leading to increased cost per unit.

 Solution:   Buy a weighing scale for your laundry and weigh every load of clothes before you process the same. Maintain a log and keep a record. This will ensure that the load is optimum and your chemicals are used efficiently

Water Temperature: Hot water is very expensive for laundry operations. In order to save money, know the most efficient way of heating water. Most machines have inbuilt heaters in the machine but it is not very efficient. Consider the various means of running the hot water including use of steam, boiler etc.

Solution: Maintain the temperature at recommended guidelines given by the chemical vendor. Have a mechanism where the temperature is constantly monitored and thermostats to control excess heat.

Reduce Shift: Labour is a very costly variable in the operation. It is easy to achieve productivity if your work is planned in a proper flow so that while the washer is on, the team can work on the flat iron. Having a proper allocation will help in ensuring the time spent on the floor is productive

Solution: Have a proper schedule to ensure all team members are working efficiently. Reduce the shift you operate by proper planning.

Make money from Hotel Laundry operation:

You can make more revenue from you hotel laundry if you follow these basic principle of revenue generation

Revenue per occupied room: Look at your previous year Laundry revenue and divide by no of rooms sold. That will give you a base benchmark for Revenue per occupied room: Once you have this number, add a stretch goal to this. Once you have your target, create packages to enhance sales per occupied room

Solutions: Some of the packages can be tailor made based on hotel types. Examples of packages can be

• By the kilo
• Express laundry at regular rate
• Pressing at 50% off between XX time

Outside load: If your laundry has additional capacity and there is demand from nearby vicinity, consider taking a contract load from other establishments. Please keep in mind not to solicit business from hospitals since the laundry requirements for hospitals are totally different. Ideal customers will be smaller hotels, restaurants or railways etc.

Solution: Give your sales team or housekeeper additional target to sell this facility to corporates or to other hotels. 

As with everything, track your effort after you implement any of the solution. That way you will ensure that your hotel  laundry operation is making you money