“Equipping washrooms with


smart systems will help minimise run-


outs and help to keep premises clean and hygienic.”


The transparentwashroom


Liam Smith from Tork manufacturer Essity looks at how today's apps and technological advances encourage us to share our washroom experiences, and considers how suppliers are rising to the challenges they pose.


Around 28% of people now take a selfie when visiting the toilet of a restaurant, pub or nightclub.


This emerged in a recent study commissioned for the Formica Group interior design company. The study concluded that the selfie craze was being driven by a number of factors, including an impressive washroom décor, flattering lighting, good mirrors – and a sense of fun on the part of the user.


These factors serve to encourage people to take pictures of themselves in the toilet and post them on social media for their friends to ‘like’.


Such a practice would have been unthinkable around 20 years ago, when a washroom visit was essentially considered to be a private experience, but nothing appears to be off limits these days when it comes to taking selfies on a night out.


However, this new habit of photographing everything around us and posting the results on Instagram is helping to improve our surroundings and the service we receive.


We see examples of transparency everywhere. Today’s car workshops and bodyshops often have viewing areas where we can see our cars being repaired, for example. An increasing number of restaurants, too, now offer viewing windows on to the kitchens where we can watch our food being prepared.


And once that food has arrived at our table, many of us feel compelled to photograph it and post the image onto social media sites. So chefs everywhere are upping their game and creating ‘instagrammable’ dishes, while premises are improving their décor and ensuring that they present a clean, well-ordered and professional image.


10 | WASHROOM HYGIENE


The same is true of our washrooms. Increasing numbers of providers are now striving to offer photogenic facilities that offer high levels of cleanliness and hygiene while also creating an attractive backdrop for photographs.


For example, the gents’ toilets at the Main Street Station Casino in Las Vegas often appears on websites and blogs because its urinals feature graffiti-covered sections of the Berlin Wall. These were collected on behalf of the owner when the wall came down in 1989.


Also attracting many selfies are the toilet cubicles at Mrs Fogg's Maritime Club and Distillery, located in London. These have doors that double as museum-style display cabinets where everything from butterflies to beetles, shells and flowers are showcased.


And the loos at the Lux South Ari Atoll Resort on the Maldives have a maritime feel, with toilet seats shaped like whale tails and fixtures themed on fishing buoys. There’s even a photo booth installed to encourage customers to take toilet selfies.


However, members of the public are not only taking photos in toilets to highlight an attractive backdrop. They are also doing so to name and shame those facilities that fail to come up to scratch.


There are a whole host of apps that actually encourage us to share our experiences, both positive and negative. For example, the Toilet Inspector and the Cleen App both enable hygiene-conscious users to review washrooms in public places, such as restaurants, shopping centres, stadiums and airports. The Toilet Inspector even provides a league table of the Top 10 UK public washrooms, and posts an image of the toilet currently considered to be the worst in the country on its home page.


twitter.com/TomoCleaning


"


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24