Stefan Müller is the manager of the textile service provider „Warener Waschfee“. When he took over the management of the company, located in the Northeast of Germany, he faced a big challenge: An efficient process of the laundry seemed impossible. The cause was the huge variety of articles offered by the many customers..
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For Stefan Müller one thing was clear: The „Warener Waschefee“ needs comprehensive digitalization and automation of its operation. He could already gain experience in this field, while he was working as manager in the automotive industry.
Stefan Müller decided that the new equipment in the washing and finishing area needed to be digitalized and automated, including the entire laundry flow - from soiled laundry sorting to dispatch.
The task
For a smooth and optimal implementation the managing director could only think of one company: and that was Kannegiesser. Nobody else could offer the complete package as a single supplier," Stefan Müller recalls.
A major challenge was the efficient processing in the finishing area of mixed batches containing a massive variety of small items. To meet the customers' high quality requirements, each of the many types of articles require individual processing programs. The mixed batches must therefore be sorted by article type after washing and extraction. This includes for example, dish towels which have to be separated from pillow cases and napkins. Before the digitalization and automation this process caused a standstill of the operation. "In the past, the whole facility was full of laundry carts", explains Stefan Müller. The new solution today is called BatchPrinting. BatchPrinting is part of Kannegiesser's SmartLaundry product line.
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And here is how it works:
For each type of article a ticket with a barcode is printed, this happens when sorting the items of the batch after washing. To do this, the operator in charge first selects the current batch on the touch display. Only those articles that can be found in this batch are being displayed. In the next step the operator can print tickets for each type of article that has been sorted. Afterwards these tickets are placed on the laundry carts with the respective articles.
Further on the barcode on the ticket can be scanned at the finishing machine by using a hand scanner. The machines automatically receive the correct processing program from the database and immediately adapt it to the specific requirements of the article without interruption.
Conclusion
With BatchPrinting, the laundry not only stays clearly and correctly assigned. The operation in general is speeded up significantly by scanning the barcodes on the ticket at the machines. With this form of digitalization and automation a fast, organized and smooth flow of laundry is guaranteed - from soiled laundry sorting to dispatch - even with laundry carts.