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Alternative thinking
Joanne Snowden, Senior Product Manager at Lotus Professional,
discusses why certain away-from-home washroom products should
be replaced by more cost-effective alternatives.
The Away From Home paper tissue market is
flooded with products, including a wide range
of different hand-towels and dispensers.
Ensuring customers have a choice is essential
to meet different needs, but are all these
products really necessary?
One of the most commonly used products in the
away-from-home market is the C-fold handtowel.
This continues to be used by a wide range
of customers, particularly in the industrial and
leisure sectors, as it is considered to be the
most cost-effective towel. However, with more
modern manufacturing technologies available,
customers should consider more carefully
whether they are spending too much when less
costly options are available.
Although they may be cheaper to purchase, Cfold
hand-towels will in fact generate extra
costs in the long term. This is because they are
Issy triumphs at the
Issy, 65, was awarded the Cannon
Hygiene Individual Loo Attendant
of the Year Award in Belfast, beating
off competition from across the
UK to secure the prestigious trophy.
Preferring to remain at work than
attend the ceremony, it was Issy’s
dedication to the customers of
Telford Shopping Centre and the
high standards she maintained
throughout the year that won the
judges over.
difficult to dispense and are often used while
still folded. As users have a smaller surface area
to dry their hands, they tend to take more towels
than are needed to compensate. This high
usage leads to excessive waste and consequently
higher costs.
An interleaved Z-fold hand-towel can help to
overcome many of these problems. A much
more effective product, it ensures a single
towel is presented open and ready to use each
time. Users will therefore find that they need to
use fewer towels, so that compared to C-fold,
usage is better controlled and waste reduced.
As a result, companies can use up to 20% less
product over the course of a year leading to significant
cost savings of around 17%.
Alongside cost savings, hygiene is an extremely
important factor in public washrooms, and hand
drying can be essential in improving hygiene levels.
Drying is particularly important as wet
hands collect and transmit bacteria more easily
than dry hands. Drying also helps trap microbes
through friction removal.
Studies over the past 30 years have shown that
by washing and rinsing hands, 88% of transient
bacteria is removed. However washing, rinsing
and drying using a paper hand towel gives optimum
bacteria removal of around 98-99% of transient
bacteria.1
Despite this, C-fold hand towels can create
hygiene issues which should not be overlooked.
Since users are likely to touch the dispenser to
Loo of the Year Awards Metsä Tissue, one of Europe’s
www.practicalfm.co.uk
Says Cannon Hygiene managing
director, Oliver Weisflog, “Issy’s
devotion to providing great customer
service is well known - her
past successes in the Loo Attendant
of the Year awards are testament
to that. With this being the tenth
year of Cannon Hygiene sponsorship
of the awards, it seems fitting
that such a hard-working and popular
character should be rewarded in
this manner. I have every confidence
in Issy’s attitude to customer
care, which mirrors our own dedication
to high standards and service
quality, and it is a pleasure to
be affiliated with her.
“To be recognised as the best loo
attendant in England and also the
United Kingdom overall is a fantastic
achievement and one she can be
extremely proud of. The Loo
Attendant of the Year Awards are a
great stage for too often neglected
workers to receive the recognition
they thoroughly deserve.”
The Loo of the Year Awards, now in
its 18th year, is co-sponsored by
Cannon Hygiene. It encourages the
highest standards in all types of
“away from home” or public toilets.
This year the scheme had over
1000 entries from across the UK,
from entrants as varied as offices,
schools, pubs, shops and, of
course, public toilets.
Reader Reply No.: 85003
leading manufacturers of tissue
paper products, has launched a
new range of Katrin interleaved
hand towels. All towels in the
new range feature a revolutionary
new embossing pattern that helps
to make them softer, stronger and
more absorbent. By offering high
performance hand drying, the
new towels are also designed to
be an even more cost-effective
choice.
Distinguishable at a glance by their
distinctive chequered embossing
pattern, the new towels are softer
and bulkier to touch for a comfortable,
quality feel. Perceptions are
matched by enhanced performance:
as well as absorbing 20%
more than conventional products,
the new towels soak up water 100%
faster, for rapid and effective hand
drying. In fact, a single towel is
able to absorb up to three times
more water than is normally be
found on wet hands.
The embossed towels are designed
for use with the existing range of
Katrin dispensers, which dispense
towels one at a time for controlled
economy and feature touch-free
design to prevent cross contamination.
Independently dermatalogically-tested
for Metsä Tissue, the
new hand towels will not irritate
even the most sensitive skin, mak-
washrooms
take a towel there is always a risk of cross-contamination
with germs being spread via the dispenser
mouth. A Z-fold hand-towel can overcome
this problem: each towel is self-presenting
so there is no need for users to touch the dispenser,
decreasing the risk of bacteria spreading.
There is a trend in the away-from-home market
for companies to use the same product for several
years so there is a reluctance to change.
Advances in technology and design however,
should begin to alter people’s purchasing decisions.
More advanced washroom equipment can
provide significant cost-in-use savings and
improved hygiene. Reader Reply No.: 85131
Metsä Tissue launches
new hand towel range
ing them ideal for frequent-use
applications such as healthcare and
food preparation.
Metsä Tissue’s UK Managing
Director Jouko Ranta said at the
launch: “We are now using the latest
in embossing technology to
offer UK customers superior quality
hand towels that are softer,
stronger and more economical to
use. Every time you wash your
hands properly, you will only need
a single towel to wipe them dry. It
is a perfect embodiment of the
‘Less is More’ concept that defines
the Katrin brand. “
Reader Reply No.: 85082
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