14 February 2020. – Girbau, the leading firm in the world in integrated professional solutions, has renovated the laundry at the Hospital Clínico Universitario Lozano Blesa in Zaragoza. The installation of cutting-edge Girbau machinery will allow them to really improve productivity, energy efficiency and capacity, meaning they can double the volume of laundry processed, going from 1.3 million kilos per year, to up to three million kilos.
Similarly, the transformation of the laundry will help to considerably reduce the hospital's environmental impact by bringing energy consumption down to a minimum. In this respect, according to the company's calculations, they will also reduce water consumption over 30% when washing textiles. Apart from bringing down the water footprint of the washing process, the machinery installed by Girbau will also help the hospital not to go above the agreed levels of gas and electricity, bringing down the consumption of natural resources.
Innovation beyond technology
The renovation of the laundry has been structured through an innovative Public Procurement for Innovation (PPI) format through which a public body seeks to cover a need that has not been met through innovative solutions. The public procurement for innovation project, the result of a collaboration between Girbau and Hospital Clínico Universitario, was awarded the Amparo Poch prize for the best Public Procurement for Innovation 2019. The award, given by the Cátedra IACS (the Aragonese Health Sciences Institute), recognises projects and initiatives that have used this form of procurement to improve healthcare services. José Luis Sancho, deputy manager of Hospital Clínico confirmed that the contracting format has huge advantages: “With the new PPI contracting format, we have been able to get a service that is crucial for how our hospital operated, sharing the importance of the management and improvement achieved with the contracted company. This is a development that is currently being applied in other services with good results and that both Hospital Clínico Universitario Lozano Blesa and Girbau have identified as an opportunity for progress. Working day in, day out at a specialist service provision company is the best way to move forward in our daily work, looking for the best working conditions for the staff, alongside better effectiveness in carrying out our own activities and better efficiency in energy, consumption and labour performance. Currently, given the first months of operations, we can confirm that the SIGLA project will be complete success.”
The procurement agreement, for an amount of €6.1M and with a valid term of 12 years, has been split into two batches, one for laundry and the other for storage and distribution through automated systems, which were awarded to Girbau and La Fábrica del Software respectively.
The innovative project implemented alongside Hospital Clínico is a clear display of how Girbau is consolidating its leading position in the business as a service model, based not just on supplying goods but also in offering clients an integrated service. In this respect, Girbau will provide the equipment and offer a quality service that will mean that the hospital doesn't have to worry about a thing, and it ensures optimum functioning of the service at all times.
As such, Girbau is consolidating its commitment to continue moving towards servitisation and client support, leading with an innovative format and future business model. Toni Domínguez, Sales Engineering Manager at Girbau, has showcased the novel formula for renovation that the hospital has selected, as well as the synergies established between both partners. Domínguez stated: “Implementing a project of this scale is no simple feat but working alongside the hospital made this possible for the centre to have a renovated laundry with a better service. What’s more, through the public procurement for innovation system used, the hospital can offer patients better quality and reduce its environmental impact without having to make an investment as such.”
The project in detail
The hospital has removed its washing machines that were over 26 years old and, in their place, Girbau has installed an ironing station and a continuous laundry tunnel that improves productivity and integrates a water recirculation and recycling system. At the same time, the new laundry tunnel ensures an ergonomic position for workers, avoiding heavy lifting when loading and unloading the washing machines and tumble dryers. Furthermore, they have installed a water extraction press that increases the extraction of water, allowing for shorter drying cycles and energy savings.
The work completed between Girbau and Hospital Clínico in Zaragoza is a real sign of the great synergy between the two partners. Once the technical proposal was selected, Girbau supported and advised the hospital throughout the entire design and planning process for the renovation. Furthermore, this included a training and education service for the staff on how to use and manage the laundry.