As the COVID-19 restrictions ease, many organisations are returning to the office to work and are encouraging their teams to achieve a happy blend of working from home and the workplace. However, offices are no longer going to be the same. Post-COVID-19, a lot has changed in our workplaces and communities. For the “new normal”, desks might be spaced further apart (if space and budget allow), meeting rooms cleaned and disinfected regularly, and kitchen areas – like some supermarkets – one person at a time. What does the new normal hold for office hydration? Let’s find out.
The Problem with Contact Transmission
Hygiene has never been more important, not only to combat COVID but also to prevent other infections from spreading in the workplace. The knowledge that the virus is spread through contact with contaminated surfaces, as well as through inhaling infected respiratory droplets, has put a whole new spin on the use of shared equipment in offices, schools and other public spaces. Shared touch points in the office are numerous, so as a business owner or office manager, it’s your responsibility to identify areas of higher risk where COVID could linger. These touch points include lift buttons, coffee machine keypads, water cooler switches, taps, door handles and so on. Safe distancing and stricter hygiene are very real concerns as businesses aim to return to offices. Providing employees with a ready supply of clean drinking water is still paramount. But what’s also essential is finding ways to do so without creating those hidden-in-plain-sight contamination points. And that’s where contactless water bottle fillers come in.
Contactless Hydration Promotes Hygienic Workplaces
The demand for contactless water dispensers has exponentially increased in the post-COVID world.
Water coolers in the office can simply be retrofitted with a foot pedal so users don’t need to touch the dispenser. One such option is KaliX Cooler with Foot Pedal that improves the hygiene of your office by allowing drinking water to be dispensed without having to handle dispensing taps. The newly designed foot pedals have been added to eliminate the risk of contamination via touch panels. On the other hand, sensor-operated bottle fillers have all of the potential features of more traditionally designed water coolers plus the added benefit of hands-free operation. To use, contactless bottle fillers are incredibly simple. You need only place your bottle beneath the faucet and a timed water stream will begin. Touch-free operation means that zero hand contact is required, eliminating the risk of cross-contamination. Many of these solutions include UV filtration, which further protects people as UV light kills any viruses in the water.
Keep Your Office Hydrated Safely
Contactless hydration solutions are on the rise, as employee health and workplace hygiene are business-critical, now more than ever. Our touch-free water coolers deliver a completely hands-free operation that makes refilling your bottles reassuringly safe and efficient, preventing the spread of germs with automatic sensor refill operation. Consider self-care when returning to the workplace. Don’t miss meals or forget to refill your reusable bottle or glass at the office water cooler, while catching up with colleagues. Good nutrition, hydration, rest, and exercise will all help boost your immunity and help to keep you healthy. If you are looking for more information on your contactless water coolers, feel free to get in touch.