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Carbon Trust certifies Dyson Airblade™ hand dryer. First hand dryer awarded for committing to reduce carbon emissions.
The Dyson Airblade™ hand dryer is the first hand dryer to be awarded the Carbon Reduction Label from the Carbon Trust.
To secure the Carbon Reduction Label, the machine’s total carbon footprint – the amount of carbon emissions (CO2 and other greenhouse gases) produced from its materials and manufacture, transport, in-use and end of life – were measured and certified by the Carbon Trust. As part of the certification, Dyson has committed to reducing the Airblade™ hand dryer’s carbon emissions further in the next two years.
The footprinting process revealed that the Dyson Airblade™ AB04 - hand dryer emits 550 kg/ CO2e total emissions during its lifetime or 1.5 g/CO2e per dry1. Each dry is equal to the carbon emissions created by watching just less than 3 minutes of television.2
James Dyson:
“Good design and environmental responsibility go hand in hand. By considering the environment from the start, our engineers develop machines that are more powerful, perform better and work using less energy and materials.”
Tom Delay, chief executive of the Carbon Trust:
“Product carbon foot printing will help to deliver the lower carbon products of the future, by informing design decisions that drive out carbon emissions. We commend Dyson for their commitment to measure and reduce the carbon footprint of the Airblade™ hand dryer.”
Powered by the Dyson digital motor, the Dyson Airblade™ hand dryer channels air at 640 km/h - literally scraping water from hands in 12 seconds. Unlike conventional hand dryers, the Dyson machine does not require a power-hungry heating element to dry hands – making it 80% more energy efficient3. And it avoids paper towel waste in landfills.
1Calculations based on 200 uses per day over 5 years
2Assuming a 32” widescreen LCD TV using 0.14kw
3Based upon the Dyson test methods for dry time to 0.1g
Further information on the Dyson Airblade™ hand dryer lifecycle:
The carbon footprint study of the machine revealed the following:
Materials and manufacture
Represents 16.9% of the Dyson Airblade™ hand dryer’s total carbon emissions. The smallest component measured was a PCB resistor weighing just 0.09g.
The machine, made from polycarbonate-ABS, a strong and flexible plastic used to make riot shields and police helmets, produces over 50% less CO2e emissions during production than the aluminum equivalent.
Transport
Transport, from the production of the machine’s materials to washrooms to recycling facilities, makes up only 1% of the total carbon footprint of the machine. The close proximity of Dyson suppliers to testing, development and assembly operations in Malaysia helps minimize transport emissions.
Dyson also avoids energy exhaustive air-freighting by shipping its products around the world by sea using fuel efficient vessels, rail and canal.
Energy in-use
The biggest impact on the Dyson Airblade™ hand dryer’s carbon footprint is not through manufacture or transport, but its energy in use representing 82% of total carbon emissions.
The Dyson digital motor spins at 81,000rpm – five times faster than a Formula 1 car engine. Unlike conventional brushed motors, it doesn’t emit harmful carbon particles into the air.
End-of-life
The machine’s end of life phase represents less than 1% of the machine’s total carbon footprint.
Dyson ensures that it engineers machines and technologies that are reliable and durable thereby reducing the number of machines that need to be recycled or discarded. Almost all the machine’s component parts are recyclable.
For more information on the Dyson Airblade™ hand dryer, please contact: amy.victoria@dyson.com
For more information on the Carbon Reduction Label, please visit www.carbon-label.com
