Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Five Reasons To Go "Touchless" In Your Restroom

  • By Neal Duffy
  • 07/01/14

If there were a magic bathroom experience utopia, users wouldn’t need to touch a single surface — which isn’t as unattainable as it seems.

The concept of touchless has been around for more than 10 years. Touchless not only limits users from coming in direct contact with germs, but reduces time spent on refills and maintenance — all while saving money. Here’s a breakdown of some of the benefits:

Prevent the spread of bacteria
Viruses and bacteria such as staphylococcus, E. coli, hepatitis A, the flu and the common cold lurk on bathroom surfaces like doorknobs, countertops, soap pumps and toilet seats. Offering touch-free alternatives helps keep users healthy.

Waste reduction
Touchless controls the amount of product used, which reduces waste. An automated towel dispenser, for example, delivers a specific amount of paper, reducing waste and time on refilling.

Efficiency
People don’t want to spend more time in a public bathroom than they have to. Touchless systems create a smooth-running bathroom by delivering the right amount of product without direct contact.

Cost reduction
Touchless helps save money. By limiting the amount of product used, you spend less time on refilling and less money ordering new product. Facility managers can manage spend, and maintenance staff will spend less time cleaning and refilling, saving money.

Convenience drives compliance
When people encounter soiled, bulk-fill soap dispensers or non-automated fixtures, they may not wash their hands. Providing a sealed, sanitary and touchless solution encourages them to do so. This better accomplishes your goals and will reduce absenteeism.

Automated towel, soap, sanitizer dispensers, as well as touch-free fixtures such as automatic flushers and sinks can help. These will reduce touch points in the most germ-filled parts of a restroom. For facilities that have not gone touchless yet or are only partway there, consider why the upgrade warrants the investment.

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

About the Author

Neal Duffy, senior manager, Facility Solutions, Staples Advantage (www.staplesadvantage.com), is a 30-year veteran of the janitorial and sanitary maintenance industry with manufacturing and distribution experience.

Featured

  • Rethinking K-12 Schools as a Continuous Learning Experience

    Most students move through three or more separate facilities during their K-12 journey, yet the built environments they encounter at each stage have traditionally been designed in isolation, with little continuity in spatial language, learning philosophy, or physical resources. Each new school is a reset with different layouts, learning models, expectations, and ways of moving through a building. The next generation of school design is making the case that the first day of kindergarten and the last day of high school can and should feel connected through common support systems and infrastructure in the physical environment.

  • Planning with Clarity: Using AI to Make Better Campus Decisions, Not Just Better Designs

    Higher education leaders are being asked to make increasingly high-stakes decisions about campus facilities amid greater uncertainty than ever before. Social and economic pressures, shifting enrollment, and evolving learning models compete with growing deferred maintenance needs to strain even the most robust infrastructure budgets.

  • Virginia Tech Tops Out New College of Engineering Building

    Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va., recently celebrated the topping out of Mitchell Hall, which will soon stand as the largest College of Engineering building on campus, according to a news release. The university partnered with Skanska on the 285,500-square-foot facility, which has an expected completion date of winter 2028.

  • Children walking along bright school corridor with motion blur

    How Next-Gen Design Is Reshaping the Student Experience

    The environments where students learn play a crucial role in shaping their growth in and out of the classroom. By centering design on well-being, flexibility, and purpose, districts can ensure their facilities remain vibrant community assets for many years to come.