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LAUNDRY SERVICE PROGRAM

The Maher Center has provided Laundry Services to the US Navy since October 1999.  Originally designed to meet the needs of the Naval Station in Newport , RI and the Submarine Base in New London , CT , the service was expanded in 2001 to include the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth , NH and the Naval Air Station in Brunswick , ME , thus becoming the first truly regional endeavor in the Navy Region Northeast.

The primary mission of the Laundry Service program is to support the laundry requirements of the Navy in the area of bed and bath linens for the Combined Bachelor Quarters (CBQ) at the four Bases served; medical linens for the Naval Ambulatory Care Clinics (NACC) and Branch Dental Clinics (BDC) at the same four Bases and assorted articles for the repair shops in Portsmouth, the submarines in New London and the survival school in Brunswick. Most recently, we have begun to provide personal laundry services to the residents of the RI Veterans Home in Bristol , RI under a separate contract with the State of RI . 

The Laundry Program currently fulfills the Navy requirements for approximately 1,000,000 pounds of clean laundry annually.  Situated in a state of the art facility located on Aquidneck Ave. in Middletown, the Laundry Program incorporates the latest in laundry technology through the use of 135 lb. capacity, high speed extractors (washers), a combination flatwork ironer/folder (for finishing sheets and pillowcases); a triple sort small piece folder for high production towel folding and an ozone injection system in the wash process which has reduced our reliance on harsh chemicals to achieve a superior result.  All equipment is microprocessor controlled resulting in a simplified procedure for running operations.

In spite of the amount of automation, there remains a significant amount of hand folding work and as one might expect, all of the soiled linen must be sorted, equipment must be loaded and unloaded and the clean linens wrapped and packed into carts for delivery to  the customer. The Laundry Service Program provides employment to approximately 25 individuals with severe disabilities.  Strict delivery schedules must be adhered to and our workers are trained to pay strict attention to the separation of customer goods.

The work shifts available at the Laundry are primarily part time, though a few full time positions exist.  This program is an appropriate employment setting for those individuals requiring a higher level of supports.  Onsite access is available to a variety of other services offered by the Maher Center such as Case Management, Job Coach, Social Worker and Registered Nurse services. Daily contact with these professionals is available as needed.