Forbes delivers a complete laundry solution to newly converted PBSA accommodation.

Forbes were recently approached by Christian Grant, a private sector property consultancy, who had just converted an old retail unit into premium student accommodation. They were looking for a simple laundry solution to cater to the 50 residents. With so many options available, they really wanted a steer as to what would best suit their requirements, supporting their image and meeting the students’ expectations of a premium offering.

As Forbes works with a number of PBSAs we were well positioned to provide Christian Grant with all of the necessary industry advice and help them source the best solution from both a client and user perspective.  We discussed our previous Miele installations within PBSA environments. Our team then conducted a comprehensive site survey to help devise the right machine configuration for the space available and worked with Christian Grant and their mechanical engineering teams through the planning and design phases, advising upon all service and infrastructure requirements. We also researched the charges at local launderettes to help them set the vending prices at a level that would cover most of their costs without over charging, to ensure that student satisfaction levels remained high. The various payment systems were presented to Christian Grant in order to enable the students at their Cheswick Campus in Bristol to make simple contactless payments. We don’t recommend the use of top-up laundry cards to clients as, in our experience, students prefer a simple one step solution. Laundry cards do not enable a streamlined process and can also raise issues at the end of term when they hold cash that cannot be released.

Miele’s Little Giant PWM507 and PDR907 washer/ dryer pairs presented as the best fit for this project along with our centralized payment system. The chosen laundry equipment is extremely robust and both water and energy efficient. Miele have engineered these models using innovative technologies to deliver impressive cleaning performance, economy, user convenience and flexibility.

Our solution gives access to all payment methods, with hi-res colour touch screens for enhanced usability. It will allow for a simple, one step process through the students’ bank card suppliers, as well as facilitating both Apple pay and Android pay. The payment system also comes with a user portal that enables a full audit list of payments. When choosing a cashless payments solution, security is of paramount importance. The solution that we have delivered provides an EMV certified solution with PCI-DSS level 1, the highest level of security standards certification, which is reviewed annually to ensure strict compliance.

We fully installed all of the machines, commissioning them for safe use and linking them to the payment system. We have also provided laminated user instructions to ensure that the machines are fully optimised and to minimise and basic user errors.  We will be now be providing a comprehensive service support for the duration of the rental contract.

Chris Burnett, Business Manager at Christian Grant Properties said of his experience of working with us:

‘Forbes Professional were recommended to us by our professional team as the best choice for a managed laundry service. In the first instance the service from Laura was exceptional, and she drew upon their experience to help us decide quantity and quality of machines. Laura also shared pricing information to help us decide on the best price point. We were provided with options for both app based booking and contactless payments. The information was presented to us very clearly and there wasn’t a sales push on this, rather a good conversation about what was best for us as a business. Despite some installation challenges thrown up by us, Forbes dealt with it professionally and promptly, resulting in a seamless installation and training on how everything works. We are very impressed with the product and service delivery.’