On Saturday, I personally met with representatives responsible for our current laundry service contract: Robert Looney, vice president of MacGray, as well as his regional service manager. At 9 am, we began a tour of facilities that would take us from Crockett, to Sharp, then Nugent, the RAHPs, the Quad, and then finally Warren. We were looking for genuinely broken machines, messy laundry rooms, and other possible sources for complaint. I, personally, found none. There were extensive signs, however, of machine tampering at Sharp and the Quad, which could have possibly led to a machine outage.
Drying time and the current price increase seems to be the two large questions of concern. First, the drying time is usually 54 minutes according to the MacGray representatives. Somehow, RPI has had that modified campuswide to 60 minutes, as complaints persisted that 54 minutes to dry a load was not sufficient. On track with recent complaints, I asked if it would be possible to extend to 70 or maybe 80 minutes. The answer from our current contractor was "No." Apparently, MacGray’s insurance contract specifies that they will lose insurance coverage if they pass 60 minutes per cycle. In addition, they cited garment damage as another reason to keep machine times at a per-hour basis—so that the heat does not scorch your favorite delicate clothing item.
In light of this, I asked what a "typical load" should have to avoid having to dry it twice (like I have to, along with most of my friends). Their response outlined a laundry load that does not cross the top line of holes in the washing machine’s basket and has no more than two pairs of jeans or an equal approximate mass in other heavy clothing. If a machine is not drying a load of whites properly, and it meets this criterion, first check the dryer lint screen (which you should do before you start), then call FIXX at 276-2000 if nothing else appears to be wrong. Be sure to call FIXX right away, because if you move to another working machine (this goes for washers, too) and ignore the broken one, dead machines tend to pile up, causing a really unpleasant experience when everyone starts to use the machines at the same time.
I also reviewed the current price increase. Since RPI is still using a coin-based laundry system still, increases are stuck at increments of 25 cents. According to Residence Life, the increase was delayed for a period of years until it finally became necessary to increase from 75 cents to a dollar. MacGray explained to me that other colleges they service have a nominal fee of $1.25 now, making us 25 cents cheaper. However, if this price increase percentage still feels large, not all hope is lost. MacGray is currently experimenting with machines that are wirelessly connected to the Internet. They use a system like the Mobil Speedpass (TM), which can charge in price increments as low as a cent and notify you via e-mail when your wash is done. In addition, the digital laundry machines we already have (everywhere except for Warren) can "top-off" a cycle by adding a quarter before the time runs out. This can buy you an extra 15 minutes of drying time and save some hassle. Once the time runs out, however, you need to add another dollar.
In closing, I am pleased with the machines I inspected on campus; however, if problems still exist notify FIXX (276-2000) immediately. Areas like the RAHPs and others may be getting more machines soon to aid the machine-to-student ratio, solving even more complaints. If you still have comments, e-mail me and I will work with you on a one-on-one basis to figure out a solution. Moreover, thanks go to Kathy Edick of Residence Life. Without her help, this meeting would not have been possible.
