National Clothesline

The International Fabricare Institute and the Southwest Drycleaners Association have announced two upcoming seminars in Missouri and Louisiana this October.

Instructor Lorraine Muir will discuss stain removal on Saturday, Oct. 14 at R.J. Kool Equipment Co., located at 234 W. 12th Ave. in N. Kansas City, MO.

The program will begin at 9 a.m. and run for about seven hours. Completion of the course is worth two Award of Excellence points.

The educational program will cover a variety of cleaning topics, including: problems removing stains from silk and rayon; color loss or change; and rings and watermarks that result in dissatisfied customers.

Muir will help attendees improve their stain removal techniques by offering live demonstrations and hands-on training designed to reduce the potential for fabric damage.

She will also examine fabric characteristics, mineral oil barriers, bleaches, stain removal agents and procedures, and more.

Attendees are encouraged to bring in their own problem garments to be worked on, as well.

The cost to attend is $99 for IFI/SDA members, and only $89 for each additional member from the same plant. Non-members pay $129 each, and only $119 for additional non-members from the same plant.

The price includes lunch and all materials.

On Thursday, Oct. 19, IFI Garment Analyst Chris Allsbrooks will be in Alexandria, LA, to deliver an educational session on “The Basics of Customer Service” from 7 to 9 p.m.

The program will be held at the Clarion Hotel and Conference Center, located at 2716 N Mac Arthur Dr.

Allsbrooks, CPD, CPW, is currently in her 14th years as a textile analyst in IFI’s International Textile Analysis Laboratory where she helps analyze about 10,000 damaged garments and various other items annually.

She will teach attendees about what their customers want and expect from a cleaning plant and will help them develop effective strategies to deal with the public in a way that will built customer loyalty for life.

The session is not just for counter personnel, either; everyone in a cleaning facility can produce a better product if they are aware of their customers’ wants and expectations.

The cost is only $35 for members, or $25 if three or more cleaners from the same member plant attend. Non-members must pay $45 each.

The seminar is worth one Award of Excellence point.

To register, call (800) 638-2627, ext. 1603, or visit SDA’s site at www.sda-dryclean.com and download the PDF registration forms. Fill out the forms and send payment to: IFI Education Dept., 14700 Sweitzer Lane, Laurel, MD 20707.

Also on SDA’s web site is information on two upcoming courses taught by Jane Zellers at the International Textile Center on the campus of Texas Tech University in Lubbock.

A basic stain removal class will meet Nov. 13-15, followed by an advanced stain removal class that runs from Nov. 15-17.

Both classes are worth five Award of Excellence points.

The cost for the basic stain removal class is $325 for SDA members and $395 for other IFI members. Non-members pay $460 each. Cost for the advanced class is $315 for SDA members, $380 for other members and $445 for non-members.