• Equipment for auxiliary hospitals and provisional laundries

• Laundry service in the Netherlands for the Police, fire services and care workers

Fast assistance, taking work off the hands of key workers: The common denominator linking many initiatives throughout Europe. Above all, commercial technology – washing machines, dryers, washer-disinfectors – make a significant contribution towards alleviating the Corona crisis. And Miele Service ensures that machines are commissioned and up and running in next to no time.

And in Montfermeil, a French municipality near Paris, everything had to be done at the double. In the hospital run by the town's authorities, much more laundry has needed washing since the crisis set in than is otherwise the case. That is why a gymnasium had to be repurposed and transformed into an impromptu laundry. The order was clinched by the local retailer R&F Solutions, who duly turned to Miele's subsidiary in France. They then promptly supplied three dryers and three barrier washing machines: A particularly hygienic solution which strictly segregates soiled laundry from clean textiles. The Miele team was supported by the voluntary technical relief service, and, within the space of 24 hours, the machines were ready to set to work. And now they are providing a valuable service from early morning until midnight, reprocessing some 1,500 gowns and other workwear items from the hospital.

A free service for 'everyday superheroes' is also offered by Miele's subsidiary in the Netherlands: Miele employees pick up soiled textiles from care workers and members of the police and fire services and bring them to laundries equipped with Miele commercial technology. Clean laundry is returned the next working day. And wearers and owners can rest assured that everything complies with the strictest of hygiene regulations: The Dutch government has drawn up guidelines covering the reprocessing and return of laundry, which are implemented with the greatest of care by Miele.

Speed was also of the essence in Germany when, in March, a makeshift hospital with 500 beds was set up at the trade show site in Hanover. It is intended for patients suffering from Covid-19 – albeit in a less serious condition – and will open as and when needed. This takes the strain off existing hospitals. The new facility will probably need to cope with an increasing need for hygienically clean shoes. These are reprocessed in 10 Miele washer-disinfectors which feature not only integrated drying but also HEPA H13 air filters. As no further machines were in stock, two identical lab washers were also used in Hanover on which only the 'Shoes' programme was activated.

Miele also supplied a bedpan washer to the Gütersloh regional authority. The crisis management group there is planning a provisional facility for elderly persons testing positive for Covid-19 during their stay in hospital, preventing their return to their care or nursing home on discharge.

Company profile: Miele is the world's leading manufacturer of premium domestic appliances including cooking, baking and steam-cooking appliances, refrigeration products, coffee makers, dishwashers and laundry and floor care products. This line-up is augmented by dishwashers, washing machines and tumble dryers for commercial use as well as washer-disinfectors and sterilisers for use in medical and laboratory applications (Miele Professional). The Miele company, founded in 1899, has eight production plants in Germany as well as one plant each in Austria, the Czech Republic, China, Romania and Poland. These are joined by the two plants belonging to Miele's Italian medical technology subsidiary Steelco. Turnover in the 2018/19 business year was around € 4.16 bn, with a share of business outside Germany of approx. 71%. Miele is represented with its own sales subsidiaries and via importers in almost 100 countries. Throughout the world, the family-run enterprise, now in its fourth generation, employs a workforce of around 20,500, whereof 11,050 are employed in Germany. The company has its headquarters in Gütersloh in Westphalia.