The participants of the Car Wash Tours went to see three unique car wash locations in the Netherlands on Wednesday, September 20. Divided into three touring buses, the group went to BOB Autowas in Rotterdam IJsselmonde, Autoradam in Almere and Falcon Carwash in Rotterdam Spaanse Polder.

The Car Wash Tours are part of Car Wash Show Europe and traditionally take place the day before the official opening of the fair. At each location, participants got the chance to discover the carwash and take a look behind the scenes.

LCD screen

BOB Autowas Rotterdam IJsselmonde is the newest location of BOB Autowas. It was opened three years ago. This brand new, ultra-modern XL car wash was built from the ground up and has all the technological innovations in the field of car washing.

There is a large LCD screen at the entrance to the car wash, for example, with changing, colorful images. There is also an interior lane, where cars were cleaned on an assembly line during the tour. As well as a hand wax lane for car polishing and two spots for the Autospa. The spacious technical area was also a sight to behold for attendees.

The car wash is supplied by Holz. It consists of a 42-meter-long track with a switching belt. There is also a large vacuuming area, equipped with all the facilities for interior cleaning. The technology comes from ACE Car Wash Systems. The detergents are coming from Caramba.

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Jungle theme

Autoradam in Almere is a location where everything comes together on more than 10,000 square meters and over two floors. In addition to a Holz chain tunnel, the car-washing area includes an Autospa, interior track, a big vacuum space and four self-service wash bays.

The wash hall is completely covered and unusually designed, with many windows for light. There are solar panels on the roof to provide some of the electricity.

Autoradam has a changing theme at each wash location every six months. Currently, the car wash in Almere is in jungle mode. Which led to some nice pictures for the participants.

Also characteristic of this carwash are the ‘small’ details. Like a shoe polishing machine near the interior lane, for customers who want to quickly clean their shoes before getting into their clean car.

In addition to the carwash facilities, there is a gas station with shop, car rental, dog wash and even an E-bike Experience Centre.

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Clever system

Falcon Carwash started this stand-alone carwash location in Rotterdam five years ago. Falcon noticed a high demand for washing buses and larger vehicles, and therefore came up with the idea of installing a double rollover system from WashTec in Spaanse Polder, part of Rotterdam.

Here, cars and buses to 3.20 meters high and 2.20 meters wide can be easily washed. This location is automated, runs 24/7 and all the machinery is being controlled remotely. At the touch of a button, the contact center is activated and help is available to the customer – if needed.

The software vendor at this location is Custom Made Payment Solutions (CMPS). Among other things, they provide license plate recognition for subscription washers.

The system immediately recognizes the type of vehicle and allows access. For customers without a subscription, the car is scanned through a system running on Google Intelligence. This system first determines what car or van it is, which brand and what its dimensions are. The system also ‘sees’ whether there are any extras on the car. “So the customer can’t make mistakes when choosing the wash program,” he said.

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Thursday, September 21, Car Wash Show Europe opens at EXPO Greater Amsterdam. Divided over two days, international car wash enthusiasts and suppliers will gather for Europe’s largest car wash exhibition. Have you already registered? Entrance is free, register here.