Public toilets do tend to have a very bad reputation, with the common conception being that public toilets are unhygienic, badly designed, unattractive and often broken. This can lead to people refusing to visit the facilities at public places, such as shopping centres, which can negatively impact their experience and result in customers heading home early.
To keep your customers happy and spending more time in your shopping centre, it is vital that you create attractive and clean facilities for everyone to use. For mall washroom design, Spectrum Cubicles has used our substantial experience in the production of high quality public toilets to provide this guide on how you can create shopping centre toilets that the public will love.
Mandatory specifications
When creating your facilities, ensure you are abiding to the minimum number of provisions you must have. For a shopping centre with a retail area in excess of 1,000 m2, you will need:
- 1 WC for 500 males, and thereafter 1 for every additional 1,000 (or part of) males. In the case of no urinals being used, you should use half of the number of WCs as those used for the women’s facilities.
- 2 urinals for up to 500 males, and thereafter 1 for every additional 500 (or part of) males.
- 1 washbasin per every male WC, plus 1 for every 5 (or part of) urinals.
- 1 WC for every 100 females up to 500, and thereafter 1 for every additional 200 (or part of) females.
- 1 washbasin, plus 1 for every 2 (or part of) WCs.
If you’re having trouble getting to grips with the mandatory specifications for your shopping centre, don’t worry, a professional service, such as the one we provide here at Spectrum Cubicles, will be able to advise you on the correct number of facilities you will need.
Privacy
The privacy of your facilities’ users must be upheld at all times – we’d recommend opting for solid, full length cubicles and situating the main doors so that the WCs and urinals are out of sight. It is also advisable to ensure that mirrors can’t be seen from outside the facilities if the door was to open as the reflection from the mirror may compromise the privacy levels of the facilities.
Hygiene and maintenance
The hygiene of your facilities is an important consideration, not just for the comfort of the users, but for your cleaners too. You should use a hygienic material that is easily cleaned, to make upholding high levels of hygiene much easier.
Aluminium components are a must in public toilets as the material is easily cleaned and looks bright, new and appealing for very long periods of time. This will help to make your facilities look and feel like a hygienic place and encourage visitors to your shopping centre that these are quality, cared for facilities.
Tiles are a great floor and wall covering you should consider as they are very easy to maintain and keep hygienic.
Design options
There are many design options available to you to make your facilities attractive and welcoming – whether it’s crisp, clinical aluminium and sleek white marble sinks for a minimal aesthetic or rich, indulgent wooden surfaces and doors and bright, airy cubicles for a more relaxed and welcoming environment. If you need a bit of inspiration, or need help turning your own ideas into reality, employ the services of an experienced and dedicated design team to help get your facilities underway.
For more design inspiration for your facilities, or for details on the quality of work we produce here at Spectrum Cubicles, why not take a look at some of our case studies? We’ve been lucky enough to work on some fantastic projects, including the refurbishments of both House of Fraser and Alton Towers.
Spectrum Cubicles are well experienced in creating beautiful and functional facilities across the retail industries. Our talented designers will work with you to produce the ideal facilities for your establishment, taking hygiene, maintenance and privacy into consideration to ensure that your facilities are one that the customer will be more than comfortable to use. Get in contact today for more information, we’ll be happy to help in any way we can.