Two manufacturers, four ranges, and a decision most buyers approach from the wrong end. The brand is rarely the first question. The building is.
The four ranges
| Speed Queen SC | Speed Queen SY | Girbau RM | Girbau HS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capacity | 9–36 kg | 18–36 kg | 10–30 kg | 18–110 kg |
| Mounting | Hardmount | Softmount | Hardmount | Softmount |
| Extraction | Up to 200G | Up to 400G | 80–200G | Up to 400G |
| Control | Quantum Gold, 30 cycles | QED Select, 99 programmes | Girbau Compass / G2 | Compass Touch |
| Notable | 10,400-cycle tested, welded A-frame | Inverter drive, 33% energy saving, Water Guardian | GDrive inverter, Aquafall cascade | Hydraulic suspension, Aquafall, Hydro / Ozone |
Every one of those has its own page: SC, SY, RM, HS.
The decision that actually comes first
Can you anchor to the floor? If the machine is going on a ground-floor slab that can be reinforced, a hardmount machine is cheaper to install and there is no suspension system to pay for or maintain. If it is going upstairs, into a converted building, or anywhere the slab will not take it, you need softmount and the question is closed.
Is the dryer your bottleneck? Almost always, yes. That is the argument for 400G regardless of the floor: higher extraction means less water reaching the dryer, which means less dryer time, less electricity and more throughput per shift. It is the specification that pays for itself rather than the one that looks good on a quote.
Only once those two are settled does the brand question mean anything.
What each manufacturer is actually good at
Speed Queen is the range most South African operators already know, and familiarity is worth something when you are training staff and sourcing parts. The SC Series' welded steel A-frame has no bolted joints, which is what the 10,400-cycle rating is about — the chassis holding rigidity over a service life rather than any single component lasting. Water Guardian, which watches the fill and shuts the machine down on an abnormal level, is standard and is the failure that otherwise floods a plant room.
Girbau leads on water. Aquafall cascades and recirculates rather than drawing fresh for every phase, and Girbau puts the saving at up to 59% a cycle. Against municipal tariffs that keep rising and real scarcity in parts of the country, that is an operating-cost line rather than a brochure figure. The HS Series also goes to 110 kg, which Speed Queen does not approach — for a central laundry or a large hospital, that alone can settle it.
Where the sizes overlap
Between 18 and 36 kg, all four ranges compete, and the honest answer is that either manufacturer will do the job. At that point the tiebreakers are practical: what your operators already know, whether water or electricity is the tighter constraint at your site, and what the total looks like once installation is priced.
Barrier configurations
Both manufacturers offer dual-door barrier machines for healthcare and any laundry working to RABC under EN 14065. If medical linen is part of the load, that requirement comes before everything above.
Get it sized properly
Send us the daily kilograms, the linen types, the floor and your electrical supply. We will size the washer and the dryer together, because the most common expensive mistake in this trade is buying a washer that outruns the dryer behind it.