Housekeeping is essential to the dispersion of information and in ensuring that evolutions

occurring within the boundaries of routine practice are instilled within the minds of individuals
involved (*). Sitting atop the peak of the employee pool amongst departments inside the hotel,
tasks of the housekeeping department are crucial in establishing success. Due to the never-
ending inclination of people to travel, housekeepers have always been required; travellers desire
a welcoming host; the sense of home; a place in which they can be taken care of. Disregarding
the reasoning behind why people opt to having a temporary residence away from their
permanent home, a clean, comfortable place to rest and sleep is a necessity; food service is
mandatory; allotted socializing space to encounter new acquaintances is imperative; accessibility
to stores and shops, indispensable; secure surroundings, obligatory.

Generally perceived as just room cleaners, the actuality of housekeepers is that they
implement a very appreciable service to the hotel; particularly to guests. The housekeeping
department is commonly discerned as a sector associated with the rooms division of the hotel.
In a small hotel or family run hotel, the housekeeping supervisor or lead housekeeper regularly
report to the general manager, whereas larger establishments identify with the executive
housekeeper or housekeeping manager reporting to the rooms division manager. Size and type
of establishment often dictate the organizational structure with larger establishments being
more complex. However, in general, nonetheless of its scale, there exists several other ranges of
service that are offered within the housekeeping department: laundry, uniform rooms, and
public area cleaning.

Taking into consideration elements that satisfy patrons in housekeeping, understanding

customers expectations is postulated. These expectations change depend on the nature of the
hotel. Customers who walk in to a three star hotel would expect an average level of service,
wheares those who stay at five star hotel would expect the excel of service. Similarly, backpackers
can not expect to be served at the same level as those luxury travellers. Despite the quality rating
of the hotel, the task of service providers is to sustain and often times, exceed overall customer
contentment with the transmission of quality services and product goods (*). Competing within
the hotel industry, a highly competitive market, establishments, in their entirety, must appoint
to the conveyance of quality services directed towards guests. Successful deliver of quality
service makes it entirely feasible for hospitality firms to earn competitive advantages and
profitability in the market place. Room facilities and the competence of housekeeping personnel
to overture premium services can be recognized as the primary constituent in satisfying
customer(*). Over-looking the quality of rooms is a fallacy, as room quality has a compelling
influence in customers first impression. Cleanliness has always been the priority of customer
regardless of the nature of the hotel. Upon arriving at a hotel, the concerns of tenants shift to
the cleanliness, tidiness, and safety of the rooms along with the excitation of comfort or lack
thereof. Eliminating dirt efficiently, swiftly, and meticulously is the objective in achieving overall
cleanliness and maintenance of rooms as that is a prime concern of customers. In situations
involving complaining customers, the ability to keep a calm demeanor and maintain
professionalism is imperative to that of a housekeeper. Dealing with customer complaints well,
that is, in a composed manner increases the likelihood that the customer remains or more
significantly, becomes a regular. Ideally, there shouldn't be any reason nor causes for complaints,
however, this is inevitable. In oscillating negative situations into positive reactions, a proficient
housekeepers attitude is compulsory: steer away from spiteness and disagreement, maintain
professionalism, being empathetic, and apologising for any mistakes. Conversely, there remains
other customers as well: those whom do not complain. Additionally, these customers fail to
return and can tarnish the reputation of the hotel by word of mouth exposing wrongdoings or
lack of service, therefore, resulting in losses of future, potential customers. Awareness and the
ability to sense uninviting instances is key in the retention of these guests. Security is also a
matter in the hospitality sector. Portraying themselves as genuine guests in attempts to be
inconspicuous, it is not uncommon for deceiving agitators to mark hotels. Naive guests and staffs,
those of which who are inexperiences and unenthusiastic are the main ambitions for disservice
from these imposters, therefore, the safeguarding of guests assets is bestowed upon the
housekeepers. Remising the severity of the instance, the relegation of lost property is obligatory.
Eliminating dirt efficiently, swiftly, and meticulously is the objective in achieving overall
cleanliness and maintenance of rooms as that is a prime concern of customers. Avoiding damage
during these processes is ideal and should be held with high regards. The laundry department
plays a vital role in housekeeping as it deals with a necessity of life for hotels; that necessity being
laundry itself. Contributing to soiled linens, towels, tablecloths, and uniform and the need for
them to be cleaned are guestrooms, restaurants, room service, banquets, spas, recreational
facilities (fitness centers, pools,). Linens can be rented from commercial linen and uniforms
rental companies; they can be purchased and sent to a centralised laundry operated by the hotel
chain or other bodies of affiliated hotels for the handling of linens and uniforms. With that being
said, advantages do exist in regards to directing an on-premises laundry: more authority
overseeing the quality of linen, service, and expenses; establishments relish in substantial savings
in resemblance to the redistribution of linen to a commercial provider. Extraneous to jurisdiction
over quality and service, establishments alongside on-premises facilities desire reduced linen par
levels, thus, reduced monetary assets are exhausted into linen inventory: convenient on-
premises reinstatement owed to untimely wear out, inexplicable disaster, and deterioration.
Moreover, finished linen conditions are intermittently greater; it is because of this that a great
deal of hotels and hotel companies opt to the oversight of their own laundries and expel
dependency on foreign commercial contributors. So how to create a good laundry process to
satisfy customers? To answer this question, the operation management theory is needed to be
understood. Operations management conveys the administration of procedures that elongate
and transport goods and services. Decisions precisely influence the size, shape, quantity, quality,
price, profitability, and speed of distribution in the yielding of travel, tourism, and hospitality
systems ranging from the lavish edges of the market to a more budget orientated product or
service. Operations management behaviours in travel, tourism, and hospitality encompasses an
array of enterprises, many of which are the nucleus to the familiarity of guests and visitors. The
appellation that is operations management is not extensively engaging to the confines of travel,
tourism, and hospitality; most businesses in the precinct function as a wide range of product and
service operations inclining systematic management responsibilities in the inscription.
Precedents of operations functions in travel, tourism, and hospitality include: fabrication of food
under the over-watch of a Head Chef; fast food restaurant fructification and utility;
configuration of city bus tours for transients; preparation from airport to accommodation in the
transportation of guests; conducting satisfaction by means of customer complaints at major
tourist venues. Activity assemblages that scheme and yield goods or services by the input-
transformation-output process is a focal point of day-to-day exercises within the operations
management system. Output (value added product and services) which sustains the protocol of
the establishment in deference is conceived through the consumption of assets or inputs (labour,
capital, machinery, land and buildings, materials and information) in the operational exertions of
an establishment translating into another process characterizing operation management.
Hospitality consists of a multitude of arrangements in laundry applications; a laundry that is
accordingly integrated, encapsulates appropriate and practical equipment, and is well-designed
remains a core component in cantering placidly. Tablecloths and napkins makeup guestroom
laundry. Contributing antecedents to laundry comprise of spas, a healthy club facility, and
recreation areas; however, these are dependent on the facilities of a hotel. Adequate design
begins with a clear comprehension of the functional requirement of a laundry facility as a
precursor.
The formation of a primitive revolution of the laundry department is developed through
operation management theory. Normally, the conjuring of this process composes of thirteen
tightly interlocked stages. The arrival of soiled linen at the laundry, its unloading, and its
temporary storage until the commencement of processing begins is part of the arrival stage
(input process). Swiftly dealing with soiled linen is a necessity as to avert from the advancement
of infection, mildew, and odour issues; avoiding heaps of soiled linen is ideal as they are exposed
to spontaneous combustion, potentially leading to a fire hazard. Physically insulating tainted and
putrid linen from other soiled linen disallows cross contamination and is a common-practice of
modern hospital operations. Sifting or categorizing linen is possibly the beginning step in an on-
site laundry operation, such as what is found in a hospital; this is the second stage: sorting (input
process). Conveying the plight of soiled linen, colour-coded bags are used; sorting soiled linen
accordingly into the appropriately designated bag colours is essential; colour annotation is
important as it is a representation for the need to independently process the respective groups.
The nature in which groups are laundered consists of several contributing factors: amount and
type of chemicals to use, water temperature, the number and length of the wash cycle, and the
amount of required rinses. Thus, the assortments need to be categorized: item type, fibre type,
colour and dye velocity, the degree of filth, and risk of infection. Sequentially, the next stage in
the process is weighing (input process): each categorization of soiled linen demands to be
weighed as to comply with the maximum of each machine, which when dry, could be 50kg, 250k,
or even 500kg conferring to industrial laundry. The fourth stage is loading (transformation
process): loads of weighed articles can be loaded manually or mechanically. Though both manual
loading and unloading require substantial effort, the effort it takes to unload is particularly
greater as wet articles garner more weight. Ideally, overloading should not happen; sufficient
washing may not transpire; damaged linen, plausible; the creasing of crease-resistant articles,
tenable. Under-loading machines should not take place for economical purposes; assuring
effective washing requires the weight reduction of cumbersome articles such as towels or
blankets. . Next comes the washing and rinsing (transformation process) stage: three basic
operations are crucial when it comes to designing the washing process: removal of soil from
fabric, soil suspensions, and clearance of soil from the machine into the drain. Present day
laundries are dependent on the rotary washing machine with laundry complements comprising
of soap, synthetic detergents, and alkalis and bleaches perhaps being welcome additions
manually or automatically. As wash cycles expire, rinsing commences and should: expel laundry
complements after dolloping their duties and minute particles of dirt remaining in the carry
over liquor as they are exfoliated from the nut of fabric (debris, that of which has not been
liberated from the previous cycle) existing at the point of the final wash. These engrossments are
confronted with the addition of water into the device, diluting the carry over liquor. Thereafter,
hydro-extraction (transformation process) occurs involving two paramount forms of hydro-
extractors. Ranging in volume with scopes of up to 250kg in dry weight, centrifugal extractors are
the most common, though most are smaller than this. Safeguards are mandatory when loading
a hydro-extractor: the dissemination of a load should remain consistent throughout the basket
or instability will arise from within and articles should be congregated, ensuring free-flow
movement towards the wall of the basket as the hydro operates. Damage to articles can occur if
the movement is impaired. Washer extractors (transformation process): when mechanical
handling aids (cranes) are non-existent, the substantial endeavour is ramified in work dispatching
from a washing machine to a hydro-extractor. The saturation of fabric retains 150kg of water for
every 50kg of dry weight; considerable effort can be bypassed employing a machine operating as
both a washer and an extractor. The employment of starching to certain articles in promoting
stiffness to an extent after washing is accepted; in certain cases, the application of starch is only
moderate whereas in others, starching is substantial. An independent starching machine is
paramount for articles that require a level of stiffness due to requirements for generous volumes
of starch to be used which is costly, however, excess amounts can be reused for additional loads.
Chronologically speaking, tumbling (transformation process) occurs next; the process involves
thorough drying of laundered work as hot air tumblers and is generally confined to articles that
include bath towels and blankets (they require a fluffy, un-pressed ending). Finishing
(transformation process) is the next stage of the procedure which involves the act or ironing or
pressing acceding to size and shape of the article; in accomplishing this feat, three things are
dependent: moisture content, pressing temperature, and pressure. Poor results during this stage
are influenced by overwhelming dryness upon pressing, however, these instances can be
counteracted with the application of a spray; conversely, over-moisture can have a superlative
outcome, but can consequently result in a long, costly drying allocation of time on the press,
which in turn, hinders production and efficiency. The deployment of spreaders and feeders are
used in assisting the arrangement of flat work for ironing along with assisting in labour economy
and effort needed to uphold efficient and unbroken production. This leads to the next stage
which is folding (transformation process): calendered and pressed articles are mechanically
folded and could potentially be mechanically stacked. Once that is finished, the following stage
is temporary storage (transformation process): arrangements applied to the work involved in
packing and the distribution of finished and folded articles. As the temporary storage stage
completes, distribution (output process) supersedes; this stage involves dispatching completed
articles to their destinations: the establishment, department, individual, or central linen room
from where they originally came from. . In summation, the goals of the laundering process are:
the removal of dirt and stains, the prevention of damage to fibre or tensile strength, finishing the
article in avoidance of the re-entry of dirt for prolongation, and the providence of wrinkle and
crease-free articles. A well-flowing process can bring a lot of advantages such as: low cost and
dependability, speed is faster, much more flexibility with high qualified products. Compromising
a stage in the process can be a determining factor in the quality of the products. As an example,
the possibility of an item being too dry prior to pressing can result in a poor finish; conversely,
over-moisture can have the reaction of an exceptional finish but also lead to an elongated
amount of time drying an article, thus resulting in a costly and inefficient production.

Knowledge about service quality is needed to design a laundry process. Service quality, described
as a measure of how well the service level delivered matches customer expectations; delivery
quality service means confirming customer expectations on a consistent basis is typically
depicted based on consumers assessment in service literature. Acknowledged as the
predominant influence for international competition, the designing of hotel service each year
requires millions of dollars to be exhausted in the modern world. The design is observed to only
include some traits of hotel services such as interior design or internet based services by hotel
specialists and managers universally. Exercises garnering customer feedback are trifling. The use
of quality facets registering hotel service design situating customer feedback remains at a
minimum making it imperative in defining a process in consideration of the totality of services
traits. Asking what the customers forecast would be from the hotel and how the hotel would
go about administering compulsory services to its guests are prime questions to ponder. Liaisons
amongst guest requirements and service components were resolved conferring to expert views
gathered from hotel managers and employees.

In laundry department, customers always expect all the facilities need to be cleaned, especially
linen goods, which they would lie on and use such as duvet cover, pillow and blanket cover,
towels,.. Housekeepers are required to work correctly and in the right order to ensure the process
go well. The positive aspect of applying service theory to laundry process is customers satisfaction
is improved, the service meet customers needs and they become loyal, they are willing to come
back and recommend their friends to the hotel. Recent days customers expect a lot of good
services more than their expectations so that bad services in laundry can lead to loads of damages
for the hotel. With customers properties like clothing, if there was a mistake in the process, it
could be torn or faded, its due to customers dissatisfaction, they would not want to come back.
To improve the process service, housekeepers need to make sure that all clothing and linen are
clean, be ready for bad situations, be aware with risks could happen like linen burning, get
poisoned from hazardous cleaning agents.

In conclusion, the housekeeping department predominantly handles cleanliness and additional

services directly related to cleanliness. Upholding and sustaining set standards has a primal role
how hotels are renowned and reputed; customer comfort is found in the presence of a clan and
well-maintained ambiance; not only is cleanliness important for health, but also for personal
well-being. As a division of housekeeping, the laundry department plays a vital role; the
application and implementation of the operation and service management theory in a convincing
and ideal manner will contribute to an upward trend in a number of hotel patrons; it will also
assure that guests are happy and remain that way during the entirety of their stay and perhaps,
ultimately, entice them into making a return back to the hotel.