Content about Cincinnati

CINCINNATI — According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), more than 1,000 eye injuries occur in U.S. workplaces every day.

“Oftentimes, eye injuries can be prevented, or in many cases minimized,” says Nancy Petersen, senior marketing manager, First Aid & Safety, Cintas. “Understanding the causes of these injuries and ways to reduce their occurrence and impact will benefit both workers and businesses.”

Cintas offers these tips for promoting eye safety:

IDENTIFY WORKPLACE HAZARDS

Eye injuries can be caused by many different hazards, including chemical exposure or contact with work equipment. Conduct a safety walk-through to locate areas and tasks that pose as risks to workers.

SELECT APPROPRIATE EYEWEAR

Eyewear must protect against the specific hazards employees will encounter and be properly fitted to the individual. Since different styles have varying levels of comfort and must help protect certain eye dangers, purchase multiple types of eyewear, including prescription lenses for workers who require them.

GRANDVIEW, Mo. — Pride Cleaners turned the shell of a former ice skating rink into a bright, clean central processing plant that services its 37 stores throughout the Kansas City metropolitan area. It processes around 10,000 pieces a day in season.

After the 22,000-square-foot building was cleaned out, Pride had to bring in new power, gas and water services. Every piece of equipment had to be installed, and offices were built.

The plant was laid out to best fit the workflow needed for drycleaning, laundry and alteration services. Laundry and drycleaning work is separated, and flows from the washing/drycleaning machines through the press area, down to assembly, and out to the trucks in a U-shaped design.

Among Pride’s key pieces of equipment is Fulton boilers, Unipress finishing equipment, Metalprogetti auto-sort systems, Union drycleaning machines, petroleum reclaimers, Kaeser air compressor, and a Kemco hot-water system.

CINCINNATI — Sid Millman, founder of H-M Commercial Laundry Equipment, died Oct. 17. He was 81.

Millman, who was raised by his immigrant mother and grandparents, was driven by his humble beginnings. He started selling newspapers at age 5.

In 1957, he purchased a small residential appliance repair shop in downtown Cincinnati, brought in a partner, and created H-M Company, a commercial laundry equipment distributorship now run by his two sons, Mike and Steve.

“H-M Company exists today because of my father’s founding principles and his unyielding belief in honesty and customer service,” says Steve Millman.

“My dad was always a giver, someone who was more focused on other people than himself,” says Mike Millman.

A pioneer in the laundry industry, Sid Millman established H-M Company as General Electric’s first commercial distributor and engineered H-M’s widely used drain troughs.

He was an Air Force veteran who served during the Korean War. Shortly after returning home from the service, he met Bernice Markell. They married in 1956.

CINCINNATI, Ohio — Tide Dry Cleaners, operated by Procter & Gamble subsidiary Agile Pursuits Franchising, is expanding to Atlanta. The company plans to open multiple franchised drycleaning locations and is currently seeking qualified entrepreneurs to operate the facilities.

CINCINNATI — Zoots Corp. has sold Widmer’s Cleaners, the large Cincinnati-based chain it bought out in 1999, to the operation’s management team. Last week, Zoot’s sold or closed nine Connecticut stores, and appears to be consolidating nationwide.

Widmer’s changed ownership early this month, says Steve Carico, managing member, after about six months of talks. Newton, Mass.-based Zoots purchased Widmer’s shortly after startup to learn the business, in hopes of becoming a nationwide drycleaning brand.