Page 17 - BusinessWest February 3, 2025

“We basically wanted to create a model for other people who
are designing commercial spaces on how
to achieve a sustainable and healthy workplace that could be both LEED- and WELL-certified.”
try globally and drive our success in the future,” he said, “because people realized there was so much conspiracy and snake oil and BS during the pandemic — knee- jerk reactions with nothing backed by science.”
Recovery from the havoc wreaked by COVID and its aftereffects — including
the skyrocketing cost of new construction, which stalled or scrapped the building of many new facilities into which Excel prod- ucts could be placed — is one of many sto- rylines involving this company, which burst onto the scene nearly a quarter-century ago with the XLERATOR, a hand dryer that would do what its predecessors couldn’t: thoroughly dry one’s hands.
Others include everything from donat-
ing mobile hand dryers to relief sites in
Turkey, where survivors are rebuilding
from an earthquake 18 months ago, to an
addition to the plant in East Longmeadow
that is environmentally friendly and work-
er-friendly as well, featuring everything
from ‘living walls’ to carpets made from used fishing nets to lights that follow the natural circadian rhythm of humans.
“We basically wanted to create a model for other people who are designing commercial spaces on how to achieve a sustainable and healthy workplace that could be both LEED- and WELL-certified,” said Gagnon, referring to the Leadership in Energy and Environ- mental Design designation and a standard for delivering more thoughtful and intentional spaces that enhance human health and well-being, respectively.
“We’ve won a dozen awards on the design of this space in archi- tecture magazines,” he went on, adding that more important than these accolades is the manner in which the space creates an attrac- tive, healthy space in which to work.
A mobile XLERATOR hand-dryer station in a Turkish container shelter community following the deadly earthquake in 2023.
Photo courtesy of Excel Dryer
Meanwhile, efforts to bring high-speed hand dryers into more restrooms continues, he said, adding that, in this country, hand dry- ers are included in only 10% to 15% of new construction. That’s an improvement over the 5% rate years ago, but there is still consider- able room for improvement, which is another area of focus moving forward.
And one potential strong avenue for growth, said Gagnon, is hybrid systems make use of Excel’s sink systems — integrated prod- ucts whereby users can wash their hands and dry them at the same
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