Technology Showcase

4 May 2002



Janet Taylor reports on product developments at the Jensen-Senking open house in Germany


Over 2,200 visitors attended the Jensen-Senking open house in March. The event was held both to celebrate the opening of the Harsum plant and to showcase the expertise and technology that Jensen LSG offers customers.

The plant results from a ¤7.75million investment by Jensen LSG and will give Jensen-Senking, the group's specialist company in washroom technology, a purpose-designed factory, built to suit the production processes and workflow.

It will have three production lines and allow materials to be brought readily to each, creating the optimum production flow with delivery of the finished items.

Easy transport and packing of goods has also been built into the design of the plant. Lines are equipped with cranes and the shed height (11m) provides sufficient room to allow machines to be loaded efficiently into shipping containers.

Test laundry

The plant also houses a test laundry, equipped with the Universal SL tunnel washer, complemented by the SEP50SL extraction press, a drying tumbler DT60HD, and a vacuum transfer system for the linen.

The open house was more than a plant opening. It allowed Jensen LSG to focus on the expertise available within the group and showcase the latest developments not just in washroom technology, but also in flatwork and garment finishing and handling systems. In an area, designated the Cockpit, the group showed its commitment to developing not just machines but the controlling and management software. Jensen-Senking, as the expert in washroom technology, premiered the next stage in the development of its Universal tunnel washer.

Risk removed

The Universal SL adapts the water flow to avoid the need for water recovery tanks, so removing a potential hygiene risk and reducing maintenance.

The efficiency of the design has already been tested in a prototype installation at Wolfsburg (famous as the home of the Volkswagen) and in January the first machine was installed at a laundry in Lubeck.

The company explains the thinking behind the development. Water recovery tanks can present a hygiene risk. In practice, laundries may neglect to clean them regularly, allowing bacteria to build here.

The development answers growing concern about laundry hygiene standards in Europe, particularly in healthcare.

The main purpose for having such tanks in the standard construction was to act as a buffer making sure that water was available when needed. With mixed classifications, such buffer resources tended to be used even more frequently.

To avoid this potential hygiene risk, the Universal SL has been designed so that recovered water is fed via the internal system directly into the process as it is needed. Removing the tanks from the design also removes the associated cleaning and maintenance tasks, so reducing operating costs as well as improving hygiene.

Washboard effect

The Universal SL also offers high performance standards. The machine has a large usable volume, and wash action that produces a "washboard" effect to ensure through cleaning.

The SEP50SL 37bar extraction press has been designed to complement the Universal SL. It does not have pumps but feeds press water back into the wash process.

Improvements have also been made to the Senking batch transfer dryers. Teflon coated stainless-steel drums are now used. Linen often collects bits of plastic as it is processed and after several hours of operation these can melt, blocking the perforations in the dryer drum so that dryer efficiency reduces. The non-stick surface repels the plastic bits preventing them from sticking to the surface and melting.

Residual moisture control ensures accuracy of drying to the required level and a vacuum system transfers goods from the wash line to dryer automatically.

Washroom exhibits also focussed on developments in washer-extractors and the extra benefits now brought by the D'Hooge range.

Remote programmer

The PS40 programmer is now standard throughout and allows machines to be programmed remotely with up to 40 wash formulas. Programming, using Windows, can be carried out via a laptop or PC and programs can be written and saved in advance and then downloaded.

A two-way tilt system has been added to two open-pocket washers, the WE1250 and the WE900.

The machines offer a 15º angle for either unloading or loading with the tilt system operated by two pneumatic air cushions, located at the centre of the side frames. The tilt mechanism also incorporates a pneumatic hinge blocking system.

When the machine is in the unload position, the outer door can be locked mechanically and drum rotation is controlled by pushbuttons.

There is also an automatic unload cycle.

Barrier versions of these machines with one-way tilt are also offered.

A heavy-duty hard-mount range (WH) has also been introduced, based on a former Ipso machine, but now produced in LSG's Panama and Florida factories.

The WH series is described as a perfect match for the tunnel washer, in terms of handling rewash items.

Machines have a rugged steel frame and are claimed to be the only hard-mount models to go to 300G. The SmartSpin compensates for load imbalances.

The machine measures the degree of imbalance within the load by means of an initial distribution spin, and then selects the appropriate extract rate.

At 5% or 10% imbalance the machine can still operate at top extract rate. By judging the G force precisely, says Jensen, the machine is to able extract at a point where competitors' machines will have stopped spinning. Even with a 20% imbalance WH machines will extract at 180G and with 40% at 90G.

Monorail loop

To keep the tunnel washer and washer- extractor supplied with linen, Jensen UK had mounted a ten bag Futurail monorail loop system, loaded automatically by vacuum transfer. The control system pulls work through the system, rather than pushing it which can lead to bottle necks.

The wash area was naturally a focus given the host company's specialisation and that this was effectively the tunnel washer's premiere.

However, the ability to provide total solutions is key to the Jensen LSG's strategy and the other companies within the group also had much to interest visitors.

The ironer is central to the flatwork finishing line. The Jenroll Express aims to increase efficiency by replacing the traditional fixed chest design with a flexible chest. Fixed chest ironers lose capacity when ironer clothing wears, reducing roll diameter.

The flexible chest employed in the Express shapes itself to the roll, compensating for any changes in diameter and maintaining full contact.

Jensen claims that as a result, the machine achieves a 50% higher evaporation capacity over time, so a two-roll ironer delivers a performance equal to that of a fixed chest three-roll model.

The chest is made of top grade carbon steel which has a high thermal conduction rate giving high surface temperature and fast heat transfer to the linen.

Also featured in the flatwork finishing area were the Viking 2000 separator with double picker, and the Variant 4000 feeder which features a leading edge control to make sure linen is presented with a nice square edge.

Keeping watch

The Intelligent Eye scanning system, positioned between ironer and folder, scans finished quality according to pre-selected standards, sorting rejected linen to stacks according to the type of work needed.

A new design of towel folder, the Butterfly Maximat with new templates was also on show.

In garment handling, the system on display, Metricon A is a simplified version, aimed at emerging markets where simplicity and cost are priorities. But at the other end the full Metricon system can handle high volumes at speed, and sort down to individual garments for each worker. Metricon 6000 also marries garment details to the garment carrier, either mechanically with a barcode (Metrilink) or electronically via RFID courtesy of Jensen partner TagSys. The Metricon 6000 allows differing discharge options. For example, garments can be sent to a common discharge rail or bundled together for the intended wearer.

In the garment area, the Maximat folding line was featured. This is a complete modular system, operating on the same folding and stacking principles but differing in the options offered according to speed and type of workwear, some for all garments others designed for light uniforms.

Lobster hanger

A new style of hanger for use in the garment handling system has also been developed. The Lobster has been available for around a year. It has inner and outer clips and suits all types of garments including trousers and dungarees. A particular attraction is its suitability for T-shirts. As the hanger is collapsible, the shirt can be put on it when it is in the folded position - avoiding stretching the collar. When the shirt is in place, the hanger arms are raised to vertical.

Jensen's Cockpit, the area dedicated to showing its software expertise was a constant attraction for the visitors. Demonstrations and explanations of the Prisma (for garment control) and Jenview, a planning tool for optimising flatwork production featured.

With the growing emphasis on efficiency and productivity, software takes on an importance equal to that of the equipment it controls and monitors. So Jensen has set up its software development team and aims to become both a software and hardware supplier.



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