Luxury Paper Towels Provide Upscale Atmosphere, Reduce Waste

This is the first part of a three-part article on restroom care in Class A facilities.

Elegant. Chic. State of the art. Modern. Class A facilities are generally the best-designed buildings, boasting flashy interior architecture and luxurious finishes. It’s these top-notch qualities that demand higher rents and attract premier tenants. As such, standards and expectations for these image-defining facilities are elevated by visiting clientele and building occupants alike.

“A Class A facility has a higher standard placed on it than other types of facilities,” says Eric Cadell, vice president of operations at Dutch Hollow Supplies, Belleville, Ill. “Class A facilities, just by perception, should be in pristine condition.”

It’s often said that restrooms convey a lot about a business. Restrooms in Class A office buildings, resorts and other high-end facilities are no exception. These facilities have an increased focus on the highest quality of cleanliness and don’t hold back on appearance — their restrooms are equipped with high-end jan/san products to match their elaborate décor.

When a tenant or visitor walks into a Class A facility restroom, he or she expects to find high-end consumable paper products that embody style, performance and elegance. Jan/san distributors need to supply these facilities with products such as single- and multi-fold hand towels that are durable, yet soft as a feather; multi-ply bathroom tissue with embossing; and roll towels that are extra-thick and absorbent.

Although these high-end consumables are understandably pricier than their traditional counterparts, distributors say Class A facilities that use thicker and more absorbent towels actually notice savings by decreasing the overall towel usage.

“Better towels mean less quantity per hand dry,” says Lynn Miller, chemical sales manager for Miami-based Dade Paper Company.

Fewer towels being used also leads to reduced restroom maintenance.

There is “reduced frequency of trash removal, fewer liners needed and no tabbing of lower quality towels, requiring less labor to pick up the tabs,” says Alan Neufeld, vice president of sales for Hill & Markes Inc., Amsterdam, New York.

Distributors tell facility managers of Class A buildings that when making the switch from a lower-grade hand towel, they shouldn’t expect a reduction in use right away. Many regular users in the facility will still habitually take the same number of towels, regardless of the quality, until they notice a difference.

Not all high-end consumable paper products are created equal. Since towels vary, distributors should point out the differences in strength, texture and absorbency to help end users choose the right product for their facilities’ needs. Distributors can easily help customers make that decision by allowing them to test multiple products in their facilities. Facility managers can then determine whether a particular product meets their expectations in both effectiveness and appearance.

For Class A facilities that are committed to sustainability, paper manufacturers have rolled out eco-friendly products that use natural ingredients without sacrificing quality.

“One manufacturer has introduced technology that employs a process to create a one-ply toilet tissue that is as strong as a two-ply product,” says Neufeld. “Another has created a process to produce paper wipers that are made out of flax, and yet another is producing towel and tissue made with bamboo and wheat straw. And they all perform to an extremely high standard.”