What are Floor Mounted Overhead Braced Toilet Partitions?

Working together, restroom designs and floor mounted overhead braced toilet partitions play a role in reflecting corporate values and image. The design choices made in these spaces can communicate a company’s commitment to quality, innovation, and environmental responsibility.

Moreover, maintaining consistent design elements throughout a building, including restrooms, helps reinforce brand recognition and create a cohesive experience. Investing in high-quality restroom facilities and design makes a positive impact on customer loyalty and the likelihood of repeat business. The layout and upkeep of restrooms are tangible indicators of your business values and influence how the organization is perceived.

There’s more than meets the eye. Employee morale is a part of this equation. Workplace restrooms have a direct impact on worker morale and productivity, as well-maintained restrooms contribute to greater satisfaction.

Believe it or not, providing positive restroom experiences can increase productivity and a reduction in sick days. In the same breath, neglecting the design and condition of your restrooms can send a negative message to employees, suggesting a lack of concern. Recognizing the amount of time your employees spend at their workplace demonstrates that the company cares.   

Culturally speaking, corporate upgrades underscore a broader impact and environment on the people who use all areas of their building’s workspace. Toilet partitions should represent an investment that saves on maintenance and replacements over the long run.

With that said, you may be wondering: How does spending enough on your restrooms contribute to a functional, comfortable space that benefits everyone?

Adaptability of Floor Mounted Overhead Braced Toilet Partitions

The adaptability of floor mounted overhead braced toilet partitions makes them suitable for a wide array of commercial restroom types, with material and features tailored to the demands of each setting.

For instance, school restrooms see high traffic and are potentially subject to vandalism. Sturdy partition materials like solid plastic or phenolic are increasingly popular, often paired with anti-grip headrails to deter misuse.

For office buildings, a balance between durability and aesthetics is important. While more economical options like powder-coated steel or laminate might suffice in lower-traffic areas, higher-end corporate offices may call for a sophisticated look in stainless steel or phenolic partitions.

Restaurants prioritize ease of cleaning and maintenance, making solid plastic or phenolic good choices. The open design beneath the partitions can also be advantageous in busy food establishments, allowing staff and customers to easily see if a stall is occupied.

Shopping centers and malls, characterized by high user volume and potential for wear and tear, favor robust and vandal-resistant materials. That’s why you’ll usually find solid plastic or stainless steel partition materials there.

At the other end of the spectrum, industrial buildings need strength and functionality. Many facilities managers benefit from cost-effective yet sturdy options like powder-coated steel or solid plastic.

Another example is health care facilities. Hygiene is of paramount importance, as well as non-porous and easily cleanable materials. Solid plastic, phenolic, or stainless steel are sought-after choices.

As you can see, a range of building and business requirements call for appropriate materials and features for floor-mounted overhead partitions. It all comes down to the design.

Wide Usage of Design in Commercial Projects

Floor mounted overhead braced toilet partitions are, more or less, characterized by their robust structure and adaptability. Most feature pilasters firmly bolted to the floor, providing a stable foundation for the entire toilet cubicle edifice.

One defining element is the headrail, a horizontal brace that connects the tops of pilasters and is securely attached to your restroom’s adjacent walls. This overhead bracing makes everything more rigid, offering a stable structure compared to partitions that are only floor-mounted. Many headrails incorporate an anti-grip design with a pointed top that discourages hanging or pulling on it, which users are prone to do.

But what style of toilet partition do most businesses choose? Certain corporate buildings, industrial settings, civic spaces, and schools fit a specific profile. They need to withstand energetic activity.

Office buildings often benefit from this style, offering privacy yet durability that’s suitable for employees and visitors. Restaurants benefit from it as well, where the gap beneath the partitions allow customers to quickly ascertain stall occupancy without disturbing anyone inside. Amusement parks and large shopping malls also choose floor-mounted overhead braced partitions to accommodate huge numbers of visitors.

In situations where high ceilings might preclude using other configurations, these partitions do the job. The consistent appearance of this style speaks to its versatility and reliability in managing the rigors of frequent use.

Engineering of Floor Mounted Overhead Braced Toilet Partitions

There’s much more to the story behind floor mounted overhead braced toilet partitions. The structural integrity relies on components working exactly in concert with each other.

The pilasters are primary vertical supports, typically standing at 82 inches, with 12 inches extending above the door frame. These are anchored firmly to the floor.

Connecting the tops of these pilasters is the headrail, commonly made of aluminum that’s anodized. The headrail typically measures around 1-2/4 inches in thickness and extends to the surrounding walls. Panels and doors, which form the enclosure of the toilet stall, have a height of approximately 55 inches and are mounted 14 inches above the finished floor. 

The longevity of partitions depend on the quality of the hardware used, including hinges that allow the doors to swing, latches to secure the stall, stops and keepers for door alignment, brackets for attaching panels and the headrail, and shoes that cover the base of the pilasters. This hardware is frequently available in aluminum and more robust stainless steel options.

Even the fasteners play a role in security, with theft-proof head screws, including some with a six-lobe design commonly employed to deter vandalism. The consistent specifications of these components across different manufacturers encourage standardized design and installation practices for a wide range of projects.

A Diverse, Valuable, Variety of Materials

Another benefit of floor mounted overhead braced toilet partitions is the wide variety of materials available, enabling customization to meet project budgets. This flexibility allows for a targeted approach, including:

• Powder-coated steel. This is an economical option, providing good rust resistance, though less suitable for high-moisture environments.
• Solid plastic (HDPE). This is long-lasting and water-resistant, perfect for high-traffic and damp settings. It’s also resistant to graffiti and easy to clean.
• Plastic laminate. An affordable and customizable solution, this choice is less resistant to moisture and vandalism.
• Phenolic core (compact laminate). This is known for its exceptional strength, water and graffiti resistance, and hygienic qualities.
• Stainless steel. The most expensive option, stainless steel offers unmatched durability, corrosion resistance, and a high-end appearance.

“It is rather a challenge to find the right thickness of bathroom partitions,” states The Architect’s Diary. “Doing so will chiefly depend on the type of bathroom materials used as well as other parts of the bathroom partitions format. Building owners should choose suppliers that can support how bathroom partition measurements impact the rest of the setup.”

Overall, you want pilasters to be firm and stay in proper alignment. You’ll want to consider a bevy of materials to complement or contrast with partition panels and other fixtures.

“Bathroom partition pilasters are said to be more with an architectural aspect about them and are found in a lot of building types,” the same article states. “But chiefly, it is a support element to a structure that somehow enhances the appearance of it as well. Its history has been often associated with wall extensions and other similar use.”

Floor Mounted Overhead Braced Toilet Partitions and Perceptions

Businesses looking at floor mounted overhead braced toilet partitions should take note: a recent survey commissioned by Cintas Corporation reveals that restroom cleanliness significantly influences customer perception.

About 74 percent of Americans report a negative view of businesses with dirty restrooms, and 68 percent are similarly affected by empty dispensers. This survey, conducted by The Harris Poll, polled over 2,000 U.S. adults in 2021.

The COVID-19 pandemic has also amplified the importance of facility cleanliness, particularly for a business’s reputation. While a clean, well-stocked restroom is crucial across all demographics, older Americans are more sensitive to restroom hygiene. Approximately 92 percent of adults aged 65 and older report that dirty restrooms would negatively impact their perception of a business, compared to only 56 percent of those aged 18-34.

The survey also found that other areas of facility maintenance can impact people’s perceptions of a business.

“More than two thirds of Americans (68%) say dirty floors would cause them to have a negative perception of a business,” according to Cintas. “More than half of Americans say dirty building entryways (57%), obvious use of dirty mops (56%), dirty windows/exterior glass (51%) and poorly maintained parking lots (51%) would influence their opinion of a business negatively.”

There is growing interest in the use of antimicrobial materials and finishes in restroom surfaces to inhibit the spread of germs. Notably, these post-pandemic priorities reflect a heightened awareness of public health and a desire to create safer, cleaner restroom spaces. Toilet partitions are definitely part of the conversation.

Insights Behind the Evolving Landscape of Restrooms

The landscape of commercial restroom design and floor mounted overhead braced toilet partitions is continuously evolving, with different factors shaping trends and considerations. Obviously, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact, leading to an increased focus on hygiene and the adoption of touchless solutions across restroom fixtures.

There’s also a heightened demand for materials that are not only strong but also easy to clean and disinfect effectively. Sanitary versus non-sanitary environments are getting a second and third look, consistently.

There’s also a growing emphasis on privacy and comfort in commercial restrooms. Users want more private experiences, sometimes even driving demand for toilet partitions with full-height panels and no-sightline designs that minimize gaps.

Considerations around noise levels and soundproofing are also gaining importance. The goal is to move away from purely utilitarian restroom designs and create spaces that feel more convenient, private, and less institutional in nature.

ASI Global Partitions

Only ASI Global Partitions designs, engineers, and manufactures fully integrated floor mounted overhead braced toilet partitions, lockers, and visual display products from one source. ASI is a leading manufacturer of washroom accessories with a wide range of products and a 48-hour delivery time.

We offer a single warranty across all products and have a strong track record, with installations in prestigious projects worldwide. Our commitment to customer service is evident through tools like ASI Connect and ASI Design Studio, which streamline ordering and customization.

We are dedicated to innovation and meeting customer needs, as demonstrated by our willingness to create unique solutions.