b'46 MIA TERMINALS elderly guests or others needing assistance or enhancedIn addition to overseeing restroom renovations, RS&H is also privacy, and helping update and maintain the Aviation Departments Designany guest who prefers using a restroom not identified orGuidelines Manual, which provides standards and criteria for separated according to binary genders.all MIA facilities. If while doing the renovations we find tweaks To accommodate such a wide variety of users, these restroomsto the manual are needed, being able to work with one firm is are equipped with larger fixtures, accessible door handles,a good thing because now that firm disseminates it to others, universal changing tables and additional space for luggage. Smith explains. The Design Guidelines Manual is a living, breathing document thats constantly being updated.Aesthetics and DesignNew fixtures were selected with facility maintenance and Aviation Department and airport leaders challenged designers tosustainability in mind. Energy-conserving choices like low-flow toilets align the new restrooms with existing concourse elements, yet alsoand urinals will reduce water use, and LED lighting will decrease make them noticeably different and better. Outdated green tile thatenergy consumption. Many of the building materials include recycled made the spaces look relatively dark is being swapped out for lighter- content or low levels of volatile organic compounds.colored finishes to brighten and enhance the guest experience. Beyond updating fixtures and materials, the remodel projects Smith reports that the Aviation Department is already receivingare increasing restroom capacity, improving flow and efficiency positive feedback from its own staff about the improvements.with new layouts, and adding baby changing stations to both Specifically, MIA workers are commenting about the improvedmens and womens restrooms. Maintenance requirements ambiance, lighting, lighter colors and clean lines.were another major consideration. While some of the older configurations had fixtures coming directly out of the wall, new Beyond the aesthetics, designers considered the durability ofrestrooms have a chase incorporated into the walls so toilets and materials, fixtures and hardware. We considered the porosity ofurinals can be turned off individually for maintenance, rather than our tiles, for example, Smith notes. You dont want it to absorban entire row at a time.the smells and liquids and so on.March | April 2024AirportImprovement.com'