Continental Linen Services invests in upgrades in Kalamazoo, new Cadillac location

Continental Linen Services invests in upgrades in Kalamazoo, new Cadillac location
This rendering shows the design of a new Cadillac location for Continental Linen Services. A groundbreaking is scheduled for May 23.

KALAMAZOO — Continental Linen Services Inc. is wrapping up the first phase of expansion at its headquarters as it plans to break ground next week on a new office to serve customers in Northern Michigan.

The family-owned Continental Linen Services invested $2.6 million in Kalamazoo to increase capacity and upgrade its sorting process for soiled products, according to a statement. The investment was part of a planned $7 million capital expenditure at the facility, located at 4200 Manchester Road.

With the new upgrades, the textile rental company is using new vacuum equipment and conveyors to take the soiled products to the proper bins for cleaning. Previously, staff had to manually sort more than 912,000 dirty products on a weekly basis, according to the company, which is a provider of linens, uniforms, mats, mops, custom apparel, facility products and rental services.

“This project is a huge step towards embracing technology and setting up our company for future growth,” owner and Senior Vice President Sarah Wrubel said in a statement.

Continental Linen Services, which was founded in 1899, employs about 100 people at the Kalamazoo location.

Additionally, the company announced this week that it is investing about $850,000 in a new 6,000-square-foot facility at the corner of Bell Avenue and Plett Road in Haring Township, just north of Cadillac.

“Our long-standing relationships with our customers, our business growth and our commitment to our team members and the surrounding community are the reasons we are making this investment,” CLS Executive Vice President Bill Aton said in a statement. “This location will allow us to continue to provide the high quality of service that our customer partners in northern Michigan have come to expect from CLS, continue our long-standing presence in Cadillac and provide a first class working environment that our team members will be proud to call home.”

Marion, Mich.-based Dracht Construction Co. is handling the buildout of the project, which is scheduled to break ground on May 23. 

Continental Linen Services works with more than 1,000 customers out of its existing Cadillac branch, which is located just west of the new location. The company has been in Cadillac since 1982.

In addition to the Cadillac location and its Kalamazoo headquarters, Continental Linen Services maintains offices in Grand Rapids, Saginaw, Alpena and Livonia, and employs 240 people across Michigan.


EDITOR’S NOTE: This story has been updated from its original version.