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Bradford academics confirm new Dyson hand drier as ‘most hygienic’

Press Release - 3 October 2006

Professor Clive Beggs and Dr Anna Snelling of the Bradford Infection Group at the University of Bradford have been working with Dyson Ltd on the development and testing of a hygienically superior hand drier, the Dyson Airblade™.

This machine, which was launched by Dyson Ltd today (Tuesday 3 October 2006) dries hand efficiently in just 10 seconds, whereas conventional warm air driers take in excess of 30 seconds to achieve a similar result.

Because of its superior hand drying qualities, Professor Beggs and Dr Snelling believe that the Dyson Airblade™ drier is hygienically superior to conventional warm air driers and that it has the potential to greatly improve hand drying compliance and reduce the spread of infections.

Clive Beggs, Professor of Medical Technology within the University of Bradford’s School of Engineering, Design and Technology, said: “We all know that washing your hands helps to prevent the spread of infection. However, what many of us don’t realise is that the hand drying process can be as important as hand washing itself. Washing with soap and water doesn’t always remove all the contaminating bugs from your hands. Transfer of bacteria, including types that might be harmful, is more likely to occur from skin that is wet than from skin that is dry.”

Prof Beggs and Dr Snelling have been responsible for the design and supervision of the microbiological trials used to evaluate the hygiene performance of the Dyson Airblade™ drier. Through a series of rigorous scientific trials, they have demonstrated the hygienic qualities of the new Dyson Airblade™ drier, which they believe has the potential to greatly improve hand drying compliance and reduce the spread of infection.

Dr Anna Snelling, Senior Lecturer in Microbiology within the University’s School of Life Sciences, said: “Unlike hand washing, which is recognised as being a key factor in controlling the spread of infectious disease, the important role of hand drying in the overall hygiene process has remained largely unrecognised.

“In reality, the drying process is as important as hand washing itself, because it has been shown that transmission of microbes is more likely to occur from wet skin than from dry skin.

“Through effective drying of hands, it is possible to reduce the numbers of bacteria transferring to skin, food or other inert surfaces by around 99 per cent.”

Conventional warm air machines dry hands slowly, with most driers taking in excess of 30 seconds to fully dry hands. Consequently, users of such machines frequently leave before their hands are fully dry, with the result that there is increased risk of bacterial transfer to sterile surfaces touched by damp hands.

Observations made by Professor Beggs and Dr Snelling (in conjunction with Dyson Ltd) revealed that men typically spend on average 20 seconds at a warm air hand drier, whilst women spend just 16 seconds. It was observed that 37 per cent of women spent no more than 10 seconds attempting to dry their hands, with only 9 per cent of women prepared to spend 30 seconds or more at the driers. It is therefore the case that most users of conventional warm air driers leave the drying process with their hands still wet or damp. This is a profoundly unhygienic practice, which is likely to lead to increased carriage of pathogenic microorganisms on the hands of individuals leaving washrooms.

The Dyson Airblade™ machine is a new and novel technology which is radically different from the conventional warm air hand driers commonly found in wash rooms. Unlike conventional driers which rely on evaporation and the rubbing of hands to produce a drying effect, the Dyson Airblade™ machine utilises a double air knife to strip and evaporate water from hands.

In addition, the air delivered to the hands is filtered and thus sterile. It is a particularly fast and efficient process which takes only 10 seconds to completely dry hands. It therefore ensures that the hands of users are dry when they leave the machine, thus eliminating the unhygienic consequences described above, which are associated with conventional warm air driers.

Unlike conventional air driers, the Dyson Airblade™ machine does not require any rubbing of hands, with the result that there is no risk of repopulating the surface of the skin with commensal bacteria from deep within the pores or under the fingernails.

In a rigorous microbiological trial, comparing the Dyson Airblade™ machine with other conventional warm air driers, Professor Beggs and Dr Snelling found that with a standard drying time of 10 seconds, the Dyson Airblade™ unit performed considerably better than all the other machines tested, with results which were statistically significant.

The hands of fourteen volunteers were tested after they had been handling raw meat and had washed with soap and water. It was found that bacterial carriage after using the Dyson Airblade™ machine was only about 7 per cent of that resulting from use of the conventional driers. This performance, together with the very short drying time, has lead the researchers to conclude that the new Dyson Airblade™ unit has great potential to increase hand drying compliance plus efficacy, and that this may yield positive health benefits in the fight against the spread of infectious agents by the hand-borne route.

4 October 2006