Silver Hanger Cleaners, Bellingham

TURI provided a matching grant to Silver Hanger Cleaners in Bellingham, Massachusetts in 2008 to convert its operations from perchloroethylene-based to water-based processes. Two years of data were collected from the facility, reflecting one year of solvent use and one year of dedicated professional wet cleaning.

The analysis of the data, including capital costs, performance metrics, operational costs, and resource use and associated costs showed a savings of $2,749 per year. Download the case study for more details.

Mark Isabelle, owner of Silver Hanger Cleaners for 14 years, renovated his existing store, removed the third generation PCE machine, and installed wet cleaning equipment consisting of a washer, dryer, and tensioning equipment. With only a few days of down time for the conversion, he opened his facility as a dedicated wet cleaning facility in November of 2008.

Silver Hanger Cleaners now conducts wet cleaning and laundry operations in about 1300 square feet of renovated space. Isabelle hopes to expand soon to accommodate another wet cleaning machine. The facility operates with about 7 full-time equivalent employees and cleans an average of 110 items per day.