Spa – tacular!
Woodlands Retreats uses Samsung washers and dryers to keep up with demand as new Spa opens
Woodlands Retreats in rural Somerset, just round the corner from Glastonbury, offers four holiday properties ranging from a luxuriously equipped seven bedroom historic Grade II listed 17th Century former farmhouse to a cosy two bedroom farming cottage. And for those who like camping, but not roughing it, there are large posh tents that have soft furnishings, comfy beds, warm duvets and waterproof carpeting.
All properties have use of the newly constructed Sedum Spa which includes a heated indoor pool sauna, Nordic outdoor hot tub, gym, treatment rooms and spectacular views of Glastonbury Tor. Paul Crang, owner of Woodlands Retreats, realised the amount of laundry they get through was going to shoot up once the Spa was up and running.
“We decided that we’d better start doing our own laundry, otherwise our laundry bills were going to be sky high,” says Paul. “We looked around at commercial washers and dryers and were taken aback at the size and price of these machines. Also with no experience in the commercial laundry sector the brands were unfamiliar to us and we were uncertain what to choose.”
Then Paul consulted Francis & Co and heard about the new professional Samsung washers and dryers. These machines are designed for a variety of commercial markets such as bed and breakfasts, holiday accommodation, other hospitality venues, gyms, spas and care homes – but at a fraction of the cost of other commercial machines.
“Samsung is a trusted name we can identify with,” says Paul. “And the machines come in at a price of about £1200 rather than the £5,000 – £8,000 we had been quoted on other commercial brands. Size-wise they win out too. We’ve got room for one washer and dryer stacked up and space for another pair if we need them.”
At present the Samsung machines are doing all the washing for the Spa, which can add up to over 100 towels at the weekend. They are also processing half the laundry for the holiday properties. The Samsung WF431 washer has a big, 110 litre drum, while the DV431 tumble dryer has a capacity of 240 litre.
Samsung’s washer features the ecobubble system. This generates bubbles before the wash cycle begins, by dissolving detergent in air and water. The detergent then penetrates fabric more quickly, evenly and deeply, which means operators can wash at lower temperatures and still achieve perfectly clean results. In tests, the machines achieved at 15°C what conventional laundry equipment achieves at 40°C. This reduces energy consumption by 70% which significantly cuts costs.
The washer and drier are located in the plant room at the Sedum Spa, which means towels can be pre-dried in the warm atmosphere before going into the Samsung dryer to finish off and fluff up. This not only speeds up the drying but saves energy too.
“They are both really easy to use,” says Paul. “You really don’t need to use the instruction manual. Just set the programme and that’s it. We can turn around the towels in the Spa really quickly and the quality of the wash is excellent. Once out of the dryer, they are soft and plump. We’ve got a quality operation here and everything needs to look good – we don’t want any complaints.”
Francis & Co have backed the Samsung machines with a full 2 year parts and labour warranty and are only a phone call away if Woodlands Retreats have any problems.
For more information about Woodlands Retreats visit www.woodlandsretreats.co.uk
The range is available in the United Kingdom through Francis & Co, via a national network of distributors and laundry equipment specialists. Samsung is one of the world’s largest brands. Samsung Professional Appliances distributes throughout Europe. All products are backed by a full parts & labour warranty.
For more information visit www.franciscopro.com or call 01403 800400.