This helpful guide will provide tips and advice on how to best manage a hospitality business’s linen room and laundry.

SELECTING LINENS
The selection of materials for a hospitality facility varies based on the type of facility and the budget. For example, when selecting sheets, many hotels may select a 70/30 polyester/cotton blend to obtain durability, reduced shrinkage and affordability. However, a five star hotel may prefer to make a significant investment in the luxury, strength and softness of high thread-count combed (percale) cotton sheets, which can range from 180 to 1200 thread count.

There are numerous items that fall within the laundry or linens category including:

Rooms Dining Miscellaneous
Bath linens and towels (raqnging from 400gm to 800 gm)
Bath robes
Bed linens
Bedspreads
Blankets
Comforters
Dust Ruffles
Duvets, duvet covers
Mattress covers Table cloths
Table napkins
Linen glassware towels
Bar towels
Staff uniforms
Cleaning cloths
Kitchen towels

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF THE LINEN OR LAUNDRY ROOM
A large hotel’s store room might contain tens of thousands of pounds worth of linen at any one time. It will have regular deliveries of fresh stock and unclean linen waiting for removal and laundering. A linen room or laundry room needs to be secure and yet have easy access.

Here are some suggestions for the physical properties of a laundry or linen store room to help manage linen or laundry rooms better and so improve the way linens are looked after.

• The linen store should be located in the main building to improve security and to reduce manual handling for both clean and dirty laundry.
• Make sure that the linen room or laundry is situated in the best place i.e. on the ground floor to make it easier to take deliveries, away from public areas and with doors wide enough for staff to manoeuvre trolleys.
• The linen store must be clean and dry – avoid damp walls, cellars, etc, which could result in smells, moulds or spores or bug infestations.
• Never store any linen that might be damp. Any used damp linens should be stored in plastic bags and away from clean linens.
• Make sure there is adequate space and organise the laundry room so stock can be seen and to allow for deliveries.
• Shelving should be smooth and made of materials to avoid staining, snagging or tears – ideally not wood – whilst allowing for the circulation of dry air.
• Flooring should be vinyl covered to protect the linen and to prevent staining – avoid concrete.
• Make sure the store is well lit to ensure the health and safety of staff and to make stock selection and checking easier.
• Rotate the linen stock to avoid light damage and to reduce wear and tear. Work to an agreed schedule with the laundry supplier.
• Keep the linen room secure at all times.

SECURITY FEATURES
How safe is your linen? A typical hotel room might contain up to £30 worth of linen and a large hotel might store as much as £30,000 worth of linen. Linens are an extremely valuable asset and it pays to lock up laundry rooms and track linen supplies.

Here are some top tips to keep linen safe and secure:
• Store linen inside – both clean and dirty, but make certain they are kept separate.
• Keep the linen store locked and tidy.
• Keep housekeeper trolleys covered to prevent theft.
• Never leave linen unattended and unprotected.
• Install CCTV to capture suspicious behaviour and to act as a deterrent.
• Make sure all doors are lockable.
• Have keypad entry systems during the day with all doors locked at night.
• Keep on-corridor storage safe and secure.

MISUSE OF LAUNDRY
Would you use a bath towel to clean the floor? Or clean drinking glasses with a pillow case? If staff know that a duvet cover might be worth £10 or more, or a bed sheet is worth up to £7, staff will understand why they should use the right material for the job.

Share the following guidelines with staff to ensure linen is used for the purpose it was intended:
• Do not use linen other than for its purpose.
• Do not use linen to wedge open a door.
• Report damage and stains to the head housekeeper.
• Keep laundry and cleaning materials separate to avoid contamination.
• Report guest misuse or damage from hair dye, fake tan or shoe polish.
• Report all instances of bad practice and stock abuse to your laundry supplier.

BEDBUGS
Housekeeping staff play an essential role in the avoidance and immediate elimination of bedbugs. Staff should be trained to look for any evidence of bedbug infestation and report their findings to the head housekeeper for further action.

Housekeeping staff should look for the following telltale signs:
• Bedbugs are small, 1mm to 5mm long, and are coloured buff to dark chestnut brown.
• Bedbug faeces are small black specks located near the site of infestation.
• Blood spots and smears – sometimes appearing black instead of red – may be evident on linens.

By eradicating a bedbug infestation immediately a business can save its reputation and reduce extermination costs. To obtain detailed information and guidance about how to address bedbugs, refer to the Institute’s Management Guide on Bedbugs (see Further Resources).

CONCLUSION
Following these guidelines on linens should assist housekeeping staff and owner/operators of hospitality businesses to get the most out of their linen investment and laundry operations.

This guide has been produced by the Institute of Hospitality with the TSA (Textile Services Association) and the UK Housekeepers Association. The TSA is the UK trade association for the laundry, dry cleaning and textile rental industries with membership ranging from large mult-site public companies to smaller family businesses. The TSA represents the sector to UK and EU governments, to regulatory bodies and to the media. To learn more, see: http://www.tsa-uk.org

The UKHA is a nationally-recognised Association representing housekeepers and promoting housekeeping education, standards and careers. See: http://www.ukha.co.uk

FURTHER RESOURCES
Bedbugs: A manager’s guide to prevention and eradication in hospitality facilities. (2008) Institute of Hospitality Management Guide. See: http://www.instituteofhospitality.org/Publications/management_guides

Cotton crisis: A grave challenge for commercial linen users. (2010) Cain, Phil. http://www.tsa-uk.org/uploads/PDF%20docs/Cain_report_cotton_crisis.pdf

Institute of Hospitality eBooks (held in the Online Catalogue) – A selection of ebooks providing guidance on housekeeping and hospitality operations. The following title is of particular interest to housekeepers.

Hotel front office management. (2007) Bardi, James A.
Hotel management and operations. (2007) Rutherford, Denney G.
Professional management of housekeeping operations. (2005) Jones, Thomas.
• Chapter 4, Material Planning: Administration of Equipment and Supplies.
• Chapter 7, Material Planning: Bedding, Linens, and Uniforms.
• Chapter 14, The Safeguarding of Assets: Concerns for Safety and Security in Housekeeping Operations.
• Chapter 15, The Laundry: Toward an Understanding of Basic Engineering and Operational Considerations.
• APPENDIX G: Excerpts from InterContinental Hotels Group Loss Prevention Manual.

DISCLAIMER
This document is intended as a guide only. While the information it contains is believed to be correct, it is not a substitute for appropriate professional advice. The Institute of Hospitality and the authors bear no responsibility for action taken solely on the basis of this information.

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