Ok, there's a reason. When I was in Italy in 2011, I could not help noticing that the automatic hand dryers there were gentler on the hands, the blast of air did not deform your hands when you used them, as is universally the case in the US, and they did not sound like you're standing behind a jet engine at takeoff. I chalked it up to the supremacy of italian design.
Not so. I went to Belgium in May for a very cool tour of Trappist monasteries. Not, as you might think, because I am religious. No, it is because my husband and I are avid Belgian Beer fans. We joined 17 other people in paying homage to these wonderful beverages by traveling to their brewing locations and enjoying them as close as possible to the source. And as we traveled the country, I kept noticing the hand dryers.
First, there was the Dyson V dryer. The first time I encountered this dryer, I had no idea how to use it, and pretty much just walked away with wet hands. Later I saw someone else wave their hands in front of it, and viola, two blades of air rushed from the sides of the V, and hands became dry as if by magic. 
Then there was the Eco Dryer. This one had lots of air holes inside, so that your hands were dried with gentle air pressure as you passed your hands up and down. I liked this one a lot, I thought the multi-point air drying was a great idea. Of all I saw, this one did the job without the ear splitting, hand deforming downward single point jet of air I usually see here.
And finally, my least favorite, and most like whatI see in the Good Ole USA - the downward single point of air dryer. This is the European version of the Xelerator jet dryer in the US. It is, however, easier on the hands, and not so loud.As I contemplated the use of hand dryers at Trappist breweries in Belgium (Yes, I know how strange that sounds), it occurred to me that I don't even see that many hand dryers in office buildings in the U.S., at least in the DFW area. Why is that, I wonder? Could it be because sub-consciously we all have the same reaction to the use of uncomfortable hand dryers we typically find in the US?
It inspires me to source one of those kinder, gentler hand dryer versions to install in the bathrooms of the buildings we manage. Stay Tuned...I'll let you know how that turns out.
