National Clothesline

The Royaltone Academy in Tulsa, OK, has announced three sessions of its two-day leather cleaning training classes for the coming year.

The courses emphasize both classroom instruction and hands-on training by founder Frank Lucenta and his staff.

Those who attend will learn how to increase their profits by keeping their suede and leather cleaning in their own plants, while, at the same time, cutting costs for cleaning supplies. It is also a great opportunity to meet with other plant owners to network and exchange plant operation advice.

The class will meet from 8:30 a.m. to 3: 30 p.m. on each day of the program.

On the morning of the first day, students will learn about the characteristics of suede & leather; the identification of skins; peculiarities of suede & leather; acceptance techniques made easy; invoice ticket preparation; spotting techniques for drycleaning; machine configuration and similar topics.

In the afternoon, the focus of the class will shift to spotting for wetcleaning; an introduction to spraying suedes; spraying neutrals and dyes; restoring luster and color; and water repelling and sizing.

On the second day of class, attendees will apply the techniques they learned during the first day in a hands-on setting under a supervised “actual operating conditions” at the Suede Mate plant.

Upcoming 2006 class dates include Feb. 2 and 3; May 11 and 12; Sept. 14 and 15. All dates are a Thursday-Friday sequence.

Enrollment in the Royaltone Leather Cleaning Academy is limited to seven plant owners/managers for each session and is filled on a first come basis.

The cost of the two day program is $400 per attendee with additional discounts available for early enrollment and multiple attendees. All attendees receive a complete instruction manual in English, Korean or Spanish.

For more information, call (800) 331-5506 or (918) 622-6677 or send e-mail to: royaltone@royaltone.com.

Information is also available at www.royaltone.com.

As temperatures drop at the end of the year, several cleaners in Texas are hoping generosity will rise as they begin a regional Coats for Kids campaign co-sponsored by Longview Community Ministries.

In 2004, approximately 1,000 coats, as well as blue jeans and hand-knitted caps, were collected, cleaned and distributed to children in need in the Longview area.

Many volunteers worked on the project, which offered a Classroom Challenge, sponsored by KLTV Channel 7, where local schools competed to collect the most number of coats. Last year, Pine Tree Middle 7 campus was the winner and received a traveling trophy that will move on to this year’s winner.

Once collected, all the garments are cleaned free of charge by participating area cleaners, including: Alpine Cleaners & Laundry; Dry Clean Super Center; Four Seasons Cleaners & Laundry; McLendon Cleaners; Peerless Laundry & Dry Cleaning; Service Cleaners; Sno-White Laundry & Dry Cleaners; U.S. $1.99 Cleaners; Finish Line Cleaners; Village Cleaners; Family Cleaners; and Classic Cleaners.