While in many ways hygiene is not an issue that requires a lot of thought, you certainly want to take it into consideration. Sure, you probably won’t be able to change the world with your decision concerning which hand soap to purchase, but at the very least, you can keep yourself and your loved ones healthier with these five factors on hygienic equipment design.
In terms of design quality and performance, we all know what’s important. The operable parts of machinery must be smooth, easy to use, and robust so that they won’t malfunction when they’re new and won’t break down over time. But when it comes to hygiene, you should pay attention to additional factors as well. Most importantly, you need to make sure that the materials you use are not porous or absorbent. Materials like cloth or leather tend to be porous, while materials like plastic or metal are not. Additionally, they cannot contain any substances that could cause contamination.
The flow of the wash water is especially important when it comes to the design of medical and laboratory instruments. The water must flow smoothly and evenly, even when the equipment is moved or is being cleaned. And in order to prevent splashes, residues, or any other kind of contamination, the equipment needs to be designed with open channels for the water flow. Flexibility is an important quality in both hygiene and design since it allows you to adapt your cleaning procedures over time as you become accustomed to a machine or device.
- Type of materials for hygienic equipment design:
When you think about hygiene or the design of instruments, it’s probably a given that the materials used are soft and smooth. Soft materials are usually considered to be better at cleaning and sanitising, check more in  . If a material is too soft and can absorb contaminants, it may not clean as well as a harder material because dirt may become trapped in crevices and under small particles. Harder materials, on the other hand, are more difficult for dirt and residue to get trapped in.
- Surface properties of hygienic equipment design:
Surface properties play a huge part in the way that the equipment will perform. You want surfaces that are smooth, not porous or absorbent and have decent adhesion properties. It’s important to consider where contaminants are going to be absorbed because if they are absorbed in a joint or crevice, then they could potentially create problems. This is why you should use materials that resist dirt and residue and are non-absorbent to prevent this problem.
- Effective cleaning:
Cleaning is important to any kind of equipment. You should consider the method by which you clean the instrument as well as how often you clean it. If a piece of equipment is designed so that it is more difficult to clean, then it only makes sense that you would want to clean it less frequently. The methods used to clean each part of the equipment will determine how often they need to be cleaned and what kind of detergents or cleaning agents should be used.
- Appropriate draining methods:
These are basically the same as effective cleaning except they refer to the water. You should consider how much water is needed, how it flows through the instrument, and where it drains. You don’t want to have a flimsy drain that is blocked by hair or other debris because then you will have to clean out the drain at some point as well as clean out whatever got stuck in there. It’s important that your instruments are designed so that they can be easily cleaned and sanitised so that no holes or corners remain untouched.
- Know when to replace equipment:
This is a critical aspect of design, but not always the most important one. If you need to replace an item of equipment because it has broken down or has gotten wet too much then it should be replaced. However, if you don’t need to replace a piece of equipment, then it doesn’t make sense to have one that is significantly more expensive or just as cheap. You can use this rule when determining whether or not to purchase a new machine or whether or not to just buy another sink faucet.
- Computer software:
Not everyone is going to need computer software for their instrument, but it’s definitely very useful in the right situation. It should be compatible with your computer and be able to change or modify the settings of your machine. You might not need this feature if your machine already has a good amount of customization or if it’s only used once a year, but computers can help you develop specific settings that are better suited to individuals.
Final Thoughts:
Hygiene and design are definitely not unique skills that appear overnight. Most designers and engineers can think of ways to improve the way things look, but it takes a lot of practice and skill to create fully hygienic pieces of equipment. Most people are happy to just use their average soap the first few times they use a piece of equipment but by making better decisions, people can avoid potentially harmful contamination while they clean up with ease. All of the points listed above are designed to improve the hygiene of the equipment that you use to clean up with.
