TRSA kickstarted its 13th Annual Legislative Conference in Washington, DC, with a three-hour workshop on March 21 designed exclusively for supplier partners to the linen, uniform and facility services industry. The workshop’s four sessions were designed to inform and educate industry suppliers about the latest supply-chain trends, sustainable practices, the importance of branding and how understanding the industry’s end users helps build relationships with operators.

Robert W. Baird & Co. and TRSA recently released the results of their First-Quarter 2023 Uniform & Linen Rental Survey. A record percentage of survey respondents on both the uniform and linen rental side of the business reported revenues meeting or exceeding their expectations in the first quarter.

TRSA’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) Committee is seeking individuals to share details about their culture, ethnicity or religion so it can celebrate the diversity in the linen, uniform and facility services industry.

Many companies have made great strides in reducing workplace illnesses and injuries, and from 2017 to 2021 the linen, uniform and facility services industry experienced across-the-board reductions in its injury and illness rates. Many TRSA members have reported fewer incidents, according to the 2022 TRSA Industry Safety Report. But not everyone is on the same improvement trajectory.

Additional recent headlines from consumer media of interest to linen, uniform and facility services operators, and especially readers of Textile Services Weekly.

TRSA recently released the results of its Business Pulse Survey for the fourth quarter of 2022. The survey was conducted in November/December and received more than 60 responses from TRSA members. The respondents operate across a range of market sectors, including industrial/workwear, food-and-beverage, acute and nonacute healthcare, hospitality/hotels, and mixed operations.

TRSA’s recently released Industry Performance Report shows many financial indicators improving to pre-COVID levels. Using 2021 financial data collected from TRSA members on a confidential basis and compiled by the MacKay Research Group, Boulder, CO, the TRSA report is the only industrywide research report that enables operators to compare their income statements, balance sheets, and financial and employee productivity ratios.

Now available for download, the 2022 TRSA Plant Employee Compensation Report provides detailed salary, wage and fringe benefit results for linen, uniform and facility services operators. This year, the survey was revised to include salary and hourly rates in ranges, instead of exact numbers.

More than 150 operator and supplier partner executives serving the healthcare market sector attended TRSA’s 11th Annual Healthcare Conference in Scottsdale, AZ. The two-day conference featured a full day of industry-specific education followed by a tour of Emerald Textiles’ 65,000-square-foot plant in nearby Phoenix.

Prospects are dubious for restaurant patrons to return to previous high levels of dining in versus carrying out. Dining in is likely to grow from current levels, however, as some defection to takeout subsides and the overall restaurant market grows. A leading consumer trend analyst who advises foodservice operators offered this forecast in a Nov. 1 webinar.