Towel and Tissue: Airport Improves Efficiency and Environment

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The Situation
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, one of the world’s busiest airports, is known as the premier market leader in management and operations. The hub connects more than 89 million visitors to destinations all over the world each year. As a chief conduit for an endless stream of travelers and airlines, Atlanta Airlines Terminal Corporation (AATC) officials constantly strive to improve operations through three main initiatives – 1) maximizing efficiency, 2) offering visitors the very best in quality accommodations and 3) continuously working to improve the facility’s environmental impact. The ultimate goal of the Airport’s ecological push is achieving Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification.

The Challenge
With 240,000 daily travelers, one of the biggest challenges the AATC officials face is to surpass washroom expectations. Today’s savvy traveler expects hygienic, safe and comfortable restrooms that are also stylish, convenient and environmentally conscience.

Since the Atlanta Airport’s inception in 1979, Georgia-Pacific Professional has been working alongside the facility’s leadership team to help improve issues and provide customized washroom solutions to meet the changing needs of the Airport. At the onset of an extensive facility renovation in 2006, AATC executives identified increases in labor and waste management costs from the previous year. As such, officials recognized the opportunity to advance the Airport’s image, efficiency and green platform, in part through the aesthetic overhaul of its restrooms. AATC officials met with Georgia-Pacific Professional’s team of washroom solutions experts to discuss opportunities for washroom improvement.

The Solution
Over the course of three years, the Georgia-Pacific Professional team worked hand-in-hand with the AATC officials to develop a solution that would provide greater efficiencies, reduced waste and an improved image.  From this relationship came the evolution of the Compact line – the Compact Quad tissue dispenser.

The first step was the introduction of Georgia-Pacific Professional’s Compact coreless tissue system. The system provides significant waste reduction by eliminating the cardboard core from tissue rolls, as well as the roll cores, cardboard shipping boxes and individual product wrapping. In addition, without the cardboard core, every bit of tissue can be used – allowing customers like the Airport to further reduce waste while extending cost benefits.

The updated high-capacity system, Compact Quad, held 4 rolls versus the traditional 2 rolls, which maximized space while improving product manageability. New tissue rolls moved into place faster and faced forward in order to minimize tabbing, allowing the tissue to tear at the intended perforation. Additionally, the amount of tissue each dispenser held doubled from 6,000 to 12,000 sheets, which reduces the number of refills required by maintenance staff.

Outcomes
In the end, the Georgia-Pacific Professional team assisted the Airport by listening to every need expressed by AATC officials and provided a product solution that achieved increased efficiency, sleeker accommodations and greater sustainability. The new Compact Quad’s faux stainless steel finish fit seamlessly into the Airport restrooms aesthetic layout following the facility’s comprehensive renovation.

AATC leadership sought to improve efficiency by reducing the amount of time it took for employees to maintain restrooms while eliminating as much waste as possible – and the Compact Quad tissue dispensers achieved just that. The new systems doubled the tissue paper capacity for each of the Airport’s restrooms, thereby reducing the amount of regularly scheduled maintenance visits and ultimately allowing the staff to focus on additional tasks.

Moreover, the Airport’s upgraded hygienic features contributed significantly to the desired environmental sustainability platform.  Meeting EPA guidelines for recycled materials, the Compact tissue system helps reduce packaging waste by 95 percent compared to that of previous dispensing systems.  The smarter packaging and increased roll capacity allowed the Airport to reduce total waste by 140,438 lbs annually – equivalent to 378,000 standard rolls of tissue.

With Compact Quad’s contributions to achieving the Airport ’s objectives of greater efficiency, sleeker accommodations, and increased sustainability, the Airport is one simple step closer to obtaining its overall goal of LEED certification.

Best of all, the Airport expects to have even more satisfied visitors.

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