Five Steps to Water-Related Sustainability in Hospitals

Tip #32

Jana Summey, Vertical Markets Manager at Zurn Elkay

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Hospitals can achieve water-related sustainability. Here are simple steps to help you put a process in place.

Step One: Reduce water usage safely

• Conserve water by utilizing low-flow flush valves in patient rooms and public restrooms.
• Adopt a regular flushing protocol cadence to ensure water flows through fixtures. This aids in the reduction of biofilm and can improve disinfection reach.
• Sensor technology allows a hospital to track water flow and set protocols to automatically flush outlets not getting proper water flow. This allows a hospital to flush outlets, improve safety, and conserve water by only flushing when needed.

Step Two: Analyze water-related fixtures for recyclability

Determine the percentage of recycled materials in the manufacturing process and if they are recyclable at end-of-life.

• Restroom partitions typically range from 90 to 30% recycled materials.
• Stainless steel sinks are typically made of 75% recycled materials and can achieve 100% end-of-life recyclability.
• Backflow preventers can achieve a 48% reduction in bronze material.

Step Three: Use fixtures and equipment with long life cycles

Easy sustainability opportunities can be captured by selecting fixtures built to last longer.

Choose gear-driven ceramic-operated faucets and flush valves over solenoid operation.

• Gear-driven ceramic cartridges are less susceptible to debris and buildup and eliminate water hammer on sensor faucets. They are constructed to withstand harsh chemicals and extreme temperature fluctuations found in hospital water. These design features mean the product lasts longer, over 1,000,000 cycles.

Select diaphragms that don’t break down and lead to water leaks.

• Typical diaphragms use a standard black rubber material prone to breakdown and clogs. Material breakdown leads to water run-ons, leaks and inconsistent flush volumes which creates double flushing and wasting water, leading to repeatedly having to replace them. New thermoplastic elastomers with better filtration are available. These last two times longer and are resistant to monochloramine, leading to less water waste and repeated replacements.

Choose longer-lasting restroom partitions.

• Look for partitions with anti-slamming features. This can significantly reduce wear and tear, increasing their life cycle.

Step Four: Reduce plastic waste and provide safer drinking water

Replace costly water cooler services and bottled water purchases.

• Bottle filling station filtration can reduce harmful contaminants including PFOA/PFOS, lead, cysts, sediment and particles, and microplastics.
• Connected units make it easier to understand water usage at a glance, across all connected units. Scheduling remote flushing can help reduce the risk of Legionella and other waterborne pathogens.
• Bottle filling stations have saved over 2M metric tons of plastic waste, 8.1M metric tons of GHG emissions, and over 84B plastic water bottles since 2012.

Step Five: Track Sustainability Wins and Budget Savings

• Connected bottle filling stations, faucets, flush valves, and backflow preventers make it easy to monitor sustainability metrics and track first cost and MRO expenses.
• Dashboards quickly show progress and areas for improvement and provide data to promote wellness and sustainability for hospital staff, patients and the community.
• Key data and ROI calculations can be utilized to support future sustainability initiatives.

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