Washrooms

Eau naturel

Now that the Intergovernmental Report on Climate Change has removed any lingering doubts there may have been on the subject of man’s impact on the environment, the 21st Century will see an increasing focus on the practical steps we can all take to deal with the issue. This will present a particularly important challenge for those who design and manage buildings. While energy use is an important factor in this (it’s certainly the most talked about), the efficient use of water also plays a key role and one that will grow in relevance as the impact of climate change grows. Statistics from Envirowise have shown that offices alone waste around 310 million litres of water every working day and has estimated that a very few, simple and inexpensive measures could save industry as much as £304 million a year. There are a number of such steps that building managers can take, both at the initial installation of washroom facilities and at retrofit, to ensure that water is used as efficiently as possible to both save money and also help the environment. These can range from the straightforward to the more sophisticated.At the most simple level, one of the most effective is a product such as PHS Washrooms’ Save-a-Flush, an innovative, inexpensive water saving device which can save as much as a fifth of the water used by toilets when placed into a cistern. When you consider that around 86 per cent of the 35 litres each office worker in the UK uses each day is simply flushed away, this can represent an enormous saving for such a simple device.Carelessly or maliciously left-on taps can also be a serious source of water wastage as well as causing floods, so it can be important to use push action taps that deliver a set amount of water for hand washing. A tap left on while brushing your teeth can use as much as ten litres of water, so imagine the impact of a tap left running indefinitely. It’s obviously better to consider this during an installation, but PHS Washrooms also offers a system called Adapta Tap that can be retrofitted to a wide range of tap types. Automatic flushing urinals are extremely useful as a way of maintaining hygiene and are usually designed to be as efficient as possible in terms of the amount of water they use. Nevertheless they can also be extremely wasteful of water when the number of flushes is out of sync with the number of people using the facility. To help counter this, PHS Washrooms has introduced an innovative technology, the intelligent PHS Water Management System which regulates the flushing of the urinal to match the number of people using the washroom.The Water Management System works by using an infra-red sensor to count the numbers of people using a facility and adjusts the flush rate to once every 10 or 30 minutes accordingly. In sleep mode, the system maintains hygiene standards by flushing once every 8 hours. As well as addressing environmental concerns, the system also helps to save money; an average of around 70 per cent when compared against an uncontrolled cistern and up to 30 per cent against an unintelligent system. The Water Management System has now been accepted on to Defra’s Water Technology List which aims to encourage organisations to use water more efficiently by highlighting the financial benefits to them.Buyers should also look for products designed to have a minimal impact on the environment even when their main function is not environmental protection. For example, the PHS Sani-sleeve is an environmentally sound means of dealing with the dual problems of urinal smells and blockages without the need for harmful chemicals, urinal blocks and constant flushing. It has a four-way positive impact on the environment: its plastic inner sleeve is recyclable; it reduces water use; it has a biodegradable 'enviro block' and it minimises the need for the use of harmful chemicals. In common with the other products, it also offers cost savings from reduced blockages, lower chemical use, lower water use and easier cleaning and maintenance.Such systems are likely to become more and more commonplace as we begin to address the wide number of issues linked to our new and emerging concerns about the environment. They also demonstrate what will become one of the most important new objectives for organisations as the century unfolds; how to save the world and save money at the same time.

Case study - Loch, stock and barrel

They say you never get a second chance to make a first impression. And for facilities managers, their chance to make a first impression starts the moment somebody walks through the doors for the first time. Yet while the front of house areas, receptions, meeting areas in offices, restaurants, cafes and shop floors are often seen as the battlegrounds for the hearts and minds of customers, there is one other area that customers and visitors see as incredibly important; the washroom. ‘It has always been important but changing attitudes mean that providing superb washroom facilities has never been more crucial for both staff and visitors, says Ian Osborne, MD of PHS Washrooms. ‘That is why so many business owners and facilities managers already invest so much time and energy in making sure that their washroom facilities are designed and specified to an exceptional standard. They know they will be judged on these facilities and they also know that it can be business critical in terms of attracting and retaining staff as well as projecting the right image to customers and other visitors. That means not just providing facilities that are well designed and specified but also well maintained, 24 hours a day 7 days a week.’ It’s certainly an issue close to the heart of Rory Cameron, owner of the Clansman Hotel, the only hotel on the banks of Loch Ness in the heart of the Great Glen. ‘Because of our location, we’re closely tied to the tourist industry around the Loch,’ he says. ‘So we have to see ourselves as ambassadors for the region as well as for ourselves as a business. We know that people will judge us on certain important parts of the facilities we offer and we pride ourselves on the total experience they have here and know that the washrooms are an important part of this.’So important, in fact, that the hotel won Loo of the Year Award last year in the national hospitality category. ‘We’re very proud of the award,’ says Rory. ‘It’s prominent on our website because we know how much this matters to everybody and especially to new visitors to the Hotel. It’s testament to the hard work we’ve put into developing the Hotel and also to the services offered by the suppliers with whom we work, including PHS. We’re delighted that they are able to offer us the back-up we need, especially given that we are in such a seemingly remote location. Their ability to deliver on a genuinely national basis is incredibly important to us.’PHS supply the Loch Ness Clansman Hotel with a range of products from its exclusive Platinum range including hand dryers, soap dispensers and vending machines all backed up by the PHS 24-7 Priority service package. The new service is ideal for the Hotel because it offers a helpline connected to PHS’s nationwide network of depots which allow the firm to promise to carry out a free emergency service or repair by the next working day (Monday to Saturday) on all non-electrical items. For electrical items PHS promises to be onsite to deal with the problem within two working days. ‘It’s increasingly essential for firms to be able to offer this kind of service,’ explains PHS Washrooms MD Ian Osborne. ‘We understand that our clients need to ensure that the facilities they provide to their own customers and employees are always in perfect working order. We’re delighted that we can now offer them the kind of added value service that will help their own businesses to thrive. We are the only washroom company in the UK able to offer this scope of service based on our nationwide coverage, superb logistics, qualified personnel and, above all, our can-do attitude.’