How Are Rental Work Uniforms Cleaned? Inside the CITY’s Process for Laundry
Grease, grime, metal dust, and food soils do not come out in a home washing machine. They come out in a process built for exactly that. Every week, work uniforms leave job sites dirty and come back clean, finished, and ready to wear. So what actually happens in between?
“It all really starts when we pick up the soil. As you pick up the soil, it has to be separated correctly. Make sure that we don’t have different materials and different soil types mixed together,” said Colin Wetlaufer, President of CITY Laundering Co.
“We’ve got the advantage that you don’t have at home of having 750-pound open-pocket extractors that we can really get a good work on those clothes,” Colin said.
The short answer: Rental work uniforms are cleaned in an industrial laundry through a controlled, multi-step process. Soiled garments are sorted by fabric and soil type, weighed for the correct load size, washed in large commercial machines with monitored chemistry, inspected by hand, dried, finished in a steam tunnel, sorted back to each employee, and wrapped for clean delivery. At CITY’s Industrial processing plant, that process also recycles roughly 70 percent of the water used.
Key Takeaways
- Industrial uniform cleaning starts with sorting by fabric and soil type, first on the truck and again at the plant.
- Every load is weighed, because the right load size is what lets time, chemistry, and machine action do their job.
- CITY works with chemistry partner Norchem Corporation and checks chemical and detergent levels daily.
- Every garment gets a human inspection, and anything that is not up to standard is pulled before it goes back on the route.
- Clean uniforms are hung and sorted for transport so they arrive free of dust and dirt.
- CITY’s UltraPure system recycles roughly 70 percent of the water used in the wash process.
Why Can’t Work Uniforms Just Be Washed at Home?
Home washers are not designed for industrial soils. Grease, oils, chemicals, and heavy dirt need larger machines, stronger mechanical action, commercial chemistry, and precise load control to come out consistently. Washing heavily soiled workwear at home can also bring those contaminants into the household laundry since the debris doesn’t leave your home washer as easily.
An industrial laundry controls every variable. Load weight, wash time, water temperature, chemistry, and machine action are all set for the type of garment and the type of soil, so the results are the same week after week.
What Are the Steps in Industrial Uniform Cleaning?
Here is how CITY Industrial takes a uniform from soiled to ready to wear.
The process begins at your facility. Your CITY Route Service Representative picks up soiled garments and begins separating them right on the truck.
“Your route service representative is responsible for most of that. They’ll do a small soil sort on the truck,” Colin said.
2. A Second, More Detailed Sort at the Plant
Back at the facility, garments are separated even further so that like fabrics and like soils are washed together.
“When they get back to our facility, we will separate it even further. Make sure that all the soil’s exactly together,” Colin said.
Before anything goes into a washer, it is weighed. Proper load size is one of the most important and most overlooked parts of getting clothes clean.
“You’ve got to make sure that the right amount of soil is weighed before it goes in the washer so that you’re getting the right ingredients into the soup,” Colin said.
“That soup is the time that it takes to wash the clothes, the chemistry that you use, and the mechanical action of the washer,” he added.
Many people assume an overloaded washer is the biggest problem. Colin explained that too little in the machine can be just as harmful.
“Under-loading and having not enough in the washer is a bigger problem than overloading. It really just floats. And those garments, towels, whatever, just sit in the water, and they don’t get enough of that mechanical action. So proper load sizing is really important,” Colin said.
4. Washing with Monitored Chemistry
Garments are washed in large commercial machines using chemistry matched to the soil type. CITY works with a third-party chemistry partner, Norchem Corporation, to keep every wash in line.
“Making sure that our chemical delivery system works properly every time is a big part of it,” Colin said.
“We work with a third-party vendor, Norchem, to make sure our chemistry is in line all the time. Check those levels daily,” he added.
Technology runs the wash, but people check the results.
“And then there’s the final, human element of looking in the washer. Making sure it comes out bright, white, clean,” Colin said.
6. Drying, Hanging, and Steam Tunnel Finishing
Clean garments are dried correctly, hung, and sent through a steam tunnel, which finishes them with a crisp, professional look without the wear that comes from harsh pressing.
7. Sorting Back to Each Employee
Garments are sorted back to each route and each employee. CITY uses a UHF tracking system, so every item is logged as it moves through the plant. This step is also a final quality checkpoint.
“As we sort the garments to the route, we can see if there’s anything we missed. And if it’s not pearly white, we can pull that out and make sure it’s up to your standards,” Colin said.
Garments are also checked for missing buttons, worn stitching, and other repairs, which are handled before the uniform goes back out.
The last step protects all of that work on the way back to you.
“We’re going to put it in containers. Certain uniforms are wrapped up in poly so that it’s coming back to you with no dust, no dirt,” Colin said.
Who Does the Work Behind Clean Uniforms?
Behind every clean uniform is a production team that moves thousands of pieces a day. At CITY, that team knows customers are counting on them every morning.
“It all starts here. We have to get the customer’s garments done or their mats done and push them out the door so they can go to work the next day and wear some clothes,” said Katie Buhman, Production Supervisor at CITY Laundering Co.
“The customers are depending on us, the drivers are depending on us,” Katie said.
“We have to get it done. There’s no just stopping and, ‘Oh, I’m going to finish it Monday,’” she added.
Is Industrial Laundry Better for the Environment?
Industrial laundries can use water, energy, and chemistry far more efficiently than washing garments in small batches at home or on site. At CITY, the Norchem UltraPure system captures water from the wash process, filters it, and returns roughly 70 percent of it to the cycle to be used again. CITY recycled more than 3.2 million gallons of water through that system in 2026 by late summer alone.
“This industry was one of the original recyclers, and our efforts to reuse water and extend the life cycle of our products are a continuation of that legacy,” Colin said.
Every uniform that is laundered, repaired, and returned is also a garment kept in service rather than thrown away and replaced.
What Does “Hygienically Clean” Mean for Food Processing Uniforms?
Hygienically clean is a third-party certification from TRSA that verifies a laundry’s process produces textiles safe for food processing and other sensitive environments. It includes documented processes, ongoing inspections, and bacteriological testing of finished goods.
“With food safety, there’s no room for errors,” Colin said.
CITY Laundering Co holds TRSA Hygienically Clean certification, which means food processing customers receive garments from an audited, verified process.
How Do I Know if My Uniform Provider Is Cleaning Garments Properly?
Ask your provider these questions:
- Do you sort garments by fabric and soil type before washing?
- Do you weigh loads to make sure every wash is the right size?
- Who manages your wash chemistry, and how often are levels checked?
- Is every garment inspected before it goes back to my employees?
- Are repairs handled automatically, or do I have to request them?
- How are clean garments protected during transport?
- Do you hold third-party certifications, such as TRSA Hygienically Clean?
If the answers are vague, your uniforms may not be getting the care they need.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often are rental work uniforms cleaned?
Most uniform rental programs, including CITY’s, run on a weekly cycle. Your Route Service Representative picks up soiled garments and drops off clean ones on the same visit, so employees always have a clean set ready.
Can an industrial laundry remove grease and oil from work uniforms?
Yes. Industrial laundries use commercial chemistry, larger machines, and wash formulas matched to specific soil types, including grease and oil. Sorting garments by soil type before washing is a key part of getting those soils out consistently.
Why does load size matter in industrial laundry?
Load size controls how much mechanical action each garment receives. If a washer is under-loaded, garments float in the water instead of tumbling and scrubbing against each other, and they do not come out as clean.
What happens if a uniform does not come back clean?
At CITY, garments are inspected after washing and again when they are sorted to the route. Anything that does not meet the standard is pulled and reprocessed before it goes back to the customer.
Are rental uniforms repaired as part of the service?
Yes. CITY checks garments for missing buttons, worn stitching, and other issues during processing, and repairs or replaces them as part of the program.
Is industrial uniform laundry environmentally friendly?
It can be. CITY’s Norchem UltraPure system recycles roughly 70 percent of the water used in the wash process, and reusing garments keeps workwear in service longer instead of sending it to a landfill.
Clean Uniforms Without the Hassle
You should not have to think about how your uniforms get clean. You should just be able to count on it. That is the job of CITY Industrial, from the first sort on the truck to the poly wrap on delivery day.
If you are a current customer, ask your Route Service Representative how we can make your day even easier. If you are not yet a CITY customer, visit CITYcleanandsimple.com to see how CITY Laundering Co can keep your team clean and simple.
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