Site
visit:
UniFirst
Corporation
4300
Castlewood
Road
Richmond,
Virginia
23234
Participants:
Mark
Lewallen­
Production
Manager
Shawn
Musachio­
General
Manager
Stephen
Aquilino­
Senior
Environmental
Scientist
David
Dunlap­
UTSA
Robert
Schaffer­
TRSA
Robert
Dellinger­
EPA­
OSW
Charlotte
Mooney­
EPA­
OSW
Teena
Wooten­
EPA­
OSW
Date:
February
23,
2006
Teena
Wooten,
Charlotte
Mooney,
and
Robert
Dellinger
from
EPA
visited
the
UniFirst
Corporation
in
Richmond,
VA.
The
visit
began
with
a
pre­
brief
of
the
laundry
operations.
Mark
Lewallen
explained
that
the
washers
are
open
pocket
washer
extractors.
The
facility
has
six
450
lb
washers,
a
900
lb
washer,
two
small
washers,
and
three
dryers.
The
washers
are
front­
loading
which
reduces
the
water
requirements.
Using
front­
loading
washers
reduced
water
usage
by
25%.
Washers
are
pre­
programmed
with
specific
formulas
based
on
product
type
and
soil
content.
The
washers
are
programmed
with
the
time,
temperature,
and
weight,
at
which
time,
the
washer
programming
determines
the
amount
of
detergent
and
other
additives
necessary
for
the
load.
The
soil
is
suspended
in
the
water
and
then
drained
to
the
dissolved
air
floatation
system.
The
sludge
is
dewatered
and
tested
annually
for
priority
pollutants.
Approximately
three
tons
of
sludge
is
sent
to
the
landfill
weekly.
The
laundry
processes
30,000
­
40,000
gallons
of
wastewater
per
day.
The
laundry
has
a
boiler
permit
for
air
emissions
and
the
boiler
is
inspected
annually.

UniFirst
provides
soil
bins
for
dirty
laundry
and
bags
and
bag
stands
for
shop
towels.
Nylon
bags
are
used
because
they
can
be
washed
thus
eliminating
additional
waste
that
would
be
generated
by
using
plastic
bags.
The
laundry,
acting
as
the
transporter,
collects
and
tags
the
dirty
laundry
to
identify
the
customer.
At
the
laundry
the
materials
are
sorted
by
color
and
material
types
and
placed
in
large
nylon
bags
with
dry
strings
on
both
ends
to
facilitate
handling.

EPA
was
particularly
interested
in
how
the
facility
handles
towels.
We
were
told
that
the
towels
are
weighed
upon
receipt,
then
bagged
and
sent
by
rail
to
the
washers.
The
towels
are
batched
and
washed
separately
from
the
uniforms.
The
laundry
has
three
lines
for
towels:
white
(
bar
towels),
red
(
shop
towels)
and
blue
(
inking
company
product).
Under
the
company
policy,
the
laundry
does
not
accept
towels
with
a
strong
odor
or
that
contain
free
liquid.
When
the
towels
are
collected
from
the
customer,
the
truck
operator
will
check
the
towels
for
free
liquids
before
accepting
them.
If
liquids
are
observed,
the
truck
operator
will
not
accept
the
load.
If
the
user
continues
to
have
free
liquids,
the
laundry
will
provide
directions
on
the
proper
handling
of
the
towels.
On
occasion
when
towels
do
contain
solvents,
the
laundry
has
a
small
washer
to
remove
the
solvent
before
combining
the
towels
with
other
towels.
The
waste
from
the
small
washer
is
sent
to
the
facility's
waste
treatment
unit.
Generally,
UniFirst
returns
the
towels
with
liquids
to
the
generator.

After
cleaning
an
inspector
determines
the
quality
of
the
wipe.
A
wipe
can
last
5­
8
turns
before
it
becomes
a
"
second".
Since
towels
are
valuable,
no
decision
is
made
on
whether
a
towel
is
too
worn
for
continued
use
prior
to
washing.
If
after
washing
a
towel
is
not
suitable
to
return
to
the
customer,
UniFirst
will
sell
the
"
second"
for
use
as
a
rag.
At
the
end
of
the
process,
the
reusable
towels
and
"
seconds"
are
counted
and
bagged
in
quantities
of
fifty.

The
tour
finished
in
the
waste
treatment
area.
Sludges
from
the
waste
treatment
system
go
through
a
plate
and
frame
filter
press.
The
dewatered
solids
are
sent
to
a
non­
hazardous
waste
landfill.
UniFirst
is
required
to
run
a
TCLP
on
the
sludges
once
a
year;
the
sludge
does
not
fail
the
TCLP
rest.
