Professional laundries—whether industrial, commercial, or self-service based—are being challenged not only to deliver more, faster, and at lower costs, but also to do so more sustainably and reliably. While technology and equipment are often front and center in discussions around innovation, the role of services, from consultancy to maintenance and technical support, is gaining recognition as a strategic differentiator.
Well-structured service offerings can dramatically impact a laundry’s bottom line. For instance, a Girbau client, a well-known hotel chain, successfully optimized labor costs by 25% and achieved up to 30% annual energy savings by leveraging expert laundry consultancy services—redesigning workflows, improving equipment productivity, optimizing gas consumption, and implementing leak detection systems. Laundry Services: what can we expect?
Professional laundries operate in high-pressure environments. Whether it’s a hotel ensuring clean linens for hundreds of rooms, a hospital managing hygiene-critical textiles, or a commercial facility processing thousands of garments per shift, downtime is not an option. Here, service becomes essential, not as a reactive tool to solve problems, but as a proactive strategy to ensure consistent performance, operational efficiency, and long-term reliability.
Modern laundries are no longer simply equipment buyers: they are seeking partners. This evolution reflects a broader trend across industrial sectors: service as a lifecycle value.
For new laundries or those undergoing renovations, service should begin long before the machines arrive. Clients now demand comprehensive support that includes:
- Initial consultancy and planning: From facility layout to production flow optimization.
- Installation and commissioning: With attention to calibration, safety, and compliance..
- Ramp-up consulting: Dedicated support during the start-up phase to ensure smooth, efficient scaling of operations.
- Staff training: To ensure proper machine use, energy efficiency, and reduced textile waste.
- Preventive maintenance: Minimizing unplanned stoppages and extending equipment lifespan.
- Remote diagnostics: For rapid intervention and reduced time-to-repair.
- Sustainability guidance: Helping reduce energy and water use, aligning with ESG goals.
- Specialized textile care training: Focused on fabric-specific handling, sorting, and processing best practices.
In other words, the most effective providers offer project evaluation and design consulting, considering factors such as peak season demand, space constraints, utility connections, and textile flow. Correct sizing is critical: both over- and under-dimensioned laundries can result in losses, downtime, or unnecessary costs.
A lifecycle service approach includes construction support, on-site commissioning, training, and post-installation technical assistance, as well as preventive maintenance programs, technical inspections and laundry process audits, to monitor the productivity and help our customer achieve peak performance. It’s not only about delivering equipment—it's about building a tailored, efficient system that meets the customer’s goals and adapts to their realities.
Laundry Services benefits: From problem-solving to value creation
Service today is not just about fixing machines. It’s about creating value across the entire laundry operation. A well-maintained and efficiently managed facility:
- Achieves higher productivity per machine and per square meter.
- Maintains better textile quality, thanks to optimized cycles and chemical dosing.
- Lowers utility bills through energy-efficient settings and updates.
- Extends the life of both machinery and textiles, lowering replacement costs.
- Enhances operator safety and well-being by reducing breakdowns and operational stress.
In this context, service also becomes a people strategy. One of the most overlooked pillars of service is operator training. High employee turnover and low specialization rates make it essential for staff to be trained quickly and efficiently—not only in using equipment but also in best practices for textile care, sorting, and process optimization. Empowering laundry teams with knowledge and support improves decision-making and process control.
Progressive suppliers today, like Girbau, go even further by designing accessible machines for operators with functional diversity and by providing customized training programs tailored to real laundry scenarios. This approach reduces errors, enhances productivity, and ensures a consistent quality of service even as teams change.
The specific role of technology in service
The digitalization of laundry operations has transformed how service is delivered. Equipment now integrates IoT sensors, enabling remote monitoring and predictive maintenance. This means problems can be anticipated and prevented before they affect production.
Service providers are evolving into data-driven advisors, helping laundries make decisions based on real-time usage metrics, error reports, and consumption data. In many cases, this unlocks new levels of efficiency and aligns maintenance strategies with broader business KPIs.
A case in point: Girbau’s Service Philosophy
One example of this service-centric approach is Girbau’s model, which places technical consultancy at the heart of the customer journey. We don’t just sell equipment, we support laundries from the early design phase through installation, training, and lifetime support.
When service includes dedicated consultants, access to original spare parts, and manufacturer-certified technicians across 16 countries, as in Girbau, customers can trust in both quality and responsiveness.
Girbau’s global service model includes everything from energy audits and microplastic emission evaluations to operational ramp-up assistance. Whether supporting a new hospital laundry in Mexico or helping a Caribbean resort optimize its seasonal workflows, their approach is grounded in one principle: proximity. That means being available, adaptable, and aligned with the customer’s goals.
We also emphasize sustainability as a service, offering advice on reducing water, energy, and chemical usage. For instance, our Zero Platform is a comprehensive sustainability framework that addresses the laundry industry's most pressing environmental challenges across four key areas: water, microfibers, energy, and packaging. Through Zero Water solutions, laundries can recover and reuse up to 85% of water, aligning with the UN Sustainable Development Goals while cutting costs. Girbau’s Zero Microfibers solution tackles water pollution by eliminating up to 90% of microfibers and microplastics, preparing laundries for future environmental regulations. Zero Energy introduces high-efficiency equipment and advanced heat recovery systems to reduce carbon footprints and operational expenses. Finally, the Zero Packaging solution replaces plastic with recyclable paper, reducing CO₂ emissions by up to 95%, contributing to a cleaner, more circular laundry process.
As laundries face rising utility costs, tighter labor markets, and greater environmental expectations, service will continue to shift from a reactive expense to a proactive investment. Organizations that treat service as strategic infrastructure—integrated, planned, and data-informed—will be better positioned to respond to change, scale their operations, and meet client expectations.
In short: service is no longer the afterthought—it’s the backbone of high-performing laundry businesses.