Understanding the fundamental components of a wash formula is a chicken-or-egg proposition. Which comes first? Formula steps or their elements? Laundry Operations and Management tackles this dilemma by introducing elements first. Confused? You should be. “Steps” vs. “elements” is one example of how laundry lingo mingles words that seem to mean the same thing (synonyms) but don’t. It’s better to use a family-tree analogy to describe them because many are more like relatives than twins. Laundry Operations and Management sorts out the differences.

The book explains that every step in a wash formula consists of four elements—the four quadrants of ...