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Travelers
Concerned About Hotel Indoor Air Quality
ROSWELL, GA -- More than
two-thirds of frequent travelers in a recent national survey are
concerned about air quality in the country's hotel rooms. These frequent
travelers (defined as having stayed in a hotel at least 6 days within
the past year) identified odors (68 percent of respondents) and
"stuffiness" (59 percent of respondents) as being the most frequently
encountered indoor air quality (IAQ) problems.
"It's estimated that
Americans spend about 90 percent of their time indoors," says Alexandra
Duran, marketing manager, Kimberly-Clark Filtration Products. "We move
from our air-tight homes to offices with windows that don't open and
other public spaces and accommodations in which people are at the mercy
of a piece of equipment to filter out harmful air contaminants. Because
poor IAQ has been linked to serious health problems and employee
productivity issues, it's important to look for ways to minimize
exposure to bad indoor air."
Sixty percent of the frequent
travelers surveyed said they have experienced a range of problems - such
as poor sleep, runny or stuffy nose, dry nose, sneezing, headache, cough
and sore throat - as a result of staying in a hotel room with poor
indoor air quality. In fact, the issue of bad hotel room IAQ is of such
a concern that 42 percent of the survey respondents have actually
complained to hotel management about air quality conditions in their
hotel rooms.
"There are a number of things
hotel operators can do to improve their indoor air quality," Duran
notes. "From periodic monitoring of IAQ conditions and checking HVAC
systems for mold and other contaminants to the simple act of upgrading
their air filters, hotels would be well-served to make IAQ improvements
a priority."
The result of improved IAQ?
More than half of frequent travelers surveyed say they would become
loyal customers of hotels that provide advanced in-room air filtration
to minimize allergens, dust and odors.
The telephone survey of 381
frequent travelers was conducted Sept. 15-18 by Opinion Research
Corporation on behalf of Kimberly-Clark Filtration Products.
Kimberly-Clark Corp.
manufactures a wide variety of air and liquid filtration media with
patented and proprietary technologies. Kimberly-Clark Filtration Media
for HVAC applications offers superior filtration efficiency for improved
indoor air quality as well as a low pressure drop for energy savings
compared to filters with traditional filtration media.
Kimberly-Clark Filtration
Media for liquid applications provides for cleaner fluid streams in
applications ranging from food and beverage manufacturing, to water
treatment, chemical processing, metal working, and other scientific and
industrial processes. To learn more about Kimberly-Clark Filtration
Products, visit
www.kcfiltration.com.
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