Silver Anniversary for Porcelain Partner

ORLANDO, Fla., Nov. 10, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Innovations in the toilet paper arena may not change the world, but they can certainly help people out in times of need.

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One such creation – the Jumbo Roll Tissue (JRT) dispenser has forever changed the public restroom experience. Found in airports, restaurants, stadiums and other locations away from home, these outsized dispensers and seemingly endless rolls of TP have greatly curtailed those embarrassing "spare-a-square" moments when the toilet paper well runs dry.

Today, this iconic product marks its 25th anniversary and its manufacturer, Kimberly-Clark Professional, has much to celebrate. To commemorate the JRT 25th anniversary, Kimberly-Clark Professional unveiled – and then sliced – a jumbo-sized cake shaped like rolls of JRT toilet paper at the ISSA/Interclean trade show in Orlando, Fla. The cake was then shared with hundreds of the company's customers.

"JRT literally changed the course of restroom history," said Richard Thorne, vice president of Kimberly-Clark Professional North America.  "When people think of supply and demand, toilet paper doesn't generally come to mind, but the JRT dispenser forever changed this equation – increasing the supply of toilet paper to meet the demands of busy public restrooms."  

When the jumbo-sized roll was first introduced in 1985, most public restrooms only offered single toilet paper rolls, similar to what people use at home. JRT changed all that by providing the equivalent in length of 10 standard toilet paper rolls in one giant roll.  

In the 25 years since it was invented, the jumbo roll has supported people away from home in jumbo proportions, with nearly 2 billion pounds of toilet paper being used throughout North America.  That's the equivalent of more than 150,000 jumbo elephants, plus the avoidance of the jumbo-sized annoyance that comes with an empty toilet paper dispenser!

Since its introduction in 1985, the original JRT toilet paper dispenser has spawned some equally innovative progeny.  These include:

• Coreless Bath Tissue – Launched in 2001, this product eliminated the cardboard core and hole inside the roll.  In addition to providing more tissue, by getting rid of all those cardboard cores, it reduced packaging waste by 54.6 percent as compared to standard roll bath tissue.
• JRT Coreless Bath Tissue – In 2003, coreless bath tissue was joined by a Jumbo Roll sibling, which also offers more TP and boasts significant reductions in packaging waste.      
• The Electronic JRT Dispenser – Introduced in 2008, eJRT is the first dispenser to automatically dispense toilet paper via an electronic sensor. The ground-breaking dispenser also contains high-capacity coreless bath tissue, with associated packaging waste reductions.

"JRT was clearly a pathfinder product that paved the way for even greater innovations in the world of toilet paper," said Thorne.  "And with our focus on sustainability over the years, we've also increased amounts of recycled fiber content and added Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and Green Seal certified offerings.  Only time will tell where it leads us next."  

About Kimberly-Clark Professional

Kimberly-Clark Professional is an indispensable business partner, delivering leading-edge health, hygiene and productivity solutions that provide tangible value every day, everywhere.  

Kimberly-Clark Professional is also committed to reducing environmental impact at every stage in a product's life cycle with its Reduce Today, Respect Tomorrow program.  Known for innovative, quality solutions for away-from-home washrooms, "clean" and "industrial" manufacturing environments, and DIY settings, the global brands of Kimberly-Clark Professional include Kleenex, Scott, Kimcare, WypAll, KleenGuard, and Kimtech.  With the acquisition of Jackson Safety, Kimberly-Clark Professional offers an even broader range of PPE and other safety offerings, including welding and work-zone safety products.  Located in Roswell, Ga.,

Kimberly-Clark Professional is one of Kimberly-Clark Corporation's four business segments and can be visited on the web at www.kcprofessional.com.  

About Kimberly-Clark

Kimberly-Clark and its well-known global brands are an indispensable part of life for people in more than 150 countries.  Every day, 1.3 billion people - nearly a quarter of the world's population - trust K-C brands and the solutions they provide to enhance their health, hygiene and well-being.  With brands such as Kleenex, Scott, Huggies, Pull-Ups, Kotex and Depend, Kimberly-Clark holds the No. 1 or No. 2 share positions in more than 80 countries.

SOURCE Kimberly-Clark Professional