SHEFFIELD, MASS.—Cypress Bath, Bed & Spa, a leading designer and manufacturer of luxury bathrobes, towels, slippers, and sheets for the global hospitality and spa industries, is encouraging hotels that are participating in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) to consider implementing the Green Earth towel into their linen purchase program, due to documented LEED credits that the Green Earth towel can potentially contribute to. The seven LEED credits identified under the Existing Building certification category that are applicable to use of the Green Earth towel include:
• Water Efficiency Credit 1: Water Performance Measurement. To measure building and subsystem water performance over time to understand consumption patterns and identify opportunities for additional water savings.
• Water Efficiency Credit 2: Additional Indoor Plumbing Fixture and Fitting Efficiency. To maximize indoor plumbing fixture and fitting efficiency within buildings to reduce the use of potable water and consequent burden on municipal water supply and wastewater systems.
• Energy and Atmosphere Prerequisite 1: Energy Efficiency Best Management Practices—Planning, Documentation and Opportunity Assessment. To promote continuity of information to ensure that energy-efficient operating strategies are maintained and provide a foundation for training and system analysis.
• Energy and Atmosphere Prerequisite 2: Minimum Energy Efficiency Performance. To establish the minimum level of operating energy efficiency performance relative to typical buildings of similar type to reduce environmental and economic impacts associated with excessive energy use.
• Energy and Atmosphere Credit 1: Optimize Energy Efficiency Performance. To achieve increasing levels of operating energy performance relative to typical buildings of similar type to reduce environmental and economic impacts associated with excessive energy use.
• Materials and Resources Prerequisite 1: Sustainable Purchasing Policy. To reduce the environmental impacts of materials acquired for use in the operations, maintenance and upgrades of buildings.
• Materials and Resources Credit 1: Sustainable Purchasing—Ongoing Consumables. To reduce the environmental and air quality impacts of the materials acquired for use in the operations and maintenance of buildings.
Hotels Implementing Green Earth Towels
“Our research on LEED Certification prerequisites confirms our position that up to seven credits can potentially be achieved through the use of this truly unique towel,” stated Gene Faul, Cypress founder and CEO. “The fact that leading LEED certified properties around the country are implementing a Green Earth towel program also backs up our claim that substantial energy and water savings, as well as reduced operational costs, can be realized.”
Multiple stringent tests show that, due to increased loadability, laundering Green Earth towels requires up to 30 percent less water and laundry chemicals per towel per wash and dries 10 to 20 percent faster, resulting in up to 30 percent in energy savings per load. The Green Earth towel is 30 percent lighter and is as absorbent and as bulky as a normal combed cotton towel twice its weight. The ratio of surface area to weight of the Green Earth towel is extremely high, therefore they absorb 10 to 12 times their weight in water, as opposed to an absorbency of five times by a typical ring-spun combed cotton towel.
“Many environmentally conscious hotels participate in linen reuse programs, which we also encourage,” continued Faul. “However, augmenting that with the Green Earth towel contributes even more directly to conserving water and energy, while maintaining the highest standards of guest comfort and satisfaction.”
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