UnityPoint Health selects Midwest Healthcare Linen Service as its laundry partner, entering a long-term agreement with Midwest and Ecotex

DES MOINES, IOWA (June 15, 2018) – Randy Bartsch, President and CEO of Ecotex Healthcare Linen Service and its Midwest Healthcare Linen Service business unit, is pleased to announce a new long-term agreement with Urbandale, Iowa based UnityPoint Health. Ecotex and Midwest will become the new laundry and linen partner for all of hospitals in the UnityPoint Health network in Iowa and Illinois.  The agreement takes effective on July 1, 2018.

“Our new Midwest Healthcare Linen Service business unit will become the sole supplier for laundry and linen service programs to UnityPoint Health and other hospitals and medical facilities in Iowa and along the I-80 corridor between Peoria, Illinois and Omaha, Nebraska”, said Bartsch. To add processing capability, Ecotex is purchasing the large-scale laundry facility in Des Moines from UnityPoint Health, and assuming operations of the facility from Aramark.

UnityPoint Health will benefit from the skilled, hands-on “local” service team supported by one of North America’s most progressive healthcare laundry and linen specialists.  The hospitals in the UnityPoint Health system will receive reliable deliveries of high-quality, certified Hygienically Clean® processed healthcare laundry, and linen services now and well into the future.


ABOUT ECOTEX

Ecotex Healthcare Linen Service is a leading provider of contracted healthcare laundry and linen services to hospitals, sub-acute and medical facilities in the United States and Canada. Ecotex provides a comprehensive range of general linen and operating room linen processing, management and distribution services to large hospitals, medical clinics, and other commercial accounts. Ecotex is a privately held corporation with offices in Seattle, Toronto, and Vancouver, and has over 1000 employees. For more information, please visit www.SmarterLinenSolutions.com.

Ecotex awarded laundry and linen services contract for Abbotsford Regional Hospital and Cancer Centre

ABBOTSFORD, CANADA (March 5, 2018) – Ecotex Healthcare Linen Service is proud to announce that following a competitive procurement process, it was awarded a new contract to serve the Abbotsford Regional Hospital & Cancer Centre.

“This is great news for Ecotex, and for Abbotsford”, said Randy Bartsch, the CEO of Ecotex adding, “winning this contract allows us to bring new jobs back into our local community”.

Bryan Bartsch, Ecotex Group Vice President, said “Six generations of the Bartsch family have lived here in the Abbotsford community. Our entire family and our employees are proud to bring our companies high quality linen services to our hometown hospital. In fact, both of my daughters were born at ARHCC, so it is special to serve this hospital, the one that our family members use.”

The award was made after a competitive RFP process by AHA Access Health Abbotsford Ltd. and Fraser Health Authority health.

As a result of the award Ecotex will reprocess the laundry in its nearby linen processing plant that is only minutes away from the hospital. Ecotex provides certified Hygienically Clean Linen®, offering third-party validation of quality and Management Practices.

Ecotex is a recognized industry leader for environmental sustainability, and is certified Clean Green® by the TRSA for its environmental laundry practices. By choosing Ecotex the Abbotsford Regional Hospital demonstrated its commitment to reduce the carbon footprint generated by linen usage at the facility.

Ecotex is a leading provider of healthcare laundry and linen services to more than 300 acute care hospitals, sub-acute, long term care and medical facilities in the United States and Canada, and offers a comprehensive range of general linen and operating room linen processing solutions, management and distribution services for its clients.

Ecotex embarks on a 20-year partnership with Interior Health, and opens a new regional healthcare plant in Kelowna, B.C.

KELOWNA, B.C. January 04, 2018 — Ecotex Healthcare Linen Service recently opened a new regional healthcare laundry facility designed to support the Interior Health Authority. Built in just seven months, the newest Ecotex plant is located in the City of Kelowna and will serve the region’s 83 Hospitals and Long Term Care Facilities. This new plant was designed to improve redundancy and reliability, brings industry best practices for infection prevention, and increases sustainability.

Interior Health anticipates savings of approximately $35 million over the 20-year partnership with Ecotex. Outsourcing this service will enable IH to focus on patient care as well as complete upgrades and expansion to emergency rooms and operating facilities. Ecotex Vice President, Bryan Bartsch said, “We are pleased with our new long-term partnership with Interior Health. We have built an amazing new plant that will provide reliable laundry services to the region’s hospitals and care home for many years. Ecotex has designed this laundry program with sustainability and innovation in mind.”

Ecotex is an established industry leader in environmental sustainability and is certified Clean Green® for its class leading environmental laundry practices. The Kelowna plant is equipped with the most efficient laundry equipment including advanced heat recovery systems for preheating fresh water and water reuse systems. Our new energy efficient facility is expected reduce the environmental footprint by more than 60%, reducing our demand for electricity, natural gas, and fresh water. Further, we have reduced the use of plastics offering reusable cart covers and innovative new launderable packaging. With our large offsite regional laundry plant, we have both the physical space and the scale to collect and recycle 100% of the plastic soiled linen bags, previously part of the Interior Health’s waste stream. We expect to recycle over 100 semi-truck loads of compressed plastic bags in our new “closed loop bag recycling system.”

Ecotex also brings new high quality reusable linens for surgical, bed protection, and PPE applications. In partnership with Interior Health, we will target the ‘disposable’ product categories, replacing some items with new high-quality reusable alternatives. Our plan is to make a massive positive impact on the system sustainability, which will be a model for other health systems to follow in the future.

Ecotex is a family owned and operated company, we have been providing commercial laundry services since 1959. Over the years our company has developed a strong reputation providing hospitals with high quality services, unmatched reliability, and offering unmatched healthcare laundry expertise. Ecotex operates hygienically clean-certified linen processing facilities in Canada and the United States. Learn more at SmarterLinenSolutions.com

Ecotex Team Spin Cycle Raises over $136,000 for Cancer Research

VANCOUVER, BC (August 29, 2017) — Ecotex Team Spin Cycle put on an inspiring display of commitment and endurance by cycling just over 250 kilometres over two days, from Vancouver, Canada to Seattle, Washington, to raise funds for cancer research.

2017 was the third year the Ecotex team participated in the Ride to Conquer Cancer.  Over the three years, and thanks to their sponsors and donors, Team Spin Cycle raised $136,743 to support world leading, breakthrough research.

The team, representing Ecotex Healthcare Linen Service, joined 2,000 riders in the Annual Ride to Conquer Cancer fund raising event on August 25 and 26, who collectively raised $8.3 million.

“After miles and miles of training, and hours of preparation, it was an incredible feeling to ride across the finish line knowing we had made a difference,” said team captain, Randy Bartsch, CEO of Ecotex, adding, “As riders, we help each other, and feed off the fantastic support we get from the public and event volunteers. The Ride to Conquer Cancer challenges you on many levels and you see that pride in meeting those challenges on the faces of every rider as they finish.”

Team member Roger Friesen said, “It was absolutely fantastic!” adding, “When I thought of friends, relatives and participants who had beaten cancer, I couldn’t help but be motivated.”

Special thanks to Team Spin Cycle sponsors BMO Harris Bank, Medline Industries, Pellerin-Milnor Corp, Ecolab, and Kannegiesser-eTech, for their financial support, plus the many, many donors and friends who helped power the team to their goal.

Ecotex completes the purchase of Booth Centennial Healthcare Linen Services

TORONTO, CANADA (September 23, 2016) – The Ecotex Healthcare Linen Service Group in partnership with Fengate Capital Management, are pleased to announce today that they have completed the purchase of Booth Centennial Healthcare Linen Services (“Booth”). Booth is the largest single-site healthcare laundry facility in North America, which processes more than 35 million kilograms (78 million pounds) of medical linens annually.  Located in Mississauga, Booth is the market leader for healthcare linen, laundry and surgical sterilization services to hospitals and long-term care facilities in Ontario.

“Our Board of Directors has worked hard to create a partnership with Ecotex and Fengate that delivers long-term value, stability and certainty for our stakeholders,” said Justine Jackson, Board Chair of Booth, adding, “and our hospitals can focus on providing our patients with the best patient care experience.”

On August 30, 2016, the member-owners of Booth approved the sale. Booth was formerly a not-for-profit, shared services organization owned by its 22 member hospitals located in the Greater Toronto Area.

“We are excited to bring a fresh perspective to the Ontario market,” said Randy Bartsch, Chief Executive Officer for Ecotex, adding “Our new and smarter linen solutions will help our customers provide a safe, comfortable environment for patient care while we ensure cost and service quality.”

Lou Serafini Jr., President and CEO of Fengate added, “Together with Ecotex, we are committed to a long-term partnership with our customers and the members of Booth to provide this essential service.”

Now an Ecotex company, Booth Centennial Healthcare Linen Services remains focused on the healthcare market and is the largest provider of linen, laundry and surgical sterilization services to hospitals and long-term care facilities in Ontario. Servicing more than 100 customer sites, Booth is the only healthcare laundry in Ontario to be certified as Hygienically Clean© from the Textile Rental Services Association (TRSA), and accredited by the Healthcare Laundry Accreditation Committee©, (HLAC), as well as ISO 13485 certified for Medical Devices both as a Manufacturer and a Distributor.


Ecotex Healthcare Linen Service is a leading Canadian based provider of healthcare laundry and linen services to hospitals, sub-acute and medical facilities in Canada and the United States. Ecotex is the largest privately owned healthcare linen service company in Canada offering a comprehensive range of general linen and operating room linen processing solutions, management and distribution services to hospitals, medical clinics and other commercial accounts. Ecotex is a privately held corporation.