Excel Dryer’s Healthy Office Oasis

Excel Dryer’s Healthy Office Oasis — IADA 2026 award

Excel Dryer’s Healthy Office Oasis received Bronze Winner recognition at the International Architecture & Design Awards 2026 in Corporate & Office Interior Design. Project status, design team and credits are listed alongside the presentation.

About the project

Excel Dryer’s Healthy Office Oasis balances beauty, function, and purpose in line with the International WELL Building Institute's WELL Certification principles. The concept centered on creating a health-focused workspace that prioritizes occupant wellness, environmental stewardship, and enhanced productivity.

This project reframes the workplace as an ecosystem, one where hygiene, comfort, and environmental responsibility are embedded into the user experience through intentional design. Every element, from materials to mechanical touchpoints, was selected to promote healthier behaviors, reduce stress, and elevate everyday interactions within the built environment.

A defining feature of the project is its emphasis on touch-free, hygiene-forward design, anchored by the D|13 Group’s Integrated Sink System featuring the XLERATORsync® Hand Dryer. By integrating a faucet, soap dispenser, and high-efficiency hand dryer into a single, seamless fixture, this system eliminates the need to move between stations, reducing surface contact and improving both cleanliness and user flow.

Biophilic design elements, including abundant greenery, living plant walls, and strategically placed skylights, connect occupants to nature and reinforce the project’s human-centered approach. Locally sourced materials further connect the project to its surroundings, reducing its carbon footprint and contributing to the regional economy. By integrating these features, the renovation fosters a sense of belonging and well-being, which extends to the larger community through outreach programs and educational opportunities.

Material selection was a critical aspect of the project, including the carpet flooring made with 100% recycled content nylon derived in part from discarded fishing nets. The manufacturer partners with small fishing villages in the Philippines, creating a program that provides a sustainable source of income for these communities while simultaneously addressing marine pollution.

Sustainability is woven throughout the project at both the material and operational levels. Energy-efficient systems, long-life products, and waste-reduction strategies align daily workplace use with long-term environmental goals. Rather than relying on symbolic sustainability gestures, this project demonstrates how durable, high-impact design decisions can deliver measurable benefits over time.

The Excel Dryer Healthy Office Oasis stands as a design-led proof of concept for architects, interior designers, and facility planners, showing how integrated products, biophilic strategies, and human-centered design can work together to create healthier, more responsible workplaces. It reflects Excel Dryer’s belief that great design is not only seen, but felt, supporting people, planet, and performance in equal measure.

Fennick McCredie Architecture

Established in 2003, we envisioned a unique architectural practice that would allow us to work alongside our clients as partners. As designers, we become wholly invested in our clients’ vision and fully immersed in the particular issues it may raise. It follows that our firm’s architectural solutions are unique to each project – no two creative processes can, or should, be exactly alike. We understand the need to balance our ideals of placemaking, community building, and sustainable design with the realities of performance criteria, constructability, schedule, and budget. Striking the right balance for each project is the best way to serve our clients.