COVID-19 has definitely changed the way businesses look, with countertop acrylic sneeze guards and glass partitions becoming part of the new normal. If you want your business to operate safely, you will have to follow the guidelines and prep your store or workplace to become as COVID-proof as possible.
Implementing these changes will require immense effort and considerable funding, so it's best to truly understand how your business can benefit from installing sneeze guards and other protective equipment.
Why Are Sneeze Guards Needed?
Sneeze guards are thin and clear sheets made of glass or plastic material designed to be installed in areas where customers and employees interact. These spots include counters and customer service areas.
Sneeze guards can be customized according to location, size, and installation method. One of the best things about them is that they are readily available and easily installed, which means less downtime and expense for businesses as they prepare to reopen.
These transparent barriers help prevent people from transmitting germs to each other or spreading it all in an enclosed closed space. When used together with social distancing and other safety measures, sneeze guards are proven effective in improving the safety conditions of the workplace.
How Can Your Business Benefit from Having Sneeze Guards?
Safety is the primary benefit of having sneeze guards in the workplace. These barriers add an extra layer of protection to prevent customers and employees from infecting others with the virus, in case they have it. Communication between customer and staff will remain comprehensible because of the thin and clear material of the barriers.
Sneeze guards can have small pass-through areas or clearances to allow exchange of payment and other small items while minimizing the risks of transmission. Reduced transmission means lower chances of customers and employees getting sick, which is a good thing not just for the business but for the entire community as well.
Which Businesses Will Need Sneeze Guards?
Basically any business that requires interaction between customers and staff will need to invest in protective equipment. This covers a wide range of establishments, such as restaurants, grocery stores, banks, salons, government offices, and others.
Protection is also needed even for workplaces that do not engage in person-to-person customer service. For the safety of your employees, it is best that you also install barriers between employee workstations to lower the chances of transmission between your staff.
Here are the top businesses that will benefit from sneeze guards and other personal protective equipment:
- Restaurants
Even before the pandemic, partitions are regular inclusions in restaurants because of sanitation requirements. In fact, the evolution of sneeze guards started with buffet-style dining setups. The first sneeze guard was seen in 1958 at Johnny Garneau's American Style Smorgasbord restaurant in Monroeville, Pennsylvania.
Restaurateur Johnny Garneau was a germophobe and he does not like seeing customers hovering over buffet tables with no barrier in between. So he filed a patent for the sneeze guard. Later on, modern sneeze guards became available in a wide range of sizes and styles, in order to fit the various needs of servers and diners.
During a pandemic it's not just the buffet area that needs sneeze guards. Cashiers, food counters, and take-out booths can benefit from sneeze guards. Shared dining tables can also be installed with sneeze guards to separate diners.
Read More: How Restaurant Businesses Adapt to the New Normal
- Salons and Barbershops
Given the amount of physical contact and proximity involved in its common services, salons and barbershops needed to make considerable adjustments to have they do things.
Screen guards can be installed in waiting areas, reception areas, and between styling chairs to give as much distance between customers as possible.
Since it's impossible to eliminate physical contact when it comes to salon services, adjustments have to be made in other ways.
Hairdressers are required to wear masks especially when working on customers. In some places, they are even required to wear a full PPE outfit, complete with eye shields. In these setups, PPE dispensers will definitely come in handy.
As for nail salons, partitions are placed between the manicurist and the customer. An opening is available, just big enough for them to exchange hands. Despite the partition, the manicurist is still required to wear a mask. Depending on the local guidelines, customers may be required to wear masks too in order to avail of the establishment's services.
- Grocery Stores
The risk of getting infected in grocery stores is high because of the sheer volume of people coming in and out of the place. Aside from maintaining social distancing between customers, the stores have to take solid measures to protect cashiers and shoppers from exchanging germs during transactions.
As an additional measure, a lot of grocery stores offer hand sanitizers at the end of the checkout lane and other crucial areas so shoppers can freely sanitize themselves after exchanging hands with the cashier.
- Gyms and Fitness Facilities
One can only imagine the risk levels involved in going to the gym during these times - the amount of germs that circulate around from all that sweat is scary enough to make a lot of people work out at home instead!
But humans are nothing if not adaptable, so gym owners have placed barriers in areas where customers tend to congregate - in between treadmills, exercise bikes, and rowing machines.
One gym in California even went so far as to make "plastic pods" to make working out as safe as possible. Each pod contains a bench, sets of weights, and other small equipment that a customer will need to do a regular weights workout.
Only one person is allowed per pod, making physical distancing possible even when there are several people inside the gym at the same time. Pods and equipment must be stringently disinfected between users.
- Offices
With non-essential workers coming back to their offices, companies are obligated to make the workplace as safe as possible for everyone. Employees working in close proximity with each other is already risky, so again this is where partitions come to the rescue.
Offices are required to place employees with one workstation apart from each other. If this is not possible, partitions between workstations is the most viable solution. Suppliers are actually running out of Plexiglass because of gigantic demand from companies needing to install barriers in their offices.
Fortunately, there are more affordable alternatives, such as acrylic sneeze guards, that can be used in place of glass.
Safety For All
Does your workplace have the essential protection in place to keep your customers and employees safe? Displays & Holders can help transform your shop or office into a COVID-free environment.
We offer countertop acrylic sneeze guards, PPE dispensers, and other protective equipment. Visit our website today!
