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Veterinary Clinic Case Study

Vet Clinics & Hospitals Gain Laundry Productivity & Peace of Mind with E-Series Washers

December 2010  |  Download case study as a PDF

Struggling to keep pace with soiled animal bedding, towels and rags, two veterinarian practices in Colorado recently installed industrial-grade Continental E-Series Washer-extractors. The high-speed, soft-mount washers not only withstand the rigors of constant use – unlike many domestic frontloads – they properly clean and decontaminate dirty items with a simple touch of a button. Thanks to the new E-Series Washers, the veterinary practices drastically catapulted laundry production and efficiency, while eliminating the constant headache of washer breakdowns.

Buried in Soiled Laundry

“In our kennel and recovery areas, animals lie on blankets and quilts, rather than paper and grates,” says Kenneth Smith, one of four veterinarians at Pueblo Animal Hospital, in Pueblo, Colo. Using a home-style, front-load washer and dryer, the hospital struggled to keep pace with mounds of soiled bedding, towels and rags.

“We are a high-volume hospital and see between 50 to 80 patients a day,” says Smith. “We also have a boarding kennel with room for 36 animals. Our problem was that we had an excess of laundry building up and we needed an industrial washer to keep up with the demand.”

That's when the Hospital purchased a 20-pound capacity Continental E-Series Washer-extractor from Tom Millman of Washtime Industries, a laundry equipment distributor in Greeley, Colo. An Energy-Star qualified washer, the Continental E-Series machine features a soft-mount design, which simplifies installation; unmatched energy efficiency; superior programmability; and high-speed extract reaching 300 G-force.

Using the new Continental E-Series Washer, the hospital keeps pace with incoming laundry, conserves water and utilities, and offers employees a simple, consistent way to clean soiled animal blankets and towels. In doing so, contaminated items don't pile up – promoting a more sanitary environment.

“We clean rags, bedding, towels, blankets and stuff totally contaminated by discharge, blood, vomit and diarrhea,” says Smith. “The machine takes care of it all.”

Faced with a similar situation – lagging laundry production – Wheat Ridge Animal Clinic, in Wheat Ridge, Colo., followed suit. At wit's end, Cindy Hauser, practice manager of operations, turned to Washtime Industries and another animal clinic for help selecting a new washer. “We had frontloads that we purchased from a department store,” she says. “But, they were breaking down left and right. I realized I needed to do something because these front-load washers were not really commercial grade. They were breaking down and hurting our efficiency. I called the Community Pet Hospital and received raving reviews about the E-Series Washer.”

Wheat Ridge Animal Clinic – a 24-hour operation with 24 veterinarians – had the washer installed. For three years, the Continental E-Series Washer operated alongside one of the original frontloads. Six months ago – frustrated with the original frontload's constant breakdowns – the Clinic pulled it out and installed a second E-Series. “Being a 24-hour hospital, it's crippling when a washer goes down,” says Hauser, who spent hours on the phone trying to get the original frontloads repaired. “I had to deal with the department store's automated system and the machines would often be out of service for a week or two.”

Today life is easier at both veterinary practices, thanks to the efficiency, programmability and high-speed extract of the Continental E-Series Washers.

Programmable E-Series Delivers One-touch Operation & Superior Clean

At Pueblo Animal Hospital, everyone pitches in to do the laundry, according to Smith. It couldn't be easier, he says, because the washer offers one-touch operation.

Hauser agrees. The E-Series machines at Wheat Ridge Animal Clinic are programmed to automatically inject the right cleaning chemicals at the appropriate water temperatures and levels. “I decided automatic chemical injection made sense so we wouldn't use too much soap,” she says. “You just select the program number and press start.”

E-Series Washers feature a highly programmable control to ensure every load is properly cleaned and decontaminated. The control offers eight individually modifiable programs – each with up to nine baths including multiple pre-wash, wash and rinse cycles. Variables within each bath can also be individually programmed for maximum efficiency given the load type, including wash temperature, water levels, cycle times, rotation and G-force extract speeds.

High-speed Extract Cuts Dry Time by up to 50 Percent – Catapults Production

Moreover, blankets, towels and rags come out of the washer nearly dry. “The high-speed extract is important to me,” maintains Smith. “A lot of blankets and quilts run through the washer. Rather than dry them in the dryer, we put them on a clothesline in the basement where they air dry in four to six hours. A lot of the time, the open weave products come out of the washer just slightly damp. They are almost dry enough to be folded and put on a shelf.”

Items retain less moisture thanks to the E-Series' high-speed extract, according to Millman. E-Series Washers reach extraction speeds of up to 387 G-force – considerably greater than most top-load and front-load washers. The super-speed extract removes more water from each load – slashing dry time and resulting dryer electricity/gas consumption.

“An E-Series Washer can cut the time it takes to dry a load of laundry by up to 50 percent,” says Millman. And, because loads can dry in half the time, laundry productivity soars while gas/electricity costs decrease.

“Our washers run non-stop; there's a load going every hour of the day and night,” says Hauser, who maintains she's thrilled with their reliability.

Thanks to the Energy Star-qualified E-Series Washers, both veterinary operations maintain safe and sterile environments and no longer struggle with piles of soiled laundry. And, because E-Series are soft-mount machines that do not need to be bolted to reinforced concrete foundations, they are simple to install and relocate. “They slid into place,” says Hauser of her E-Series Washers. “And if for some reason we remodel the facility, they will be easy to relocate.”

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