Work report for the fourth issue of 2011

  The "First National Laundry Industry Association Secretaries' Joint Meeting" Held in Dalian
On November 3, 2011, the first national joint working meeting of laundry industry association secretaries was held at the Bohai Pearl Hotel in Dalian. More than thirty presidents (vice presidents), secretaries general responsible for daily association work, and representatives from key enterprises from Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Shenyang, Hebei, Sichuan, Shaanxi, Henan, Guangdong, Xinjiang, Qinghai, Ningxia, Hangzhou, Dalian, Nanjing, Guangzhou, Wuhan, Jinan, Xi'an and other provinces (regions) and cities attended the meeting. Liang Zhaoshan, researcher from the Department of Service Trade and Commercial Service Industry of the Ministry of Commerce; Pan Wei, Executive Deputy Director and Secretary General of the Laundry Committee of the China General Chamber of Commerce; Wang Houzeng, Executive Deputy Director; Xu Manli, President of the Dalian Laundry Industry Association; Wang Jidong, Secretary General, and others attended the meeting. The meeting focused on discussing the "National Laundry Service Dispute Resolution Measures (Draft)", "Laundry Service Quality Appraisal Work Procedures (Draft)", and "Industry Information Statistics Implementation Plan", and exchanged experiences and insights on association work.
       
        The "Laundry Industry Service Operation Specifications" and Two Other National Industry Standards Have Begun Implementation
The two national industry standards "Laundry Industry Service Operation Specifications" and "Laundry Industry Service Quality Requirements" drafted by our association have been promulgated by the Ministry of Commerce and officially implemented since December 1, 2011.
The "Laundry Industry Service Operation Specifications" clearly define the widely concerned terms "dry cleaning" and "wet cleaning", and set standardized requirements for laundry shop opening conditions, opening requirements, business management, service reception, processing production, quality responsibility, and compensation principles.
The "Laundry Industry Service Quality Requirements" define industry terms such as "public textiles" and "snags". It also strictly stipulates service requirements for laundry staff during service processes, as well as requirements for washing, ironing, dyeing, and mending of clothing and public textiles, and care requirements for leather and fur products.

        Leather Care Worker Certification Base Under Construction
In September and November, leaders of our association and the China General Chamber of Commerce Vocational Skills Appraisal Center conducted specific inspections of some proposed national vocational skills appraisal station bases, including the training base of Beijing Hanhuang Weiye Leather Cleaning and Care Chain Service Co., Ltd., and the training base of Shanghai Lvhua Laundry Co., Ltd. Currently, our association is organizing the compilation of related teaching materials and exam question banks, and the application and preparation work for related appraisal stations is also being further implemented.
 
        The "National Laundry Standardization Technical Committee" Officially Approved
The "National Laundry Standardization Technical Committee" (English name: National Technical Committee 520 on Laundry and Dyeing of Standardization Administration of China) was recently officially approved by the National Standardization Management Committee. The first National Laundry Standardization Technical Committee consists of 37 members. Leaders from relevant departments of the Ministry of Commerce will serve as chairman and vice-chairmen. Wang Shuyuan, Lu Zhiji, Zhu Lijun, and others will also serve as vice-chairmen. Pan Wei serves as secretary general, Wang Houzeng as deputy secretary general, and the Laundry Professional Committee of the China General Chamber of Commerce undertakes its secretariat daily work. The committee's work is currently progressing intensively, with plans to hold the inaugural meeting early next year.
       
        Revision of National Occupational Classification for Laundry Industry Information Collection Completed
According to the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security's "Notice on the Revision of the National Occupational Classification" (Document No. 55 [2010]), entrusted by the National Occupational Classification Revision Committee for Commercial Services, our association is responsible for revising existing laundry industry occupations and collecting information on proposed new supplementary occupations.
To carry out this work well, the Laundry Committee formed a research team composed of laundry industry experts and enterprise leaders. After multiple investigations, it was decided to improve the two existing occupations of laundry worker and dyer, and to newly add four occupations: shoe repairer, laundry service staff, mender, and tailor. Considering the tight revision schedule, urgent tasks, and large workload, a division of labor approach was adopted. The information collection and description tasks for the six occupations were assigned to six enterprises and associations: Beijing Riguang Fine Group Co., Ltd., Jilin Hengtai Garment Laundry Science and Technology Research Institute, Shanghai Laundry Industry Association, Sichuan Laundry Industry Association, Beijing Hanhuang Weiye Leather Cleaning and Care Chain Service Co., Ltd., and Beijing Manula Garment Alteration Co., Ltd. After collecting occupational revision opinions and new occupation definitions, the working group consolidated the opinions and submitted unified reports. After nearly two months of effort, the information collection and reporting for the six occupations has been completed.
       
        Laundry Committee Appoints Additional Deputy Director and Deputy Director of Leather Care Office
According to the "Work Regulations of the Laundry Professional Committee of the China General Chamber of Commerce" and the needs of the Laundry Committee, after study by the executive working meeting and approval by the China General Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Bao Guanghua, Chairman of Wenzhou Finnis Leather Chemical Co., Ltd., was appointed as Deputy Director of the Laundry Professional Committee of the China General Chamber of Commerce. At the same time, the following personnel were appointed as Deputy Directors of the Leather Care Professional Office:
Chen Tao — Guangdong Tiantian Laundry Chain Co., Ltd. (Technical Director);
Zhang Hongxu — Shanghai Jieshi Leather Care Co., Ltd. (General Manager);
Liu Jianhua — Tianjin Shagen Leather Service Co., Ltd. (General Manager);
Bao Licong — Wenzhou Finnich Leather Decoration Technology Development Co., Ltd. (Deputy General Manager).
       
        Publication and Distribution of the "Leather Care Worker" National Occupational Skill Standard
The standalone publication "National Occupational Skill Standard — Leather Care Worker" has been officially published and distributed, priced at 6 yuan. The national occupational skill standard for leather care workers was initiated and organized by the Laundry Professional Committee of the China General Chamber of Commerce, approved by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, and has been officially implemented since November 4, 2010.
    
        Release of the Second Half of 2011 National Laundry Industry Information Price Survey Results
The price survey work for the second half of 2011 collected price information from laundry service and detergent sales enterprises in more than 20 provinces, cities, and autonomous regions including Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Chongqing, Jilin, Liaoning, Hebei, Henan, Shanxi, Shandong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Fujian, Shaanxi, Ningxia, Guangdong, Guangxi, Sichuan, Qinghai, and Xinjiang. By statistically analyzing the prices of the most commonly consumed service items by residents and the detergent prices necessary for daily operation of laundry enterprises, price information on laundry services for some regions' daily clothing and public textiles, as well as sales prices of detergent products, was formed. This information has been published on the "China Laundry" website and journal, and submitted to the Ministry of Commerce.
       
        National Domestic Trade Basic Work Conference Held
The "National Domestic Trade Basic Work Conference" organized by the Ministry of Commerce was held in Guangzhou on December 16 and 17. Vice Minister Jiang Zengwei of the Ministry of Commerce attended the meeting and delivered an important speech. Leaders from the Circulation Development Department, Commercial Service and Service Trade Department, and other related departments of the Ministry of Commerce, leaders from the commerce departments (committees, offices, bureaus) of provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities) nationwide, and leaders of national associations related to the commercial service industry attended the meeting. Our association's Executive Deputy Director and Secretary-General Pan Wei also participated in this meeting.
The meeting particularly emphasized the importance of doing a good job in the statistical work of the commercial service industry, clearly stating that through a 1-2 year pilot trial, a statistical evaluation indicator system covering commerce, circulation, and various service industries and key tasks at the national and provincial/municipal levels should be basically established. The laundry and dyeing industry, as part of the statistical evaluation system, was included in the basic industry statistical system for the first time. This is of great significance for the accuracy of public information in the laundry and dyeing industry, strengthening statistical analysis and evaluation and the development and application of results, and improving the ability of statistical results to serve the industry, enterprises, and the entire service industry development. Our association has decided to make the national laundry and dyeing industry statistical work an important task for next year, and will fully cooperate with local associations and related organizations according to the spirit of this meeting and the specific requirements of the Ministry of Commerce to do this work well.
      
         Laundry and Dyeing Committee Signs Laundry Service Quality Testing Work Agreement with "Tianxiang Group"
To strengthen the standardization and scientific nature of appraisal work, improve the credibility of appraisal reports, and increase consumer trust in appraisal results, our association, after nearly six months of selection and negotiation, has designated "Tianxiang Group" as the national laundry service quality appraisal center's designated laboratory. On December 19, 2011, our association's Executive Deputy Director and Secretary-General Pan Wei and Wang Jianping, General Manager of the China Market Division of "Tianxiang Group," signed the cooperation agreement on behalf of both parties, officially establishing the cooperative relationship in national laundry service quality appraisal and laundry industry standard formulation work.
      
         Starting in 2012, the "China Laundry" journal will expand and switch to a bimonthly publication
To meet the needs of the vast laundry industry professionals for industry information and technical exchange and learning, with the support of member units and experts, our association has decided to expand the "China Laundry" journal from 2012, increasing the current 56 pages to 64 pages to expand the coverage of technical articles, and to add the "China Laundry - Leather Care Special Issue." Thus, the "China Laundry" journal will be published bimonthly, issued in even-numbered months.