News & Innovations

Nor Tekstil Ålesund: Pioneering the future of laundry automation

Designed as one of the company’s most technologically advanced sites, the new plant consolidates Nor Tekstil’s former operations in Ålesund and Molde into a single modern hub that supports customers across the entire region of Møre og Romsdal, from Geiranger to Trondheim. Spanning around 6’350 m², including production areas and modern office and social spaces, the facility has been built from the ground up to maximize efficiency, capacity, and operational reliability. With a capacity of around 30 tons per day and the flexibility to scale during peak seasons, the plant demonstrates how intelligent automation and smart plant design can transform laundry operations. From mats and mops to robotics, an impressive GREIT system, XR dryers, towel-, flatwork-, and garment finishing lines, and many other clever innovations, the facility truly covers the entire laundry process end to end. It is a strong example of how the JENSEN-GROUP is creating the future of laundry automation.

Smart sorting, safer operations

The vision of automation becomes particularly visible on the soil side of the new Nor Tekstil laundry in Ålesund. Traditionally, this area has been the most demanding part of a laundry operation, involving heavy lifting, repetitive sorting, and direct contact with contaminated textiles. At the new facility in Digerneset Næringspark, however, advanced automation, robotics, and AI-driven detection technologies take over much of this work.

At the heart of the system are four THOR sorting robots that handle the continuous material flow with impressive speed and reliability. Using patented gripping technology, the robots separate incoming textiles and sort them into 32 categories for the main production flow. An additional ten categories are dedicated to smaller, lower-volume items, ensuring efficient handling even for less frequent product types. Together, the four THOR robots have a capacity of at least 4’000 pieces per hour, allowing the system to process large volumes quickly and efficiently. Before textiles reach the sorting stage, several intelligent detection systems enhance safety and sorting accuracy. The HEIMDAL.Camera identifies articles based on visual characteristics such as colour, pattern, size, and fabric type, while RFID information can be integrated when available. In addition, the ODIN.Xray scanner inspects garments for hidden foreign objects that could damage equipment or pose risks to employees. Suspicious items are automatically rejected and can be inspected immediately at a dedicated smart workstation, ensuring a safe and reliable process from the very beginning.

A particularly clever innovation addresses a practical challenge from the hospitality sector. Many hotels send their linen as tightly closed bundles, often by wrapping multiple items inside a sheet. To solve this, a special “bundle-breaker” system has been developed and even applied for patent, automatically opening these packages so that the robots can separate and process each item individually.

The entire sorting system is supported by more than 300 Futurail bags, which also enable the implementation of a Dark Factory concept. During normal production, the system can store up to 30 tons of sorted linen in the overhead buffer, allowing the laundry to continue operating in an “invisible shift.” While employees complete the main shift, the automated system continues sorting and staging textiles, ensuring that washing can proceed smoothly the next day with full transparency and control over the entire material flow. As Plant Manager Job Bakker explains: “Everything runs much more smoothly now. With up to 30 tons sorted and stored in the overhead buffer, we have a clear overview of the entire process.”

Optimised washing with minimal environmental impact

After sorting, textiles are processed in a combination of tunnel washers and stand-alone units. While the two tunnel washers P72-16 and P72-6 handle bulk loads, heavily soiled items are treated in dedicated washer-extractors. The JWE units, including JWE 110/250 and JWE 40/90, ensure intensive cleaning for workwear, mats, and other challenging textiles. For hygienically critical items, the JBW stand-alone washers JBW 38/80 and JBW 70/155 provide barrier washing, delivering strict hygiene standards for healthcare and other sensitive applications.

Once washed, textiles are first dewatered using a SEP 72 HD water extraction press for flatwork and a Z1400 centrifugal extractor for garments, removing excess moisture efficiently before drying. A lift conveyor then transports the textiles one floor up to the drying area, minimising manual handling and improving ergonomics for staff. Here, eight XR 90 gas‑heated dryers take over. Engineered for high throughput, the XR dryers combine fast, gentle drying with energy efficiency and excellent airflow management, helping protect textile quality while keeping processes moving. A built-in vacuum system ensures heavier garments are efficiently moved into clean, white Futurail bags, ready for further processing. 

The plant also significantly reduces its environmental footprint. Around 80 % of production water is reused through a full-scale internal water treatment system, cutting water consumption to about 1.5 liters per kilogram of textiles compared with 7–8 liters typical in the industry. This solution is supported by Enova, the Norwegian government agency promoting environmentally friendly energy and climate solutions and is unique in the Nordic region. Heat recovery from the ironers and boiler exhaust, combined with rainwater collection, further reduces energy use while maintaining high-performance washing and drying.

By integrating smart material flow, advanced drying technology, and sustainable processes, Nor Tekstil Ålesund delivers a safe, efficient, and ergonomically friendly washroom operation that maximises productivity while minimising environmental impact.

Seamless finishing of towels

In the towel finishing area, Nor Tekstil Ålesund combines precision folding and intelligent handling. Two THOR Towel and one Turnus separator, each equipped with a Butterfly towel folder, receive towels directly from white Futurail bags, delivering accurate, consistent folds across a wide range of sizes. The Butterfly towel folders use mechanical templates and folding knives to ensure high‑quality results tailored to operational needs.

In August, Nor Tekstil will further increase automation by replacing the Turnus separator with a BLIZZ robot, which will independently separate, centre, and feed towels into the folding line, boosting throughput and reducing manual handling.

All folded towels are then transported via the Jenway conveyor into the GREIT system, an automated stack and storage solution that organizes the stacks efficiently and directs them to the right staging areas, ready for dispatch or further handling.

From Viking to GREIT: Efficient handling of large pieces

Nor Tekstil Ålesund operates two highly equipped ironing lines for large items, combining advanced separation, ironing, and folding technology with ergonomic operator support. Clean flatwork is first received from white Futurail bags and separated by a Viking 2000 separator, ensuring gentle handling and fast processing. On the first line, operators pick up the items and feed them into a KliQ Plus feeder with four feeding stations, which delivers the items efficiently to the Kalor S 1200 ironer with two rolls with a diameter of 1’200 mm and a working width of 4,2 meter. Afterwards, a six-lane Universal folder folds the large items, while a Napkin Bottom-Up Stacker and a Max Compact stacker handle individual or mixed-size pieces, providing space-efficient stacking and high throughput.

The second ironing line is similarly equipped, starting with a Viking 2000 separator receiving clean textiles from white Futurail bags. A Jenrail system with six loading stations enables each operator to handle up to 300 pieces per hour, with items delivered efficiently and fully automatically sorted to a KliQ Plus feeder. The KliQ Plus feeder, operating in one and two lanes, feeds the items into a Kalor S 3x1200 ironer. Finished pieces are folded using a Classic folder with four inline stackers.

Both ironing lines feed directly into the two-layer Jenway conveyor system, with the lower layer handling towels and the upper layer flatwork. From there, the folded stacks enter the GREIT system, which uses three lifts and six modular shuttle units to sort and store items automatically. With a capacity of at least 225 stacks simultaneously in and out per shuttle, GREIT eliminates manual handling, ensures reliable staging, and supports a fully automated, ergonomic workflow that maintains high throughput and reliable stack handling from ironing to dispatch.

What does the FOX say?

Next to towels and flatwork, the laundry also processes healthcare garments. After being separated by a Turnus separator, the textiles are handled at six MetriQ loading stations, where each operator can manage between 300 and 400 pieces per hour. The MetriQ stations are designed for maximum ergonomics, with adjustable feeding heights and “buttons to the front” orientation, reducing fatigue and improving handling efficiency.

Once loaded, garments are directed to the JENSEN Metricon sorting system, which automatically classifies and queues items for the next stages of finishing, ensuring a smooth, continuous workflow and accurate staging for large volumes. From there, the textiles enter the Omega Pro tunnel finisher with six compartments, providing gentle, high-quality finishing. The process is completed by two FOX 1200 folders and one FOX AF folder, and, true to the headline, the FOX delivers: fast, precise, and fully automated folding before the garments are ready for dispatch.

This fully integrated setup allows Nor Tekstil Ålesund to process up to around 12’000 garments per shift while maintaining high quality, throughput, and operator comfort.

It doesn’t end here: Handling of mats and mops

At Nor Tekstil Ålesund, automation and efficiency extend beyond towels, flatwork, and garments. The laundry also provides complete solutions for mats and mops, ensuring the best first impressions for hospitality and commercial customers while maintaining hygiene and longevity of these high-traffic items.

The process begins with five dedicated loading lines, feeding mats and mops into black Futurail bags. Mats are first treated in a MatShaker, which removes sand and other debris efficiently. They then enter the Senking High-Line tunnel washer P60 with eight compartments for thorough cleaning, followed by a Z1400 centrifugal extractor to remove excess moisture. Cleaned mats proceed to the dryer platform and are finally processed through the TYPHOON mat roller, which ensures smooth, flat, and ready-to-use mats. For mops, Nor Tekstil implemented the FOSS system, a first-of-its-kind solution for hygienic handling of cleaned small pieces. After drying, RFID-tagged mops are automatically singulated, tracked, counted, and packed into reusable foil bags, ensuring accurate deliveries. With a capacity of up to 3’000 pieces per hour, FOSS ensures efficient handling in a reliable, fully automated process. 

This fully integrated workflow exemplifies how Nor Tekstil Ålesund delivers high-quality, hygienic solutions for every type of textile, from delicate linens to rugged mats and mops.

Setting a new standard for laundry automation

With its fully integrated automation, smart workflows, and sustainable processes, Nor Tekstil Ålesund demonstrates what the future of laundry can look like. From intelligent sorting and high-capacity washing to XR drying, towel, flatwork, and garment finishing, as well as mat and mop handling, every step of the operation has been designed for efficiency, ergonomics, and high-quality results.

Plant Manager Job Bakker emphasizes the strong collaboration with JENSEN and Inwatec: “They are not just our suppliers, but real partners. No matter where the technicians of all the different equipment came from, they all worked together toward the same goal: to make this project perfect.” He adds: “I’m expecting this to be one of the most efficient and automated laundries within NorTekstil, if not beyond. The whole system is simply cool, and I’m very proud of my team. What we’ve established here is amazing.”

Lars Borg, General Manager of JENSEN Norge, adds: “Everything begins with a vision. Our customer set out with a clear and ambitious goal: to build the most energy-efficient and robotized facility that today’s technology can deliver, designed to remain efficient, competitive, and future-ready for many years to come.” He further continues: “Many of the technologies delivered by JENSEN and Inwatec are unique, and it has been incredibly exciting to work closely with the customer to develop the optimal solutions needed to achieve these ambitions. After two years of planning, collaboration and implementation, the objectives have now been successfully realized.”

From Inwatec’s side, Sales Director Nikolaj Juulsgaard concludes: “We are extremely proud that Nor Tekstil, one of our earliest partners in soil sorting automation, continues to place their trust in us with this exemplary project in Ålesund. Their decision to automate their newest facility with the full range of Inwatec solutions stands as a strong testament to our shared commitment to innovation and efficiency. We truly appreciate their continued partnership and look forward to many more successful projects in the future.”

Professionalism, experience, and a shared goal made the project a success, resulting in a fully automated, high-throughput laundry that sets a benchmark for efficiency, quality, and sustainable operations in Norway and beyond. The JENSEN-GROUP and Inwatec thank Nor Tekstil Ålesund for their trust and look forward to continuing the collaboration on the shared journey toward increasingly efficient and innovative laundry solutions.

Seeing is believing: We invite you to watch our video on YouTube to explore the smart solutions and seamless processes at Nor Tekstil Ålesund.

Ever wondered how systems like this come to life? Get an exclusive behind the scenes look to see JENSEN technicians from Denmark and Norway during installation and start up working with teamwork, expertise and passion to bring it all together.