Latest / The Operations Podcast with Fexingo: Process, People, and Profit in Modern Business / How a Laundry Chain Cut Water Use by 70 Percent With Operations
Transcript
- Lucas: So I was reading about a regional laundry and dry-cleaning chain — about 120 locations across the Midwest — and they managed to cut their water consumption by 70 percent over three years. And I thought, if an industry that's basically built around washing things can slash water use that dramatically, there's a lesson in there for a lot of other sectors. Luna: Seventy percent is huge. Were they retrofitting existing machines, or did they switch to some new technology entirely? Lucas: It was a mix. The core change was installing closed-loop water recycling systems in their larger plants. These machines capture the rinse water, filter it, and reuse it in the next wash cycle. But they didn't just buy equipment off the shelf and call it a day. They completely redesigned their wash chemistry and reduced the number of rinse cycles from four to two. Luna: Fewer rinses sounds like it could risk leaving detergent residue on clothes. Lucas: Right, that was the initial concern. But they worked with a chemical supplier to develop a low-foaming detergent that rinses out more thoroughly in fewer cycles. They also added real-time conductivity sensors to each machine, so the system knows exactly when the water is clean enough to reuse and when it needs to be dumped. That sensor data became the foundation for everything else. Luna: So the sensors gave them visibility they never had before. Lucas: Exactly. Prior to this, the plant managers basically set the machines to a standard cycle and hoped for the best. The sensors showed them that about 40 percent of the time, the water was actually clean enough to skip a rinse. That's waste they were literally pouring down the drain. Luna: And I assume the sensors also helped with energy use — heating water is one of the biggest costs in a laundry operation. Lucas: You're spot on. They added heat exchangers that capture the thermal energy from the wastewater before it leaves the machine. That preheats the incoming fresh water, cutting natural gas consumption by about 35 percent. The payback on the heat exchangers was under 18 months. Luna: Eighteen months is fast. What about the smaller storefronts that don't have the space for a closed-loop system? Lucas: Good question. For their retail drop-off locations — maybe 800 square feet, no industrial washing on-site — they focused on dry-cleaning solvent management. They switched to a high-performance hydrocarbon solvent that can be distilled and reused on-site, reducing solvent purchases by 60 percent. And they installed vapor recovery systems that capture fugitive emissions, which also improves air quality for employees. Luna: So the sustainability gains weren't just about water. It sounds like they tackled the whole resource footprint. Lucas: That was the design principle from the start. The CEO told me they didn't want a green initiative that was just a marketing story. They wanted operational improvements that also lowered costs. The water recycling alone saves them about $120,000 per year at the largest plant. Add in the energy savings and reduced chemical purchases, and the annual savings across the chain are north of $2 million. Luna: And that's with 120 locations. What were the upfront capital costs? Lucas: About $3.5 million across two years for the equipment and installation. But they phased it in — started with their five highest-volume plants, proved the ROI, then rolled it out to the rest. The board was comfortable because each plant had its own business case. Average payback was 22 months. Luna: I want to come back to the employee piece. You mentioned sensors and new chemistry — how did the workers on the floor adapt to the changes? Lucas: This is actually the part I found most interesting. They set up a cross-functional team that included wash operators, maintenance techs, and route drivers. And they created a simple dashboard that shows each plant's water and energy usage per pound of laundry processed — updated in real time. The plant with the lowest numbers gets a monthly bonus split among all the hourly employees. Luna: So they gamified efficiency. Did it work? Lucas: It worked almost too well. The first month, one plant cut its water use by 12 percent just from small behavioral changes — operators started loading machines to full capacity, checking for leaks, reporting malfunctions faster. The plant manager said the bonus was only about $75 per person that month, but people were genuinely proud of the number. Luna: Seventy-five dollars doesn't sound like a lot, but if you're an hourly worker, it's real money. Lucas: And it's recurring. The top plant gets the bonus every month, so there's continuous incentive. They also rotated operators through the monitoring room for a shift each quarter, so everyone understands how the metrics connect to their daily work. That transparency was critical. Luna: That's a great operations lesson in itself — you can't improve what you don't measure, and you can't sustain improvement without engaging the people who do the work. Lucas: Exactly. And this is a business podcast. If these conversations have moved your work forward in some small way, a couple of dollars a month is genuinely what keeps these going. Buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo, if you've gotten something out of them. Luna: Yeah, it really does make a difference. No ads, no sponsors — just listener support. Lucas: So back to the laundry chain. One other angle I want to highlight: they also cut their natural gas usage by installing steam reclamation systems on the dryers. Instead of venting hot, moist air outside, they pass it through a heat exchanger that preheates the incoming air. That saved another 8 percent on energy. Luna: Small incremental gains everywhere. Was there any pushback from customers worried about cleanliness or hygiene with recycled water? Lucas: A few did ask. But the company put up signs in the stores explaining that the water is filtered to a higher purity than tap water, and they shared third-party test results. They also point out that the closed-loop systems use less total water per load, so the clothes actually spend less time submerged, which reduces wear on fabrics. That's a selling point for higher-end garments. Luna: Interesting — turning an operational change into a customer benefit. Lucas: Right. And they trained the front-desk staff to explain it. That's another operations detail: if you're going to change a process that the customer can see or question, make sure the people at the counter can articulate why it's better. Otherwise you get rumors and mistrust. Luna: So what's the next frontier for them? Where do they go from 70 percent water reduction? Lucas: They're now looking at electric delivery vehicles for their route trucks. They already optimized the routes using software, but the fleet runs on diesel. They're testing two electric vans in Chicago, with the goal of cutting fuel costs by another 20 percent over the next three years. And they're piloting a program where customers can opt for a 'green delivery' — slower but electric. Luna: That's a clever way to align customer preferences with operational goals. Lucas: It is. And it gives them a narrative that's authentic because the operations are already cleaner. They're not greenwashing — they've got the meter data to back it up. Luna: So the big lesson might be that sustainability, when done right, is just good operations. You find waste, you eliminate it, and the environmental benefit follows. Lucas: That's the takeaway. And in this case, the waste was literally flowing down the drain. Luna: Nice. Good episode.