The Role of Hand Dryers in the Decarbonization of Buildings: An Insight from Excel Dryer
In the quest for a sustainable future, the decarbonization of buildings plays a critical role. Excel Dryer is at the forefront of helping companies achieve significant decarbonization goals through innovative hand dryer solutions. Our commitment to sustainability supports the importance of decarbonization through the advantages of hand dryers over paper towels.
The Importance of Decarbonization
Decarbonization refers to the process of reducing carbon dioxide emissions through various strategies, including upgrading building systems and infrastructure, adopting renewable energy sources, and enhancing energy efficiency. As highlighted by Schneider Electric in a recent study, all-digital, all-electric buildings can reduce carbon emissions by up to 70%. For businesses and institutions aiming for a net zero future, every aspect of their operations, including hand drying solutions, must be considered.
The environmental impact of hand drying methods is significant. As the Columbia Climate School states in a 2022 article, “To achieve decarbonization, all aspects of the economy must change—from how energy is generated, and how we produce and deliver goods and services, to how lands are managed.” The paper industry is an offender across essentially all these fronts, so there’s no disputing a hand dryer’s superiority over paper towels in terms of sustainable drying. The life cycle of paper towels includes material production, transportation, manufacturing, use, and disposal, all contributing to carbon emissions and environmental degradation. Here’s a breakdown of the impact:
Material Production: While some paper comes from recycled materials or commercially grown forests, the process still requires cutting trees and processing recycled materials.
Transportation: Moving raw materials, finished products, and waste involves significant carbon emissions.
Manufacturing: The pulping and packaging processes, though greener than before, still affect the environment.
Use: The single-use nature of paper towels demands constant restocking, perpetuating the cycle.
End of Life: Used paper towels are non-recyclable and end up in landfills, consuming space and generating CO2.
One ton of virgin paper towels consumes 17 trees, pollutes 7,000 gallons of water, produces over 3 tons of CO2 emissions, and requires 40 cubic feet of landfill space. In contrast, high-speed hand dryers emit less than 40 grams of carbon dioxide per dry compared to over 57 grams for paper towels.
Excel Dryer Products in Their Own Right
Excel Dryer has been leading the hand dryer industry in sustainability through several initiatives:
Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs): Excel Dryer published the first verified third-party EPDs and Health Product Declarations (HPDs) for hand dryers.
Industry Leadership: Excel Dryer has been an active organizational member of the U.S. Green Building Council for 20 years, maintains robust partnerships with several other prominent environmental associations, and has earned multiple green certifications for its signature products.
Internalizing Values: The company’s renovation of its own headquarters in 2011—before the average mid-sized American manufacturer was even thinking green—earned LEED-CI Gold certification. The 2022–2023 renovation followed, with all product decisions adhering to both LEED and WELL Building Standard guidelines.
Green Building Certifications: Excel’s dryers help facilities qualify for more LEED v4 credits than any other hand dryers on the market.
Low Carbon Footprint: TrueNorth Collective’s recent Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) for XLERATOR, XLERATOReco, ThinAir and XLERATORsync determined these dryers carry between 81% to 96% fewer environmental impacts compared to paper towels (including those containing 100% recycled content).
Energy Efficiency: Products like the no-heat XLERATOReco are among the most energy-efficient hand drying solutions, producing minimal CO2 emissions.
Conclusion
Businesses, institutions and governments worldwide are prioritizing commitments to a net zero future, which requires considering the environmental impact of every purchase, process and system they choose. Without question, a facility seeking decarbonization would be working against that goal by opting for paper towels over high-speed, energy-efficient hand dryers. It’s important for organizations to ensure alignment with a manufacturer that demonstrates its own proven commitment, both to the advancement of green buildings and to total product transparency.
