Laundry and Cleaning Today took a look at laundries and cleaning operations' need for chemicals and solvents whether wet cleaning or dry cleaning. With rising prices and demand for ecological products, they took a look at what the market had to offer. 

Rampi and AGS Detergents were featured...

RAMPI

Luca Caramaschi, export manager for Rampi, says that the company has added four new products to its existing line – and they “are now available for use with automatic dosing systems.”

He says that while it might seem logical to say that using different products together is not that cost effective, in fact, “quite the opposite is true.”

Caramaschi details how very often when large quantities of laundry are washed together, shirts in particular, items may need to be rewashed. However, he points out that “laboratory tests and customers have proven how by using a combination of products, the result is a more effective outcome first time around and therefore a reduction in water and energy consumption is possible."

 Also, he says that the combined formula can do away with the need for separate pre-spotting as it is now incorporated.

Caramaschi reckons that compared to Rampi’s competitors “our range of chemicals for commercial laundries is active at lower temperatures. While other leading brands require at least 70-75°C to be effective, our new line is already active at 60°C.”

In terms of the products, he points out PL Wash Uni Ve – “a complete novelty and vital addition to the new range for commercial laundries.” On this he tells how, because its viscosity is constant throughout the year, “no one need fear changing temperatures any longer.” He continues: “Normally, when the weather is colder viscosity increases, meaning that a lower dosage is delivered, resulting in reduced performance. On the otherhand, in hotter weather, detergents are more fluid, leading to a faster flow and therefore higher costs and product waste… PL Wash Uni Ve eliminates this considerable drawback.”

In terms of other of the company’s products, he cites Chlorboost - a sodium hypochlorite-based bleach for deeply soiled cotton, linen and mixed fabrics; Alkaboost - an alkaline degreasing detergent; Emulsiboost – which is “ideal for eliminating oily and grease stains”; Oxyboost - an active oxygen-based washing booster; and Igiensoft - a triple concentrated sanitising hypoallergenic fabric softener for sensitive skins, which is “particularly suitable for children’s clothes and fabrics that stay in contact with the skin for long periods such as bed linen and towels. It is ideal for the care home sector.”

But Rampi has, says Caramaschi, a new range - universal Destain prespotters. 

Of this he says that “with this new, cost-effective compact line, laundries and drycleaners have all they need in four simple products - Deoil for fat stains, Deprot for protein stains, Detan for tannin stains, and Derust for rust. Previously each type of washing process required a different prespotter. Rampi is the perhaps the first to develop a prespotter suitable for all.”

Caramaschi claims that the range is “extremely gentle on fibres” and so is suitable for wetcleaning, drycleaning and traditional water washing.

AGS Detergents

Mary Simons, director of AGS, knows that over the past couple of years we have all taken stock of our lives and businesses. As she says, “some have found this dreadful hiatus to be a time to decide in what direction they want their life to take; others have found that their business is on the brink of collapse; but a number will rise above all this madness.” The pandemic, she thinks, has made everyone in business re-evaluate their private and their business lives.

AGS offers much to the laundry, drycleaning, and launderette sectors says Simons. She explains that “we knew that we never wanted to supply just ‘any’ drycleaning chemicals - we wanted to veer towards the wetcleaning sector which we know is more profitable and so much greener with no carcinogenic substances.”

Wetcleaning is growing in her view: “We have noticed, and have been contacted by many companies who, due to the Covid situation, decided that their business cannot survive offering one service. Many drycleaners are now looking at doing wetcleaning or operating a small launderette within their premises or just general laundry work.”

On machines Simons says that Electrolux offers a wetcleaning washer and dryer system that “will also work as a normal washer and tumble dryer.”

She adds that AGS has been selling and developing its own range of detergents for some time “and now has a range that comprises of laundry detergents and fabric conditioners including a supplementary stain remover, wetcleaning detergents, wetcleaning spotters, an equine detergent and re-proofer, and many ancillary products.”

All the detergents supplied by AGS are concentrated and come in 15 litre containers

During Covid Simons noticed that sales of AGS detergents to care, nursing and residential homes rose. Perfume is a very personal thing. “The smell,” says Simons, “that one person loves, another will absolutely detest.” She says that some think the smell from the container is the same that washed articles will smell of. However, she says that is simply not the case: “Smells can be transformed once the liquid reacts with articles… we offer four different ranges of detergent and supplementary fabric conditioner within the same perfume range.”

But regardless of smell, Simons says that “all AGS’s detergents eliminate bacteria even using a water temperature of 30 degrees. And our whole detergent range is as green as we can get it.”

Unfortunately, wetcleaning detergents can be costly. However, Simons claims that “at AGS we offer fantastic quality with a considerably reduce price when comparing to other manufacturers.”

 And she backs the claim with comment from a customer of hers: Forest Eco Cleaners of Walthamstow, London. 

Sajjad Ahmed, co-owner, said that “we have been using AGS detergents for wetcleaning and laundry services for over six years now and to be frank, we have been so impressed by not only the versatility of the detergents, but also the fragrance and the lack of pre-spotting that is required when using them.”