All commercial, institutional, and industrial buildings need washrooms. Not only are they required by codes to provide basic health and hygiene services, but they are also among the most used spaces in the building. If they are given little design attention, then it usually shows up in terms of dissatisfied users, higher cleaning and maintenance costs, and unhappy building owners. However, if they are designed well, then they can create a much more positive impression of the building than many people may realize. This not only applies to the size, shape, and materials used in the space, but more noticeably, to all of the fixtures, components, and accessories that people actually use in restrooms. The aesthetic design of the total space is important but so are the functional and cleanliness characteristics of washrooms. This course addresses all of these aspects and looks at some of the most current options to coordinate the total design and functionality thus creating washrooms that are fully “state-of-the-art” using readily available systems and products.

Photo courtesy of Bradley Corporation

Well-designed restrooms with functional and hygienic fixtures and accessories make a notable difference in the way building users perceive the quality of the entire building or the operation, such as a business or institution.

EXPECTATIONS OF USERS

Virtually everyone uses public restrooms in commercial buildings of all types. That means most people have had some good experiences with them and some negative experiences. Defining the difference has been the quest of one manufacturer of washroom products who conducts an annual “Healthy Handwashing Survey” to collect some unbiased, candid feedback about people’s perceptions, preferences, and problems when commercial restrooms are used. The latest survey queried 1,025 American adults between January 4-10, 2023, about their handwashing habits, concerns about the coronavirus and flu, and their use of public restrooms. Participants were from around the country and were fairly evenly split between men (45 percent) and women (55 percent). Some of the current results are summarized in the following sections.

Handwashing and Health

Perhaps Americans have a heightened awareness of handwashing following the COVID-19 pandemic, but the survey found that a whopping 93 percent of adults believe handwashing is essential to maintaining their overall health, a sentiment that’s nearly universal across gender, age, and geography. The survey also found some particular times that people think about handwashing, such as during road trips where 75 percent of adults make a conscious effort to wash their hands wherever they stop along the way. Similarly, 69 percent are diligent about handwashing when at an airport and 63 percent do the same when a special occasion occurs or the holidays approach. That suggests the importance of the need for good handwashing opportunities in a lot of building types, especially those related to travel and hospitality.

Image courtesy of Bradley Corporation

Since 2009, more Americans say they are washing their hands more diligently due to flu and/or coronavirus outbreaks.

There are other insights into people’s current feelings about health and washrooms. In particular, three in four Americans continue to be in an elevated state of germ consciousness, triggered by the pandemic. Specifically, Americans are most concerned about germs in stores (48 percent), medical facilities (44 percent), gas stations (37 percent), restaurants (34 percent) and schools (25 percent). The survey also found that 65 percent of Americans have a particularly negative impression when they see someone who doesn’t wash their hands after using a restroom. Clearly the connection between good hygiene and good health is deeply embedded in people’s minds and plays out in many commercial buildings with public restrooms.

Germ Avoidance

An interesting insight from the survey is the multiple means that people will take to avoid germs. It appears that the majority of Americans are so averse to coming into contact with germs in public restrooms that they go out of their way to avoid surfaces and touchpoints in these shared spaces. As many as 62 percent of Americans use a paper towel as a barrier to avoid touching flushers, faucets, and doors. Women are even more likely to use the “paper towel as a glove” approach, with 67 percent taking this evasive measure. Others employ sheer physical means to steer clear of germs. Reportedly, 43 percent use their foot to flush toilets, 31 percent hover over the toilet seat, and 27 percent open and close doors with their backside in hopes of avoiding germy contact. Women are significantly more likely than men to employ these actions. With so much effort going into evading germs, it’s no wonder that 82 percent of adults believe it is important to have touchless fixtures (i.e., those that operate automatically with a sensor) in a public restroom.

Business Impacts

With this enhanced sense of cleanliness and hygiene in public restrooms, it is not surprising that people tend to judge a business or other facility by the quality and cleanliness of the restrooms there. The survey discovered that almost 60 percent of Americans make it a point to stop at a business and will spend more money at the establishment if they know it has clean and maintained restrooms. Further, those aged 25-44 are even more likely to spend more at a business based on the condition of their restroom.

Conversely, there are negative business repercussions for experiencing a restroom in poor condition. More than half of Americans say an unclean or unpleasant public bathroom shows poor management and causes them to lower their opinion of the overall establishment. The 55+ age group is especially turned off by unkempt restrooms with more than 60 percent reporting a damaged impression of the overall business. To make matters worse, almost 20 percent say a sloppy restroom actually makes them less likely to clean up after themselves. Perhaps the most damaging insight for customer-facing businesses is that 52 percent say a bad restroom experience causes them not to return in the future or think twice about doing so. Another 32 percent will either tell a friend or post a comment on social media about the negative encounter. While there are a variety of restroom maintenance issues that may tarnish customers’ restroom experiences, the most common ones include clogged or unflushed toilets; an overall appearance that is old, dirty, or unkempt; unpleasant smells; and empty or jammed dispensers for soap, toilet paper, and hand towels. Clearly, finding ways to avoid those situations, both in design and maintenance, can go a long way toward improving things for any business.

Other Impacts

Businesses aren’t the only buildings that need to pay attention to these findings. Institutional buildings, such as schools, hospitals, government buildings, etc. all are subject to the same concerns and responses. For example, looking specifically at schools, where washrooms receive a lot of daily use, U.S. high school students were surveyed. The top three places that students are most concerned about coming into contact with germs are: school restrooms (63 percent); classrooms (50 percent); and the cafeteria (42 percent). Restrooms in particular seem to be the most scrutinized by students, teachers, and staff for being clean, hygienic, functional, and accessible. Up to 50 percent of high school students in the U.S. rate their school restroom facilities as poor or fair while only 6 percent describe them as excellent. High school students’ top suggestions for school restroom improvement are: 1) cleaner restrooms that are stocked more frequently with soap, paper towels, and toilet paper, and 2) restrooms in which everything is touchless – with reliable technology.

All of this information is very useful when designing washrooms that seek to meet the demands of users, maintain a positive image of the building, and keep it functioning well and profitably for the owner.

Photo courtesy of Bradley Corporation

The importance of handwashing as it relates to good health and hygiene indicates an increased need for good, coordinated design in commercial restrooms.

WASHROOM DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS

Understanding the significance and importance of washrooms leads to investigating the best ways to achieve creating well-designed and well-functioning solutions. Architects and other design professionals can focus on the best layouts and overall aspects of washrooms as a starting point. Making washrooms easy to find and accessible but appropriately separated from other spaces helps with the general impressions and usability of the rooms. From there, it is a matter of identifying the best materials, fixtures, and accessories to use to maximize a positive experience. These are the things that every person comes in direct contact with, so attention to their details makes a difference.

Clearly, all materials and products first need to address good hygiene. That means they need to be durable, easy to clean, with an attractive finish surface that doesn’t support microbial growth. Further, to avoid germ transfer, incorporating touchless operation of everything from doors to soap dispensers will go a long way toward achieving the desired results. These principles are discussed as they relate to different aspects of washroom design in the following sections.