Tork first to receive new certification – setting the bar for inclusive design

Recognized through the campaign “For everybody and every body”, Essity brands provide care for the hygiene and health of a billion people across 150 countries under brands such as Tork, Libresse and Libero. Tork, a global leader in professional hygiene, has now been certified for the Tork dispenser development process.

– We want to show that within the Tork brand inclusive hygiene is in our DNA. We are committed to making public hygiene accessible to the majority of users by working to eliminate visible and invisible barriers to hygiene and now we can communicate an additional proof point of what we mean by it, says Saosann Eriksson, Technical Innovation Manager at Tork.

Every year, around 6.5 million Tork dispensers for paper products and soap are installed in venues including restaurants, manufacturing sites, healthcare institutions and businesses around the world.

Universal design principles are used in the development process

Applying design for all principles to the Tork dispenser development process helps reduce barriers to hygiene for users with a range of conditions, capabilities, neuro-diversities, general hygiene concerns and in various stages of life. Users include those who, for example, wash and dry their hands with paper towels, but also those who refill dispensers with paper towels, toilet paper, napkins and soap.

– Designing better products for all users – including cleaning and maintenance staff – is a long-held philosophy that has always guided our way of working. Our ambition is to design for the majority of users. When businesses provide public washrooms designed to meet the needs of many, it not only improves their reputation but also improves their overall business, says Kristian Grennfelt, Global Brand Innovation Director at Tork, and adds:

– In fact, nearly 90 percent of people say it’s important for them to have easy access to hygiene in public, particularly in the washroom.* It’s clear that providing inclusive hygiene in public washrooms is good for people and for business.

“Design for all” creates broader inclusion

Tork has chosen to use the European standard EN 17161 to guide its product development of dispensers. The universal design standard, or 'Design for all', aims to broaden the spectrum of users to ensure that as many people as possible can use the finished product. In December 2024, Tork became the first brand in the world to have its universal design process certified by RISE. This means that the brand now has proof that it meets the requirements of the standard.

– Design for all, which is what EN 17161 is all about, requires that you aim to develop the user perspective and constantly expand the number of user groups that you take into account and evaluate in the design process, explains RISE auditor Lena Jönsson, who conducted the review audit of Tork.

Looking to identify more barriers

For several years now, Tork has engaged with people with reduced hand strength to test its products. This generated lessons and knowledge that has proven to be important for product development. Tork is looking closely at many elements – from hygiene concerns to an individual’s evolving capabilities – to inform the design process and modify existing solutions or create new solutions that are more inclusive for all.   

– The biggest challenge is that there probably are needs that we don't know about yet. The last 15 years has been a journey for us, learning more about the different types of challenges or barriers that people may face when using a public washroom, Kristian Grennfelt says.

– It could be someone who has a compromised immune system after cancer treatment and avoids public toilets because of the risk of infection, or an elderly person who cannot locate a paper dispenser if it is the same color as the wall behind it, due to impaired vision, Saosann Eriksson adds.

Request resulted in new service

When the team from Essity contacted RISE with the question of certifying their management system for universal design, RISE developed a new service to meet the request. The service “Certification of Management Systems for Universal Design SS-EN 17161” was then accredited by Swedac, and RISE became the first in the world to offer an accredited certification for the standard in question.

– Undergoing a certification process was demanding, but we are committed to delivering hygiene for all and know our customers’ businesses can benefit from providing better hygiene solutions. The same goes for RISE, which we realized early on takes the issue of accessibility just as seriously as Tork and Essity, says Saosann Eriksson.

Saosann Eriksson and Kristian Grennfelt now hope that other brands and industries will follow in their footsteps.

– The more companies that work to meet this standard, the more are contributing to ensuring that people are not excluded from society in various ways. Many companies certainly stand for the principle of designing for all, but do not make this kind of commitment. This is where we hope to inspire. We are also convinced that this work makes our products better, says Kristian Grennfelt.

*Source: Tork Insight Survey 2024, conducted in US, UK, Germany, France and Mexico among 6000 end-users and 900 businesses