Will there be perc in your future?
For drycleaners in California, the days of perc appear to be numbered. Some may
be forced to switch to a non-perc system in the near future. Others will have a
few years, depending on the age of their existing equipment, to change over.
Drycleaners outside of California are, thus far, not facing any state statutory
limits on their ability to continue using perc, but many are encountering
resistance from landlords to the solvent
’s use and finding themselves forced to look at alternatives. And when a state
the size of California makes a move, it is likely to have a ripple effect
across the country.
There really is no good reason for banning perc. It’s health effects have been investigated thoroughly over the past 30 years and
even the worst-case analysis indicates that its hazards are not great,
especially when used with the best modern equipment and up-to-date operating
practices. The problem is that perc has taken a beating in the court of public
opinion with arguments against it fueled by cause-oriented environmentalists
and supplemented, we are sorry to say, by some within the industry who seem to
think their best selling point is to proclaim themselves
“green” compared to all those other toxic-using drycleaners. These sources of anti-perc
disinformation have created a steady drumbeat in the media against perc.
Down through the years, we have suspected that behind the anti-perc assaults
there lurks a more general anti-drycleaner sentiment, so we won
’t be surprised when a favored alternative to perc comes under attack. Already,
we
’re hearing harrumphing about hydrocarbon solvents from some environmentalists.
Cleaners who now trumpet themselves as
“green” may be surprised to find that they, too, are in the environmentalists’ cross-hairs.
Be that as it may, it behooves cleaners — at least those who plan to stay in the business for more than a few years — to begin studying the perc alternatives now, and to keep up to date on
developments in the field, so that when the time comes they will be able to
make an informed and intelligent decision on their choice of solvent.
Practical applications of technology
If necessity is the mother of invention, then creative minds need to get
cracking. The
“iRon” gadget on the front page might be a product of wishful thinking for those who
do not want to spend drycleaning dollars but are tired of slaving over a hot
ironing board all day; however, that doesn
’t keep consumers from dreaming of new gadgets that will make their lives easier
and just plain more fun. But what about drycleaners? Who is going to make
inventions to ease their burdens?
If Apple can invent a new iPhone that seems primed to capture the market as
quickly and mercilessly as its iPod, why can
’t the company put some products for cleaners on their drawing board? They’ve already revolutionized the computer, film, music and telecommunication
industries, so, logically, the next natural progression is to turn to
drycleaning.
If Steve Jobs is out there reading this, here are a couple of suggestions:
iRegulator. This simple device is fueled by caller-I.D. technology and an iPod,
both of which are hooked up to your drycleaning plant
’s phone lines. Whenever an EPA or CARB representative calls (or any other member
of a designated governing board) with the intention of increasing solvent
regulation and/or drycleaning fees, or to set an appointment for a paperwork
inspection, music plays in place of the normal ringtone so you know not to
answer. Of course, the music cues are programmed by the user. We suggest:
“We’re Not Going to Take It Anymore” by 1980s big hair rocker Twisted Sister.
iSpin. Tired of bad press? Are you sick of drycleaning being, ironically, a
dirty word? This portable satellite transmission receiving device attaches to
your television set and delays program viewing by about 15 seconds
— just enough time to filter out any news story or “consumer watchdog” report that hails drycleaning as the cause of the coming Armageddon. When such
stories appear, your TV will automatically transmit rerun episodes of The
Jeffersons instead.
As an added bonus, the iSpin also records all positive drycleaning stories that
are transmitted on the air in TiVo-like fashion. The storage capacity is two
hours, more than enough for six months
’ worth of positive publicity programming. Future iSpin accessories would
naturally include the iPrint for newspaper and magazine smear stories and the
iCan
’tHearYou for radio sound bytes that attack the industry.