Wir überwinden Grenzen

More efficient, more environmentally friendly and more economical: this is how the energy supply in the laundry at Freiburg University Hospital should be. In a cross-departmental project between the laundry service at the hospital and the energy technology department, the steam pressure in the laundry was successfully reduced from 10 bar to 4 bar. This significantly reduced energy consumption, which led to a reduction in operating costs and a noticeable improvement in the_{CO2 balance}: A total of 712 tons of_{CO2 emissions} are saved every year. "This corresponds to the annual emissions of 236 average single-family homes," explains Joachim Schmeiser, Head of the Energy Technology Department in the Technology Division at the University Medical Center Freiburg.

Gentle drying and smoothing

Thanks to the precise adjustments, the textiles are subjected to significantly less stress during drying and pressing. The laundry now dries more evenly without overheating. This saves energy and protects textiles from heat-related damage such as loss of tensile strength and loss of color. The gentle treatment doubles the lifespan of the laundry: whereas previously 35 tons of laundry had to be replaced each year, now only 17.5 tons have to be purchased, according to the production management of the laundry service at the hospital.

Pleasant working conditions

But it's not just the environment that benefits from the changeover: working conditions have also improved for employees at the hospital's laundry service. Measurements at the workplace have shown that the temperature load has dropped significantly, particularly on the clean side.

"By working together across departments, we were able to make the working environment more pleasant," says Thomas Rotzler from the laundry service at the hospital. "Our project shows that sustainable changes in energy supply are not only ecologically and economically beneficial, but can also be implemented without compromising production capacity and the quality of the laundry."