Timothy Jay Rolle, General Manager of A Cleaner World, has worked for ACW for 12 years and manages a drycleaning plant in Apex, as well as three drop stores in Chapel Hill. Timothy has all three DLI certifications and achieved the Certified Garment Care Professional Designation, CGCP.

Congratulations, Timothy, on your achievement.

Manufacturers Would Like to See the Care Label Rule Abolished? Would You?

The current review of the FTC Care Label should be a strong reminder and/or wakeup call to all of us as to why we need our National and State Associations. Care labels are one of the most important tools of our trade. Care labels like “Dryclean Only” or “Professionally Dryclean” drive customers to our stores. Care labels like “Do Not Wash/Do Not Dryclean” and/or “Spot Clean Only” drive us crazy, but they also help protect us from customer claims on unserviceable garments.

The current rule requires manufacturers and/or importers to provide a label that prescribes one method of cleaning which they have reason to believe will be successful. NOTE: They are not required to run any tests on the garment to verify this belief and there is no specific penalty if they are wrong. Manufacturers and importers love the current rule because it allows them to promote home care (cost savings) although it may not produce the best result (drycleaning vs. Hand Wash/Dry Flat) and seldom results in any fines or penalties for misinformation provided, except the occasional replacement of an item from a persistent customer.  Have you ever heard of a garment manufacturer recalling a mislabeled garment?

DLI and NCA have led the charge in calling on the FTC to not only retain the Care Label Rule but to strengthen it to:

• Require manufacturers and importers to provide both home and professional care options based on tests, not beliefs, on care labels if applicable;

• Include professional wetcleaning as an option where applicable.

• Use a standardized set of symbols to identify specific solvents, processes and procedures

In other words, provide the consumer information necessary to evaluate their care options prior to purchase and provide the consumer and cleaner with a method of cleaning that has proven to be successful.

Seems like a fair request, doesn’t it? But manufacturers and importers don’t like it because testing the serviceability of a product adds to the cost of production, the price of the item. And penalties for mislabeling or failure to verify the care method prescribed would decrease profits.

Manufacturers and importers are much bigger businesses than most cleaners. Although there are 25,000 to 30,000 of us out there, we only have strength when we speak with one voice through our state and national associations.

Were it not for DLI and its predecessor organizations – IFI, NID, AIL – the EPA would have outlawed the use of Perc many years ago before there were viable alternatives and OSHA would have established a PEL for Perc that was unattainable without replacing existing equipment. In both cases, these decisions would have been based on faulty information and assumptions.

Were it not for NCALC, the private laundry and drycleaning industry in North Carolina would have been destroyed by competition from the NC Prison Enterprises Laundries, in the early 1970s and 1990s, utilizing prison labor and facilities (i.e. buildings, equipment and supplies manufactured by inmates). Their proposal in the early 1990s was to provide personal laundry and drycleaning services to all state and county employees – teachers, law enforcement, health department, legislators, etc, etc – at a price we could not have competed with.

Were it not for NCALC, you would not have the protection of the best-funded and reasonably-priced drycleaning solvent cleanup program in the country.

Your national and state associations, DLI and NCALC, are in many ways like your insurance policies. Your dues are like the premiums you pay for the protection they provide. Unlike insurance policies that don’t protect you unless you pay the premiums, your national and state associations do their best to protect you whether you support them financially or not.

Times are tough. Cash is tight for cleaners and associations alike. But this is not the time to abandon the mother ship  your state and national associations. We, like you, are working longer and harder with less staff and resources, wearing multiple hats and struggling to do more with less to help and support our members. We need your support now, more than ever, to continue to do for you what you cannot do for yourself alone.

If you’ve never been a member, we need you to join, If you’ve let your membership lapse, we need you to rejoin now. If you need  to pay monthly, quarterly or semi-annually instead of annually, that can be arranged. Our strength is in numbers and we need everyone we can muster to stand and be counted.

President's Desk

Dues Increase Coming in April, 2012

I hope this publication finds you with more work than you have been accustomed to of late!  Fall typically brings out the woolies, outerwear and dressier clothes in general.  While shopping lately I see more upscale attire on the racks although many are washable.  Hopefully this will still translate into more volume for us all if we market ourselves well!

To those of you who made our fall Board meeting here in Asheville, it was wonderful seeing you!  To those of you who could not, you were truly missed.  What a fantastic meeting is all I can say.  Basically we held our committee meetings in front of the full Board and everyone had a chance to comment on all agenda items for each committee.  There seemed to be some pent up frustrations among most everyone attending and the opportunity to “vent” was afforded to all.  One of the most contentious issues revolved around DLI’s request to increase dues by 3.3%, effective April 1, 2012. The DLI Board is required to study the dues annually and have requested this increase due to increased costs of operations and their decision to not have an increase last year.  Although some viewed the increase as necessary due to inflationary factors, others felt it untimely because of economic constraints.

After lengthy debate and two votes, your Board agreed to the DLI request. However, your Representatives at the Joint States meeting in November will definitely voice the concerns of all! Please know we are all well aware of cash flow problems most cleaners are experiencing, but we must also realize DLI relies on us to pay their bills too.  Fewer cleaners translates into tighter budgets and the need for more innovative programs.  I will assure you, DLI has taken dramatic steps in both regards.  Over the next few months you should see more internet based information, tighter cost controls and regional training opportunities.  All of this and more are designed to lower expenses and increase accessibility to members.

At NCALC, we have begun developing new benefits for our members as well.  Along the same lines as DLI these initiatives will be web based and involve restricted access afforded to members only.  Ideas such as “chat rooms”, most news and industry information could only be accessed by members.  We would however, make certain that non-members be kept informed of changes in laws set forth by NCDSCA at least on an annual basis.  While it may sound crazy to make the effort to inform the non-member of changes in the laws, on the other hand, we should also consider it our fiduciary responsibility.  Over the last decade, NCALC has enjoyed a nice working relationship with DSCA and we have done our best to see to it that ALL dry cleaners in North Carolina are kept informed of the laws directed toward the safe and responsible use of dry cleaning solvents.  Through these efforts, NCALC has enjoyed a voice at the table as new laws and restrictions are considered.  I can only imagine where we would be today had the likes of Chris Edwards, Denny Shaffer, Mac Davis, Sto Fox, Lindley Smith and Martin Young had not been heard, rocks in streams come to mind!

In closing, we at NCALC wish you a prosperous and exciting fall!  Please keep us informed of events in your market, initiatives you would like to see implemented and anything else you might feel relevant to other cleaners across the State. We’re here to help but we can’t if we don’t know what you need!

Sincerely,

Marvin Thomas

President

Beginning with this issue of Carolina Clean, we welcome  a new Associate Member of NCALC and a new column to our newsletter.

Steve Henshaw, PG, President and CEO of EnviroForensics & Policy Find’s column – “The Environmental Corner” – has appeared regularly for several years in The Cleaner & Launderer (formerly Western Cleaner & Launderer) and subsequently other state association newsletters. Mr. Henshaw holds a professional registration in numerous states, serves as a client and technology manager on projects associated with site characterization, remedial design, remedial implementation and operation, and litigation support and insurance coverage matters.

He also served as an expert witness on behalf of facility operators at sites impacted by industrial activities and to promote technical and litigation support services.

Since EnviroForensics & Policy Find (they locate old insurance policies) is located in Indiana and works primarily in states that do not have a state-led cleanup program, some of the issues discussed in the articles may not directly apply in North Carolina. However, the more knowledge you have, the better equipped you are to make a good decision.

You can contact Steve by e-mal at shenshaw@enviroforensics.com.

Member Matters

At the annual conference of TCATA [National Allied Trades Association] in Park City, Utah, in August, KEVIN LAWSON, Tri-State Laundry Equipment Company, was elected to serve a second two-year term on the Board of Directors.

NCALC lawyer/lobbyist HENRY JONES of Jordan Price Wall Gray Jones & Carlton, PLLC, was named to the North Carolina Center of Public Policy Research’s “List of North Carolina’s 100 Most Influential Lobbyists.”

Congratulations to GRANDPA JIM HILKER on the birth of twin girls to his daughter Kristen on September 9th.

Thank You for Renewing Your NCALC Membership

RICHARD CHAVIS

Royal Cleaners Inc. of NC

Fayetteville

KISHAN DESAI

Morrisville Dry Cleaners

Morrisville

J. K. FORDHAM

Paramount Cleaners

Goldsboro

ED and MITZI FORREST

Durham Cleaners & Laundromat

Durham

JIMMY LEE

Jones Dry Cleaning

Charlotte

NORMAN MATHES

Village Cleaners

Laurinburg

COOKI PATEL

2001 Cleaners Inc.

Charlotte

SIMON VICK

Vick’s Cleaners

Kinston

TOM VOLK

Williamston Cleaners

Williamston

MARY WELLS

One Hour Koretizing

Rocky Mount

C. L. WHITEHEAD

Outer Banks Cleaners Inc.

Windsor

CHUN TOK YI

Lake Jeanette Cleaners

Greensboro

How Insurance Archeology Can Assist Dry Cleaners When

Environmental Contamination Claims Threaten Their Business

The dry cleaner had gone to the attic in search of his old business package policies. He explained that he had no idea before visiting an attorney that these old expired insurance policies could be of any use to him. Since they were package policies, they contained more than one line of insurance. Parts of the policy provided coverage against damage to his building, against break-ins, storm damage and even workers compensation coverage. As far as he knew, all of this coverage had long ago expired. Why would he still have copies of these old policies? There was no reason, he thought, that he would have kept them. They would have to be in a box or two that he had neglected to put in the dumpster.

He had been told by his attorney to look for that part of the policy that addressed damage to the property of others. Not damage to others he might do in his delivery van. That was covered under the automobile insurance section of the policy. Rather, it was the part of the policy that covered his customers (the slip and fall coverage) that he was looking for. His attorney had told him that that part of the old package policies could provide him the coverage he needed now to address the environmental contamination of his property from perchloroethylene (Perc) spills below ground that had occurred years earlier.

It was these Perc spills that apparently had caused all the trouble. The landlord, a strip mall owner, had been refinancing and the bank required that he conduct a simple environmental audit that had included soil sampling. The samples had shown Perc in soil at his end of the strip mall. The landlord was going to have to clean this up to get his refinancing. The cleanup would be expensive and the drycleaner was expected to take care of the bill because he was the one who had inadvertently put the Perc into the soil over the many years of his operation there.

The attorney had assured the dry cleaner that this was indeed legal. The law in his state required that “the polluter” remove the pollution or at least reimburse the landlord if he had to have it done. Up until this time, the dry cleaner had not considered himself a polluter. It was a new role he was going to have to get used to, however before this nightmare would be over.

His attorney had explained that in his state, as in most states, it took policies issued before 1986 to pay for environmental investigations. This was because the later policies contained pollution exclusions that the courts in his state recognized as barring coverage for Perc spills. Paying the landlord’s environmental experts was likely to be too great for the dry cleaner to handle. After years of operating a successful business, he had significant savings, but these ongoing costs could deplete that savings account in no time. He may even need to consider bankruptcy unless he could find those insurance policies issued before 1986, and successfully file claims that would require his insurers to step in and defend him.

Calling In the Insurance Archeologist

Digging around in the attic, he succeeded in finding one collection of old policies, but these policies dated only to the late 1990’s. Telephoning the insurance agent identified on the policies, the dry cleaner found that that insurance agency was no longer in business. Despairing, he reported his lack of success to the attorney, prepared to discuss bankruptcy instead of insurance recovery. However, the attorney suggested another option. He suggested that the dry cleaner hire an insurance archeologist to see what insurance might be located elsewhere.

Working backwards from the earliest insurance policy, the insurance archeologist was able to discover that another insurance agency had purchased the defunct agency’s book of business prior to closing. Contacting that insurance agency, the archeologist found that old policy files no longer existed, but that the agent would permit him to review his old accounting files. A review of these files identified some premium notices issued to the dry cleaner in 1985. These notices identified policy numbers, dates and insurance carrier.

The insurance archeologist provided a specimen policy issued by the same insurance carrier to a different dry cleaner in his state from the 1985 policy period. This policy had a pollution exclusion on it but that exclusion, the attorney advised, was not a bar to coverage as long  as the Pere releases had not been intentional, and had been sudden and accidental.

Using the premium notices and specimen policy together, the drycleaner’s attorney was able to file a claim with the insurance company. The company stepped in to defend the dry cleaner, paid his attorney fees and paid the landlord’s environmental experts. The moral of the story? Don’t give up. Get some professional help and look under every rock. Ask your attorney about how insurance archeology can help you locate the records you need to defend against environmental claims.

David O’Neill has more than 17 years of experience in claims recovery on behalf of corporate policyholders involving environmental property dam age and toxic tort and asbestos exposure claims. He is an accomplished insurance archeologist with extensive experience in locating and retrieving insurance coverage evidence on behalf of potentially responsible parties responding to environmental investigation and remediation demands. O’Neill is also an experienced PRP investigator with knowledge of CERCLA/SARA requirements, having conducted over thirty PRP searches at Superfund hazardous waste sites for PRP defense counsel and previously for USEPA Regions V and VIII. He graduated from Case Western Reserve Law School in 1986.    

Why I'm a Member of NCALC

I fondly remember my first NCALC Board meeting. I went in business June 30, 2001. Yep, 10 years ago. Soon thereafter, a dude named Bob Smart obviously thought I didn’t know Jack. Bob was right!  He came by and invited me to the Fall Board meeting in Asheville. He said something about networking and meeting some folks “that know everything”!! I thanked him and accepted the invitation.

I recall he said, now when you get to the hotel, go to the bar and look for the tall, gray-haired guy with the big hat. I did. Sto and several more hanging out at the bar made Jan and I feel welcome and included in the activities. We talked a lot at the meeting about MMPs, Tax on PERC, EPA random inspections, etc.

That Saturday afternoon we went white water rafting. Now that was a hoot!  Mack  Davis was the first one overboard for a swim. I believe. Marie also went down the river. Actually, my picture was in the first Carolina Clean that I received.

My first really good decision as an Owner/ Operator was not just joining NCALC/DLI but becoming an active member. I thank you all for being there for me and trusting me. I certainly have a lot of trust and faith in ya’ll. We appreciate you all and your friendship.

Bayard R. Crumpton

Nu-Way Cleaners

726 N. Main St.

Roxboro, NC 27573

Leadership vs. Power

THE UN-COMFORT ZONE

with Robert Wilson

King George III asked Benjamin West, his American painter, what George Washington would do if he prevailed in the Revolutionary War.  West replied, “He will return to his farm.”  The British monarch incredulously said, “If he does that, he will be the greatest man in the world.”  On December 23, 1783 Washington did just that and retired to Mount Vernon - despite the encouragement of many to stay in power.  Despite the willingness of Americans to crown him king.  Thirteen years later, he would do it once again.

In 1787, Washington was coaxed back to Philadelphia to attend the Constitutional Convention.  While there he provided the leadership necessary to get the fractious delegates to settle down and complete the work of designing a new constitution.  Afterwards, in 1789, he was elected the first President of the United States.  He reluctantly ran for a second term in 1792.  He refused to run for a third term, setting a precedent that lasted 150 years, and retired once again to his farm.

Abraham Lincoln said, “If you want to test a man’s character - give him power.” George Washington passed that test.  Twice in his life he walked away from power and proved that he was indeed the greatest man in the world.  He demonstrated that leadership is something that you give - not take - and that power should be used responsibly.  Washington died in 1799, the year that Napoleon Bonaparte became the ruler of France.  In contrast to Washington, Napoleon could not acquire enough power.  His legendary lust for command drove him to take over much of Europe.  “Power is my mistress,” he once claimed, “I have worked too hard at her conquest to allow anyone to take her away from me.” Years later, having lost all power and living in exile, he lamented “They wanted me to be another Washington.”

History is rife with stories of people who abused their power.  Abuse of power, however, is not just reserved for politicians and tyrants.  It can be abused by managers, spouses, parents, peers and the list goes on.  It is the lure of dominance over others, when it motivates people toward leadership roles, that is revealing.  It reveals uncertainty, lack of confidence and fear. It is said that power corrupts, but more often than not, it is a corrupted individual who is attracted to power.  It is a feeling of inferiority, sometimes called a Napoleon Complex, that drives someone to control other people and to micro-manage their surroundings. Today we call such a person a Control Freak.  Science fiction author, Robert Heinlein noted, “Anyone who wants to be a politician shouldn’t be allowed to be one.”

When we look at Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of Human Motivation   (Survival, Safety, Social, Esteem, Fulfilment), we see that someone who hungers for power is stuck in the second to bottom level which is Safety. A true leader has self-esteem and self-confidence and does not seek power to bolster his or her feeling of self worth.  Thomas Jefferson observed that, “An honest man can feel no pleasure in the exercise of power over his fellow citizens.”  A true leader is motivated by a goal.  A goal common to his group whether that group is a company or a country.  If you find yourself attracted to leadership, stop and check your motivation. Are you driven to share your gift of understanding in the endeavor of achieving a goal, or are you motivated by perquisites of position and the power you have over others? As John Quincy Adams said, “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”

Robert Evans Wilson, Jr. is an author, speaker and humorist.  He works with companies that want to be more competitive and with people who want to think like innovators.  For more information on Robert’s programs please visit www.jumpstartyourmeeting.com.

What’s the Most Important Benefit

of Membership in NCALC/DLI?

• Advocacy with legislators, regulators and the media?

• Information about laws, regulations, the industry, problem garments, new solvents?

• Money-saving programs, e.g. credit/debit card, check processing, business insurance?

At our Fall & Committee Meeting in Asheville, President Thomas asked other attendees to draw a line across the middle of the page of the note pad provided by the hotel, then write the most valuable benefits of NCALC/DLI above the line and any suggestions they had for additional benefits or services that would make their membership more valuable below the line.

All the above were listed along with Education & Training, Technical Assistance, Trade Shows, and Friendships. But one pilgrim summed it up his way: “The answer to any question is a phone call away.”

Closing or Deactivating a Plant?

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