Partnership Aims to Boost Awareness around Laundry Safety and the Safe Use of Liquid Laundry Packets

WASHINGTON, D.C., December 10, 2014 – The American Cleaning Institute® (ACI) has partnered with the Coin Laundry Association (CLA) to help keep children safe and prevent injury. The collaboration brings together ACI’s expertise in consumer education and CLA’s influential membership base of Laundromat owners across the country.

New products are made available to consumers every day and they often engage in use of these products without knowing what the associated risks are if not properly stored, used and handled. This is particularly true for liquid laundry packets which have become widely available since hitting retailer shelves in 2012. Millions of consumers have found these packets to be an easy and convenient way to do laundry. However, if not properly stored, liquid laundry packets can cause serious harm if accidentally ingested or exposed to the eyes.

Accidents involving liquid laundry packets don’t just happen at home, but can also occur in public spaces including Laundromats. With an average of 7 million families frequenting Laundromats every week1, it is vital that Laundromat patrons are armed with ACI’s important information to ensure that everyone, especially young children, are kept safe. If laundry packets are not properly handled, patrons are not just putting themselves and their families at risk, but others as well.

The partnership between ACI and CLA will help further reach consumers with messages on how to safely store laundry packets and their containers before, during and after the laundry process. In addition, the partnership will also benefit Laundromat owners by helping to prevent accidents in their businesses and ensuring the safety of their customers.

Combined with CLA’s influential members, the KEY Pledge campaign and CLA both bring a wealth of industry knowledge to the partnership. CLA and ACI plan to implement several activities including: encouraging CLA members to post ACI information in their Laundromats, posting ACI educational materials on CLA websites (findalaundry.org and coinlaundry.org) and inclusion of an article on laundry safety in CLA’s magazine, Planet Laundry. ACI is also providing downloadable laundry safety materials to CLA members that can be found on KEYPledge.com and used within Laundromats across the U.S.

“ACI is pleased to announce this partnership with the CLA as we work together to prevent accidents when laundry is done outside the home,” said Nancy Bock, ACI Senior Vice President of Education. “Children act fast and so do accidents, so we are urging Laundromat owners, staff and the public to keep liquid laundry detergent packets away from children.”

“CLA is excited about the partnership with ACI and we feel we can be of great service in sharing this information on safe laundry habits with Laundromat owners and our members,” said Brian Wallace, CLA President and CEO. “We believe in ACI’s message and we are happy to help spread awareness around this important issue.”

ACI is also encouraging customers to take part in the KEY Pledge campaign by visiting KeyPledge.com. Those that take the pledge can track how they are making a difference through a heat map that allows them to follow pledge tallies by zip code in their home state and across the nation. In addition, all online pledges will be entered into a sweepstakes for a chance for one consumer to win a $2,500 grand prize* to help makeover their laundry room.

To find out more information about the KEY Pledge campaign and to make a personal pledge to be the KEY to a safe laundry room, visit www.cleaninginstitute.org/keypledge.

About the American Cleaning Institute:
The American Cleaning Institute® (ACI) is the Home of the U.S. Cleaning Products Industry™ and represents the $30 billion U.S. cleaning products market. ACI members include the formulators of soaps, detergents, and general cleaning products used in household, commercial, industrial and institutional settings; companies that supply ingredients and finished packaging for these products; and oleochemical producers. ACI (www.cleaninginstitute.org) and its members are dedicated to improving the health and quality of life of consumers through sustainable cleaning products and practices.

About the Coin Laundry Association:
Established in 1960, the Coin Laundry Association is the only national trade organization that services the five billion dollar self-service laundry industry. The association has sixteen local affiliate groups around the United States and its members include store owners, potential investors, distributors and manufacturers. The association’s primary goal is to advance the industry for laundry owners and their business partners, along with the consumers that benefit from using a local laundry.

*NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Ends on December 31, 2014 at 5:00 p.m. ET. Open to legal residents of 50 U.S., the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, 21 and older. Void where prohibited. For Official Rules, go to http://www.keypledge.com/Keypledge/TermsConditions.html. Sponsor: American Cleaning Institute