Oxwash - re-engineering the laundry process from the ground up

by Startacus Admin

The lowdown on Oxwash, the Oxford-based green-tech startup that's on a mission to reinvent laundry services as we know them.

We have almost everything delivered these days. Whether it’s the weekly shop, a takeaway, or your nephew’s birthday present (shop local!), the ease with which we can have everything brought to us is too tempting to pass up. Just recently, one of the Startacus team had an upholsterer come to the door, pick up a sofa cushion in need of restuffing, and bring it back when the job was done; no effort required. From us. Whether it’s concern over COVID-19 or simple lack of time, there are certain tasks that would be made so much easier if we could have someone come to our door.

Oxford-based green-tech startup Oxwash wants to make people’s lives that bit simpler by doing their laundry for them! One of the founders of the startup is an ex-NASA scientist, and brings this experience and expertise to make Oxwash a zero-emission startup that kills 99.99999% of bacteria, fungi, and viruses, according to CCD laboratory tests, which is above even NHS standards.

Oxwash uses low-temperature cleaning, which extends the longevity of clothes. Instead of hot water, they use biodegradable disinfectants, quaternary ammonium compounds, ozone molecules to destroy microorganisms - a process used in healthcare, food/water, and spacecraft disinfection. They can do anything from washing your t-shirts and duvet cover to dry cleaning your tuxedo.

Every year, the world’s laundry releases 14,000 tonnes of microfibres into the oceans - a third of all microplastics in the water. Oxwash is implementing systems to filter and capture over 95% of microplastics released in washes - that’s 100 million microfibres captured per day. As a green startup, they are also saving 32 litres of water on every 8kg wash and 6,700kg of carbon emissions by using their e-bikes.

In June, Oxwash raised €2.46 million in funding, and in November, the startup announced that it had raised a further €590,000 through Crowdcube. Currently available in Oxford, London, and Cambridge, this funding will help the startup to expand its reach by adding more electric vehicles to its fleet, and generally improve its technology and processes.

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• #greentech

Published on: 1st December 2021