Success Stories - Fire Departments

Gerald C. Matter
Deputy Chief for City of West Allis Fire Dept., West Allis, WI

Here in West Allis, our Fire Department consists of three separate fire houses, with a total of 118 firefighters. The laundering of all fire-fighting gear, rig towels, dish towels, and bed linens is done at a central site, using a single UniMac 35-pound washer.

We used to send all this laundry out for cleaning, but it was expensive - nearly fourteen dollars per set of gear. Two years ago, we decided to install the UniMac UW35 for three basic reasons. One of those reasons is NFPA regulation compliance. Another is turn-around time: whereas it used to take us three to five days to get our gear back clean, we can now launder a set of gear ourselves in a matter of hours. Finally, there are the savings in time and money. Not only is the UW35 easy to operate, it has paid for itself in the two years we've had it. We have time and money for more important things. Our UniMac washer helps us run a tight operation.