Created in 1969, Earth Day was introduced by the government to bring awareness to our environment and planet being at risk and to bring it to the national agenda. Since then, it has evolved into a global celebration bringing together 5,000 environmental groups and over 1 billion people across the world. Each year on April 22nd, we celebrate an environmental movement raising awareness about pollution, waste, and ways to preserve our planet.
In the commercial laundry industry, it is important to find ways to clean linens and garments to meet required standards for customers while also staying efficient and environmentally cautious. Not all laundries invest in staying green as Crown Uniform and Linen.
“Our mission is to be the most sustainable commercial laundry in the industry.
– George Spilios, President
We have made great strides but recognize that there are other opportunities to continuously improve our sustainability practices. We are committed to any green initiative that leads to a better use of our natural resources.”
Sustainability and Crown Uniform & Linen
Going generations back, sustainability has been an important part of the values at Crown, focusing on ways to recycle water, control waste management, reduce energy use.
Water Filtration System and Conservation
Crown utilizes the Norchem Ceramic Filtration System which lowers water, chemical, and energy usage while laundering to the highest OSHA and HLAC standards. As one of only a few green or ecofriendly commercial laundries that’s made an investment in a Norchem Ceramic Filtration System, Crown calculates its annual water consumption will be reduced by more than 4,680,000 gallons. In addition to improving Crown laundering processes, we have also installed low-flow faucet aerators and low-flow toilets throughout our facilities to further conserve water.
Rainwater Collection
Crown has a rainwater collection system that allows water to be collected, cleaned, heated, and then used for laundry processes. One inch of rain provides about 52,000 gallons of water that can be used to wash.
Waste Management
Commitment to sustainability includes identifying opportunities in operations to reduce waste, reuse valuable materials, and recycle what cannot be reduced or reused. At Crown, this includes the hanger recycling program, recycling decommissioned uniforms and linens, partnering with the Sustainable Business Leader Program (SBLP), and switching to recycled content poly-bags for our healthcare customers.
Green Transportation
In order to achieve our sustainability goals, Crown replaced its delivery fleet with “clean” diesel vehicles, upgraded its sales fleet to energy efficient cars, instituted a route management system that optimizes vehicle routes and tracks idling time, and set anti-idling policies for drivers.
Energy Efficiency
Crown has installed T-5 and LED lighting throughout the plant, motion light sensors in hallways and other low-use areas and all office electronics are on automated timers. Crown’s plant in Brockton, MA has roof solar panels, providing 1/3 of the electrical power for the plant.
We can all try and do our part every day to protect our planet. Earth Day is a day to shine a brighter light on the topic of sustainability, pollution, climate change, and more. As an essential service for businesses across New England such as hospitals, research labs, restaurants, and manufacturing plants, Crown takes its environmental footprint very seriously and partakes in this celebration every year.