AmeriPride Services Inc., a leading supplier of linen and uniform rental services in North America, today announced that it is the largest commercial laundry organization worldwide to earn ‘Clean Green’ Certification from TRSA, the leading textile services industry association. This designation signifies that its production facilities meet TRSA’s international standard for achieving efficiencies in water and energy conservation and adopting best management practices for reusing, reclaiming and recycling resources.
“This achievement demonstrates our commitment to the environment while maintaining the highest quality in laundered products for our customers,” said Brian Keegan, SVP of Plant Operations for AmeriPride Services and Canadian Linen. “Our customers care about sustainability, and so do we. This new Clean Green designation spans our North American facilities and is an important step forward for our business and the communities that we operate.”
The Clean Green certification provides third-party verification that the uniforms, linens, mats, towels and other reusable textiles procured from AmeriPride are laundered in an environmentally friendly manner. It is the only industry certification that quantifies and validates a commercial laundry’s environmental sustainability.
To attain the Clean Green Certification, a commercial laundry must comply with water and energy standards and demonstrate best management practices, such as reducing greenhouse gas emissions, conserving water via a re-use system, using environmentally friendly detergents, filtering wastewater before discharging to the sewer, utilizing solar energy and energy-efficient lighting, using recycling programs and re-routing trucks to save vehicle fuel.
“Congratulations to AmeriPride for achieving this industry milestone and for their dedication to preserving our natural resources,” said Joseph Ricci, TRSA president and CEO. “Laundry customers who choose AmeriPride can feel confident in the knowledge that their products are washed, dried and finished in a manner that meets the highest standards and helps protect the environment.”
Commercial laundries are by nature better for the environment as they promote recycling and reuse of textiles. They are also much more efficient and eco-friendly than companies that wash their own garments and linens in smaller, less-efficient washers and dryers or have their workers wash uniforms at home. Commercial laundries realize economies of scope and scale and often employ the latest technologies for removing pollutants, recovering heat, reusing rinse water and other resource-saving functions.
