NCA charts 2008 with classes, webinars
If your New Year’s resolution is to improve your cleaning skills through education, then the National Cleaners Association will be happy to help.
As 2008 begins, the association will kick-start the year with a multitude of
educational opportunities at its New York School of Dry Cleaning, as well as
online classes so cleaners anywhere in the country can virtually attend.
NCA’s New York School is located at 252 W. 29th St.
First up on its schedule is an offering of NCA’s four-week course on the “Principles and Practices of Pressing.”
The class meets from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays for a total
class time of 24 hours.
Start dates include January 28 and June 2. The cost of tuition is $380 per
person.
The hands-on course focuses on professional pressing and finishing as NCA
instructors show how to correct the pressing mistakes of others and how to
select the proper piece of equipment for any given job.
Attendees will learn about ancillary tools, equipment maintenance and packaging,
as well.
The New York School will also host several offerings of the association’s two-day DEC Certification Courses. The cost to attend is $595 for members and
$1,095 for non-members.
The class meets from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on consecutive Sundays.
Course dates include: Feb. 24 and March 2; June 8 and 22; and Sept. 14 and 21.
NCA also offers the course in Korean. The dates are: Feb. 17 and 24; May 11 and
18; and Aug. 24 and 31.
A comprehensive five-day course on “Radical Drycleaning/Stain Removal” will meet from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday for a total of 40
class hours.
The class will be in session March 3-7 and Aug. 4-8. Tuition is $750 for members
and $995 for non-members.
Also on tap in 2008 will be NCA’s signature course — “Principles and Practices of Drycleaning.” The class meets on Mondays and Wednesdays from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. for a total
of ten weeks.
The 80-hour course covers everything a person needs to know to become a master
cleaner, from the chemistry of stain removal to garment construction, fiber
identification and machinery operation and maintenance.
Attendees will be able to work on sample fabric swatches that are treated with a
wide variety of stains and will be given numerous opportunities to practice and
develop proper stain removal techniques and skills.
Start dates for the course are Jan. 28 and June 2. The cost to enroll is $970
per person.
The course will also be taught in Korean twice in 2008. The first session will
begin on April 15; the second is slated to start on Sept. 16.
In April, NCA will present its three-day “Basic Pressing and Finishing” course from the 11th to the 13th.
The class will meet from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The
cost is $455 for members and $595 for non-members.
Of course, it is not always logistically possible for cleaners to travel to the
New York School of Dry Cleaning to partake in an educational session, but
thantks to the Internet and NCA’s webnars, distance is no longer a barrier to the learning process.
NCA will continue to present several offerings of its webinar educational series
so cleaners can listen to seminars on the phone and follow along with
PowerPoint presentations on their home or business computer.
The fee to participate in a web-inar is $69 for telephone and Web-based
participation, which includes an audio tape of the seminar for everyone.
The cost is $69 plus $7 shipping and handling for cleaners who wish to obtain a
copy of the program on CD.
Upcoming webinars include: “Door to Door Selling” by James Peuster on Jan. 29; “Marketing Programs” by Nora Nealis on Feb. 20; “Cleaning Drapes Where They Hang” by Jeff Berkowitz on March 19; “Strategy #7” by Jason Loeb on April 16; “Stain Removal/Spring & Summer Fashions” by Alan Spielvogel on May 21; and “Solvent Technology Breakthroughs” by Mike Tatch on June 18.
NCA already has several more webinars scheduled for the second half of 2008, as
well.
The list includes: “Doing A Good Shirt” by Alan Spielvogel on July 16; “Wetcleaning: Beyond 40%“ by Ann Hargrove on Aug. 20; “Employee Orientation” by Jason Loeb on Sept. 17; “Innovative Packing” on Oct. 15; and “Finishing w/Tensioning Equipment” by Kathy Childers on Nov. 19.
All webinars take place on Wednesdays at 6 p.m. EST. Registration is on a first
come, first served basis.
For more information, contact NCA, (800) 888-1622.
