The NOVO Ravenna plant, formerly a Paris Healthcare Linen Services facility, was built from the ground up in Ravenna, Ohio. The original 50,000 sq. ft. plant was completed in February of 2004 when it was recognized as one of the leading, state-of-the-art laundries in North America. It featured a new Futurail system from JENSEN-GROUP as well as Milnor tunnels and Braun finishing equipment, and Arco Murray was the building designer, now a household name in the laundry industry. The facility expanded in 2016 to its current size of 67,500 sq. ft., and the plant became part of the NOVO Health Services family in January of 2020.

At that time, NOVO invested in an advanced soil sort system from ETECH that was commissioned in 2021 and can process more than 18,000 lbs. of laundry per hour, or as much as 110,000 lbs. in one 8-hour shift. Today the Ravenna plant can process up to 46 million lbs. of laundry each year.

Of the 253 Ravenna team members, 78 have been with the company more than 5 years, and 43 of those have been with the company over 10 years. Like many of the NOVO facilities, the Ravenna plant focuses on building its talent and has promoted team members from within the organization to hold 11 of the 15 management positions that run the facility.

The Ravenna management team's strength lies in not only its industry knowledge, but its experience and the customer relationships several employees have built over close to 20 years on staff. The Ravenna plant prides itself on the dedication its staff have for the facility, their fellow team members, the industry, and most important – their healthcare customers and their patients.

"I would like to recognize the management team including our HRM Lisa Hawkins and Stacey Wright from our main office – both of whom have been with our company for more than 19 years," said Drew Canavan, Director of Operations (North) for NOVO. "Additionally, I'd like to recognize our Office Manager Jan Bland (18 years), our Specialty Supervisor Stacy Sawastuk (18 years), General Manager John Garoiu (14 years), our Chief Bob Lattimer (15 years), our Operations Manager Jeff Kolt (15 years), and Vince Dozanti, our maintenance supervisor (15 years) – all of whom have dedicated 15+ years to our organization and the customers we serve."

"The other group I have to recognize is our CRMs," Canavan added. "For as many pounds as we ship, they all do a phenomenal job. They have incredibly strong relationships with their customers which has allowed us to grow over all of these years."

The Ravenna management team is most proud of the length of service and retention of strong team members that prove the facility is focused on not only their healthcare customers and their patients, but all NOVO employees.

As noted by Canavan, "I think our growth is the best mark of our success, and the tenure of our staff shows that we are doing it the right way. Every day is a new challenge and an opportunity for a new success, and we are proud to represent the NOVO brand.”  

In addition to its commitment to its customers, the NOVO Ravenna plant supports several area charities and community organizations, and works closely with "Ohio Means Jobs," which helps connect individuals with jobs in their area.

Thank you to the Ravenna team for representing NOVO Health Services in such a positive way and for being such an important part of the NOVO family!