LAKE BUENA VISTA, FL— The large on-premise laundry facilities at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort here have two big benefits as they allow management to keep a watchful eye on results and at the same time offer flexibility. “The advantages of having the production completed on sight [as opposed to outsourcing the laundry]are the ability to closely monitor quality, heightened accountability, prompt processing with greater flexibility and the ability to flex production costs with occupancy needs,” according to Paul Joseph, laundry manager at the Swan. The on-premise laundries allow for fast adjustments when necessary, he noted. “The property has a sizeable amount of meeting space and can accommodate groups of 30 to 40 people or several thousand. Depending on what’s happening, we can make quick changes in set-ups. If, for example, there is an event outdoors and a sudden thunderstorm comes up and the linens get soaked, we can move inside and roll out whatever is needed very quickly,” he said. “There also may be different needs in the rooms. If the room attendants need more sheets because there are more families and rollaways set up, we can provide what they need without having to make phone calls and wait for trucks,” he said. The 1,509-room Dolphin has a 63,999-square-foot laundry and the 756-room Swan has a 6,090-square-foot facility. Both are located in what Joseph refers to as “back stage areas” at the resorts. “They are on the ground level. The Dolphin laundry is in the center of the building and the Swan laundry is near the loading dock,” he said. Both laundry facilities process all guestroom linens including sheets; pillow cases; bath and hand towels; wash clothes; bath mats; and drapes and sheers. They also launder pillow protectors; duvets (inserts and covers); bed skirts; and feather-down blankets. Additionally, the Dolphin and Swan facilities launder food and beverage linens including napkins, table clothes, table skirts, place mats and table runners. The Dolphin laundry handles between 19,000 and 21,000 pounds of laundry on a daily basis; 119,000 to 122,000 pounds weekly; and approximately 500,000 pounds monthly, according to Joseph. At the Swan facility, 9,000 to 11,000 pounds of laundry are processed every day; 65,000 to 70,000 pounds weekly; and 280,000 to 300,000 pounds monthly. A large staff of “cast members” is needed to keep the facilities running, Joseph said. Each facility has a manager, supervisors, finishers, washers/sorters, valet runners and costume issue/seamstresses. The Dolphin has a total staff of 49 with about 30 people working each day, he noted. The hours of operation are from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. “Shifts are staggered and we run just one shift per day,” he said. The Swan’s laundry staff consists of a total of 25 employees with 16 cast members working per day. “The first cast member shows up at 5:30 a.m. to open the costume counter and the last, the valet runner, departs at 9:30 p.m.,” Joseph said. “Shifts are staggered but a majority of our daily staff work 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The schedule is also built around a single shift.” The laundry staff members are dedicated to their task, he added. “They know they are here to take care of the guests and they cherish that role. They have great attitudes and that makes my job easier,” he said. Many of the staff members have been with the 15-year-old resort for a number of years, Joseph noted. “Some came in the beginning. We have mechanics who know the equipment so well that they can hear a single little noise that might indicate a problem and take care of it. They keep the production flowing which is important— if a machine goes down, we can be thousands of pounds behind,” he said. Along with large staffs, the laundry facilities have a good deal of equipment to process the laundry from each property, Joseph noted, with much of it manufactured by Washex and Lavatec. The Dolphin laundry has several washers including a 10-pocket
