Development of an eco-friendly dispensing system for public
washrooms

Abstract: This master thesis project started in September 2007 and has been performed
in cooperation with the AFH (Away From Home) Tissue area of SCA (Svenska
Cellulosa Aktiebolaget) in Gothenburg. SCA is a global consumer goods and
paper company. SCA works in four business areas: personal care, tissue,
packaging and forest products. The brand for SCA:s products on the AFH
Tissue market is Tork.

The objective was to develop a concept for public washrooms that is more
environmentally friendly than the present one. The whole concept consisting
of dispensers combined with refill, such as paper and soap, was going to
express environmental friendliness. One dispenser would be presented as a
prototype.

In the research phase a benchmarking was performed to look closer into the
dispensing systems on the market and to discover new eco-trends.
Theoretical information that could be useful to the project was gathered.
This material contained information regarding sustainable designing
methods, materials and recycling. To find the needs of customers and users
several interviews and focus groups were performed in Sweden, United
Kingdom and Germany. These meetings included questions regarding both eco-
friendliness and dispensing system. In the interviews it emerged that
customers think that recycling of materials is more interesting than
biodegradable materials and that there is a need for dispensers which fit
into different surroundings. An important thing from the focus groups is
that the perceived eco-friendliness is almost the opposite of the perceived
quality for paper hand towels. Another important thing, found both among
customers and users, is that there is a need for information regarding how
a washroom is eco-friendly.

Five concepts were generated based on the research. After comparison one of
the concepts went through to the detail design phase. The base in this
concept is easiness of recycling and possibility to change the look of the
dispensers by replacing their sliding fronts. To eliminate the waste from
bin liners the waste bin works with a foldable insert.

Finally two prototypes of the paper hand towel dispenser were produced.
Both dispensers work with sliding acrylic fronts. A print was placed on the
inside of the fronts to increase the feeling of eco-friendliness. One of
the chassis was made in stainless steel and the other in birch.