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May 11, 2006

Sodexho takes over UPMC laundry

In an agreement that will protect 175 jobs in Pittsburgh, UPMC has contracted with Sodexho, Inc., to clean 19 million pounds of linens annually at a facility in the Hill District.

UPMC’s former laundry supplier decided to sell the facility at 304 Jumonville St., potentially threatening the jobs there. UPMC insisted that any new vendor continue to perform the work in Pittsburgh to support the community and to ensure timely linen service for its patients. That prompted the sale of the plant, operating since the late 1960s, to Buffalo, NY-based Centerstone Development, which is leasing the building to Sodexho of Gaithersburg, Md.

As the leading provider of food and facilities management in the United States, Sodexho hopes to use its greater purchasing power and other efficiencies to improve the Pittsburgh plant’s competitiveness. The company has annual revenues of $6.3 billion and more than 120,000 employees in North America.

Sodexho intends to build on this foothold to grow its laundry business in the western Pennsylvania region. At maximum capacity, the Pittsburgh plant could support another 50 jobs.

“The chance to be a vital part of the patient care at UPMC is an exciting opportunity for Sodexho,” said George Chavel, health care market president for Sodexho.


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