Finally, two years after the start of the pandemic, shopping centres will once again be able to welcome shoppers without major restrictions, but will people again feel safe using the bathroom in such a busy place?
Indeed, it is imperative that construction or renovation projects that are affecting shopping centre bathrooms take into account the new needs of users in the post-covid era.
1) Hygiene for public toilets:
Not surprisingly, hygiene has become a top priority in all areas, and especially in public washrooms: from schools to offices and airports, washroom operators and users know that to ensure the best possible hygiene, contact between the user and surfaces must be minimised. This idea is of course also fundamental in shopping centre toilets, which can be stormed on a single Sunday by thousands of people: how do you allow them not to touch anything with their hands inside the toilet?
By guaranteeing the user a "touch-free" experience, i.e. by installing taps, soap dispensers and towels with infrared sensors that are activated by detecting the presence of the hand, but without it having to come into contact with the product.
Idral responds to this need for hygiene in shopping centre bathrooms with a wide range of products of this type, and also offers complete washbasin kits that can be customised in shape and size according to the characteristics of the project.
2) Safety in public bathrooms:
Although we will soon no longer be required to maintain interpersonal distance in public places, what is certain is that we will no longer be as comfortable as we were before the pandemic in a crowded environment.
It is therefore important that architects designing shopping centre bathrooms make sure that the user feels safe when visiting them. Here are some tips:
- Install partitions between urinals and between washbasin stations
- Design the environment so that users follow a one-way flow of direction, leading them from the toilet, to the wash basin and finally to the hand dryer, without ever turning around; and with separate entrance and exit doors
- Provide ample space outside the toilets to avoid congregations in the washbasin area and if possible, mark the number of free toilets clearly and visibly outside the facilities.
3) Natural environment
Due to the pandemic, which has forced us indoors for a long time, there is an increasing need to get in touch with nature and be outdoors.
This need can easily be translated into the design of shopping centre bathrooms by designing environments that recall natural landscapes, favouring soft shapes and colours inspired by nature, and including plants and elements such as wood and stone. In this way, the user will feel welcomed by a pleasant and relaxing environment and this will contribute to customer loyalty to the shopping centre.
Here are some shopping centre projects where Idral taps and fittings have been installed:
Want ideas to make your next project 2022 safer, more accessible and more sustainable? Contact Idral!
by Francesca Piola
Export Coordinator