Driving Regional Healthcare Textile Safety and Hygienic Standards Across PA, MD, and VA
KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa., January 27, 2025 – ImageFIRST®, the leading healthcare linen service provider, proudly announces the reaccreditation of its Lancaster facility, located in Columbia, PA, by the Healthcare Laundry Accreditation Council (HLAC). First accredited in 2021, this achievement demonstrates the company’s continued focus on quality and safety in healthcare textile processing.
Since its initial HLAC accreditation, the Lancaster facility has experienced significant growth, increasing its annual processing from 13 million pounds to 22 million pounds. This expansion supports four depots across Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia, ensuring timely and reliable service to healthcare providers throughout the region.
Under the leadership of Regional Vice President Efrain Solivan and General Manager Matt Lewczyk, the Lancaster team has consistently upheld the rigorous operational standards required to achieve and uphold HLAC accreditation, also earning the Certified Hygienic Testing (CHT) Certification. This commitment to excellence is a practice upheld across ImageFIRST locations, ensuring that every healthcare-focused facility consistently follows HLAC processes to meet the highest hygiene and safety standards.
“There is one very important thing that hasn’t changed for us here in the Columbia, PA facility, which I attribute our continued accreditation to, and that is the ongoing effort and commitment from our 175 associates to positively impact the lives of our community, our customers, and patients,” said ImageFIRST Lancaster General Manager Matt Lewczyk. “We believe that exceptional associates set us apart in every aspect of our business, and that is truly evident in this moment.”
As leaders in infection prevention, ImageFIRST owns and operates the most HLAC-accredited plants and depots in the industry – 54 and counting. The company’s healthcare wash process meets or exceeds CDC, OSHA, and The Joint Commission standards to protect their customers and their patients.
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ABOUT IMAGEFIRST
Founded in 1967, ImageFIRST® is the largest and fastest-growing national provider of linen rental, laundry and facility services, focusing primarily on the healthcare sector. Acquired by private equity firm Calera Capital in 2018, ImageFIRST serves medical facilities nationwide and hospitality customers in select markets. They offer an array of items such as linens, patient/guest garments, essential staff uniforms and supplies, safety and hygiene programs, and more while managing their clients’ linen inventory for cost management. With a customer retention rate of over 97%, ImageFIRST is dedicated to improving staff and patient/guest satisfaction through their quality linen and remarkable service. As leaders in infection prevention, they currently own and operate the most HLAC-accredited facilities in the industry. For more information, visit imagefirst.com.
ABOUT HLAC
The Healthcare Laundry Accreditation Council (HLAC) is a nonprofit organization that inspects and accredits laundries processing textiles for hospitals, nursing homes, and other healthcare facilities. The principal benefit to healthcare customers is the knowledge and confidence that their textile provider is meeting the highest standards for processing healthcare textiles in the industry, including strict adherence to federal government regulations and guidelines. The customer can expect a consistent and smooth flow of clean textiles; and, ultimately, the knowledge of safety for their employees and the end user – the patient.
Media Inquiries:
Angel Taylor, ImageFIRST
ataylor@imagefirst.com
267-806-0058
Kristin Golden, ImageFIRST
kgolden@imagefirst.com
267-658-0592