George Clemens invented the hand dryer. Clemens' invention eliminated the need to purchase paper towels for the customers to dry their hands. In today's society, the hand dryer is still efficient, however, some consider the hand dryer to be not as hygienic as paper towels.

History

A Chicago native, Clemens invented the hand dryer in 1948, according to weinvent.com. Over the years, the dryer has had minimal upgrades, but some hand dryers have been upgraded to no touch sensor, according to worlddryer.com. In 1987, World dryer released the first sensor activated hand dryer.

Advantages

According to americandryer.com, hand dryers eliminate the cost of paper towels and require little to no maintenance. Hand dryers range in price from $238.31, according to amazon.com, to $453, according to samsclub.com.

Disadvantages

Some people prefer paper towels over hand dryers because some hand dryers require you to press a button, according to europeantissue.com, which could cause transmit germs.

Dyson/American dryer

The Dyson Airblade can air dry hands within 10 seconds. The American dryer has also developed a hand dryer, which is called ExtremeAir, that can dry hands within 10 seconds.

Considerations

After washing and drying your hands, according to handwashingforlife.com, use a paper towel or napkin, if provided, to open doors or turn knobs to prevent contracting germs.

Source:

http://www.weinvent.com: Electric hand dryer

http://americandryer.com: Advantages and products

http://www.europeantissue.com: Disadvantages

Resource:

http://www.dysonairblade.co.uk: 10 second hand dryer

http://www.worlddryer.com: Invention timeline sensor hand dryer