Jim Slatcher of Lavatec Laundry Technology and two key management members addressed some of the current and toughest production issues facing the laundry industry at the Association of Linen Management’s IMPACT Conference, held on March 3 at the Marriott Grand Resort in Alabama.
He was joined by Antonio Casillas, the general manager of Southern Oregon Linen Services, and Adam Leen, plant manager for Textile Care Services in Minnesota. Slatcher, who has served as LAVATEC’s western regional sales manager since 2016, moderated the educational session Innovate & Elevate: Fresh Strategies for Plant Managers and Production Teams.
The trio engaged in lively back-and-forth conversations that covered a gamut of topics critical to maintaining best practices for laundry facilities. The discussions ranged from safer work environments and increasing productivity, to effective troubleshooting and employee training methods. An audience Q&A closed out the hour-long program.
“Some of those questions were about the production bottleneck concerns every facility experiences. Others asked how to improve efficiency and team involvement,” said Slatcher. A second-generation, 40-year laundry industry professional, he has managed operations ranging from 30 employees and 2 million pounds of volume, to as large as 700 employees and 60 million pounds annually.
“Overall, we covered a lot of ground and I’m still getting calls from those who were in the room wanting advice.”
Bottlenecks were a prime discussion point as Casillas and Leen shared some of the most common situations and what actions they take to manage them. Slatcher asked both to share the methods they utilize to track and improve productivity. Their responses led to how involving team members is important, not only for being part of the solution, but for helping to improve and make organizational procedures stronger as well.
“As we all know, monitoring and improving efficiency is critical to successful facility operations. Once you identify the challenges, implementing the right changes to address them is imperative,” noted Slatcher, who works with customers in the western region of the United States and with those in Canada, Mexico, and South America.
Slatcher said the group reached a consensus about how to get employees involved in the process.
“Bringing a laundry team together with a unified focus and a shared commitment to meeting client demands requires dedication. Finding the right systems and processes to promote teamwork and have everyone on the same page makes it easier to consistently exceed your customers’ expectations,” said Slatcher. “Your odds improve by consistently assessing your staff and identifying ways to continually improve performance.”
For more informaiton, visit the company’s website: LAVATEC
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Antonio Casillas, Adam Leen, and Jim Slatcher provided fresh insight and strategies for plant managers and their production teams.
