Additional service available to Miele Professional customers

Laundry used in hospitals, nursing homes and on board ambulances should not contain infectious bacteria. Reliable protection can only be afforded if disinfection processes and the products used are perfectly aligned. This interplay of process and agents is monitored by the ProHygiene test used by Miele Professional service engineers in the course of maintenance work on laundry machines.

When it comes to disinfection wash processes for rescue services, hospitals and care homes, Germany's Robert Koch Institute (RKI) recommends annual tests according to recognised methods. This includes the use of calibrated data loggers with the help of which Miele service engineers are able to verify the validity of key process parameters in a thermo-electric test. However, definitive proof that wash processes and disinfectants are effective can only be furnished using bio-indicators subjected to the same wash process as the textiles themselves.

A bioindicator contains the two human pathogens Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538 and Enterococcus faecium ATCC 6057 in defined quantities. A service engineer performing the test places a bio-indicator into each washing machine to be tested between the load items. A data logger in a protective bag is also placed in the load prior to the start of a programme cycle. At the end of the cycle, the logger provides details on temperatures and holding times which can be evaluated and documented immediately.

The washed bio-indicator is sent by the service engineer to the independent Meducomp GmbH laboratory in Berlin. There, checks are made to detect the presence of bacteria. Results are available after approx. 2 weeks, and the Miele customer is sent a detailed evaluation. A certificate is issued as evidence of a successful test outcome. Test results can also be produced at the request of local health authorities or food safety and health and occupational safety boards – as proof of meeting regulations on hygiene and occupational safety.
 

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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, washer-extractors 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 and Romania. 2016/17 turnover amounted to approx. EUR 3.93 bn with sales outside Germany accounting for 70%. Miele is represented with its own sales subsidiaries and via importers in almost 100 countries. The Miele company, now in the fourth generation of family ownership, employs a workforce of around 19,500, 10,900 thereof in Germany. The company headquarters are located in Gütersloh/Westphalia, Germany.