It is important to us at Jacksons Workwear Rental to keep up with the latest trends and improvements in the workwear and laundry industry. Not only do the renovations at Jacksons improve efficiency and productivity, but they also increase safety and enhance our overall work environment. Over the past few years, along with our successful rebrand which you can read about in our blog post here, we have decided to upgrade our production equipment and systems. With our continued modernisation we are ensuring that we provide the best possible service to our customers. Our Managing Director Steve Pearce and our Finance Director and Company Secretary Ed Eckhard considered all factors when coming to a decision on which equipment best suits our needs. They spent several months drawing up plans to ensure minimal disturbance during the change, as it’s crucial that the service to our customers is not disrupted.
New year, new tunnel!
Renovating During a Pandemic
The pandemic disrupted many companies, but we are proud to say we coped well and made sure we provided our customers with their workwear so they could work through it. We all know how important it is to have PPE, and the pandemic really proved that. In 2021, amidst the pandemic, we utilised the time to revamp our production area. Our team discussed, strategised, and successfully executed the renovations which involved installing new flooring, new machinery, and an improved system.
As a family-owned business with one processing plant, we place extremely high importance on ensuring that our customers are not inconvenienced during change. Our Production Manager Tom Laidler, and Engineer Steve Lee collaborated to put together a thorough plan that ensured the old equipment was taken away in tandem with our new system being installed, with the aim of minimising disruption and being able to continue on with our laundry and rental services like usual.
Along with the need to replace old equipment, we also needed to increase our capacity to facilitate growth. Our renovations allow us to double our capacity in production figures and process the circulation of work faster whilst improving our finished product. As a result, this allows us to cater for intakes of new customers, whilst still providing exceptional service to our existing ones.
In addition to the new tunnel, we also relocated our sewing room to make our operations more efficient. Our new sewing room is now directly in line with one of the finishing tunnel production rails allowing us to streamline the process. As a result, the former sewing room has been repurposed as our washroom services hub. Since most of our customers require towels, this new space has greatly improved our washroom organisation and efficiency.
Environmentally-Friendly improvements
At Jacksons, we also prioritised environmental factors and took them into consideration throughout the renovations. By upgrading the equipment we’re able to reduce our energy usage and in turn our carbon footprint. Furthermore, thanks to Abacus Flooring Solutions, we had a new resin floor installed made entirely from 100% recycled white plastic throughout our factory, and we’re thrilled with the results.
We are also thankful to Kannegiesser for the smooth process and installation of the new equipment; the finishing tunnel and the folding machine. Although we knew it would be challenging, with the help of Kannegiesser, we successfully introduced our new production system with relatively little stress, and we’re delighted with the outcome and how it has positively changed our laundry processes.
Installations Department Refurb
Building on the success of our rebranding and the expansion of our production facilities in recent years, we’re also excited to announce the upgrade of our Installations department. Our Customer Service and Sales Manager Rebecca Wilson, along with our Service Coordinator Ellie Dunn, carefully thought through this upgrade to ensure that we improved our processes and utilised the space effectively. The refurbishment will allow us to better supply our existing customers and accommodate new customers by increasing capacity and maximising efficiency. The changes include new work surfaces, heat press machines, and a reconfiguration of the department to provide more space and an improved working environment.
Improving efficiency
We completely transformed our stock room and meticulously organised it to create a well-managed space that maximizes the available area. This new process helps enable us to use underwritten stock for a quick turnaround on beyond garments and stock for additional wearers. We also stock our most popular flame retardant styles to aid in the quick turnaround. You can click the photo below to see what other workwear we offer!
A new and improved installations department
Our installations team is responsible for processing new workwear to send out to current and new customers and has been making numerous improvements to our service over the last twelve months. Ben, who has been with us since January 2022 as an Installations Assistant, is excited about the refurb and potential for further improvement:
“I’ve only been here for a year, but even before the refurb so much had changed as we worked to speed up and improve our service. Now the department is unrecognisable! There’s so much more space and it’s a much nicer area throughout. We now have a fantastic base to be able to continue providing our customers with a quick and reliable service.”
To kick off 2023, we have also been adding some colour into our workspaces. We have added some fresh paint in the installations department and some new blinds which really brighten the room up!
Throughout this whole process, the atmosphere on site has been apprehension and excitement. The renovations in the past few years have meant we were able to progress in the quality of our finished products, and allowed us to add volume to our order book. The renovations have also helped us improve our efficiency and productivity. It’s amazing to see it all come together. We have some exciting plans and can’t wait for what’s to come for the rest of the year!
If you’d like to visit and see the changes made for yourself, or see the whole process in action, please get in touch by using our contact form here.
