Workplace hygiene is of utmost importance, just as equipment is to getting work done. If you wonder why, well, there are a lot less chances of getting ill when working in a neat and clean space. This creates a more positive working environment for everyone.
It is clear that many businesses have put a lot of effort into increasing their hygiene levels, especially in the toilets. However, much more is needed to achieve this than a few towels and some toilet paper.
It’s all about providing proper facilities. Two principal types of facilities, to be exact. Practical facilities are related to certain hygiene items.
Meanwhile, design ones are related to how the restroom is put together.
Are you willing to create better workplace hygiene for your workers? Good! We’ve created a brief guide to the things your workplace restroom must have.
Facility maintenance
Getting the facilities right is important, but restroom maintenance is crucial too. After all, anything that is not in perfect condition is not going to be as effective as it should be.
Appointing a facility manager from your staff helps to keep everything in shape. But, is your workplace is larger than the average? If it is, we advise you to consider renting rather than buying facilities.
Practical bathroom facilities
1) Hand Dryers
Three methods of drying hands in the workplace restroom are possible. These are electric hand dryers, cloth roller towels and disposable paper towels. Electric hand dryers are very effective in drying your hands. However, it has been shown that bacteria levels actually increase by up to 254% on palms and 194% on finger pads.
Meanwhile, modern jet air dryers can extend contamination distance by 2 meters. On the other hand, disposable paper towels are much more effective. They reduce bacteria by 76% on finger pads and by 77% on palms. But most importantly, being disposable makes the risk of contamination negligible. At least as long as the bins have proper and functional lids.
The cloth roller towel is highly hygienic too. Since cloth towel dispensers are closed, the used section of a roller towel is unreachable, which reduces contamination significantly. It was found in 2007 that with cotton roller towels bacterial levels decreased by 85% on the hands.
2) Hand Soap Dispensers
Soap is the fundamental agent in cleaning hands, but the old version of a soap bar is not the best option. These tend to gather dirt on their surface. This does not mean cross-contamination is possible (lather washes away the bacteria). It just doesn’t look hygienic so workers usually don’t like it.
Far better version of soap is in liquid, foam or spray form, made available in hand soap dispensers. The dispensers completely protect the actual soap from getting contaminated. Meanwhile, the push-button release mechanism minimises the contamination.
3) Hand Sanitizers
The hand sanitiser is an addition of value required to maintain high hygiene levels. Therefore, it is important to know that it should be used only as an addition to the soap and hand drying system. That’s because sanitising dispensers only remove the transient bacteria that live only on the skin’s surface. More dangerous bacteria lie beneath the surface and can be eliminated more effectively by soap.
Facility design
A lot of things are covered by the restroom design. From the type of doors to the actual combination of colours chosen for a particular facility.
For example, while soap dispensers effectively help workers clean their hands, having a hands-free soap dispenser lowers the risk of contamination from the dispenser button a lot.
Similarly, an automatic flush on a toilet prevents contamination since there is no handle to be contaminated.
Hygiene starts at the restroom threshold, that’s why the swing doors are the most suitable. The design is a walk-in entrance which uses dividers that block the view from the outside but requires no doors.
It is obvious that cubicle doors need to have a lock. Slide latches or push button locks are more hygienic than twist mechanism latches. They need to be gripped.
Work in a school? Here’s all you need to know about school washrooms from the necessary facilities, cubicle sizes, health and safety concerns, washroom design and best workplace hygiene practices.
A Clean And Hygienic Toilet Room
Alsco provides restroom stock and maintenance management services as part of a rental program, which means your staff can focus on their primary tasks instead of wasting time on washroom hygiene and maintenance.
For more inquiries contact Alsco now, our friendly representatives are available to you!
Sources:
- ‘Washing with Contaminated Bar Soap is Unlikely to Transfer Bacteria’, JE Heinze and F Yackovich (1988), US National Library of Medicine
- ‘A Comparative Study of Three Different Hand Drying Methods: Paper Towel, Warm Air Dryer, Jet Air Dryer’, K Redway and S Fawdar, School of Biosciences, University of Westminster, London (2008)
Photo courtesy of Flickr Images by simone.brunozzi
